KARACHI, Jan 2: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has said that strong defence is the cornerstone of a security shield behind which the nation strives for stable economy, internal cohesion and external policies.

Speaking to the officers of Karachi and Malir garrisons at the corps auditorium here on Thursday, he said though the government faced resource constraints, it had fully met the defence requirements and told the officers that they were handling expensive state-of-art weapons and equipment and should train their men to make optimum use of the high-tech weaponry.

The president said that the advanced technology was part of modern surveillance systems, information management systems, simulators, sensors etc., thus future wars would be more technical and require integrated service operations.

He paid tributes to the soldiers who had joined the Pakistan Army that was deployed and actively defended the frontiers of the country. “The regiments and battalions you are serving in have glorious traditions and histories. These have been established and nurtured by the martyrs who readily and without hesitation sacrificed their lives,” he added.

The president explained the international, regional and domestic issues faced and successfully resolved keeping Pakistan’s national interests foremost during the past three years.

He said that Pakistanis were justified in feeling proud of having defeated Indian confrontational design of trying to coerce Pakistan using military and diplomatic pressure and claimed that the withdrawal of Indian troops from the border was an indication of Pakistan’s victory without a war.

Earlier, on his arrival at the corps headquarters the president was received by Corps Commander Lt-Gen Tariq Waseem Ghazi and was briefed on operational matters related to the existing deployment, de-induction and relocation of the corps.—PPI