ISLAMABAD, April 11: More than 200 senior army officers from 22 countries who have gathered here to discuss new tactics and strategy in their joint mission to combat terrorism were told by politicians and experts on Wednesday that military means alone were not going to win them the much talked about global war against terrorism.

For many of the regulars on the international seminar circuit -- where terrorism has been the mantra over the past few years -- it may have been the expected rhetoric. But quite a few delegates, from the United States to a number of Asian, Arab and African countries, received a kind of shock-n-awe treatment through speeches in which the real message was to look for the “root causes” of terrorism rather then just going after the “faceless” enemy.

The setting was the main auditorium of the recently upgraded National Defence University (NDU), and the occasion was the opening session of a two-day symposium on “Common Security and the Global War on Terror”. Jointly hosted by Pakistan Army and the US Army Central, the Land Forces Symposium is being attended by senior commanders from countries as varied as Afghanistan, Australia, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Tajikistan, Turkey, the UAE and Yemen.

Pakistan's was understandably the largest group, followed by the United States, with many of its senior officers from the American Special Forces also in attendance.

The tone for what can be described as a kind of “reality check” was set by the host, the vice chief of army staff, General Ahsan Saleem Hayat, when he questioned the wisdom for the use of phrase “global war” when the real aim was to win the hearts and minds.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, while defending Pakistan's decision to join the fight against terrorism, insisted on finding the root causes of the conflicts and issues. His view was that if those involved in the global fight only concentrated on military strategy, it was not going to take them anywhere. And capping the discussion in the opening session, politician and analyst Mushahid Hussain Syed warned against putting too much emphasis on a military strategy against what he described as a “nameless, faceless and stateless enemy”. In order to win the hearts and minds, he called for a change in the course of the policy as, according to him, if the war on terror lacked the moral legitimacy on the streets of Muslim world, then such military efforts were bound to prove counter-productive.

In between, the co-host, Lt-Gen (retd) Steven Whitcomb, commander of the US Army Central, praised the gathering of military commanders from such a large number of countries and said it clearly demonstrated their will and desire to fight the scourge of terrorism together. His view was that what they were collectively doing was not for today, but for the future generations.

During the panel discussion, a delegate from Egypt, Dr Mahmood M. Khalf, apart from giving views on ways to combat terrorism criticised media for glorifying extremism and extremist groups. He suggested that a ban be placed on such statements and websites glorifying such people be shut down.

Prime Minister Aziz in his speech warned the US against cross-border incursions, in an apparent reaction to the firing by US forces in Afghanistan at military targets in Pakistan's territory on occasions and even the incidents of crossing the border sometimes.

“The sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan is sacrosanct. Our armed forces are fully capable of taking any action required on our territory,” he remarked.

He also observed that given the sacrifices that Pakistan had made in the war on terror, any legislation critical of Pakistan would invoke a negative public reaction and would prove to be counter-productive.

According to an official press release, the prime minister stressed that differences of opinion between Washington and Islamabad should be resolved through quite diplomacy rather than the media.He said Pakistan was a key partner in the international campaign against terrorism and its contributions were internationally recognised. Several hundred terrorists including some high value targets have been captured or eliminated. “Despite terrorist attacks on the president and myself, our resolve to fight terrorism is unshaken. We are fighting this war in our own national interest, not at the behest of someone else. Terrorism is a common enemy and it must be eliminated,” he remarked.

He also stressed that terrorism had nothing to do with Islam, which is a religion of peace and harmony. The actions of a few misguided individuals should not be used to denigrate all Muslims. He said it was essential to bridge the growing gulf between the Muslim world and the West through dialogue and understanding.

He said as a responsible nuclear power, Pakistan was committed to non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems. He said Pakistan's nuclear assets were managed under a fail-safe Command and Control System. He said an effective regime to prevent the leakage of nuclear materials and technology had also been put in place.

“While Pakistan will continue to support global efforts for non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, we believe that there should be no selective or discriminatory approaches to the availability of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes under the appropriate safeguards regime”.

In his opening remarks, General Ahsan Saleem Hyat highlighted the importance of the theme of the symposium. He said that the theme was relevant to the times in which “we live and struggle together for peace, progress and harmony”. The underlying thought in common security is that of a shared threat spectrum, threat due to terrorism, hence coinage of the term Global War on Terror. He talked about national interest and global interest, stating that global interest was about bringing peace, togetherness and a more delivering world for the future of our children.

Talking about the role of media, he said that media controlled the hearts and minds of people. “Whose story is it willing to tell or is inclined to tell makes the real difference,” he said. He added that media shaped the opinion and portrayal by media was critical for the efforts for peace.

Lieutenant General, R. Steven Whitcomb, Commander US Army Central, in his address said that this was a significant event. “In the broader picture, it is important that we can get together to share ideas, to further our relationships and continue to enhance our cooperation with each other,” he said. Events like this provide a unique opportunity to accomplish these goals.