PM Imran Khan termed the formulation and approval of Pakistan’s first national security policy “a historic moment”
The National Security Committee (NSC) on Monday approved Pakistan’s first national security policy – the first of its kind document in the country’s history.
The document will now be presented before the cabinet for final approval.
Pakistan’s National Security Advisor (NSA) Dr. Moeed Yusuf presented the National Security Policy (NSP) 2022-26 at the 36th meeting of NSC chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan and was attended by key federal ministers as well as Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, the three services chiefs and senior civil and military officers.
PM Imran Khan termed the NSP’s formulation and approval “a historic moment”. He said that the NSP “must guide all organs of the government to ensure that their efforts are synchronized with the overall direction of the NSP.” He instructed the National Security Adviser to present an implementation progress report to the NSC every month.
The NSA briefed the participants on the salient features of the NSP. He highlighted that Pakistan was shifting to a Comprehensive National Security Framework whereby the ultimate purpose of national security was to ensure the safety, security and dignity of the citizen of Pakistan.
“To ensure this citizen-centric approach to security, the NSP put economic security at the core. A stronger economy would create additional resources that would, in turn, be judiciously distributed to further bolster military and human security.”
Participants were informed that the NSP had been created through a whole-of-government effort over the last seven years, and included extensive consultations among federal government institutions, with all provinces, and with the academia and private sector. A detailed implementation framework had been created through which the National Security Division would review progress in collaboration with relevant ministries and departments.
PM Imran Khan emphasized that the security of Pakistan rests in the security of its citizens and reposed confidence that “Pakistan is well prepared to meet any internal and external threats.”
A public version of the document will be released in due course.