Prime Minister Imran Khan has announced a desensitised, public version of Pakistan’s first National Security Policy, which he said signaled a pivot from the country’s previously one-dimensional focus on military might.
Instead, the new policy reportedly takes into greater consideration national cohesion, economic strength, human security, and diplomacy.
According to reports by Radio Pakistan, the original version of the policy will remain classified, but a desensitized public version of the document will be released.
“When the people become stakeholders of the country, it becomes the greatest national security,” the premier stated, referring to the policy’s purportedly increased focus on human security. He confirmed that the policy was a shift in the ‘right manner.’
After paying tribute to the armed forces, the prime minister said that Pakistan’s wars against India in 1948 and 1965 had caused the country to develop ‘insecurities,’ among which was a single-minded focus on military security.
National Security Adviser (NSA) Dr. Moeed Yusuf said the policy was the product of a ‘military-civil consensus’, and conceived of a broader definition of national security.
“While the National Security Policy is centered around economic security, the geo-strategic and geo-political imperatives also feature prominently to strengthen Pakistan security and standing in the world,” the NSA said.
The National Security Committee approved the policy on December 27, 2021. The federal cabinet ratified the policy the next day.
