Pakistan today said India cannot be a "net security provider" in the South Asia region when it has "conflictual relationships" with its neighbours, days after President Donald Trump vowed to boost America's strategic partnership with India in Afghanistan.
A marathon five-hour long meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) convened by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi also accused India of "pursuing a policy of destabilising Pakistan from the east and the west."
"India cannot be a net security provider in the South Asia region when it has conflictual relationships with all its neighbours and is pursuing a policy of destabilising Pakistan from the east and the west," according to an official statement issued after the meeting.
It said the Committee expressed "deep concern at Indian policies inimical to peace in the region including interference in the internal affairs of neighbouring countries and using terrorism as an instrument of state policy."
The meeting attended by the top civil and military leadership also condemned alleged "state inflicted repression" on the people of Jammu and Kashmir and reiterated Pakistan's continued "diplomatic, political and moral support for their struggle for self determination."
Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Foreign Minister Asif, Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee Zubair Hayat, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Air Chief ACM Sohail Aman, and Naval Chief Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah were among those who attended the meeting held at the PM House.
Trump, in his first prime-time televised address to the nation as commander-in-chief this week, laid out his Afghanistan and South Asia policy saying a "critical part" of it was to further develop US' strategic partnership with India.
The US president reached out to India seeking an enhanced role for New Delhi, especially in the economic field, to bring peace and stability in Afghanistan.
India, the world's largest democracy, is a key security and economic partner of the US, he said.
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