General Qamar Javed Bajwa
Photographer: Farooq Naeem / AFP / Getty Images
Photographer: Farooq Naeem / AFP / Getty Images
Pakistan’s powerful army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, asked India “to bury the past and move on,” in rare remarks that came a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan urged New Delhi to achieve peace over troubles in the region Kashmir.
The nuclear-armed nations have fought three wars since their independence from Great Britain in 1947, including two in the Himalayas region. The area is divided between the two and claimed by both. Their relationship ran into its worst roadblock in recent years following a suicide attack in Indian Kashmir in February 2019 that killed 40 soldiers. India retaliated with air strikes on alleged terror camps in Pakistan that it claims to operate with the tacit blessings of Islamabad. Pakistan has always denied its support for terrorist groups.
Both nations withdrew their envoys later that year after India revoked the constitutional autonomy of its Jammu-Kashmir state.
Pakistani Prime Minister Khan is urging India to take steps towards peace
“We are ready to improve our environment by resolving all of our outstanding problems with our neighbors through dialogue,” said the military chief. “But for the resumption of the peace process or any meaningful dialogue, our neighbor will have to create a favorable environment,” especially in the Kashmir part of India.
Bajwa’s comments during the Islamabad Security Dialog are important because the military, which has directly ruled Pakistan for about half of its history, plays an outsized role in Khan’s government with input on foreign policy and security issues.
The peace overtures follow an unusual joint statement by military commanders from India and Pakistan last month renewing vows to abide by a 2003 ceasefire in Kashmir.
“We have learned to evolve from the past and are ready to move forward into a new future,” said Bajwa. “However, all of this depends on reciprocity.”