Islamabad: In a bid to remove the recent uneasiness in civil-military relations here, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Friday night praised the Army as a national asset and said "misunderstanding" had created "misplaced perception" about him.
Asif said a strong and respected Army is an asset for the nation.
"As a Pakistani I am proud of the valour and sacrifices of the men in uniform for the defence of the motherland," he said in a statement.
Asif further said that "in last couple of weeks some misunderstanding cropped up based on my speeches delivered many years back made in a different context and in a different environment.
"This created a misplaced perception about me which is far from reality. It was neither my intention and nor my objective to undermine an institution which I hold in high esteem".
The Minister also said that at a time when armed forces are fighting on many fronts for the last many years and "giving sacrifices unparalleled in history of Pakistan, it is a matter of great regret that an impression is being created by a section of media about my views and feelings about rank and files of armed forces and the institution which is completely false and misleading".
An uneasiness has crept into civil-military relations here which is primarily because of the high treason trial of former military dictator Pervez Musharraf.
"This created a misplaced perception about me which is far from reality. It was neither my intention and nor my objective to undermine an institution which I hold in high esteem".
The Minister also said that at a time when armed forces are fighting on many fronts for the last many years and "giving sacrifices unparalleled in history of Pakistan, it is a matter of great regret that an impression is being created by a section of media about my views and feelings about rank and files of armed forces and the institution which is completely false and misleading".
An uneasiness has crept into civil-military relations here which is primarily because of the high treason trial of former military dictator Pervez Musharraf.
