The meeting on National Security was chaired by National Assembly Speaker on 1^st July 2021 Asad Qaiser on 1^st July 2021 and involved a briefing by Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed. Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa and the Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar were also in attendance. Moreover, it was also attended by Government Officials and opposition leaders.

The meeting was in closed doors and 29-member committee got an opportunity to avail a question-answer session, the sources said. This was the first meeting of the committee in about eight months as the last meeting in November last was boycotted by the opposition.

The scheduled meeting has noticeable significance in the backdrop of the situation prevailing in the war-torn country from where foreign occupying troops are vacating the country in a couple of weeks and the Taliban are increasingly capturing the vacated areas that will have an impact on Pakistan.

National Security Committee

The Committee on National Security is the principal federal institution and consultative forum used by the people-elected Prime Minister of Pakistan for concerning matters of state’s national security, geopolitical, geostrategic, and foreign policy matters with the Prime minister’s chief military advisers, senior government advisers and senior Cabinet ministers.

Since its creation and inception under Prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in 1976, the primary functions under the CCNS’s domain is to advise and assist the Prime minister on issues involving the national security, threat of war, nuclear weapons politics, and challenges in geo-strategic and foreign policies.

The committee is not restricted to the key cabinet ministers, and any cabinet ministers can also attend the meeting. The committee reaffirms the permanent seat for the military leaders of joint forces at the Cabinet-level meeting.

Issues discussed in the session:

1. Afghan Peace Process

In the session, which lasted for over six hours with several breaks, the army chief and the DG ISI gave detailed presentations, highlighting “Pakistan-sponsored and coordinated” efforts for the Afghan peace process. A lawmaker said that the military leadership told the participants that Pakistan played key role in the Afghan peace deal and had been trying to make President Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban to sit across the table. “We have tried but the Taliban are not ready to sit down since the US has announced the date for withdrawal from Afghanistan,” he said. “The US dream of introducing a democratic system could not be achieved as it is unacceptable to the Taliban, who wish to run the system based on Sharia,” he added. The military leadership, according to insiders, told the participants that civil war had already begun in Afghanistan but reports of gains by the Afghan Taliban were exaggerated and that Kabul was not immediately falling down.

“Kabul is not going to fall down in the near future. The real resistance will begin at Kabul,” said one participant, while sharing the assessment of military authorities. Yet another lawmaker, while confirming the same, said that Taliban were gaining hold of several other areas with a rapid speed.

Furthermore, the unrest in Afghanistan will likely trigger a fresh wave of refugees, embolden terrorist groups, and create a host of other challenges for Pakistan.

2. Airbases to the US

The Parliamentary Committee on National Security was also informed that the US appeared to be deliberately leaving behind a “mismanaged and unstable” Afghanistan in order to undermine China, Pakistan and the region.

“Pakistan is not going to give military bases to the US; we are not going to fight their proxy war,” a participant of the meeting said, after attending the briefing, adding: “The US is once again leaving behind an unfinished job. “Nearly 70,000 people were martyred since the US did it the first time,” the lawmaker said.

According to the parliamentarian, the briefing also suggested that the “US doesn’t want to see peace in the region” while emphasizing that “peace in Afghanistan is important for Pakistan”.

Referring to the briefing, a key government minister also confirmed that Pakistan has decided that it will not give bases to the US and was ready to face the consequences of its decision.

The PTI cabinet member said that the military leadership has told that neither any bases were given to the US since 2018 nor was there any drone attack, saying the same was earlier decided in a cabinet meeting. “The military leadership has basically reiterated what the government has already decided,” he said

Prime Minister Imran also made it clear the other day that Pakistan would be “partner in peace but not in conflict” in a clear message to the US, which wanted to maintain over-the-horizon capability for counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan after leaving the country.

3. Afghan Relations

The participants were further told that Pakistan would welcome a truly representative government of Afghans and that it would continue its responsible role for peace in Afghanistan. “Pakistan’s territory is not being used in the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan […] and we hope that Afghanistan’s land is not used against Pakistan,” the DG ISI informed the session. The works on border fencing at the Pak-Afghan border is 90% complete, while an effective system of customs and border control is also being set up, the meeting was told. In the briefing, the parliamentarians were informed about the impending Afghan challenge and Pakistan’s strategy. The military authorities painted a grim picture of the future of Afghanistan and informed the committee about the negative fallout of the new wave of unrest in the neighbouring country.

PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal, while refraining from talking about the in-camera briefing, said that the government should call a joint session of parliament and prepare a national response in line with the suggestions given by the lawmakers. He said that Afghanistan was a direct challenge for Pakistan as the situation there gravely impacted the country.

The meeting was also informed that due to the unrest in Afghanistan, 500,000-700,000 Afghan refugees are expected to come to Pakistan, who would be kept restricted to the border areas.

It was also noted that due to Islamabad’s efforts, meaningful talks have begun between the US and the Taliban. “Sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan will lead to stability in South Asia,” the meeting was informed.

US President Joe Biden after a long and hard review of the Afghan situation had announced in April that all US troops would come back home by September 11. However, the process of drawdown was likely to complete much ahead of the deadline, as the US and NATO forces have already withdrawn much of their forces.

Since the troop withdrawal began, the Afghan Taliban have made rapid inroads, capturing several districts even in the north, which never remained their stronghold. The UN even warned that the Taliban were laying a siege around big cities, including capital Kabul, to take over.

The senior US commander in Afghanistan hinted at the possible air strikes against the Taliban if they did not stop their march. Against this backdrop, the DG ISI informed the meeting that Pakistan with all its honesty played a positive and constructive role that helped brought the Taliban to the negotiating table.

“We strongly believe that the durable peace in Afghanistan is prerequisite for the peace in South Asia,” the parliamentarians were told by the military leadership.

4. Prime Minister’s Absence

While main opposition leaders, including Shehbaz Sharif, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and others, were in attendance, Prime Minister Imran Khan was conspicuous by his absence. Apart from the COAS and the ISI DG, the Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Maj-Gen Babar Iftikhar were also in attendance.

On the absence of Prime Minister Imran Khan from the meeting, the cabinet minister said, “The prime minister wanted to attend the session but the PML-N gave a message to the National Assembly speaker that they would walk out from the meeting if the premier comes to attend it.” Sharing more details, he said, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari pointed out in his speech that the PM’s absence from such an important meeting was not a good gesture. To this, he said, the speaker asked him to “enquire from Shehbaz Sharif why the PM is absent”.

Conclusion

Brief discussions with lawmakers, who leaving the assembly premises after the meeting, revealed that the discussion took place in a smooth way and all the questions were answered.

As per the handout issued by the ministry information, the participants were given a comprehensive briefing on the current situation in Afghanistan and the overall internal and external security challenges, the participants of the meeting expressed satisfaction over the meeting. The Parliamentary Committee on National Security after question-and-answer session presented their recommendations that would be incorporated in Pakistan’s policy on Afghanistan and other important issues. Furthermore, the political leadership has expressed wishes for peace, development, and prosperity in Afghanistan, the statement said.

The participants, during the meeting, said such sessions play an important role in shaping consensus on important national issues and also strengthen harmony on various matters.