\u201cWe have contacted his family. Once his family responds, we can make the required arrangements,\u201d DG ISPR says
\nnews desk
\nIslamabad
\nIn light of Pervez Musharraf\u2019s ailing health, Director-General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar said Tuesday the military leadership believes that the former army chief should return to Pakistan.
\n\u201cIn such a situation the institution and leadership\u2019s stance is that Pervez Musharraf should return,\u201d said DG ISPR.
\nThe military\u2019s spokesperson, during an interview with a private television channel, said the final call for the return of the ex-president \u2014 who resides in the United Arab Emirates \u2014 to Pakistan would be made by his family. \u201cWe have contacted his family. Once his family responds, we can make the required arrangements,\u201d the military\u2019s spokesperson said as he prayed for Musharraf\u2019s speedy recovery.
\nDefence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif also said last week he believed that no hurdles should be placed if the former dictator wanted to come back to Pakistan.
\nMusharraf, 78, is critically ill these days as he is suffering from a condition called amyloidosis, his office said Friday.
\nLast week, the All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) \u2014 the political party established by Musharraf \u2014 said that he was taken back to his residence after three weeks of being admitted to the hospital, refuting the news of his death or him being on a ventilator.
\nPakistan-China ties hold strategic importance: DG ISPR
\nThe military\u2019s spokesperson further highlighted that the Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa\u2019s visit to China was very important and added that China has played a crucial role in increasing Pakistan\u2019s defence prowess.
\nMaj Gen Iftikhar emphasised that ties between Islamabad and Beijing held \u201cstrategic importance\u201d and were crucial for regional peace. He also stated that the security of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects has remained unaffected, adding that the work related to the project\u2019s security has been happening round the clock.
\nWe took Rs100 billion less in budget
\nThe DG ISPR also addressed the debate on the defence budget, saying that the allocation was formulated \u201cconsidering threat perception, challenges, nature of deployment, and resources\u201d.
\n\u201cWhenever the budget is presented, a debate is held on it,\u201d said the military\u2019s spokesperson. <\/p>\n
He maintained that India has been expanding its budget and the military had not increased its allocation since 2020.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at the defence budget from an inflationary perspective, then it has been reduced. The budget of the armed force, compared to the GDP, is constantly going down,\u201d said Maj Gen Iftikhar.<\/p>\n
The DG ISPR said that the armed forces took Rs100 billion less in the budget, adding that the forces have also reduced spending on utility bills.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have reduced unnecessary movement to save petrol and diesel,\u201d he said, adding that the army has also started holding conferences online instead of arranging physical events that incur additional costs.<\/p>\n
He also said that the armed forces returned Rs6 billion it had received during the coronavirus pandemic to the government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cWe have contacted his family. Once his family responds, we can make the required arrangements,\u201d DG ISPR says news desk Islamabad In light of Pervez Musharraf\u2019s ailing health, Director-General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar said Tuesday the military leadership believes that the former army chief should return to Pakistan. \u201cIn such a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":254948,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[694,1109,33,20],"class_list":{"0":"post-266374","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news","8":"tag-ispr","9":"tag-leadership","10":"tag-musharraf","11":"tag-pakistan"},"yoast_head":"\n