Committed to peace, stability in region, says Army Chief

New Delhi, October 18

Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat today said India was committed to peace and stability in the neighbourhood. The Army, he said, would continue to partner with friends to confront any emerging threats.

Addressing a conclave of defence attaches here, he said, “We are one of the leading armed forces, not by virtue of our size but by our extensive combat experience, our professionalism... We are deeply committed to peace and stability in the neighbourhood.” He urged the defence industry to provide solutions for the armed forces.

Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh cited maritime threats such as piracy, which, he said, had “transnational” ramifications. He pitched for having greater maritime cooperation and leveraging “collective military competence” of the world.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called for “jointness” among the three forces and termed it as an operational necessity. He asked the Army to take a lead towards achieving this and cited the soon-to-be-created position of Chief of Defence Staff for having a role in synergising the efforts of the services. On defence preparedness, Rajnath assured there would be no criticalities. However, he also apprised the field commanders on the budgetary constraints. — TNS