'Pakistan needs to strike balance between defence, development'

Pakistan cannot afford to be in a "state of perpetual conflict with India" and has to "strike a balance between defence and development," a top Pakistani military official has said.

The comments were part of a wide-ranging briefing given to editors, anchors and columnists by the official on Sunday, the Dawn newspaper reported today.

The daily did not name the military official but other media reports said army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had briefed a select group of journalists on completing his first term on Sunday.

While referring to the need to achieve a balance between defence and development in relations between India and Pakistan, the military official was also quoted as saying that Islamabad "cannot afford to ignore our basic defence needs."

The official also said that Pakistan cannot afford to be in a "state of perpetual conflict with India."

On the triangle of US-Pakistan-India relations, the official said: "The people of Pakistan measure the strength of US-Pakistan relations on the scale of US-India partnership."

Regarding Afghanistan-India relations, the official said, "Pakistan has no right or desire to dictate Afghanistan's relations with any country, including India. But Pakistan expects Afghanistan will be mindful of legitimate security concerns (of Pakistan)."

The Dawn reported that the military official's comments on Afghanistan, India and the US suggested that Pakistan Army's "India-centric" approach to strategic issues was "still very much in place, with only minor adjustments made to accommodate the changed regional security environment in the 21st century."

Kayani, who was appointed army chief by former President Pervez Musharraf in November 2007, completed his first term in office on Sunday.

Earlier this year, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani granted the army chief a three-year extension of service.

Media reports said Kayani briefed a select group of journalists on Sunday about his priorities in the coming years, including the war on terrorism; the reconciliation process with the Afghan Taliban; and relations with the US and India.