Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today said his government is committed to eradicate terrorism from the country and stands ready to provide modern weaponry to its forces to combat the menace.
"The government is committed to eradicating the menace of terrorism and extremism from the country, and is providing funds for the capacity building of PAF, which is playing a vital role in this regard," Sharif said.
During his meeting with Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafique Butt, who called on the Prime Minister at the PM House, Sharif said the latest high-tech inductions in the PAF would further enhance the capabilities of the defence forces.
Sharif appreciated the role played by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in Operation Zarb-e-Azab, launched last year to flush out militants from the troubled northwestern tribal region of the country.
PAF fighter jets have repeatedly targeted rebel hideouts in the North Waziristan and Khyber regions in past months, killing hundreds of militants.
Pakistan launched military operations in the volatile northern tribal region in June last year after Taliban militants stormed the country's largest airport in Karachi.
At least 39 people, including all 10 attackers, were killed in the all-night gun-battle with security forces in Karachi.
The brazen attack virtually capped the possibility of any success in the faltering peace talks the Pakistan government was having with the Taliban at the time.
The military campaign in the tribal region was stepped up after the massacre of 150 people, mostly students, by Taliban militants at an army-run school in Peshawar in December.
