RAWALPINDI, (DNA) – Ruling out civil-military rift, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that they all want to take Pakistan forward.

Addressing the Defence Day ceremony as a chief guest at General Headquarters (GHQ), Imran Khan said: “We have to strengthen our institutions if we want to progress as a nation.”

“There is no such thing as a civil military tug of war. I will all rise and fall with this nation. And I know the Pakistan military think the same way too.” “Our goals are same that is to make Pakistan as one of the greatest countries of the world.”

“We will together strengthen our institutions. All our enemies tried to take advantage of the fact that we went into someone else’s war; but I thank the Pakistan army and our intelligence agencies with how they fought this war and defeated terrorism.”

The Premier said, “we have many issues as a nation but I have no doubt that we will rise as a great country.”

He went on to say that the first welfare state was made by Islam and it was a system of merit… not made for just an elite and there was a focus on education. These were the principles that were set.

“If Pakistan is to rise as a nation, these are the principles we need to follow,” Khan said.

PM Imran assured “Pakistan won’t fight any foreign war anymore.”

Imran Khan paid rich tribute to the martyrs, saying that “Our Shuhuda are those who have been blessed and have been given the highest stature in our religion after Prophets.”