National Security Council (Pakistan) Explained

Agency Name:National Security Council
Picture Width:280px
Preceding6:-->
Headquarters:Prime Minister's Office
Minister7 Name:-->
Deputyminister7 Name:-->
Chief1 Name:Prime Minister of Pakistan
(Chairman)
Chief2 Name:(Federal Secretary National Security Division)
Chief9 Name:-->
Parent Agency:Prime Minister's Office
Child25 Agency:-->
Keydocument6:-->

The National Security Council (Urdu: {{Nastaliq|قومی سلامتی مجلس) (reporting name: NSC) is a federal institutional and consultative body chaired by the Prime Minister of Pakistan as its chairman. The NSC is a principal forum that is mandated for considering national security and foreign policy matters with the senior national security advisers and Cabinet ministers. The idea and inception of National Security Council was first conceived in 1969 under the President Yahya Khan, its functions were to advise and assist the president and prime minister on national security and foreign policies.

The National Security Council was re-created by then-President and former General Pervez Musharraf in April 2004 under the National Security Council Act. Although, the NSC remains to as a statutory body, the National Security Council is not active since 2008, and the Cabinet Committee on National Security is fulfilling the role and purpose of the NSC. The first National Security Adviser was Tariq Aziz who was appointed in 2004 and was preceded by Major-General (retired) Mahmud Durrani in 2008. Since Durrani's deposing by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani in 2009, there has been no appointed new NSC adviser since then.[1] The NSC was abandoned by the government of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), with a unified confirmations from the Parliament, and its functions has been taken under control by the Defence Cabinet Committee as of 2009.[2]

The council was revived under Nawaz Sharif, who presides over meetings of the council when there is an emergency, such as hostilities between India and Pakistan, or a chance to discuss events related to the insurgency.[3] [4]

Structure

Former Constitution Basis

The Constitution of Pakistan in the past provided for the National Security Council. However, the provision was repealed by the 18th Amendment.

Permanent Officiates

See main article: Cabinet Committee on National Security and Economic Coordination Committee.

The membership position does not depend on the will of the chairman, who is the elected Prime Minister of Pakistan. Depending on the agenda of the meeting, other concerned persons are also invited in the meeting of the NSC.[5]

Structure of the Pakistan National Security Council
Ex-Officio members and permanent officials Public office and Statutory
Chairman of the National Security Council Prime Minister of Pakistan
Secretary Federal Secretary National Security Division
Advisor National Security Advisor
Military Advisor Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
Intelligence Advisor DG Inter-Services Intelligence
DG Intelligence Bureau
Statutory Attendees Minister of Defence
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Minister of Interior
Minister of Finance
Minister of Law and Justice
Military Attendees Chief of Army Staff
Chief of Air Staff
Chief of Navy Staff
Additional attendeesPrincipal Secretary to the Prime Minister
Defence Secretary of Pakistan
Interior Secretary of Pakistan
Finance Secretary of Pakistan
Attorney General of Pakistan
Ambassador to the United Nations
Leader of the Opposition

The usual cabinet-level meetings at the NSC takes the following agenda and members of the following authorities are usually invited:

Current

Former

Functions

The Council serves as a forum for consultation for the president and the federal government on matters of national security including the sovereignty, integrity, defence and security of the State and crisis management in general. It may also formulate recommendations to the president and the federal government in such matters.

National Security Advisers

See main article: National Security Advisor (Pakistan).

NoNameTerm of OfficePrevious service cadrePrime Minister
1Major-General Ghulam Omar[6] 25 March 1969 20 December 1971Inter-Services Selection BranchNurul Amin
2General Tikka Khan[7] 3 March 1972 1 March 1976Inter-Services Selection BranchZulfikar Ali Bhutto
3Major-General Rao Farman Ali29 March 198517 August 1988Inter-Services Selection BranchMuhammad Khan Junejo
4Tariq Aziz[8] 4 April 2004 18 August 2008Central Superior ServicesShaukat Aziz
Yousaf Raza Gillani
519 August 20087 January 2009 Inter-Services Selection BranchYousaf Raza Gillani
6Sartaj Aziz[9] 7 July 201322 October 2015Central Superior ServicesNawaz Sharif
7Lieutenant-General Nasser Khan Janjua[10] 23 October 201527 June 2018Inter-Services Selection BranchNawaz Sharif
8Moeed Yusuf24 December 201910 April 2022Imran Khan

History

Inception: 1969–1971

The Pakistan military has been sending many recommendations for the establishment of the National Security Council as akin and counterpart to the American National Security Council. A comprehensive report on NSC was written and submitted by the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral S.M. Ahsan in 1968. Admiral Ahsan submitted his handwritten report to President Yahya Khan's staff in Islamabad in 1969 and emphasized support for the establishment of the military dominated national security council composed of senior civil and military officials who would advise the government on national security issues and propose strategies to overcome the challenges involving the foreign policy matters. The proposal was forwarded to President Office, and then to President Yahya Khan with strong recommendations for its approval.

In 1969, President Yahya Khan established the National Security Council, after signing and issuing the presidential decree to establish this consultative institution. Major-General Ghulam Omar was appointed NSC's first secretary and was posted at the General Headquarters (GHQ) to perform operations of NSC under President Yahya Khan. The NSC secretariat was part of the President Office and the Chief Martial Law Administrator (CMLA) and was directly under the control of the military establishment which then-functioned under President Yahya Khan's staff.

The NSC secretariat was highly unpopular in public and political circles of Pakistan, and it quickly gained notoriety in civil society due to its involvement in political and civilian affairs. The NSC secretariat did not figure in the decision-making of the military government because President Yahya Khan ran his government administration as personalized enterprise relaying heavily on his close and trusted military and bureaucratic advisers. The NSC Secretary, Major-General Ghulam Omar, was less focused on national issues whilst kept his interest in combat development. The NSC Secretariat under Yahya Khan was only a paper organization.

The Genesis: 1985–1999

1998 NSC Debates on Nuclear tests
Participants in debatesCadre/OfficeVoteNotes
Nawaz Sharif[11] Prime Minister Voted and Ordered tests
Opposed but later retraced.
Mushahid Hussain[12] First to propose in favor of tests
Ishaq Dar[13] Support in favor of tests
Spoke in favor but left decision on Sharif
Adm. Fasih Bokhari[14] Opposed tests on moral ground
Supported and provide logistics[15]
Debated and proposed tests
Supported in favor tests
Debated in favor of tests
Debated in favor of tests
Ahmad Kamal[16] Diplomatic in favor of tests
Javed Hashmi[17] Debated in favor of tests

The concept of National Security Council as a bridge of stabilizing the civil-military relations has always been favoured by the military spectrum of Pakistan since 1971. In 1973, Pakistan military has sent repeated recommendations of peculiar structure of the NSC in which senior military commanders of Pakistan Armed Forces are ensured a seat at the table. The proposal was met with heated criticism in the state parliament and Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto instead issued a white paper on Higher Defence Organisations (HDO) in May 1976, outliningthe institutional arrangements for dealing with defence and security affairs. This led the ultimate creation of the Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) which has the mandate of responsibility of national defence rested with the prime minister. The DCC conveys matters to other important organisations involved in the national security decision-making on security affairs included the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the JS HQ of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and itsChairman, the Chiefs of Staff of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

After the enactment of the martial law by chief of army staff General Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, the DCC had remained active. After holding successful referendum, followed by non-partisan general elections in 1985, President General Zia-ul-Haq authored and inserted Article 152-A to the Constitution through the Revival of the Constitution Order (RCO), in March 1985. This led the establish a National Security Council for accommodating the high-ranking military leadership in policy making. The NSC was empowered to "make recommendations relating to the issue of a Proclamation of Emergency under Article 232, security of Pakistan and any other matter of national importance that may be referred to it by the President in consultation with the Prime Minister."

The NSC was opposed by most political circles and it had to be dropped as a part of the deal with the Parliament to get the parliamentary approval for the revised version of the Revival of the Constitution Order (RCO) as Eighth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, in October 1985. The NSC was dissolved by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1993 and reactivated the DCC operationalize in its place.

From 1998–99, there were only two NSC meetings took place which were chaired by the Prime Minister Sharif; first occasion when Sharif ordered Pakistan's nuclear tests in response to India's tests, as part of his tit-for-tat policy.[18] At the NSC cabinet meeting, the Pakistani government, military, scientific, and civilian officials were participating in a debate, broadening, and complicating the decision-making process. Although, General Karamat debated towards presenting the national security and military point of view, the final decision was left on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's say. After the decision was made, General Karamat was notified of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's decision and asked the military to be stand-by orders. After providing the joint military logistics, the nuclear tests were eventually carried out on 28 May 1998, as Chagai-I, and on 30 May 1998 as codename: Chagai-II.[19] As dawn broke over the Chagai mountains, Pakistan became the world's seventh nuclear power.[20]

Secondly, the NSC meeting took place during the heights of the Kargil War in 1999. Empowerment of the NSC at the bureaucratic level was the primary issue that led to the forced relieve of Chairman Joint Chiefs General Jehangir Karamat in 1998.[21] In an absence of the forum, the upheavals in civil–military relations led to the dismissal of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999 when he tried to dismissed then-Chairman Joint Chiefs Pervez Musharraf.[22]

Reconstruction and developments: 2004–2008

2007 NSC Debates on Lal Masjid
Participants in debatesCadre/OfficeVote
Pervez Musharraf[23]
Shaukat Aziz
Gen Ehsan-ul-Haq
Tariq Aziz
ACM Tanvir Ahmed

After staging a coup d'état against the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999, Chairman joint chiefs Pervez Musharraf announced the establishment of six member national security council in his first television speech. Through a presidential act, the concept of NSC was formally established under an order of the chief executive on 30 October 1999.[24] The presidential order also led the establishment of the National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) as a think tank. Although NRB gained quick constitutional establishment in 2000 the NSC's constitutional establishment did not really take off due to political consensus over the establishment of this institution. Finally in 2004, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz presented the National Security Council through an Act of Parliament and succeeded in constitutionally establishing the NSC for the first time in April 2004. Originally the NSC bill proposed that the NSC would also deal with the "matters relating to democracy, governance, and inter-provincial harmony." This sentence was later controversially replaced by President Musharraf with "crisis management" without explaining its operational. President and Chief of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf created the office in Aiwan-e-Sadr, and appoint civil bureaucrat Tariq Aziz as the first National Security Advisor. According to PILDT, since its reestablishment, Musharraf conveyed very few national security meetings, and most meetings were conducted to discuss political situations only.

He resigned from the post of NSC secretariat when Musharraf resigned from presidency on 18 August 2008. He was succeeded by Mahmud Ali Durrani as the second National Security Advisor, directly reporting to the Prime minister Secretariat. Durrani was notably deposed by the Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani in January 2009 for "not consulting the Prime Minister while giving statements on foreign relation matters". The matter in question was the acceptance by the Government of Pakistan of the Pakistani nationality of the sole surviving terrorist Ajmal Kasab, who was involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks and was in the custody of the Mumbai police.

Abolition and suspension (2008–2009)

After the incident, Prime Minister Gillani vowed to abolish the National Security Council in February 2009. The NSC remains to stay as statue on the constitution, however, the NSC secretariat is not active since 2008, but instead the Defence Committee of the Cabinet is re-activated in its place by the current government.

Since 2009, there has been no appointed new NSC adviser and no national security meetings have been conducted since then. Its operations and mandate has been integrated to the DCC meeting, and there has been ninth DCC meeting taken place since 2009.

Restorative status (2013–present)

Upon conclusion of the general elections in 2013, the PML(N)'s strategists indicated the restoration of the NSC to the news media. On immediate basis, Prime Minister Sharif appointed Sartaj Aziz as National Security Advisor (NSA).[25] On 9 September 2013, Prime Minister Sharif proposed that dialogue with the Pakistani military would create a civil-military partnership, putting the military and an elected government on the same page for the first time in Pakistan's history.[26] After reconstituting the Cabinet Committee on National Security (C2NS), with military gaining representation in the country's politics, the NSC came into effect as an influential policy institution.[27]

Decision came from Prime Minister Sharif to reconstitute the NSC to improve coordination between the civil and military institutions in order to deal with a nagging far-right insurgency that has killed and maimed thousands of Pakistanis over the last few years.

According to the political scientist and civic-military relations expert, Aqil Shah, Sharif finally did what exactly former chairman joint chiefs General Karamat had called for in 1998. Since then, the NSC meetings with Prime Minister Sharif have been taking place frequently.

See also

Sources

Additional works on NSC

Constitutional analysis

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDT). Performance of the Defence Committee of the Cabinet of Pakistan. Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency. Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDT). 2 March 2013.
  2. Web site: PILDT. The Evolution of National Security Council in Pakistan. Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency.. PILDT. 2 March 2013.
  3. Web site: Border clashes: PM summons National Security Council meeting - The Express Tribune. 8 October 2014. tribune.com.pk. 4 May 2018. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150727162631/http://tribune.com.pk/story/772249/border-clashes-pm-summons-national-security-council-meeting/. 27 July 2015.
  4. Web site: Crucial National Security Committee meeting begins . 2014-10-10 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20141011092123/http://www.samaa.tv/pakistan/10-Oct-2014/crucial-national-security-committee-meeting-begins . 2014-10-11 .
  5. Web site: Jaspal . Zafar Nawaz . National Security Council: Implications for Pakistan's Political System . www.defencejournal.com . Defence Journal . 13 January 2015 . Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan . 16 March 2002 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150923213358/http://www.defencejournal.com/2002/march/political.htm . 23 September 2015 .
  6. Book: Rizvi. Hasan Askari. Hasan Askari Rizvi. National Security CounciI: AA debate on institutions and processes for decision-making on security issues. 2012. Pildat publications. Islamabad. 978-969-558-265-7. 17–20, 34. http://www.pildat.org/publications/publication/CMR/NaionalSecurityCouncil-debateonInstitutionsandprocessesfordecisionmakingonsecurityissues.pdf. 31 October 2015. en. Evolution of the Concept of NSC in Pakistan. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304101825/http://www.pildat.org/publications/publication/CMR/NaionalSecurityCouncil-debateonInstitutionsandprocessesfordecisionmakingonsecurityissues.pdf. 2016-03-04.
  7. News: Singh. Sushant. Naseer Janjua as Pakistan's NSA further diminishes PM Nawaz Sharif. 31 October 2015 . Indian Express . 23 October 2015. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151028202318/http://indianexpress.com/article/explained/lt-general-naseer-janjua-as-pakistans-nsa-further-diminishes-pm-nawaz-sharif/. 28 October 2015.
  8. Web site: Bhattacharjee. Dhrubajyoti. Pakistan and the Failure of the NSA Level Dialogue. 31 October 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304135840/http://www.icwa.in/pdfs/VP/2014/PAKISTANTHEFAILURE03092015vp.pdf.. 4 March 2016.
  9. News: Khan. Sumaira. Battling militancy: Govt revives National Security Council. 13 January 2015. Express Tribune, 2013. Express Tribune, 2013. 23 September 2013. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150319151137/http://tribune.com.pk/story/594103/battling-militancy-govt-revives-national-security-council/. 19 March 2015.
  10. News: Janjua takes over as Pakistan's NSA. 31 October 2015 . Gulf News . 23 October 2015. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151030230621/http://www.gulf-times.com/pakistan/186/details/460910/janjua-takes-over-as-pakistan%e2%80%99s-nsa. 30 October 2015.
  11. Web site: Azam. Rai M. S.. When Mountains Move – The Story of Chagai. Defence Journal . 15 January 2015. 20 June 2000. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20120401181303/http://www.defencejournal.com/2000/june/chagai.htm. 1 April 2012.
  12. News: Mushahid Hussain Syed. 15 January 2015. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150115061013/http://www.pakistanherald.com/profile/mushahid-hussain-syed-172. 15 January 2015.
  13. Khan, Feroz Hassan (2012). Eating grass the making of the Pakistan's atomic bomb. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press. .
  14. Ahmad Noorani (October 11, 2011). "Why Admiral Bokhari is a favourite of Zardari, rejected by Nawaz". The News International. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  15. News: Hali. SM. A new dawn. 15 January 2015. Special report on PAF by SM Hali. THe Nation. THe Nation, 2009. 25 March 2009. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151126155509/http://nation.com.pk/columns/25-Mar-2009/A-new-dawn. 26 November 2015.
  16. News: Koppel. Andrea. World — Asia-Pacific U.S. sources: Pakistan edging closer to nuclear tests. 15 January 2015. State Department Correspondent Andrea Koppel, Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre, Reporter Kasra Naji and Reuters contributed to this report.. CNN Pakistan Bureau. CNN Pakistan Bureau. 27 May 1998. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150115060743/http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/asiapcf/9805/27/pakistan.nuclear.pm/index.html?iref=newssearch. 15 January 2015.
  17. Book: Hashmi. Javed. Waheed. Manzar. (Yes! I am Rebel) ىاں‬! ميں‬ باغىى ہوں‬. 2005. Sager Publication. Lahore, Pun. Pakistan . 409 . 1st . https://www.scribd.com/document/23302483/Haan-Main-Baghi-Hoon-By-Javed-Hashmi#. 22 May 2018. en. scribd . My Father and Pakistan Movement.
  18. Book: Schaffer. Howard B.. Schaffer. Teresita C.. How Pakistan negotiates with the United States : riding the roller coaster. 2011. United States Institute of Peace. Washington, D.C.. 978-1-60127-075-7. https://books.google.com/books?id=axT9i-FhO0UC&q=Jehangir+Karamat&pg=PA103. 7 January 2015. §Pakistan's politicians. registration.
  19. News: Azam. Rai Muhammad Saleh. When Mountains Move – The Story of Chagai. 7 January 2015. Article written by RMS Azam ives a detailed account of events and personalities leading to Pakistan first nuclear explosion. The Nation, 1998. The Nation, 1998. 2 June 2000. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20120401181303/http://www.defencejournal.com/2000/june/chagai.htm. 1 April 2012.
  20. Book: Jones. Owen Bennett. Pakistan eye of the storm. 2003. Yale University Press. New Haven, Conn.. 0-300-10147-3. 2nd. 7 January 2015.
  21. News: Jaisingh. Hari. Beleaguered Sharif wins first round. 7 January 2015. Tribune India. Tribune India, 1998. 9 October 1998. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150114164523/http://www.tribuneindia.com/1998/98oct09/head5.htm. 14 January 2015.
  22. Book: Cohen. Stephen Philip. The idea of Pakistan. 2004. Brookings Institution Press, 2004. Washington, D.C.. 0-8157-9761-3. 1st pbk.. 7 January 2015. registration. 150. Jehangir Karamat National Security Council..
  23. News: GEO News. Important events coverage by GEO TV. 15 January 2015. GEO News. GEO News, 2007. 31 July 2007. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20141225022318/http://www.geo.tv/important_events/lalmasjid/pages/english_news.asp. 25 December 2014.
  24. Book: Dutt. Sanjay. Inside Pakistan : 52 years outlook. 2000. APH Pub. Corp.. New Delhi. 8176481572.
  25. News: Harris. Hanif. Cabinet appointed by Sharif. 10 January 2015. Bloomberg. 7 June 2013. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20141006194910/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-08/dar-appointed-pakistan-s-finance-minister-as-growth-falters.html. 6 October 2014.
  26. News: Nawaz Sharif chairs All Party Meeting. Business Standard India. 9 September 2013. 4 May 2018. Business Standard. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20171023012153/http://www.business-standard.com/article/international/nawaz-sharif-chairs-all-party-meeting-113090900192_1.html. 23 October 2017. Press Trust of India.
  27. Book: Shah. Aqil. The Armed Forces and Democracy. 2014. Harvard University Press. Harvard, U.S. 978-0-674-41977-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=ShihAwAAQBAJ&q=Jehangir+Karamat+National+Security+Council&pg=PA285. 7 January 2015. Conclusion.