ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Ex-Servicemen Association (PESA) on Sunday supported the stance taken by Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif regarding the recent tensions with Afghanistan and the subsequent exchange of fire across the Pak-Afghan international border.

The ex-officers critised the ‘lukewarm’ response from the Foreign Office and stated that they considered the invitation extended to the Afghan foreign minister as premature.

PESA’s president, General (r) Ali Kuli Khan was presiding over the meeting which was attended by other senior retired armed forces personnel.

In a statement issued to media after their meeting, they condemned firing by Afghan troops and criticised the conduct of the Afghan ambassador for his belligerent statements on improved border management system being implemented by Pakistan.

“Afghan government was speaking the language of some other power who want hegemony over the region,” added the PESA statement.

The association also supported the decision which bars Afghan refugees from returning to Pakistan without valid travel documents, as the “final phase of Operation Zarb-i-Azb can not be compromised.”

The border between Pakistan and Afghanistan at Torkham reopened on Saturday, after a closure of nearly six days during which the two sides skirmished over the issue of construction of a gate on the Pakistani side of the border.