Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif says Operation Azm-e-Istehkam is imperative for the government, not military. 

In an interview with British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Asif said there was no expectation of resurgence of terrorism after military operations conducted in past. "Operation Azm-e-Istehkam is not military's but our need, and this is the responsibility of the government," he said. 

He said the new spirit and rigorous operation were required to deal with the recent wave of terrorism. There was a need for a new arrangement after spike in the terror incidents. The operation would not cause displacement (of people) rather it would be an intelligence-based operation, he said. 

The defence minister said that in the last decade, many incidents such as evacuation of Nato and US forces from Afghanistan and return of TTP fighters to the country in the regime of Imran Khan led to rise in terrorism. 

He said there was a hope that the Afghan government would cooperate with Pakistan but they did not express readiness to fight against the TTP militants due to their alliance with them.

After dialogue with Taliban, the experience of bringing back 5,000 or so people failed and those who were conducting attacks from Afghanistan, got safe havens in Pakistan. The government, he said, would continue to target the TTP sanctuaries.