Nation bound by core values, but inimical interests will attempt to divide people: Fmr COAS Naravane

Pune, Aug 18 (PTI) Former Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Naravane on Monday said the nation is bound together by its core values and commonalities and cautioned that inimical interests will attempt to divide people on the basis of religion and caste.

Speaking at the launch of his book 'Cantonment Conspiracies', he said citizens must see through such conspiracies and remain united.

"What is it which is binding us together and making us Bharat? It is the Constitution which is binding the nation together and has been propelling the country forward. The core values or commonalities bind the country together. It is the Constitution which enshrines these core values of justice, equality, liberty and fraternity," General Naravane (retd) said.

If these four core values are promoted, nothing can go wrong and the country will remain strong and united, he asserted.

"There will be inimical powers, there will be inimical interests which will try to divide us. They will try to divide us on grounds of religion, on grounds of caste and that we have nothing in common with each other. But we have to be able to see through that conspiracy like Cantonment Conspiracies. We have to be able to see through that conspiracy and not get divided," he said.

The nation faces external as well as internal threats, the latter being more important as they have the potential to destabilise us if we fall prey to divisiveness, he said.

"National security is not just about the armed forces. National security has many facets, including food security, energy security, water security and health security," the former COAS pointed out.

Speaking about the Russia-Ukraine war and the threat posed by tariffs imposed on India by US President Donald Trump, he said anything happening anywhere in the world can impact India in some or the other way in the current geo-political situation.

The impact could be immediate, in the short term or have long term ramifications, Naravane opined.

"India needs to be ready at the policy level, strategic level and must always be on the lookout for these events happening worldwide and be be prepared to deal with it," he said.

Speaking on the recent summit meet between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said, "The meeting has very mixed outcomes. European countries are not very happy with what they thought might have transpired behind closed doors. We do not know what has happened." A meeting between Zelensky and Trump is going to take place, and a lot of European leaders, like the prime ministers of UK, Italy have also gone to the US, he said.

These leaders are worried that there should not be a backdoor, under the carpet deal between US and Russia, which does not take the interests of the European countries in mind, Naravane said.

"This is a very big game that has been played out at the global stage and what would be the end result, we really do not know. The only thing we need to keep in mind is whether we want to agree and allow that you can change the borders by unilateral use of force just because you are a powerful country," the former COAS said.

"India has always been against that. India has always been saying disputes should be resolved through dialogue and discussions, not through force. This is why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been saying this is not an era of war. It is preferable to resolve disputes through discussions and war should be the last resort," the former general said. PTI SPK BNM