Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir met with a group of visiting Harvard Business School students and urged young people to base their thinking on facts rather than assumptions if they want to make a real difference in society. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) shared details of the meeting in a statement issued on Friday.
The Asim Munir Harvard delegation interaction took place during the students’ visit to Pakistan, according to the military’s media wing. The group included participants from several different countries studying at the prestigious business school.
What the Asim Munir Harvard Delegation Discussed
Conversation during the session touched on developments across the region and beyond, Pakistan’s approach to security, and the country’s ongoing role in supporting peace and stability both locally and internationally.
Per the ISPR statement, the army chief spoke about the value of education, building practical skills, fostering entrepreneurship and, above all, relying on evidence-based analysis, especially given how easily young people today can be swayed by misinformation and propaganda circulating on social media.
For their part, the Harvard Business School visitors spoke positively about their trip, noting the friendliness and hospitality shown by people across Pakistan and pointing to the country’s significant untapped potential and opportunities.
Broader Diplomatic Context Behind the Visit
This meeting arrives as Pakistan continues to work toward a lasting resolution to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Just days earlier, on August 24, Munir traveled to Tehran, where he held talks with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, Mohsen Rezaei, who represents Iran’s supreme leader on the Supreme National Security Council, Parliament Speaker Bagher Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni.
According to an ISPR statement issued Tuesday, those discussions between Pakistani and Iranian officials centered on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and pushing for a swift end to hostilities between the United States and Iran.
Pakistan has positioned itself as a central go-between in efforts to de-escalate the conflict, which erupted following US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Islamabad had previously helped negotiate a two-week ceasefire on April 8 that paused six weeks of fighting, and it has continued acting as a channel of communication between Washington and Tehran since then.