RAWALPINDI: A high-level meeting comprising top civil and military leadership held at General Headquarters (GHQ) discussed issues pertaining to national security on Tuesday, an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement said.

Those present at the meeting include Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry, Chief of Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif, Director-General Inter-Services Intelligence Lt-Gen Rizwan Akhtar and other senior military officials at GHQ.

The participants underlined that hostile intelligence agencies and their facilitators would not be allowed to "foment trouble inside Pakistan", the ISPR said.

Issues relating to the country's internal and external security, including the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, were also discussed.

Participants expressed concern over the May 21 US drone strike targeting former Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Mansour in Balochistan, saying it was a clear violation of Pakistan's sovereignty, affected mutual trust and undermined the spirit of the Afghan peace process under the mutually agreed framework decided by the Quadrilateral Coordination Group.

The meeting also took cognisance of ongoing regional developments and inimical designs against the country's stability and prosperity.

The leadership resolved to protect the country's core national interests and effectively counter negative external influence.

The meeting comes as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is recovering from open-heart surgery in London. Nawaz was discharged from the hospital on Monday after a week-long stay following his surgery.

He will be overseeing the affairs of government from London, according to the PM House media cell, and is expected to return to Pakistan before the end of Ramazan.