Pakistan, Oct. 1 -- The government on Wednesday justified its decision to purchase 45 bulletproof vehicles for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's (SCO) Council of Heads of State moot in Islamabad next year, stressing the need for ensuring "maximum possible level of protection" during the summit and citing Pakistan's "security paradigm".

The justification came in a press release by the Cabinet Division, which said "certain sceptical and unwarranted comments have appeared in the press and social media on the purchase of 45 bulletproof vehicles [.] which seem to have missed the context and perspective of the purchase".

The government had drawn criticism after the decision for the planned purchase. The Economic Coordination Committee (...