Rawalpindi: Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu, Chief of Air Staff Pakistan Air Force (PAF) made landmark visit to Turkiye to attend prestigious Graduation and Flag Detachment Ceremony, as guest of Honour. Ceremony was held at Turkish Air Force Academy.

PAF Chief expressed his gratitude to Turkish PresidentRecep Tayyip Erdogan for extending warm invitation to attend Graduation and Flag Detachment Ceremony and reaffirmed Pakistan Air Force’s commitment to fostering a robust partnership with Turkish Air Force.

Ceremony was attended by Minister of State for Defence and Deputy Prime Minister of State of Qatar, Dr Khalid Bin Mohammad Al-Attiyah and Minister of Defence of Republic of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov along with senior military commanders and high level state officials from across world.

During event, Chief of Air Staff interacted with various high-level dignitaries including General Ziya Cemal Kadioglu, Commander of Turkish Air Force. He emphasised shared values and aspirations that form foundation of the deep-rooted friendship between Pakistan and Turkiye. He expressed his unwavering commitment to enhance existing bilateral ties in military-to-military cooperation with Turkiye especially in field of defence production, two way sharing of technology and joint development of fifth generation fighter aircraft. He reiterated his resolve to further deepen strong bond of friendship that united two nations in face of shared challenges and wished to explore further avenues of collaboration in defence and aviation sector. Follow up to recent Strategic Framework Agreement on Defence Collaboration, visit serves as testament to deep-rooted historical, religious, cultural and strategic bonds shared between two nations.

Turkiye’s leading firms have already committed to strategic partnership by establishing their offices in recently inaugurated ‘Alpha Techno Square of Pakistan’s esteemed National Aerospace Science and Technology Park. Collaboration has opened doors for joint ventures, technology transfer and knowledge sharing between two countries, fostering growth and innovation in aerospace industry.

Published in The Daily National Courier, September, 02 2023

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