ISTANBUL: Pakistan Navy (PN) commissioned the first Milgem Ship PNS Babur. The commissioning ceremony of the first Pakistan Navy MILGEM Ship PNS BABUR was held at Istanbul Naval Shipyard, Turkiye on Saturday.
Minister of National Defence Turkiye Yaşar Güler and Defence Minister of Pakistan Lt Gen (Retd) Anwar Ali Hyder attended the ceremony as Chief Guests. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi was also present.
While addressing the event, the Turkish Defence Minister termed the brotherly Pakistan-Turkiye ties as exemplary and acknowledged the potential for further collaboration in the area of defence production.
He appreciated the efforts and remarkable work done by Istanbul Naval Shipyard and M/s ASFAT (Turkish Firm). He also thanked the government of Pakistan and Pakistan Navy for exceptional support during recent devastating earthquakes in his country.
During his address, Pakistan’s Defence Minister lauded the collaboration of the Ministry of Defence Production Pakistan, M/s ASFAT and Pakistan Navy, and Ministry of National Defence of Turkiye, for synergized efforts to make the project a success and congratulated all teams on successful commissioning of first MILGEM Ship.
He added that the relationship between Pakistan and Turkiye is unique because of deep-rooted historical ties between the two brotherly nations, hence cooperation shall continue in future as well.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi said that Pakistan Navy MILGEM Ships fitted with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors will play an important role in maintaining peace and stability in the region.
He expressed his gratitude for increased collaboration in defence production, particularly in the Maritime domain between the two nations.
He said that in line with government policies, PN has adopted the indigenization of platforms and hence it is very satisfying to see modern warships being manufactured in collaboration with brotherly country Turkiye.
PN MILGEM Class ships are the most technologically advanced and state-of-the-art surface platforms being manufactured for PN The ships will be fitted with the latest Command and Control Systems including modern weapons and sensors.
MILGEM Class ships contract
The Contract for construction of four MILGEM Class ships for Pakistan was inked between Ministry of Defence Production, Pakistan and M/s ASFAT in 2018.
Under the project, 2 ships are under construction at Istanbul Naval Shipyard, while the other 2 are being manufactured at Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works.
