President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday stressed what he said was a strong mutual will between Türkiye and Pakistan to further expand their defense cooperation, as the two countries launched the latest corvette warship tailored for the Pakistan Navy.
Erdoğan was accompanied by Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and other officials during the inauguration ceremony for PNS Khyber, the third of the four MILGEM corvettes built by Türkiye for Pakistan, at Istanbul Shipyard.
“The solidarity between us is strengthening day by day with a strategic perspective decisively based on the history, friendship and potential of the two countries,” Erdoğan said.
“The defense industry is one of the important pillars of this cooperation.”
For his part, Sharif said that the promotion of defense cooperation between Pakistan and Türkiye is for peace, not for war or aggression.
Sharif thanked Erdoğan and the people of Türkiye for always standing behind his country in every difficult time.
“Pakistan and Türkiye are deeply engaged in promoting our defense capabilities for peace, not for war or aggression, and as they say, if you want to live in peace, you must be prepared for war,” Sharif said.
“So, this [MILGEM corvette ships] is not for aggression. This is for defense,” he noted.
The MILGEM (National Ship) marine platforms project is a Turkish warship program that aims to develop multipurpose corvettes and frigates that can be deployed in a range of missions.
These include reconnaissance, surveillance, early warning, anti-submarine warfare, surface-to-surface and surface-to-air warfare, and amphibious operations.
In July 2018, the Pakistan Navy signed a contract for the acquisition of four Ada class ships with Turkish state-owned defense firm ASFAT.
According to the plan, two corvettes were envisaged to be built in Türkiye and the other two in Pakistan, in a deal that included technology transfer.
The first corvette for the Pakistan Navy, PNS Babar, was launched in Istanbul in August 2021, while the foundation for the second ship, PNS Badr, was laid in Karachi in May this year.
The deliveries of the ships, which will be able to perform all kinds of military duties from air defense to submarine defense, are expected to be made at six-month intervals starting from August 2023.
Erdoğan said Pakistan has always been highly respected by the Turkish people and said that MILGEM is among the most important cooperation projects that “crown our relations.”
Sharif thanked the Turkish president and the people of Türkiye for helping and standing behind Pakistan during the recent devastating flood in Pakistan.
“Recently, when Pakistan was hit by one of the most devastating floods and Türkiye again was in the front line. It was so kind [ when President Erdogan] called me that night and said, Shehbaz Sharif, what can I do for you, and what Türkiye can do for Pakistan,” he recalled.
Türkiye sent 72,000 tons of humanitarian assistance, including 15 Turkish military aircraft, 13 “goodness trains,” and Turkish Red Crescent trucks, which brought humanitarian resistance for flood victims, he said.
Exclusive: Pakistan insults Greece-Sharif from Turkey: “We support Turkey since the war of independence, we sacrificed ourselves-China, Turkey, Azerbaijan & Pakistan are one”
What Turkish and Pakistani media report in detail:
” In a joint press conference with Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, President Erdogan said: “With the strength and inspiration we derive from the bonds of brotherhood between our peoples, we continue our efforts to advance our relations in every field. which has reached 1 billion dollars, continues to grow steadily. We have the necessary political will and determination to achieve our goal of $5 billion in trade volume.” he said.
President Erdogan and Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif held a joint press conference after the Quartet and delegation meetings at the Vakhdetin Palace.
Starting his speech by saying “Welcome” to Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif and the accompanying delegation, Erdogan said that today they launched into the sea Khaiber, the third of the 4 MİLGEM corvettes they produced for Pakistan.
Erdogan, stating that Pakistan, which has deep historical, cultural and human ties, has always held a special place in the hearts of the Turkish nation, continued his speech as follows:
“The solidarity and mutual support shown between our countries and our peoples, especially in difficult times, is unparalleled. I wish God’s mercy on the soldiers and civilians who lost their lives in the recent terrorist attacks. I would like to emphasize here once again that we support Pakistan’s fight against terrorism. We have always seen Pakistan’s pain as our pain, its joy as our joy and its success as our success.”
“With this understanding, we immediately ran to our Pakistani brothers with all means in the devastation of the floods of the past months.” Erdogan said they sent humanitarian aid materials to the disaster areas with 15 planes and 13 charity trains through the air bridge and railway they established.
President Erdogan, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, said that they continue their efforts to promote relations in every field with the strength and inspiration they derive from the brotherly ties between the peoples of Turkey and Pakistan.
Noting that they welcome the resumption of Pakistan Airlines flights to Istanbul, Erdogan continued:
“We have many successful joint cooperation projects with Pakistan, which plays an important role in ensuring peace and stability in South Asia. Our bilateral trade volume, which has reached $1 billion, continues to grow steadily. We have the necessary political will and determination to achieve our target of $5 billion trade volume Dear “I would like to once again thank all the Pakistani authorities for the timely action taken against FETO terrorist organization in Pakistan and their support in this topic.”
Erdogan said they exchanged views on important regional and international issues of the common agenda:
“Our tripartite cooperation with brother Pakistan and dear Azerbaijan is also developing rapidly. Sharing common values, Turkey and Pakistan act in solidarity at regional and international platforms such as the United Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Organization for Economic Cooperation. “It is essential in terms of the common threats and dangers against our Afghan brothers, in addition to our humanitarian duty. We will continue to work together to eliminate the impact of the humanitarian crisis facing the Afghan people.”
Wishing that the MİLGEM corvette launched today would be beneficial for Pakistan, President Erdogan conveyed his greetings and talks to the people of Pakistan in the person of Shahbaz Sharif.
Shahbaz Sharif’s statements are as follows:
Sherif, who began his speech by expressing his condolences to those who lost their lives in the terrorist attack in Istanbul on November 14 and to the Turkish nation, said: “Our hearts go out to those who were martyred by terrorists in Istanbul. We are very sorry for the loss of innocent lives and share the pain of all of you.” he said.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Sharif, who said there is a period of rising tension in the world, continued:
“As a result, we are facing rising prices internationally for petroleum products and fertilizers. All this creates difficulties in meeting the needs of developing countries. Therefore, we need to improve our relations not only in the field of defense, but also in all areas. Our cooperation in the field of defense must overcome new challenges and it is very important for cooperation, it should reach a wider scale, Mr. President, it is time to further increase cooperation.”
Pointing out that China’s Belt and Road project will have a significant impact on the development of the region, Sharif said: “We, as Azerbaijan and Pakistan, are very fortunate in this regard, this will be a very important cooperation. will bring prosperity and cooperation throughout the region “It will eliminate corruption and increase literacy. In this way, we can overcome today’s challenges. That’s why we want to talk to our friends in China and move in that direction,” he said.
Noting that the relations between Turkey and Pakistan are unique, but the trade volume of the two countries is at the level of 1 billion dollars, Sherif said, “Our current trade volume does not reflect these brotherly relations. This is a unique relationship in history, so let’s focus on it for the next 3 years. And let’s grow our trading volume to $5 billion.” use the phrases.
Expressing that relations between Turkey and Pakistan are based on hundreds of years of friendship, Şerif said: “However, the moment the two nations came together was during the Turkish War of Independence. At that time, millions of Muslims in the subcontinent made great sacrifices for their brothers in Turkey. For example, mothers sacrificed for the education of their children. “Send that money here. It is incredible. A bond like this is like no other,” he said.
Sherif also thanked President Erdogan for his efforts to bring the trade agreement signed between the two countries to parliament and ratify it in August.”
What does all this mean?
In short, Pakistan was indirectly mentioned in Greece too! Turkey’s Independence Day is October 29, as on this day in 1923, the then-new Turkish Parliament declared the establishment of the Republic of Turkey, ending the history of the Ottoman Empire.
The Turkish War of Independence resulted in the abolition of the Sultanate on 1 November 1922 and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne on 24 July 1923. The Turkish Parliament proclaimed the establishment of the Republic of Turkey on 29 October 1923 and Mustafa Kemal, leader of the Turkish National Liberation War and subsequently known as “Atatürk” (father of the Turks), he was unanimously elected the first president of the Republic on the same day.
In short, Pakistan honors and congratulates the victory of the Turkish army over the Greeks!