Islamabad: (Parliament Times) Steel Cutting Ceremony of 1 st ship of MILGEM Class
Corvettes being constructed for Pakistan Navy, was held at Istanbul Naval Shipyard,
Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral
Zafar Mahmood Abbasi jointly cut the metal plate of the 1 st MILGEM Class Corvette.
Vice President of Turkey Fuat Oktay, Minister for National Defence of Turkey
Hulusi Akar, Chief of Turkish General Staff General Ya?ar Guler, Commander of
Turkish Naval Forces Admiral Adnan Ozbal, Ambassador of Pakistan to Turkey
Muhammad Sajjad Qazi, and other dignitaries attended the ceremony which also
included the induction of newly built TCG Kinaliada, the 4 th MILGEM Class Corvette, into
Turkish Navy Fleet.
While addressing the audience, Turkish President Erdogan termed the brotherly
Pakistan-Turkey relations as exemplary and said that great potential exists for
collaboration between the two countries in the field of defence production. While
highlighting the situation in Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir, President Erdogan said
the world needs to know about the sufferings of the Kashmiri people. Equating Kashmir
with Palestine, President Erdogan further said that over 8 million Kashmiris are living in
an open-air prison in their own lands facing brutalities of the occupation forces with
great courage.
Earlier, Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi in his opening speech termed this project
as another testimony of the Pakistan-Turkey brotherhood. While updating the audience
about the situation in the Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir, he mentioned the toxic
Hindutva ideology of India and the threat it poses to regional and international peace.
He said that Indian brutalities have reached to new levels after the 5 th August 19 illegal
actions of the Indian government which are in contravention to the UN Security Council
resolutions. Admiral Abbasi thanked President Erdogan for raising Kashmir issue in his
address at the United National General Assembly in New York saying the people of
Pakistan and Kashmir are indebted to Turkey for its steadfast support.
Chief of the Naval Staff also acknowledged the commitment and dedication of
ASFAT’s (Askeri Fabrika ve Tersane ??letme – Military Factory and Shipyard
Management) team and expressed gratitude to the Turkish Ministry of National Defence
and Turkish Navy for the support extended by them in this important program.
Today's ceremony ushered in a new chapter in defence friendship between
Pakistan and Turkey and is a major milestone towards induction of state-of-the-art
Corvettes in Pakistan Navy. Once constructed, the MILGEM Class Corvettes will be one
of the most technologically advanced surface platforms of Pakistan Navy Fleet, fitted
with latest weapons, sensors, command and control systems. These ships will
significantly contribute in enhancing Pakistan Navy’s capability in maintaining peace
and security in our area of responsibility (AOR). Contract for construction of four
MILGEM Class Corvettes has been signed with Turkey. Two of the four Corvettes will
be built in Turkey while the other two will be built in Pakistan under the transfer of
technology programme.
