Says govt, army and private, govt institutions on same page for political stability; inaugurates 9th IDEAS-2016 at Expo Centre Karachi; president says defence production is to maintain balance of power
KARACHI: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has said that Pakistan has been against the weapons’ race in the region and such a trend should be discouraged. “Our weapons of war” are used only to promote peace, he said.
The prime minister declared this while addressing the inauguration ceremony of the 9th International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS)-2016 at the Expo Centre, Karachi. The ceremony was attended by chiefs of the three armed forces, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Defence Minister Kawaja Muhammad Asif, Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, other senior civil and military officials and representatives of foreign delegations participating in the international arms expo.
The PM said on the occasion that Pakistan had been emerging fast on the international scene of defence production as IDEAS had gained recognition on the international scene and it was a clear evidence to this effect. He said the weapons of defence produced by Pakistan had proved their worth and capability in the international markets.
He said that recurrence of incidents of terrorism in Pakistan had phenomenally decreased. He said that at present Pakistan had abundance of foreign capital while there were widened prospects of doing trade and launching joint business ventures. He said at present the rate of interest in Pakistan had been at the lowest level.
He invited all the prospective foreign investors to invest in all sectors in Pakistan as the present government would provide the maximum possible privileges along with provision of friendly environment for doing business.
The prime minister said that his government had the complete resolve to stabilise the economy of the country while the government had also been actively working to develop the social sector. He said that Pakistan presented more opportunities of doing profitable investment. He said that Pakistan had also been doing investment to develop its industry for defence production.
He said the GDP growthrate of Pakistan had increased to 4.71pc and this rate would be further increased. He said the rating of Pakistan had been improved under the classification done by international financial institutions. He said that the GDP growth rate of the country would be increased to five per cent by the end of the present financial year 2016-17.
He said that international financial institutions had acknowledged the economic development secured by Pakistan as credit rating of the country had been improved by global agencies. Nawaz Sharif said the energy crisis persisting in Pakistan was being overcome as the situation in the energy sector of the country had improved due to the efforts of the government. He said that power loadshedding had not been done in industrial sector of the country for the last 12 months.
He said the government had been working on a fast track basis to complete the energy projects in collaboration with the private sector. “We have overcome terrorism to a large extent as environment in the country is most suitable to do investment after elimination of terrorism. For this cause, the foreign investors are entitled here to get 100 per cent ownership rights (of their proprietorships),” said the PM.
He said IDEAS had secured its position at the global level and that was why over 2,000 weapons of war had been put on display at the latest IDEAS-2016. He said that Pakistan had upgraded its capacity and standard of doing defence production. He said that Pakistan had been exchanging technologies with other interested countries for manufacturing of weapons.
He said the defence production industry of Pakistan had the cooperation and support of concerned international community. In this regard, the role of ministries of Defence and Commerce had been praiseworthy.
Earlier, addressing the ceremony, Defence Production Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain said the slogan of IDEAS-2016 was “Arms for Peace”. He said the defence production industry of Pakistan had progressed well during the tenure of the present government and he was thankful to the prime minister for patronage and cooperation extended in this regard.
Director-General Defence Export Promotion Organization Major General Agha Masood Akram said that in all 418 delegates were attending the IDEAS-2016 and nine new countries were participating in the international arms expo. He said that IDEAS would also promote the under-construction China Pakistan Economic Corridor and for this cause a special stall had been set up. He said that 14 agreements related to arms’ trade and related exchanges were likely to be signed at the IDEAS 2016.
PM VISITS GOVERNOR: Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, along with Sindh chief minister, went to the South City Hospital in Clifton to inquire about the health of ailing Sindh Governor Justice (retd) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, who has been under treatment there for over a week. The PM wished him well and expressed his desire that the ailing governor would once again resume his constitutional duties after full recovery of his health. The PM also examined the medical progress reports of the governor.
APP adds: President Mamnoon Hussain on Tuesday said Pakistan had kept the region safe from any mishap by maintaining the nuclear balance and the purpose of increase in defence production was also to maintain the balance of power in the region.
Speaking at the seminar 'Stability and the Economics of Regional Peace in South Asia' on the occasion of the International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2016 here, he said Pakistan was a peace-loving country and wanted cordial relations on the basis of equality with all the neighbouring countries, including India.
President Mamnoon emphasised that regional peace and stability was vital to ensure development and prosperity in the region. The regional countries should learn from the past mistakes and refrain from interfering in internal affairs of others, he added.
He said Pakistan was swiftly moving forward in defence production and different other fields and the participation of increasing number of countries in the IDEAS 2016 proved that fact. Pakistan, he said, had set a precedent for the world by effectively curbing terrorism through the Operation Zarb-e-Azb and the National Action Plan.
He said the excellent exhibition of defence production reflected the extraordinary expertise and dedication of experts and workers associated with their field. The president pointed out that the government through a comprehensive strategy had invested in education and also promoted healthy activities among the youth and those efforts were producing very fruitful results.
About the Kashmir dispute, he said it was the biggest challenge to peace in the region. "The people of Jammu and Kashmir were deprived of their right to self determination and are facing brutalities at the hand of occupation forces."
Pakistan, he added, would continue moral, political and diplomatic support to the people of Kashmir. President Mamnoon said repeated unprovoked ceasefire violations by India on the Line of Control were claiming precious lives. "No one should misconstrue the policy of restraint as Pakistan is fully capable of responding to any aggression."
He said India's refusal to attend the 19th meeting of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) hurt the efforts for regional peace and violated the SAARC Charter. The president reiterated that Afghanistan was a close neighbour and a brotherly country and its stability and prosperity were necessary not only for the region but also for Pakistan.
About the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, he said the whole region would hugely benefit from the initiative. President Mamnoon said the efforts by Pakistani experts in defence production were for regional peace. "We want that by maintaining balance of power, regional stability, development and prosperity be ensured," he added.
He said the IDEAS 2016 was a milestone towards achieving those objectives, which gained international recognition in a very short period. "We are proud of our scientists and technical experts who have produced the most effective sophisticated and low cost weapons of international standards."
"We want to invite our friends and the world community to join these endeavours through joint ventures and investment. Our this offer would be very beneficial for the economy of regional peace."
Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, armed forces chiefs, Director General Defence Export Promotion Organisation (DEPO) Maj Gen Agha Masood Akram, parliamentarians and a large of delegates attended the seminar.