Army chief in Uzbekistan to boost military, defence ties

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir called on Uzbekistan’s top civil and military leadership and emphasised enhancing mutual training cooperation and intelligence sharing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on Tuesday.

According to the military’s media wing, the army chief arrived in Uzbekistan on a two-day official visit aimed at “enhancing military-to-military cooperation and defence collaboration”.

During the trip, COAS Gen Munir called on Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, defence minister and chairman and secretary of the State Security Service of the country.

During the meetings, the army chief emphasised enhancing mutual training cooperation and intelligence sharing, read the statement.

“Gen Munir appreciated the standard of training and readiness of the Uzbekistan military forces and their understanding of regional security issues.”

Earlier upon arrival at the Ministry of Defense, the COAS was given a warm welcome and presented a guard of honour by a smartly turned-out contingent.

He also laid a floral wreath at the memorial complex of martyrs in Tashkent.

In July, Gen Munir visited Tehran. During the trip, the army chief and his Iranian counterpart vowed to eradicate “terrorism in border areas”, said the military’s media wing.

According to the ISPR, the army chief had detailed meetings with the military leadership of the neighbouring country including Chief of General Staff of Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Bagheri during his “successful” two-day visit.

Both the military commanders agreed that “terrorism is a common threat to the region in general and both countries in particular”.

“They vowed to eradicate the menace of terrorism in the border areas through intelligence sharing and effective actions against the terrorists' networks, and explore avenues for enhancing cooperation in the security domain,” the ISPR added.

The army's information wing also said that Gen Munir called on Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahain.

The Iranian leaders and the army chief discussed the significance of Pakistan-Iran bilateral relations for regional peace and stability during the meeting.