Karachi (Staff Report/Agencies): The 10th International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2018 kicked off at the Expo Centre in Karachi on Tuesday.
Opening the four-day event, President Arif Alvi said Pakistan desires peace and its weapons are not for aggression but only for defence purpose. The president said our nuclear deterrence is also to ensure that nobody looks at us with an evil eye.
Expressing concerns over the deteriorating situation in occupied Kashmir, Arif Alvi said Indian side cannot suppress voice of Kashmiri people through the use of force. He urged India to come to the negotiating table as war is not an option.
The president appreciated the sacrifices of armed forces and the people in the war on terrorism. He said our armed forces are the only organisation with experience in dealing with the menace of terrorism.
The president said Pakistan is building state of the art defence equipment including JF-17 thunder fighter jets, Mushshak and tanks. He stressed for further research in the cyber world and artificial intelligence to give a quantum jump to the defense industry.
“Pakistan offers business friendly environment for investment and the private sector should come forward for investment in production of defence related equipment”, he said.
Arif Alvi said a strong and stable economy is also vital for defence of the country. He said that the government is taking measures for economic revival.
Around 262 high-level delegations from 51 different countries are attending the exhibition.
It will showcase a number of activities encompassing world’s advanced defence technology demonstrations, an international seminar, three conferences by Pakistan Armed Forces, IDEAS Karachi Show, counter-terrorism demo, networking, and business expansions through business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-government (B2G) engagements.
China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Jordon, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Turkey, UAE, Ukraine, United States and host Pakistan are establishing more than 520 stalls at the expo.
Another significance of IDEAS 2018 is the holding of exclusive land, maritime and aviation conferences by Pakistan Army, Navy and Air Force respectively. The conferences will be hosted by the respective service chiefs.
New inventions of Pakistan’s defence industry through Pakistan Ordnance Factories, Global Industrial Solutions, Military Vehicles Research and Development Establishment, Shibli Electronics, Universal Smart Military Systems and Daudson Armoury will also be inaugurated and showcased during the exhibition.
Moreover, IDEAS Karachi Show has been planned especially for the people of Karachi on November 29 at Nishan e Pakistan, Sea View. In addition, November 30 has exclusively been reserved for public visits.
