ANKARA, 27 April 2018: A 17-member delegation of National Defence University (NDU) of Pakistan, headed by Brig. Muhammad Shamriaz, visited Turkey as part of its Foreign Study Tour from 20-27 April. The delegation included senior officers from Pakistan’s Armed Forces, Civil Service and officers from friendly countries who are attending National Security and War Course.
During its stay in Ankara, the NDU delegation visited the Training & Doctrine Command of the Turkish Land Forces. They were briefed about the Turkish military system. Both sides exchanged views on further enhancing cooperation in the defence field.
The NDU delegation also visited Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey and its affiliated think-tank, Centre for Strategic Centre (SAM), and interacted with senior diplomats, academicians and researchers. After a detailed briefing on Turkish foreign policy, the delegation members exchanged views on regional and global situation with the Turkish participants. The delegation also visited the NATO-affiliated Centre of Excellence for Defence Against Terrorism as well as Turkish defence industry establishments including ASELSAN and HAVELSAN. Earlier, the NDU delegation visited the Turkish National Defence University in Istanbul.
During the delegation’s visit to the Pakistan Embassy, Ambassador Muhammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi briefed the group about the fraternal Pakistan-Turkey relationship. He noted that current volume of bilateral trade was not commensurate with the excellent political relationship. The Ambassador emphasized that efforts were underway to further strengthen the excellent brotherly, with a major focus on enhanced trade and economic relations. Ambassador Qazi informed that bilateral investment is growing and the footprint of Turkish investments in Pakistan has crossed the US$1 billion mark.
NDU is one of Pakistan’s premier training institutions. It is renowned as a center of excellence in academic and research pursuits, providing policy inputs on national security at a strategic level and acting as a national think-tank.
