-Exercise came to an end with ships forming traditional Aman formation
-President congratulates Navy on hosting successful event
-Reaffirms Pakistan’s resolve for promoting peace, security
-Thanks participating Naval Forces for displaying commitment to collaborative maritime security
From Zeeshan Mirza
Karachi: The Pakistan Navy’s Multinational Maritime Exercise Aman-21 concluded on Tuesday with a “graceful conduct” of the International Fleet Review (IFR), a press release by the military’s media wing said.
President Arif Alvi attended the event as the chief guest and was received by Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi. Other officials present on the occasion included Minister for Maritime Affairs Ali Zaidi as well as Minister for Defence Production Zobaida Jalal, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Nadeem Raza and Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, among others.
Military officials, ambassadors, high commissioners, defence and naval attaches of various countries also attended the event.
Several operational manoeuvres and drills were held during the IFR, which also features an “impressive fly past” by the Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Air Force as well as participating foreign aircraft, followed by man and cheer-ship by participating ships.
The exercise came to an end with ships of Pakistan Navy and participating countries forming the traditional Aman formation “to signify unity and collective resolve”.
President Alvi congratulated the Navy on hosting another successful Aman event, reaffirming the country’s “resolve for promoting peace and security”.
He also thanked the participating naval forces for “displaying their commitment to collaborative maritime security despite Covid-19 pandemic”. He expressed the hope that the Aman exercise will pave the way to regional peace and security “with combined efforts by all stakeholders”. Aman Exercise is one of Pakistan Navy’s mega-events that is held biennially to signify the commitment towards making the seas safer for positive human activities by inviting regional and extra-regional navies for joint exercises.
As many as 45 countries participated in the Aman exercise this year with their warships, aircrafts and special operation forces. The event also attracted a huge number of spectators.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that Pakistan is ready to cooperate and collaborate with other friendly nations and partners around the world to promote a blue economy for the mutual benefit of humanity. The foreign minister said this on Monday while addressing the international maritime conference titled ‘Development of Blue Economy under a Secure and Sustainable Environment’.
He said that Pakistan recognises the importance of the world’s oceans as a global public commodity and is committed to promoting the prudent use of marine resources for socio-economic development while ensuring environmental sustainability.
The foreign minister maintained that to bring the blue economy to the centre of national economic development paradigm, there is a need to create awareness among all stakeholders about its potential economic, social and environmental benefits, and to provide an enabling ecosystem to attract investments in related sectors.
He stressed the need for concerted efforts to strengthen partnerships and collaboration among businesses, academia, research institutions, and social and environmental organisations to unlock new opportunities. The FM added the idea of blue economy recognises the seas and oceans as drivers of socio-economic development and encompasses diverse fields from renewable energy to fisheries, coastal tourism, waste management, maritime transport, ocean engineering and climate change. He termed the sustainable blue economy as critical for reaping the socio-economic benefits for current and future generations with its global value estimated to be over $24 trillion.
Qureshi said that the Indian Ocean is the world’s third-largest water body while retaining its significance for global security, it represented an increasingly important avenue for global trade. He said that the Indian Ocean hosts international maritime traffic that includes half of the world’s containerized cargo, one-third of its bulk cargo, and two-thirds of its oil shipments.
Qureshi said that Pakistan is an important stakeholder in the Indian Ocean security framework, which includes counter-piracy as well as human trafficking and narcotics smuggling. He added that Pakistan Navy continues to maintain a robust security posture along Pakistan’s coast and in the regional seas, in order to prevent nefarious elements from illicit activities in the maritime domain.
Qureshi said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and development of the Gwadar Port are game-changing projects that have further enhanced the geo-economic significance of Pakistan. The Gwadar Port has the potential to develop into a full-fledged regional hub and a transhipment port. He said, “We have taken a number of initiatives to transform Pakistan’s ports into regional transhipment hubs, including by up-gradation of port infrastructure.”
He also said that the Indian Ocean offers promising potential for mutual cooperation and collaboration; however, he pointed out that geostrategic competition and the pursuit of military dominance by some states has gravely jeopardised that potential. “In particular, India’s belligerent and aggressive policies currently driven by an extremist Hindutva ideology pose an immediate and pervasive threat to international and regional peace and security,” he added. Qureshi stressed that India has nuclearised the Indian Ocean and continues to induct advanced weapons systems and naval delivery platforms in pursuit of its hegemonic designs. He said that in the light of these developments, Pakistan will continue to take all necessary measures to ensure its security and to maintain credible minimum deterrence.
Qureshi underscored India’s belligerent and aggressive policies pose an immediate and pervasive threat to international and regional peace and security. He said that the international community needs to be cognizant of the fact that any military conflict in South Asia could endanger stability in a region that is critical for global trade flows and security.
