Staff Reporter
Karachi
A keel laying ceremony was held at Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works to inaugurate the construction of the second Milgem Class Corvette a type of warship for the Pakistan Navy.
According to an official statement issued by Pakistan Navy’s public relations department on Sunday, Minister of National Defence of Turkey Hulusi Akar attended the event as the chief guest and called it a historic occasion. Minister for Defence Production Zubeida Jalal and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi were also present on the occasion.
The foundation was laid by ASFAT (Askeri Fabrika ve Tersane Ýþletme, Military Factory and Shipyard Management) Ministry of Defence Production (MDP), Pakistan Navy, Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister Jalal lauded the performance of Karachi Shipyard and made it clear that improving the country’s productivity is an “important part of our policy”. She also said that the construction of this state-of-the-art warship in Pakistan is a welcome development.
The communique added that the Milgem Class Corvette would be one of the most technologically advanced surface platforms of the Pakistan Navy fleet. “Equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and state-of-the-art sensors, the aircraft includes surface-to-air, surface-to-air missiles and a command and control system,” the
official statement said. “The inclusion of these ships in the Pakistan Navy will significantly enhance the capabilities of the Pakistan Navy and help maintain peace, security and balance of power in the Indian Ocean region.”
Earlier, Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works Managing Director Rear Admiral Athar Saleem in his welcome address highlighted that Karachi Shipyard is fully self-sufficient and the government and Pakistan Navy in the defence shipbuilding industry
itself.
“It is on track to meet the goals of dependency,” he stressed and added that the launch of the great project with the brotherly country of Turkey would open new avenues for further cooperation in the field of construction of domestically built warships
in Pakistan. The purpose of building corvettes in Pakistan is to further hone the capabilities of the local shipbuilding industry and Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works, it added.
“The second MIilgem Class Corvette would be handed over to the Pakistan Navy in the early months of 2024,” the statement said. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ASFAT Esad Akgün in an interview described the keel-laying ceremony as
“beautiful”.
