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Erdogan launches welding of 3rd Milgem warship being constructed for Pakistan Navy
[Dawn] Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday launched the welding of the third ship to be constructed for Pakistan Navy under the Milgem project. Ambassador of Pakistan in Turkey Mohammad Syrus Sajjad Qazi also accompanied Erdogan at the groundbreaking of the third out of a total of four Milgem Ada-class corvette for Pakistan Navy in Istanbul.Speaking at the ceremony, President Erdogan said Pakistan is "our brotherly country with whom Turkey enjoys excellent relations". He underscored that the defence collaboration for the construction of Milgem class warships was another milestone in Turkey-Pakistan defence ties. President Erdogan said both Pakistan and Turkey were living in difficult geographical regions and both countries were facing similar challenges. He affirmed that Turkey would continue to support friendly and allied countries in the defence field. Referring to his visit to Pakistan last year, President Erdogan said the two countries signed a Strategic Economic Framework that would provide the necessary institutional framework to further enhance bilateral ties. The contract for four Milgem class corvettes for Pakistan Navy with concurrent Transfer of Technology (ToT) was signed with ASFAT Inc, a Turkish state-owned Defence contractor firm in 2018. According to the plan, two corvettes will be built in Turkey and the other two will be built in Pakistan, at the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) — Pakistan Navy's specialised shipbuilding division — that also involves technology transfer. Milgem vessels are 99 metres long with a displacement capacity of 2,400 tonnes and can move at a speed of 29 nautical miles. These anti-submarine combat frigates, which can be hidden from the radar,
Posted by: Steve White 2021-01-25 |
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