LOC20:54
17:54 GMT
(With photos)
KUWAIT, Sept 30 (KUNA) -- Pakistani Navy frigate, Tariq, docked at Shuwaikh
Port on Monday on a visit aimed at "strengthening bilateral ties with Kuwait,"
amid its mission to safeguard waterways from "unlawful practices.
"This visit is aimed at collaboration with the Kuwait Navy and to express
our resolve in standing alongside our brothers," Captain Abdul Rahman told
reporters in a press conference onboard the ship, which made its third stop in
the Gulf region after Bahrain and Oman ahead of its return home.
Pakistan and Kuwait benefit from "strong diplomatic and economic ties," he
said, adding that both of their navies have a "professional relationship on
joint training collaboration and short visits, which are manifested in this
visit, along with others made by the Pakistan Navy every two months." On the
history of this cooperation, he said "this goes back to the inception of the
Pakistan Navy in the early 1980s."
Ahead of its departure, the ship's crew will be conducting training
exercises with the Kuwait Navy, followed by meetings with senior Kuwaiti
officials. This, he said, is "aimed at strengthening relations and expressing
our (Pakistan's) resolve to work together (with Kuwait)."
Tariq is the first out of a squadron of 25 Pakistan navy ships, and "is
named after the gallant Muslim leader Tariq bin Ziyad, whose conquests led to
the expansion of the Islamic rule in Europe."
A frigate of what he described as "type 21", she was acquired from the
British Navy in the early 1990s, after which she received a number of
modifications to her weapons and sensor systems in order to fit the
specifications of the Pakistan Navy."
Pakistan is committed to peace and security in the region and the freedom
of sea, the navy being a "tool for the government's policies in its mission to
safeguard Pakistan's interests," he underlined. The captain also pledged his
country's commitment to assisting in the international community's efforts in
maintaining stability and tackling terrorism in all its forms.
The Pakistan Navy, alongside its regional and international partners, has
been part of the Coalition Maritime Campaign Plan (CMCP) since April 2004 in
their mission to prevent "unlawful maritime practices."
Within its mission, the CMCP - which was sanctioned by the Security Council
according to the UN Charter Chapter VII - aims to "prevent the transportation
of counterfeit goods, human-trafficking and to maintain the security of
waterways and sea farers in the northern part of the Arabian Sea."
The coalition also aims to tackle these practices in the Strait of Hormuz
and the Horn of Africa, he said, affirming his country's intentions to
contribute positively to these efforts and to put a stop to acts of piracy.
(end)
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KUNA 302054 Sep 13NNNN