Turkish military chief meets Pakistani PM

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD – Anadolu Agency

Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on May 3 met Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar at the Prime Minister’s Office in the capital Islamabad.

Akar, who arrived in Pakistan on an official visit, conveyed the greetings of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Abbasi and expressed satisfaction at the high-level contacts between the two countries, said a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.

The two brotherly countries supported each other within all international and regional organizations on issues of mutual interest, Akar observed, and said there was a need to further increase cooperation at the defense level with a focus on increasing contacts, training and joint exercises.

Prime Minister Abbasi, while reciprocating the greetings of the Turkish leadership stated that the governments and the people of Pakistan and Turkey enjoyed exemplary fraternal relations, the statement said.

Expressing satisfaction over bilateral defense cooperation between the two countries, he briefed the Turkish military chief on Pakistan’s successful counter-terrorism efforts.

Both sides emphasized the need to further enhance and strengthen their brotherly relations, the statement concluded.

Earlier, Akar met Pakistan’s top military leadership.

The meeting took place at the headquarters in Rawalpindi, a garrison city adjacent to the capital Islamabad, said Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, in a statement.

The meeting was held with Pakistan’s army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen. Zubair Mahmood Hayat.

Akar and Hayat discussed security issues, enhancing bilateral military engagements and cooperation, the statement added.

The Turkish military chief praised the Pakistan army’s sacrifices in the war on terror.