British Army Chief of the General Staff (CGS) General Sir Charles Roland Vincent Walker on Thursday met Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir in Rawalpindi, where the two discussed boosting bilateral defense cooperation.
The meeting between the army chiefs took place at the General Headquarters (GHQ), according to a press release by the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR).
“During the meeting, issues of mutual interest, regional security and measures to further enhance bilateral defense cooperation were discussed,” he said.
“Both sides reiterated the need for continued collaboration to ensure peace and stability in the region,” the army’s media affairs wing added.
General Walker “appreciated the achievements and sacrifices of the Pakistan Army in the fight against terrorism and its efforts for regional peace and stability,” according to the ISPR.
On arrival at the Headquarters, the UK CGS laid a wreath at Yadgar-i-Shuhada to pay homage to the martyrs. An elegantly trained contingent of the Pakistan Army presented him with a guard of honour.
CJCSC vows to boost defense cooperation with Brunei
Separately, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza met the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam and other officials during an official visit to the country, expressing commitment to “further strengthen military-to-military ties and defense cooperation”, the ISPR said today.
According to the ISPR, apart from meeting the Sultan of Brunei, Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, General Shamshad also met Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja, Major General (Retd) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Brunei Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defense-II, as well as Major General Dato Paduka Seri Haji Muhammad Haszaimi bin Bol Hassan, Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.
During the meetings, both sides discussed the evolving global and regional security environment in the meetings, the ISPR statement said, adding that the CJCSC “underlined Pakistan’s cordial relations with Brunei Darussalam and expressed its commitment to further strengthen military-to-military ties and defense cooperation.”
The CJCSC also visited the KDB Darulaman ship at the Muara Naval Base and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces Defense Academy.
At the defense academy, he “delivered a talk on ‘Pakistan’s contributions to regional peace and stability’ and interacted with students of the command and staff course, including officers from 19 foreign countries.”
According to the ISPR statement, the sultan and the civil-military leaders of Brunei Darussalam “appreciated [the] high professional standards of Pakistan armed forces and their achievements and sacrifices in [the] fight against terrorism.”
The statement also said that upon arrival at the Royal Brunei Armed Forces headquarters, “an elegantly formed military contingent presented a ‘Guard of Honour’” to the CJCSC.
The CJCSC’s visit to Brunei comes about a week after its trip to Bangladesh, where it visited the Chief of the Army Staff, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, at the Army Headquarters in Dhaka. The two leaders expressed appreciation for the “positive trajectory” of growing defense cooperation between Pakistan and Bangladesh during the meeting, the ISPR said.
During the visit, the CJCSC also met Bangladesh Senior Advisor Muhammad Yunus, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Nazmul Hassan, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan and Principal Staff Officer (PSO) of the Armed Forces Division Lieutenant General SM Kamrul Hassan.
