KARACHI: Pakistan Navy is always prepared and ready against all threats in the region, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Raja Rab Nawaz said on Tuesday.
“We are always attentive to what is happening around us. We are always monitoring what is happening. This is a continuous thing, our monitoring and our preparation,” he told the media on the second day of Pakistan International Maritime Exhibition and Conference 2025 (PIMEC-25) at the Exhibition Centre.
He said Pakistan will soon add new submarines to its fleet, which will contribute significantly to national and maritime security.
“Pakistan Navy’s role in the region is to ensure maritime security and free flow of trade in the region. The new submarines will contribute significantly to it in the coming days,” he said.
Vice Admiral Raja Rab Nawaz pins hopes on Gwadar port
Talking about PIMEC, he termed it as an effort to stimulate the maritime sector and Pakistan’s blue economy.
The vice admiral said there were some maritime industries that were “less visible and less known.”
He also highlighted the need for efficient port operations and hoped that Gwadar port would be fully operational soon.
“The turnaround time at the port and the size of ships that can berth there are important, like our deep-water terminal in Karachi where we can berth large ships. Gwadar is in such a strategic location which will significantly help in transshipment and maritime trade. A fully functional Gwadar port will present us with huge economic opportunities in the future,” he said.
Karachi Shipyard also has a large presence in PIMEC-25. When referring to the subject, the Vice Admiral recalled that it was built a long time ago and, therefore, there is a limit on the type of ships that are built there.
“The world has moved on. The shipyards in the world today are huge. We are also trying to build a shipyard on those lines in Gwadar. We hope to make progress there. There was also a discussion about building a shipyard in Port Qasim. So yes, I think we need to have more shipyards. And the sooner the better,” he said.
Published in Dawn, November 5, 2025
