• Four-day IDEAS 2024 begins at Karachi Expo Centre
• DEPO says 560 exhibitors from 41 countries taking part in mega show

KARACHI: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that new technologies are playing a vital role in confronting modern-day security challenges and a responsible use can make the world a better and safer place.

He said this while speaking at the inaugural ceremony of 12th edition of International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS 2024) that began here at Karachi Expo Centre on Tuesday.

He said Pakistan being a responsible state is always committed to playing its role for international peace, stability and order. “Reciprocity, mutual interests and international norms are the guiding principles that govern Pakistan’s relations at the bilateral and multilateral levels.”

The minister, who is also a central leader of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, said that the government always believed in meaningful dialogue “on the basis of equality” not only to resolve bilateral issues but also to give a chance for peace and harmony in the region.

“At our end, we in collaboration with our partners are steadfast to this unflinching commitment for peace and stability in the world,” he said.

Speaking about IDEAS 2024, he said that the mega defence show served as a regional gateway for international manufacturers and suppliers to explore new avenues of defence cooperation through joint ventures, outsourcing and collaboration.

“Pakistan today offered enormous opportunities for profitable investments, joint ventures and trade in all sectors including the defence industry,” he said, adding that the country’s defence industry had now reached the threshold of quality and reliability wherein its products were competing in the international defence market.

Khawaja Asif said the 12th edition of IDEAS with a participation of startups and leading engineering and tech universities of Pakistan as well as defence experts and manufactures from across the world will prove to be a milestone in development of Pakistan’s defence industry.

He said a defence ecosystem is being launched through the platform of the exhibition for providing connectivity between the academia, industry and public-private sectors in defence production.

He expressed the government’s commitment to continue to create a business-friendly environment for investment in human capital and professionals in this industry.

Earlier, Major General Asad Nawaz Khan, the director general of the Defence Export Promotion Organisation (DEPO), welcomed the visiting delegates, foreign and domestic exhibitors, trade visitors and participants to IDEAS 2024.

Later, the federal minister visited exhibition halls and lauded the participation of academia and defence industry under one roof.

The exhibition will continue till Nov 22.

Besides trade visitors, more than 350 high-level delegations from 55 countries are visiting the biennial exhibition, said a statement issued by DEPO.

Since its inception in the year 2000, IDEAS has emerged as an international rendezvous for defence manufacturers, entrepreneurs, research and development specialists, financial experts and top-level policymakers to promote cooperation, knowledge sharing and support ventures in the field of defence collaboration.

It said that IDEAS 2024 has surpassed all previous milestones in terms of space, booking, exhibitors and delegates both domestic and foreign.

Karachi Expo Centre has been booked to its full capacity with more than 560 defence equipment exhibitors from 41 countries participating including exhibitors from Turkiye, China, Iran, the United Kingdom and several European, Asian, North and South American countries.

Published in Dawn, November 20th, 2024