Islamabad – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is scheduled to arrive in Karachi today (Wednesday) to take part in the unveiling ceremony of the fourth MILGEM-class multipurpose corvette, named PNS Tariq, for the Pakistan Navy at the Karachi shipyard.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Vice President of the Republic of Turkey, Cevdet Yilmaz, arrived in Pakistan and together they will inaugurate the latest corvette ‘PNS Tariq’ for the Pakistan Navy.
Back in 2018, Pakistan signed a $1.5 billion agreement with Turkey to acquire four Ada-class ships from the Turkish state-owned defense firm ASFAT. As per the contract, two of these ships were to be built at the Istanbul Naval Shipyard and the other two at the Karachi Shipyard, with technology transfer included.
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The MILGEM project is a significant milestone in the Pakistan-Turkey strategic partnership, based on joint collaboration, according to Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first MILGEM-class warship for the Pakistan Navy, named PNS Babur, was launched in August 2021 at the Istanbul shipyard, followed by PNS Khaibar in November 2022, and PNS Badr in May 2022 in Karachi. Now, the fourth ship, PNS Tariq, is set to be launched today at Karachi Shipyard.
These new multipurpose corvettes and frigates will enhance Pakistan Navy’s capabilities in various missions, including surveillance, early warning, anti-submarine warfare, surface-to-surface and surface-to-air warfare, and amphibious operations. The induction of these latest warships will bolster the country’s maritime defense and deterrence capabilities, as Pakistan Navy aims to build a fleet of over 50 vessels, including 20 major surface ships.
