KARACHI: The third-generation Haider tank was in the spotlight on Tuesday as Pakistan’s premier defense exhibition, IDEAS, kicked off in Karachi, hosting 550 exhibitors, including 340 international defense companies, as well as 350 civilian and military officials from 55 countries.

IDEAS has been held biennially since 2000 and has since grown into a key event for the Pakistani defense sector. 

This year’s exhibition, running from Nov. 19-22 at the Karachi Expo Center, is showcasing a wide range of modern and traditional defense equipment, weapons systems and vehicles.

“This tank is locally produced in Pakistan at the Heavy Industry Taxila in collaboration with our local and international technology partners,” Anza Aqeel, Assistant Director Heavy Industry Taxila, told Arab News, explaining that Haider had auto-tracking, a remote-control weapon system and a 470-kilometer cruising range.

“It has the capability of firing in both the day and night. It can fire up to eight rounds per minute due to its autoloading capability.”

Aqeel said the Haider tank was of export quality, with production currently underway.

 “This tank has an auto tracker installed and both the gunner and commander can fire using the auto tracker,” he added.

The second day of the exhibition, Wednesday, will see the launch of the Shahpar-III drone, the third generation of the GIDS Shahpar unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) built by Global Industrial Defense Solutions of Pakistan and used by the Pakistani military.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said Pakistan’s volume of defense exports was not yet aligned with its potential.

“Though Pakistan is now exporting some high-tech products to more than 60 countries, the volume of exports is not at par with its actual potential,” Asif said.

“A crucial factor, however, has been the limited involvement of the private sector in defense production and activity.”

“In order to achieve this objective, I will stress upon the integration of public and private defense industry to achieve maximum results,” Asif added. “New ideas, entrepreneurship and management skills mastered by the private sector need to be co-opted with the public sector defense industry.”

This year’s event also features a “Startups Pavilion” designed to offer international exposure to young Pakistani entrepreneurs and give them an opportunity to showcase new projects and technologies.