ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Army Chief General Syed Asim Munir visited the International Defense Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2024 expo in Karachi on Wednesday where he observed an array of weapons by local and international exhibitors and met foreign delegates and military officials, the military’s media wing said. 

IDEAS, Pakistan’s premier defense expo, has been held biennially since its inception under General (retired) Pervez Musharraf’s administration in 2000 and has grown into a key event for the defense sector. This year’s exhibition, running from Nov. 19-22 at the Karachi Expo Center, will host over 557 exhibitors, including 333 international ones and 224 local exhibitors. 

“Over 300 foreign delegates from 53 countries attended the event and showed full confidence in the exhibition and the defense industry of Pakistan,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. “During the exhibition, COAS also engaged in meaningful interactions with foreign military officials and defense delegates present at the event.”

The army’s media wing said a state-of-the-art combat unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) named Shahpar III, developed by the Global Industrial Defense Solutions (GIDS) Pakistan, was the highlight of the exhibition.

“The Shahpar-III boasts advanced capabilities, including an operational ceiling of 35,000 feet and an endurance of over 24 hours,” the ISPR said. “It is equipped to carry a wide range of munitions, including bombs, missiles, and torpedoes.”

While inaugurating the exhibition on Tuesday, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif called for greater involvement of the private sector in defense weapons production and exports. 

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