ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has signed a defense cooperation agreement with Turkiye, Qatar and Indonesia aimed at strengthening self-reliance, expanding joint production and enhancing collaboration in research, development and technology transfer, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Wednesday.

The development comes amid ongoing regional conflicts that have prompted several nations to modernize their defenses and forge partnerships to boost defense production, training and research.

In recent years, Islamabad has increasingly focused on local defense production, joint ventures and technology partnerships as part of efforts to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers and build industrial capacity.

Defense Minister Asif said that his country greatly valued strengthening defense cooperation with “trusted partners” and the “Badr Memorandum of Understanding” reflected their shared commitment to contributing to regional peace and stability.

“We look forward to exploring opportunities for strengthening self-reliance, industrial collaboration, joint production and technology transfer while drawing on the complementary strengths of our respective defense industries, in accordance with relevant international and domestic laws and regulations,” he said.

“Through this partnership, we aim to advancing cooperation across joint research and development, training exchanges and industrial capability building.”

The four countries signed the accord in Doha on Wednesday.

“The agreement holds substantial economic importance,” the Turkish defense ministry said.

“By ⁠leveraging ​the unique ⁠military production capabilities of each country, the initiative will facilitate cooperation and integration, enhance defense industrial capacities, and enable the fulfillment of the needs of allied and friendly nations.”

Turkiye, which has NATO’s second-largest army and a robust defense industry, has been helping Gulf nations, including Qatar, ⁠where it has a military base, ‌bolster their defenses amid the Iran ‌war.

In August, it signed a ​mutual defense pact with nuclear-armed ‌Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, under which an attack on ‌one party constitutes an attack on all. Ankara also has close ties with Indonesia, notably in the defense industry.

The defense ministry said the Badr accord would strengthen ties between the countries’ ‌defense industries and bolster collaboration to promote security and achieve shared objectives.

Haluk Gorgun, the ⁠chairman of ⁠Turkiye’s Defense Industry Presidency, said the accord formed the foundation of a “strategic cooperation” to develop joint production and technology.

“Technology sharing, joint development and strengthening domestic production capabilities lie at the heart of sustainable defense industry. As Turkiye, we value partnerships that go beyond off-the-shelf procurement models, that foster the development of a nation’s own human capital and industrial infrastructure,” Gorgun said in a statement.

“We believe that the Badr Memorandum of Understanding will contribute to ​transforming the complementary ​capabilities of Qatar, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Turkiye into concrete projects.”

— With input from Reuters.