Islamabad, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf visited China to attend 19th Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS) at Qingdao, China and delivered a speech on “Maritime Security Cooperation & Maritime Order based on International Law and Extensive Consultation” along with Chiefs of French and Royal Thai Navy as joint panel members.

19th WPNS focused on the theme “Oceans with a Shared Future” which was attended by heads and representatives of navies from across the world. During the symposium bilateral meetings between Chief of the Naval Staff and naval leaderships of WPNS members and observer states were also held. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf interacted with Commander US Pacific Fleet, First Sea Lord & Chief of Naval Staff of the Royal Navy, C-in-C Russian Federation Navy, Chief of Indonesian Navy, Chief of Bangladesh Navy, Chief of Naval Operations of Republic of Korea Navy, Chief of Republic of Singapore Navy and Acting Deputy Commander of Brunei Navy to discuss matters of mutual interest. Admiral Naveed Ashraf focused on PN contributions to regional maritime security and emphasized on collaboration between the navies to enhance maritime security of the region. He also stressed upon greater collaboration between Western Pacific countries to exploit potentials of Blue Economy.

Pakistan Navy joined WPNS as observer in 2014. PakNavy proactively participates in WPNS as it provides a platform to the participating nations to work together for regional peace and maritime security through collaborative approach. The recent visit of Chief of the Naval Staff would greatly augment the bilateral cooperation with participating navies for enhancing regional and global maritime security.