Pakistan, Lebanon Hold Military Staff Talks

Pakistan and Lebanon held inaugural session of military Staff Talks earlier this month in Beirut, Capital of Lebanon.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Oct, 2018 ) :Pakistan and Lebanon held inaugural session of military Staff Talks earlier this month in Beirut, Capital of Lebanon.

Pakistan side was headed by Director General Joint Staff Headquarters Lieutenant General Malik Zafar Iqbal, while Lebanese side was led by Deputy Chief of Staff (Planning) Brig. General Joseph Sarkis, said a message received here from Beirut Thursday.

Pakistan delegation congratulated Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) on the successful conduct of Operation Fajr al Jaroud to evict terrorist groups from Lebanon's north-eastern town of Arsal.

It apprised the Lebanese side of the counter-terrorists actions carried out by Pakistani defence forces and law enforcement agencies as well as the unparalleled sacrifices rendered by the country in this fight.

As both the countries were victims of terrorism, the two delegations agreed to benefit from each other's experiences in this respect.

The two sides discussed various dimensions of the ongoing cooperation and deliberated upon ways and means to expand and deepen bilateral ties.

Lebanese side thanked Pakistan for extending generous training facilities to LAF personnel.

Acknowledging the similarity of challenges to the two countries emanating from their respective geostrategic locations and regional dynamics, the sides agreed to institutionalize bilateral Staff Talks and military exchanges. They agreed to hold the next session of the Staff Talks in Islamabad.

Earlier, Pakistan delegation was received by the LAF Commander, General Joseph Aoun. The head of Pakistan delegation extended an invitation to General Aoun for attending the IDEAS-2018 exhibition to be held in Karachi from November 27-30. The delegation also visited Lebanese Air and Naval Headquarters and received extensive briefings. They also visited Lebanese military training and research institutions and held useful discussions on cooperation for mutual benefit.