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Chief of Army Staff General Waker-Uz-Zaman returned home today after completing a five-day official visit to Turkey aimed at strengthening defence cooperation and military ties between Bangladesh and Turkey.
During the visit, General Waker paid tribute to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Turkey’s founding father and first president, by laying a wreath at his mausoleum, Anıtkabir, according to a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate.
The Bangladesh Army chief held separate courtesy meetings with Turkish Minister of National Defence Yaşar Güler, Chief of the Turkish General Staff General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Commander of the Turkish Land Forces General Metin Tokel and Director of the Istanbul Naval Shipyard Rear Admiral Recep Erdinç Yetkin. He also met representatives of the Turkish Defence Industry Agency (SSB).
General Waker was accorded a guard of honour at the headquarters of the Turkish Land Forces.
The meetings focused on the longstanding friendly relations between Bangladesh and Turkey, bilateral defence cooperation, military training, defence technology, defence industry collaboration, capacity building and other issues of mutual interest, the ISPR said.
Both sides expressed keen interest in further expanding professional cooperation, exchanging experience and strengthening defence collaboration between the armed forces of the two countries.
As part of his visit, General Waker toured several leading Turkish defence and military technology companies, including ASISGUARD, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ), Makine ve Kimya Endüstrisi (MKE), SARSILMAZ, STM, ROKETSAN, ASELSAN and BAYKAR.
During the visits, he was briefed on the organisations’ production systems, research and development activities, advanced technologies, innovations, defence manufacturing capabilities and future technology development plans.
The Army chief also exchanged views with senior officials on potential areas for future cooperation.
