With great pleasure, I welcome all the participants of IDEAS – 2008. The IDEAS series of exhibitions are an important element of our policy of wider international engagement for friendship and cooperation. IDEAS also serve as excellent forum for discourse on defence and security related issues of common interest as well as provide our defence manufacturers an opportunity to display complete range of their products at a scale not possible while participating in exhibitions abroad, and facilitate their close interaction with foreign exhibitors, defence delegations and industrialists.

          Pakistan defence manufacturing industries, after successfully meeting the domestic requirement, have now moved towards marketing their products at international level. Our arms and ammunitions have already found markets in a number of Middle Eastern, Asian and African countries and we are now actively working towards marketing more complex and sophisticated products like tanks, protected infantry vehicles, remotely piloted vehicles, guided anti armour systems, air launched munitions, aircraft and related critical technologies. Besides offering premium grade military hardware at affordable price tags, we also extend defence related services including military training at our premier institutions.

          I congratulate Defence Export Promotion Organization for successfully holding IDEAS series and organizing IDEAS – 2008 at par with international standards. I also compliment the Armed Forces of Pakistan for supporting and promoting this mega event which indeed is a prime example of a successful public private sector partnership. I wish the organizers and participants of IDEAS 2008 a resounding success.