Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has underlined the need for an effective strategy to meet security challenges in the Indian Ocean, reported Pakistan Radio on Monday.
The minister, while addressing the concluding session of the 7th International Maritime Conference in Karachi, said that boost in international trade in the Indian Ocean had underlined the need for an effective strategy to overcome security challenges.
Asif said that in modern times security of Indian Ocean had become more important, and added that there existed challenges of pirates, human smuggling and other menaces in the ocean.
The minister also appreciated the countries participating in the Multinational Naval Exercise AMAN 2017 in the Arabian Sea.
The conference was organised by the National Centre for Maritime Policy Research (NCMPR) and Bahria University.