Inaugural meeting of South Africa-Pakistan Joint Defence Committee (JDC) was held in Pretoria, South Africa on 29-30 July 2019. A four member Pakistan delegation was led by Lt General (Retd) Ikram Ul Haq, Secretary Defence, while South African side was led by Dr. S. M Gulube, Secretary Defence. The forum of JDC was established under MoU on Defence and Defence Industrial Cooperation signed during the visit of South African Defence Minister to Pakistan in March, 2017. Before the Plenary session both the leaders also met and discussed issues of mutual interest. During the meeting, both sides reviewed the present status of their bilateral relations and expressed satisfaction on convergence of views on major international issues including Kashmir. The two sides also exchanged views on regional security besides holding in depth discussions on exploring and identifying areas of mutual cooperation including military training, joint exercises, intelligence cooperation and issues relating to defence industrial cooperation. Both sides agreed to ensure effective follow up/implementation of the decisions taken during the meeting. The two sides expressed the hope that JDC would play a vital role in enhancing defence cooperation and agreed to hold the Second Round of JDC in Pakistan in 2020. ******
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