Dili, 20 February 2024 – His Excellency the Minister of Defence, Rear Admiral Donaciano Costa Gomes ‘Pedro Klamar Fuik’, PhD, met this Tuesday, with His Excellency Ameer Khurram Rathore, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran residing in Jakarta-Indonesia at the Ministry of Defence in Fatuhada, Dili.

His Excellency Ameer Ratohre took the opportunity to meet Defence Minister Donaciano Gomes 'Pedro Klamar Fuik', PhD, after presenting his credentials to Chief of State His Excellency José Ramos-Horta, at an official ceremony held at the Nicolau Lobato Presidential Palace this Monday (19/02/24) with the non-resident ambassadors of eleven countries.

The Minister of Defence, Rear Admiral Donaciano Gomes 'Pedro Klamar Fuik', PhD, said that the purpose of this visit was to strengthen the friendship between East Timor and Pakistan, which had been established since the construction of the nation.

"We know that Pakistan is a friend of Timor-Leste during the process of state and nation building, where it sent an armed forces battalion to guarantee peace and security during the United Nations mission through the Peace Keeping Force," said Pedro Klamar Fuik after the meeting.

On the other hand, His Excellency Ameer Khurram Rathore thanked the East Timorese Minister of Defence for his warm welcome and pledged to strengthen defence and military cooperation between the two countries.

“It’s a privilege to be here to share the idea and possibilities to strengthen our commitment in the past and today the minister has identified a few areas where he would want the collaborate with Pakistan and I will be very happy to assist the government of Pakistan would be very pleased to help Timor-Leste in terms of the military cooperation between two nations in the upcoming years", said Ameer Khurram Rathore to the media.

It should be remembered that during the peacekeeping force mission, Pakistan’s military contributed in related areas such as communication and engineering.

 Media MD