Islamabad - UK Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Defence Stephen Lovegrove CB has appreciated Pakistan’s positive role for regional peace and stability.

The visiting dignitary stated this in his interaction with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa at GHQ on Tuesday.

The US Permanent Secretary Ministry of Defence also called on Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Zubair Hayat.

According to statement issued by the ISPR, matters of mutual interest including bilateral cooperation and overall regional security situation were discussed during the meeting.

Meanwhile, Mr Lovegrove held separate meetings with Defence Minister Pervez Khattak and Secretary Defence Lt Gen (retd) Ikram Ul Haq in Rawalpindi.

During the meeting, both sides exchanged views on matters related to international and regional security.

Ways and means to further strengthen bilateral defence relationship were also discussed.

The two sides took stock of the progress made since holding of the last round of Pakistan-UK Defence Cooperation Forum in the UK and explored new avenues of collaboration.

The meeting agreed that cooperation between Pakistan and the United Kingdom in all spheres of mutual interest shall continue more vigorously by focusing on achieving set targets. Both sides decided to enhance the level of their interaction at all levels.

The British Defence Secretary along with his delegation is visiting Pakistan to attend 16th Session of Pakistan-UK Defence Cooperation Forum meeting.

The forum provides a comprehensive mechanism for bilateral collaboration in the domains of defence and defence industry.