Pakistan COAS Bajwa awarded Turkish Legion of Merit

Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa was awarded the Turkish Legion of Merit for promotion of defence ties between Islamabad and Ankara during an official visit to Turkey.

The COAS also visited Turkish Land Force Headquarters where he was received by General Salih Zeki Çolak, Commander Turkish Land Forces and was presented guard of honour.

According to ISPR the Pakistan Army chief called on the Chief of Turkish General Staff General Hulusi Akar and discussed matters related to regional security and the role armed forces of both countries play towards peace and stability.

Hulusi Akar (born 17 January 1952) is a four-star Turkish Armed Forces general. He is currently serving as the 29th Chief of the General Staff. Akar is the highest-ranking military officer in the Turkish Armed Forces. After the President and the Ministry of National Defence, he has the highest command on all service branches of the Turkish Armed Forces including the Land Forces, Air Force and Navy. Akar has experience as a brigade commander in various NATO engagements including ISAF, Operation Deliberate Force during the Bosnian War and the Kosovo Force during the Kosovo War. He also awarded Nishan-e-Imtiaz, by government of Pakistan. Akar has led the Turkish military intervention in Syria since 2016.

The Turkish Land Forces or Turkish Army is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. Official claims state that the army was founded by Modu Chanyu of the Xiongnu Empire in 209 BC, but the modern history of the army began with its formation after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant events since the foundation of the Army include combat in the Korean War and in the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, and acting as a NATO bulwark along Cold War frontiers through 1992. The army holds the preeminent place within the armed forces. It is customary for the Chief of the General Staff of the Republic of Turkey to have been the Commander of the Turkish Land Forces prior to his appointment as Turkey's senior ranking officer.