(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Member states of the West Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS) agreed unanimously on Tuesday to let Pakistan become a WPNS observer, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.
Agreement was reached at a biennial conference of the WPNS held in China's naval port of Qingdao, the report said. Pakistan is the fourth observer of the WPNS after Bangladesh, India and Mexico. The unanimous vote follows the discussion of Pakistan's application in January.
The WPNS was established in 1987 with goals to promote cooperation between the navies of its member countries, strengthen mutual understanding and trust, and jointly safeguard regional maritime security. It takes at least five years for a WPNS observer to become a member, according to the WPNS charter.
The WPNS now has 21 member states, including Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, France, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, South Korea, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, Tonga, US and Vietnam.
The conference in Qindao attracted more than 140 delegates from its member countries and observers, with rules on accidental maritime encounters passed at the symposium after reaching consensus among all the member states.
Delegates at the two-day event are reviewing the work of WPNS-sponsored seminars and other activities for the past year and deliberate maritime regulations, among other discussions and exchanges, according to the report.
Multi-country maritime exercises are also being conducted off the coast of Qingdao through Wednesday to mark the 65th founding anniversary of the People's Liberation Army Navy of China. Seven ships from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Brunei join the exercises. It is the first time for China, one of its 12 founding members, to host the biennial symposium.
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