KARACHI, March 8: Pakistan will not allow its maritime area to become a ‘floating base’ for international terrorism, says commander of Pakistan Navy’s submarine force Commodore Farrukh Mahfouz.

He was briefing media persons aboard PNS Tipu Sultan here about the multi-national naval exercise ‘Aman 07’ on Thursday, now under way in the Arabian Sea.

Before the exercise began, Pakistan’s Navy chief had categorically rejected a perception that the exercise was linked to the huge build-up of western navies in the region because of the standoff with Iran. The exercise has “nothing to do with the situation in Iran. It was planned a year ago” when this kind of mobilisation was not there, he had said.

The sea phase of the exercise is aimed at enhancing coherence and inter-operability among participating forces.

Besides the Tipu Sultan, Pakistan Navy’s Babar, Tariq, Nasar, Mujahid and Muhafiz are taking part in sea operations. Malaysia’s KD Jebat, Bangladesh’s BNS Umar Farooq, Chinese Navy’s Lianyungang Sanming are also taking part.

The US navy’s aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was the main attraction.