Pakistan, Sri Lanka joint exercise Shake Hands-II concludes with focus on counter-terrorism
Photo: ISPR
Pakistan and Sri Lanka on Thursday concluded a two-week-long joint counter-terrorism exercise at Tarbela, focused on enhancing counter-terrorism skills and strengthening their longstanding military-to-military relations.
According to a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Joint Exercise Shake Hands-II was conducted between the armies of both countries, centred around counter-terrorism operations at Tarbela.
"The two-week exercise began on April 27 and concluded today. Combat teams from the Special Services Group (SSG) of the Pakistan Army and the Sri Lankan Special Forces participated in the exercise," it said.
The statement further mentioned that the SSG general officer commanding attended the closing ceremony as the chief guest. Major General Ajith Abeyawardana from Sri Lanka also witnessed the closing ceremony.
"The troops displayed the highest standards of professional excellence throughout the exercise," the ISPR statement added.
The ISPR also said that the exercise aimed to refine the drills, procedures and techniques involved in counter-terrorism operations through joint training, while also reinforcing the historic military-to-military relations between the two friendly countries.
پاکستان اور سری لنکا کی افواج کے درمیان انسداد دہشتگردی مشقیں شیک ہینڈ دوئم کا انعقاد pic.twitter.com/xj58pGvjYs
Pakistan’s armed forces regularly conduct joint exercises with foreign militaries to exchange professional expertise and strengthen combat readiness.
Last week, the Pakistan–Turkye Joint Commando and Special Forces Exercise Jinnah-XIII was successfully conducted in Turkiye, focusing on counterterrorism operations.
In April, Pakistan and Egypt commenced their joint exercise, Thunder-II, at the Special Operations School in Cherat.
In January, the Pakistan and United States armies conducted a joint military exercise titled 'Inspired Gambit–2026' aimed at enhancing counter-terrorism cooperation between the two forces.