Five companies from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's defense industry at the arms and military equipment fair in the UAE

(Patria) - Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Minister of Defense Zukan Helez
with a delegation from the BiH Ministry of Defense is visiting the United Arab Emirates, where the International Defense Exhibition and Conference IDEX 2025 is being held.

Minister Helez, accompanied by Deputy Minister Slaven Galić, attended the opening of the Fair, and during his stay in the United Arab Emirates, he will visit the exhibitions “International Defense Exhibition and Conference” and “Maritime Defense and Security Exhbition“.

IDEX 2025 is one of the most significant arms and military equipment fairs in the world, offering government institutions, national armed forces, defense industry factories, world scientific and research institutions, and companies a platform to meet, establish business connections, exchange knowledge and experience, and advance their research and business.

„We live in turbulent and unpredictable times. Arms and military equipment fairs, such as IDEX, are an opportunity to keep pace with current global trends in the military industry. My goal is to improve the capabilities of the Armed Forces of BiH to be as prepared as possible to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country. They must be a deterrent factor against any pretensions to threaten the territorial integrity and unity of Bosnia and Herzegovina,“ said Helez.

On the sidelines of the Fair, Minister Helez met with defense ministers and government officials from other countries. On this occasion, Minister Helez met with the Minister of Defense of Romania, Angel Tîlvăr, the Minister of Defense of Malaysia, Mohamed Khaled Nordin, the Chairman of the National Defense Committee of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Hulusi Akar, the Secretary General of Pakistan's defense industry, Lieutenant General Muhammad Chiragh Haider, and many other political and military officials from around the world.

During talks with Turkish officials, the minister received good news for the Armed Forces of BiH.

„Representatives of the Turkish defense industry, BMC company, informed me that they can expect the handover of the first KIRPI II armored combat vehicle at the beginning of March, and another 4 such vehicles by the end of March. The original deadline for the delivery of these vehicles was July. I am glad that my lobbying efforts have managed to shorten the delivery time.

I am particularly pleased that representatives of the defense industry from Bosnia and Herzegovina had their exhibition stands at this fair: Pretis d.d. Vogošća, Binas d.d Bugojno, BNT-Tvornica mašina i hidraulike Novi Travnik, Unis Ginex d.d. Goražde, Zrak d.d. Sarajevo, and Igman d.d. Konjic. The defense industry of Bosnia and Herzegovina is developed and competitive in the world, I am sure that they had something to offer the world at this fair and that they have established new business contacts and agreed on new deals,“ said the Deputy Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers.