Gulf Today, Staff Reporter
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, stressed the importance of the “IDEX and NAVDEX” exhibitions and their role in promoting the exhibition industry, which has become an important engine in the national economy, and a knowledge platform for the exchange of experiences and technology, and a framework for building effective partnerships.
Sheikh Mohammed said, “Since the launch of its first session in 1993, IDEX has witnessed the development of our defense industries, and their presence in the various international exhibitions in which they participate.
This came in the speech of Sheikh Mohammed, on the occasion of the exhibitions "IDEX" and "NAVDEX" 2023, which reads as follows:
“I welcome our guests participating in the International Defense Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) in its sixteenth session and the Naval Defense Exhibition (NAVDEX) in its seventh session, and the accompanying International Defense Conference held under the auspices of my brother, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE.
The broad participation of countries, companies and decision makers confirms the growing importance of the two exhibitions, and their role in promoting the exhibition industry, which has established itself as an important engine among the engines of our national economy, a knowledge platform for the exchange of experiences and technology transfer, and an effective framework for building partnerships.
The successive sessions of the exhibition, which were launched thirty years ago, record a rapid and successful pace of developments and inventions in the defense industries that have witnessed and are witnessing technological developments and changes at breakneck speeds.
The current session of the exhibition is distinguished by its allocation of space for startups and a track for innovation, allowing entrepreneurs and innovators to present their ideas, technologies and solutions in the defense and maritime defense sectors, to the most prominent actors and stakeholders in the two sectors.
The successes of our exhibitions in the fields of defence, aviation, security, technology, and others, coincided with our successes in all fields of comprehensive development, including the development of defense industries, which are a major focus of our security strategies, plans to diversify our economy, and form our human resources.
Since the launch of its first session in 1993, IDEX has witnessed the development of our defense industries, and their presence in the various international exhibitions in which they participate. It is a reliable presence as a result of the stature of our country and the credibility of its policies and dealings, as well as the quality and distinction of our defense industries, the competitiveness of our factories’ production of conventional weapons, autonomous weapons and drones, advanced air surveillance systems and precision missile systems, defense applications of advanced technology and artificial intelligence, and much more.
All greetings and appreciation to my brother, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who was the driving force behind the launch of the defense exhibition and its development to the level of the most important international exhibitions, and was also the driving force to transform the dream of military industrialization into a living and superior reality, providing our armed forces with an important part of their needs, and providing Our country has additional strengths.
I thank those in charge of the organizers of the International Defense and Maritime Defense exhibitions, including the cadres of the Ministry of Defense, our armed forces, our security agencies, and the young men and women of the ADNEC Group, for their efforts and their role in making this important event a success.”