Royal Saudi Land Forces and units of Special Forces of Pakistani army started the joint exercise 'Al-Samsam 5' in Shamrakh field, north of Baha region yesterday. The Director of the Exercise Brigadier Shaeh bin Abdullah Al-Qarni pointed out in a speech delivered during a ceremony held on this occasion that the exercise comes as an extension of a series of joint exercises between Royal Saudi Land Forces and a group of forces from brotherly and friendly countries, including the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He explained that the exercise will focus on the war in difficult mountainous terrain environments and irregular operations, noting that participants in the exercise include the Royal Saudi Air Forces, Land Forces Aviation, and units of the Border Guards. For his part, the Commander of Taif Military Region Major General Faris bin Abdullah Al-Omari stressed in a statement to Saudi Press Agency that the exercise 'Al-Samsam 5' has been prepared in advance and programmed within the range of strategic plans for training and the development of the efficiency of Saudi forces, noting that the exercise has nothing to do with any current military operations, but it is a complement to raise the level of performance and effectiveness of the military forces. For his part, the oldest Pakistani officer in the Pakistani forces Brigadier Jaweed Iqbal said that the exercise aims to exchange experiences and raise the level of efficiency and performance in the military forces of both countries, pointing out that Pakistan maintains close military ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Pakistani army exchanges experiences with military forces in the Kingdom, indicating that the biggest proof of that is the series of exercises of 'Al-Samsam' continuing for more than ten years.
