PM Shehbaz pledges closer trade cooperation with EU

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday that Pakistan was committed to working closely with the European Union (EU) on mutually beneficial trade enhancement initiatives, especially through the GSP Plus.

He said this during his meeting with the Ambassador of the EU to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis.

“Welcoming the EU Ambassador, who assumed his responsibilities in Pakistan only a few months ago, the PM reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further strengthen cooperation with the EU in all areas of mutual interest, particularly trade, investment, development, security, migration and climate change,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

PM Shehbaz expressed satisfaction at the 7th round of Pakistan-EU Strategic Dialogue held in Brussels in November last year, where the Pakistan side was led by Deputy Prime Minister & Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.

Moreover, the EU envoy expressed his gratitude and deep appreciation to the premier for the warm welcome he had received since his arrival in the country and assured him that he would continue to work steadfastly to strengthen Pakistan-EU relations across all spheres.

READ MORE: PM Shehbaz reaffirms government’s commitment to GSP Plus scheme

“He also conveyed the good wishes of the EU leadership to the Prime Minister and said that the EU would continue to engage closely with Pakistan on enhancing trade, under GSP Plus as well as through trade promotion activities such as the first-ever EU-Pakistan Business Forum, that would be held in April this year.”

The meeting comes days after India and the European Union finalised a landmark trade deal that will represent a quarter of the world’s economy as the two sides seek to hedge against fickle ties with the US.

After nearly two decades of on-and-off negotiations, the deal paves the way for India to open up its vast and guarded market, the world’s largest, to free trade with the 27-nation EU, its biggest trading partner.

As a result, Indian textile and garment products will now witness a reduction or elimination of tariffs in EU member states.