Call to start free trade between Pakistan and ASEAN without any delay
Zahid Latif Khan, the Chairman of Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research and Development (AIERD) has called for finalizing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Pakistan and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) without any delay.
He was talking to the participants of a special meeting on “Pakistan-ASEAN Economic Linkages” organized by AIERD here on Tuesday. Besides others, the meeting was attended by the Ambassadors of Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, and Philippine. The meeting also discussed the possibility of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) third party cooperation with the hope that it would bring prosperity to the region.
Highlighting that Pakistan is a land of opportunities with diverse economic fields, geography, and potential to become the hub of connectivity, MR Latif said ASAEN must explore avenues here to benefit from these opportunities.
Speaking on the occasion, H. E. Adam Mulawarman Tugio, the Ambassador of Indonesia, proposed that there should a focal desk at Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) to promote economic and trade linkages between Pakistan-ASEAN. President of RCCI Nadeem Rauf, while agreeing to the suggestion, assured the participants that RCCI and AIERD will jointly work to establish this desk.
Nguyen Tien Phong, the Ambassador of Vietnam, stressed the need for stability, continuity, and consistency in policies for improving economic and trade linkages between Pakistan and ASEAN.
H.E. Ms Maria Agnes M. Cervantes, the Ambassador of Vietnam, proposed to enhance the linkages through improved exchanges.
Abdul Mubdi’ Osman, the Ambassador of Brunei Darussalam, shared that Brunei has offered good opportunities to invest and trade, especially in the field of LNG.
Deddy Faisal Ahmad Salleh, the Ambassador of Malaysia, said Malaysia is working to enhance connectivity with Pakistan and trying to operationalize direct flights.
During the open discussion, Mr Bilal proposed that Pakistan-ASEAN should work on establishing a special economic zone in Pakistan. “It will be an excellent initiative to deepen the regional linkages and create new economic opportunities,” he added.
Mr. Shakeel Ahamd Ramay, Chief Executive Officer of AIERD, concluded that Pakistan and ASEAN should work to boost the relationship based on the win-win cooperation. Besides trade and investment, cooperation in other fields including health, education, agriculture as well as media and arts is also the need of hour to cement the ties between the people and governments of ASEAN and Pakistan.
