Islamabad, Kabul poised for trade talks

PESHAWAR (Pajhwok): Amid a renewed diplomatic push, Islamabad and Kabul are set to explore ways of removing impediments to bilateral and transit trade.

An Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) delegation, led by Commerce and Industry Minister Nooruddin Azizi, is currently in Pakistan for talks on addressing issues related to trade.

Officials say the two sides will confer on steps to boost business confidence, enhance trade volume and sort out transportation issues. Problems of traders will also figure at the meeting.

Coming weeks after skirmishes on the Durand Line and in the midst of Afghan refugees’ deportation from Pakistan, the IEA delegation’s visit is expected to help mend fences between the neighbours.

“The fresh diplomatic exchanges, including Pakistan Special Representative Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq Khan’s visit to Kabul, are indubitably a positive sign,” commented Dr. Faizullah Jan Jan, chairman of the Journalism Department at the University of Peshawar.

On Wednesday, Sadiq met senior Afghan officials, including the deputy minister of defence, at the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Economic Committee (JCC) session in Kabul.

The 7^th meeting of the joint committee, a platform for addressing bilateral irritants, took place after a 15 months hiatus, with the previous session hosted by Islamabad in early January 2024.

Commerce Minister Azizi is due to meet his Pakistani counterpart Jam Kamal on the preferential trade agreement, reduction in tariffs on certain items, a revised transit agreement and facilities for traders at crossing points.

Azizi and the team accompanying him are likely to attend a three-day Health, Engineering & Minerals Show (HEMS), slated for April 17-19, at the Lahore Expo Centre.

In the coming days, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar is expected to visit Kabul for discussions on tariff cuts, Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) and transit trade.

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