Pakistan is having a productive diplomatic week. Hardly two days after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s departure, Islamabad concluded a five-year trade facilitation plan with neighboring Iran. The deal is expected to yield a $5 billion growth in trade volumes between the two countries.
According to Dawn, a major Pakistani newspaper, the deal was finalized in Tehran on Wednesday, at the seventh Pakistan-Iran Joint Trade Committee meeting. Pakistan’s delegation was spearheaded by Commerce Minister Khurram Dastagir Khan while Reza Nematzadeh, Iran’s Minister for Industry, Mines and Trade led Tehran’s contingent.
The Pakistani side expressed its concern regarding certain protectionist Iranian policies, including import bans, onerous tariffs on textiles, and an overly bureaucratic authorization system for imports.
Pakistan and Iran signed a Preferential Trade Agreement in 2004 that came into effect in September 2006.
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