Zardari seeks strong Pak-US investment, trade ties

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari Monday said Pakistan desired enhanced trade and investment relations with the United States, besides exploring collaborative opportunities in diverse sectors.

The president made these remarks while talking to the US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome, who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr here.

Zardari said American enterprises should be encouraged to invest in the Pakistan Stock Exchange as well as bring innovative business ideas to the country’s economy.

He said Pakistan enjoyed a long-standing and broad-based relationship with the US spanning over seven decades, which needed to be further strengthened.

The president stated that the top priority of Pakistan was to put its economy on the right track and overcome the economic and security challenges. He highlighted that climate change was a global issue, and Pakistan was among the countries most vulnerable to its adverse impacts.

He said Pakistan wanted to improve its agriculture sector by adopting the modern irrigation techniques to conserve water and reduce reliance on flood irrigation.

Ambassador Donald Blome said Pakistan and the USA could enhance bilateral collaboration in the fields of trade & investment, climate change, renewable energy, agriculture and security.

He said the US had completed the Sindh Basic Education Program to build climate-resilient schools to strengthen Pakistan’s education sector.

Meanwhile, talking to the UAE Ambassador to Pakistan Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi, President Zardari said Pakistan desired strong ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the areas of trade, economy, aviation, renewable energy, climate change and human resource development for the mutual benefit of the two brotherly countries.

The president emphasized the need to increase collaboration in the aviation industry to facilitate the Pakistani diaspora in the UAE, including the initiation of commercial flights of Airbus A380s.

He said the Emirati businesses should be encouraged to invest in the Pakistan Stock Exchange to infuse innovative ideas and more capital in the Pakistani economy.

Talking about Sindh, Zardari apprised the ambassador that Pakistan had started investing in mangrove forests and was trading carbon credits in the international market.

He suggested that Pakistan and the UAE should mutually benefit from this opportunity. He said the projects had been undertaken for the lining of canals to overcome seepage and boost agricultural production.

He maintained that Pakistan and the UAE needed to collaborate in the agriculture sector by sharing new technologies as food security was a growing concern for the region due to climate change.

The ambassador highlighted that the UAE was committed to Pakistan’s development and would continue to stand with Pakistan.

He urged the need to transform the existing bilateral relationship into a strategic partnership between Pakistan and the UAE.

He called for focusing on economic diplomacy, adding that big companies from the UAE were keen to invest in aviation, agriculture, renewable energy (solar), education and healthcare in Pakistan.

He said the UAE had recently hosted COP-28 and pledged $100 million for the “loss & damage” fund to help vulnerable countries deal with the adverse effects of climate change.

He said Pakistan could benefit from this fund to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The ambassador congratulated President Asif Ali Zardari on becoming the President for the second term.

He extended best wishes on behalf of the leadership and people of the UAE and reaffirmed their strong commitment to further reinforce the bond of friendship between the two countries.

He also extended an invitation to the president to visit the UAE, which the president accepted.

The president thanked the UAE’s leadership for warm greetings and messages of felicitation and said that the UAE was very close to his heart.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar Monday received the ambassadors of China, the United States, and the United Arab Emirate.

“The U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome called on Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar today. Ambassador Blome congratulated the FM on assuming the office and assured his and his mission’s full support in further strengthening bilateral relations. Progress made in diverse fields and ways and means to further enhance the bilateral ties were also discussed,” said the Foreign Office in a statement.

After the call on by the Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong, the foreign minister underlined that Pakistan-China all-weather strategic cooperative partnership was indispensable for the progress and prosperity of the two countries and was an anchor of regional peace and stability.

Noting the unwavering commitment of leadership of the two countries to strengthening bilateral relations, the foreign minister reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to making joint endeavours for further deepening bilateral relations and to advance phase-II of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor as envisaged by the leadership of two countries.

Ambassador Jiang underscored the special importance China accords to Pakistan and its firm support for Pakistan’s socioeconomic development, industrial and agriculture cooperation.

He also agreed with the foreign minister for high-quality development of phase-II of CPEC.

The UAE Ambassador Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi also called on Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar.

“Congratulating the FM on his assumption in office, the ambassador conveyed warm wishes of the UAE leadership.

Dar appreciated the congratulatory call from the UAE foreign minister and reiterated his desire to work closely with the UAE leadership during his term in office.

Discussions on matters related to enhancing bilateral cooperation were also held,” said the Foreign Office.