Omani foreign minister meets PM, Sartaj Aziz

ISLAMABAD: Taking advantage of one of its closest maritime neighbour, just 202 nautical miles away, Pakistan offers closer linkages between maritime interfaces, airports and seaports by availing the new opportunities offered by China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

The offer was made to Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Foreign Minister of Oman, who met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Adviser on Foreign Policy Sartaj Aziz on Monday. During the meeting, the ambitious project of Gwadar Port was also discussed.

“We have excellent opportunities to take advantage of the complementarities between our economies and the proximity that we enjoy. These commonalities are a great omen for forging a deeper political and economic partnership,” Sartaj Aziz told media at the Foreign Office after meeting with the Omani minister.

Both sides agreed that the concerned authorities should have more regular interactions to suggest the best ways forward in making use of these opportunities. Matters related to enhancement of investment by private Omani companies and the necessary facilitation required by them in this regard also came up during our discussions. Issues concerning to enhancement of bilateral trade were also discussed.

Nawaz Sharif raised the issue of regular political dialogue between the two countries which would provide the forum for a comprehensive exchange of views on all areas of political, strategic and economic interests between the two countries.

“Appreciating Oman’s keen interest in creating closer linkages between Pakistani and Omani seaports, the prime minister said the possibility of launching government-to-government and commercial ferry service between Pakistan and Oman would open an entirely new sector to enhance connectivity, people to people contacts and Pakistan-Oman bilateral trade,” said an official statement.

Sartaj Aziz in his remarks pointed to what he said was the “unique” geo-economic locations of the two countries which jointly would become a bridge for the countries and regions surrounding them to promote greater regional connectivity and economic momentum for the ultimate objective of achieving stability, development and prosperity of people of both the countries.

“Oman has been playing an important stabilising role in regional and international affairs. We share perceptions on a number of important matters of mutual interest and issues related to promotion of regional peace and stability. We have agreed that there should be more regular political dialogue on such issues to promote these understandings even further. Pakistan and Oman have also been traditional partners supporting each other on various international fora and lobby for each other’s candidatures in various international bodies,” Sartaj Aziz said.