KARACHI: Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates have reaffirmed their commitment to expedite negotiations on a comprehensive trade and investment agreement, the commerce ministry said on Wednesday, as Islamabad seeks to deepen economic ties with the Gulf nation.
The pledge was made during a meeting between Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan and the UAE’s Ambassador Salem Mohammed Salem Al Zaabi, during a meeting in which both sides agreed to maintain close coordination to advance discussions on the Pakistan-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
The agreement is intended to broaden economic cooperation by improving market access, encouraging investment and strengthening collaboration in sectors such as trade, logistics, ports, infrastructure and manufacturing. Pakistani officials see the framework as a way to translate long-standing political and people-to-people ties into a more balanced trade and investment relationship.
“Both countries are keen to translate this closeness into a more robust and balanced trade and investment partnership that reflects the true potential of bilateral relations,” Khan said during the meeting, according to the statement, which said the two sides reaffirmed commitment to “expediting” progress on CEPA.
