ISLAMABAD: A transit trade agreement between Islamabad and Astana would be signed soon in order to speed up bilateral trade between the two sides, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Pakistan Yerzhan Kistafin said on Thursday.
Kazakhstan’s Ambassador in Islamabad
The Ambassador was addressing a seminar in Islamabad on Thursday. He said railway, air, and road links are very significant for regional economic connectivity. The envoy said the national airline of Kazakhstan SCAT will start its operations in Karachi and Islamabad in January 2023.
Kazakhstan’s President to visit Islamabad
He thought that direct flights between Pakistan and Kazakhstan will further enhance mutual economic, trade ties, and tourism in the region. Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev will soon visit Islamabad and it will be very significant in developing close ties between the two sides, he added.
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Kazakhstan’s Minister is likely to visit Islamabad
The Minister of Commerce and Industry of Kazakhstan is likely to visit Pakistan in December to discuss the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) and mutual trade between Pakistan and Kazakhstan. The Ambassador said that the Joint Working Group is also working for the improvement of economic ties and regional economic integration between the two countries.
Islamabad and Astana bilateral trade volume is $197 million: Kazakhstan’s Ambassador
He added that the present volume of trade between Pakistan and Kazakhstan is $197 million, which can be extended to $ one billion. The Ambassador said that information technology (IT), pharmaceutical, textiles, and agriculture and food sectors are very important in mutual trade.
He said that the large population of Pakistan and Kazakhstan consists of youth and both countries can benefit from it. He said that Kazakhstan is the largest economy in the Central Asian region where there is a huge economic potential. He further said that sport is an important sector in both countries in which new ways of mutual cooperation could be opened and sports diplomacy is extremely important. APP
