ISLAMABAD: Dutch Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag is scheduled to arrive in the federal capital today, Wednesday, to discuss the evolving situation in Afghanistan, the Pakistani foreign office said.
Pakistan helped The Netherlands with the evacuation of its diplomats and other personnel from Afghanistan after the Taliban captured Kabul on August 15.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte expressed his concern regarding a fresh wave of asylum seekers from Afghanistan during a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday, and told the media the last thing his country wanted was “a repeat of what happened in 2015 and 2016 with the Syrian refugee crisis.”
“In the backdrop of recent developments in Afghanistan, Pakistan and The Netherlands have been in close contact,” the foreign office said in its statement, adding that a telephonic conversation was also held between the foreign ministers of the two countries on August 21.
The foreign office said The Netherlands was one of its largest trading partners in the European Union, and a number of Dutch companies had been investing in the country. “The visit of Foreign Minister Kaag will add to the current momentum of high-level exchanges [between the two countries] and help further strengthen bilateral cooperation in diverse fields.”
Pakistan also hosted German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Tuesday who said his country would work closely with the leadership in Islamabad for regional peace.
During a presser with Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Maas said the Taliban were “going to present a new government and it remains to be seen if this government is as inclusive as we demanded it to be.”
“It is important for us that all Afghans, Afghans who do not support the Taliban, are represented by this government, and it remains to be seen if the Taliban will take this into account,” the German FM said.
He thanked Pakistan for playing a constructive role in the evacuation of German citizens along with vulnerable Afghan nationals from the war-torn country in the last two weeks.
“Pakistan as a neighbor of Afghanistan is fully experiencing the effect of this crisis,” Maas said.
Dutch foreign minister expected in Islamabad today for talks on Afghanistan
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Dutch foreign minister expected in Islamabad today for talks on Afghanistan
- Pakistan helped Netherlands evacuate diplomats and other personnel from Afghanistan after Taliban captured Kabul on August 15
- German foreign minister visited Pakistan on Tuesday, said his country would work closely with leaders in Islamabad for regional peace
Pakistan says $50 million meat export deal with Tajikistan nearing finalization
- Islamabad expects to finalize agreement soon after Dushanbe signals demand for 100,000 tons
- Pakistan is seeking to expand agricultural trade beyond rice, citrus and mango exports
ISLAMABAD: Tajikistan has expressed interest in importing 100,000 tons of Pakistani meat worth more than $50 million, with both governments expected to finalize a supply agreement soon, Pakistan’s food security ministry said on Tuesday.
Pakistan is trying to grow agriculture-based exports as it seeks regional markets for livestock and food commodities, while Tajikistan, a landlocked Central Asian state, has been expanding food imports to support domestic demand. Pakistan currently exports rice, citrus and mangoes to Dushanbe, though volumes remain small compared to national production, according to official figures.
The development came during a meeting in Islamabad between Pakistan’s Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain and Ambassador of Tajikistan Yusuf Sharifzoda, where agricultural trade, livestock supply and food-security cooperation were discussed.
“Tajikistan intends to purchase 100,000 tons of meat from Pakistan, an import valued at over USD 50 million,” the ambassador said, according to the ministry’s statement, assuring full facilitation and that Islamabad was prepared to meet the demand.
The statement said the two sides agreed to expand cooperation in meat and livestock, fresh fruit, vegetables, staple crops, agricultural research, pest management and standards compliance. Pakistan also proposed strengthening coordination on phytosanitary rules and establishing pest-free production zones to support long-term exports.
Pakistan and Tajikistan have long maintained political ties but bilateral food trade remains below potential: Pakistan produces 1.8 million tons of mangoes annually but exported just 0.7 metric tons to Tajikistan in 2024, while rice exports amounted to only 240 metric tons in 2022 out of national output of 9.3 million tons. Pakistan imports mainly ginned cotton from Tajikistan.
