PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s commerce ministry is poised to send a delegation to Kabul on Monday to discuss issues related to bilateral trade and take joint measures to remove hurdles faced by transporters and businesspeople on either side of the border between the two countries, officials confirmed.
The trade relations between both neighboring states have significantly deteriorated amid frequent border skirmishes and closure of key crossing points along their shared frontier. The disruptions have not only strained diplomatic ties but also inflicted heavy economic losses on both sides, particularly affecting trade-dependent communities and industries.
“Secretary Commerce Khurrum Agha will undertake a two-day visit to Afghanistan on Monday 25 March 2024 to discuss trade related matters,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, a spokesperson for the Pakistani foreign office, said in a statement on Sunday.
“Pakistan remains committed to promoting trade and people-to-people ties with Afghanistan.”
A senior official of the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), the country’s export promotion arm, said the visit was aimed at fostering trust and trade flow between the two countries.
“A senior level delegation, to be headed by secretary commerce will visit Kabul for confidence-building measures to foster trust and ensure smooth trade flow between the two neighbors,” Muhammad Zubair Motiwala, chief executive officer of TDAP, told Arab News.
The development comes days after Pakistan’s airstrikes against suspected militant hideouts in Afghanistan, amid already strained relations between the two neighbors.
“I hope the visit leads to bilateral cooperation between the two countries,” Motiwala said. “Both countries need to revisit their policies to simplify trade, ease restrictions and simplify transit at the border points.”
Speaking to Arab News, Akhundzada Abdul Salam Jawad, an Afghan commerce ministry spokesperson, confirmed the scheduled visit but accused Islamabad of complicating bilateral trade issues.
“Talks will focus on Pakistan’s unnecessary delay of goods’ trucks, red tapism in preparing documents for transit of heavy containers and Islamabad’s latest tightening of rules for Afghan truckers to get Pakistani visas,” he said.
A year ago, Jawad maintained, almost 1,500 to 2,000 trucks from Pakistan entered Afghanistan on a daily basis, but “undue restrictions by Pakistan’s border and trade authorities have made business nearly impossible by introducing new rules,” bringing down the number of Pakistani trucks to about 700.
The Afghan official said his country’s business with Iran through Chabahar Port had witnessed a huge boost due to the trade complications with Pakistan.
“We will discuss with Pakistani side either bureaucratic or infrastructural hurdles for trade and businesses at the border points with impediments and massive congestion, often closure and reopening of crossing points for trade, low scanning capacity, hurdles in trade movement such as transportation of perishable goods, which often result in massive financial losses to our businessmen,” he added.
Hajji Usman, a member of Nangarhar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the security issues between the two countries were also impeding a smooth flow of trade between them.
“Pakistan’s statements are always self-contradictory and I don’t think bilateral trade can move forward in the current state of affairs,” he told Arab News. “First, both countries need to restore confidence and pave ground for boosting trade.”
Aimal Khan, a president Pakistan Custom Clearing Agents at Torkham border crossing, said that business and movement was almost at a standstill due to the interference of institutions other than the customs department.
“Except for the customs department, authorities should ban the rest of the departments from interfering in the working of businesses in the border areas,” he maintained.
Khan said it was a positive development that the Pakistani commerce delegation wanted to discuss the modalities of the trade with Afghan officials to ease the situation for businesses on both sides of the frontier.
Pakistan commerce delegation to visit Kabul on Monday amid tense relations with Afghanistan
https://arab.news/2s8cy
Pakistan commerce delegation to visit Kabul on Monday amid tense relations with Afghanistan
- Pakistan’s trade relations with Afghanistan have deteriorated amid border skirmishes, closure of crossing points
- Afghan business community urges the two countries to sort out their security problems to ensure better trade ties
Sindh assembly passes resolution rejecting move to separate Karachi
- Chief Minister Shah cites constitutional safeguards against altering provincial boundaries
- Calls to separate Karachi intensified amid governance concerns after a mall fire last month
ISLAMABAD: The provincial assembly of Pakistan’s southern Sindh province on Saturday passed a resolution rejecting any move to separate Karachi, declaring its territorial integrity “non-negotiable” amid political calls to carve the city out as a separate administrative unit.
The resolution comes after fresh demands by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and other voices to grant Karachi provincial or federal status following governance challenges highlighted by the deadly Gul Plaza fire earlier this year that killed 80 people.
Karachi, Pakistan’s largest and most densely populated city, is the country’s main commercial hub and contributes a significant share to the national economy.
Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah tabled the resolution in the assembly, condemning what he described as “divisive statements” about breaking up Sindh or detaching Karachi.
“The province that played a foundational role in the creation of Pakistan cannot allow the fragmentation of its own historic homeland,” Shah told lawmakers, adding that any attempt to divide Sindh or separate Karachi was contrary to the constitution and democratic norms.
Citing Article 239 of Pakistan’s 1973 Constitution, which requires the consent of not less than two-thirds of a provincial assembly to alter provincial boundaries, Shah said any such move could not proceed without the assembly’s approval.
“If any such move is attempted, it is this Assembly — by a two-thirds majority — that will decide,” he said.
The resolution reaffirmed that Karachi would “forever remain” an integral part of Sindh and directed the provincial government to forward the motion to the president, prime minister and parliamentary leadership for record.
Shah said the resolution was not aimed at anyone but referred to the shifting stance of MQM in the debate while warning that opposing the resolution would amount to supporting the division of Sindh.
The party has been a major political force in Karachi with a significant vote bank in the city and has frequently criticized Shah’s provincial administration over its governance of Pakistan’s largest metropolis.
Taha Ahmed Khan, a senior MQM leader, acknowledged that his party had “presented its demand openly on television channels with clear and logical arguments” to separate Karachi from Sindh.
“It is a purely constitutional debate,” he told Arab News by phone. “We are aware that the Pakistan Peoples Party, which rules the province, holds a two-thirds majority and that a new province cannot be created at this stage. But that does not mean new provinces can never be formed.”
Calls to alter Karachi’s status have periodically surfaced amid longstanding complaints over governance, infrastructure and administrative control in the megacity, though no formal proposal to redraw provincial boundaries has been introduced at the federal level.
