KARACHI: Pakistan on Saturday rejected media reports that it had canceled a proposed lease arrangement for the United Arab Emirates to run Islamabad airport, saying no such deal had ever been signed, while confirming that the aviation facility in the capital has been placed in the government’s active privatization program.

The statement followed media reports suggesting that Pakistan had abandoned a government-to-government arrangement with the UAE to outsource airport operations, citing delays by Abu Dhabi in nominating an operating entity and claiming that Pakistani authorities had inferred a loss of interest.

“The Privatization Commission has noticed some misleading reports that suggest ‘canceling of any proposed agreement for Islamabad International Airport’ and strongly refutes such reports,” the commission said in a statement.

“In this context, the claim that ‘Pakistan has canceled any lease agreement with the UAE’ is contrary to the facts and misleading, as no such agreement or lease was ever signed for any of the airports including Islamabad International Airport,” it added.

The statement said the government had decided in November last year to move away from a government-to-government framework and adopt an open bidding process for airport concessions after strong investor interest.

“This decision does not have any political or diplomatic background, and is based purely on economic and procedural reasons,” it said.

As part of that process, Islamabad International Airport has now been formally included in the active privatization program under a long-term concession model, aligning it with ongoing plans for airports in Karachi and Lahore.

The government said the competitive bidding process would provide a level playing field for domestic and international investors, including those from partner countries such as the UAE, as Pakistan seeks to modernize the aviation sector and attract private investment.