On the second day of the 21st Session of the Joint Economic Commission (JEC) between the two countries, Pakistan signed three Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Iran in the fields of maritime, museum, and information broadcasting.
According to an official statement, the Iranian delegation was led by Rostam Ghasemi, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development, while the Pakistani delegation was led by Syed Naveed Qamar, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Commerce.
Both sides reviewed the provisions of the Agreed Minutes of the 20th Meeting of the Joint Economic Cooperation Commission, which were signed in Tehran on April 17-18, 2017. The Ministry of Economic Affairs hosted the Technical Session on August 17th.
During the JEC’s closing ceremony, Pakistan’s commerce minister stated that Pakistan values its relations with Iran. “Enough agreements have been signed between both countries; now is the time to work hard to see them through,” the commerce minister said. He also stated that the Quetta-Taftan Road was passable, but that various projects were being undertaken to improve the road.
The minister also stressed the importance of easing visa requirements for Pakistani traders and visitors. Furthermore, he assured his counterpart that Pakistan was committed to doing everything possible to increase bilateral trade volume.
“To increase the bilateral trade, an additional border crossing point at Gabd (near Gwadar)-Reemdan has recently been operationalised by Pakistan. In addition, the purpose of agreement on International Transport between Pakistan and Iran aims to facilitate trade traffic from Turkey to Pakistan through Iran, while Iranian goods and passengers can have access to China through Pakistan,” Qamar said.
