Collaborative ties: ‘KU’s partnership with EU is two decades old’

EU ambassador stresses need to understand role of union

KARACHI: The partnership of the Area Study Centre for Europe, Karachi University, and the European Union (EU) is as old as two decades, said the director of the centre, Dr Uzma Shujaat.

She was speaking after a presentation of EU ambassador to Pakistan, HE Jean-Francois Cautain, on the EU global strategy on Thursday.

Talking about the collaboration of the centre with EU, Shujaat said that the partnership revolves around global studies, adding that they have been teaching different languages to students at the centre.

Cautain, while addressing the students, teachers and officials, said that there should be a clear stance on the role of EU in Pakistan. “What EU is doing in Pakistan should be what the people should understand,” he said.



Explaining the role, he said that EU is one of the largest development partners in Pakistan and provides the largest export market for the country. “We have widely opened our doors for anything that Pakistan produces but arms,” he said. “There is no duty and quota on export from Pakistan.”

The EU is working for a prosperous and democratic Pakistan and wants to help in security-related issues, he said, adding that they have been developing policies for the purpose.

Talking about global strategy, he said that EU believes in engaging with different countries. “We need to engage different countries and we believe in partnerships to develop stronger bonds and [help] peace [foster] in the world”.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11^th, 2016.