A group photo after SAARC meeting in Islamabad. PHOTO: PID
The comments come in the wake of China’s proposal of creating a trilateral mechanism for ensuring peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan along with coordination of counter terrorism activities between the two states.
Saarc Chamber Vice President Iftikhar Ali Malik said that the Chamber will continue to strengthen economic ties between the three countries while extending an olive branch to Afghanistan for renewed friendship.
“We will continue to play our part in promoting trading ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said, adding that a special Afghan Desk has been established to facilitate traders of both countries.
“The next phase of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be extended to Central Asia via Afghanistan as part of the wider One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative,” he said. Afghanistan is South Asia’s only link to the natural resources rich Central Asian countries-except for the tiny Wakhan corridor- which makes it a natural transit corridor.
Malik also claimed that Afghanistan’s infrastructure projects can be wholly aligned with OBOR enabling cost reductions and shared prosperity, adding that existing close people-to-people and business-to-business relations would make the task easier.
He suggested reduction in tariff rates on essential commodities, removal of non-tariff barriers and trade facilitation through lowering transaction costs and provision of concessionary export refinancing facilities as necessary short term steps for boosting trade between the two countries.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 30th, 2017.
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