Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood has said that Pakistan is pursuing a consistent ‘Vision East Asia’ policy to strengthen its partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in all spheres.
The foreign secretary expressed these views in a keynote address at the Experts Dialogue on ‘Pakistan-ASEAN: Shared Future and the Way Forward’, co-organised by the Embassy of Indonesia and the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI), a press release stated on Friday.
Noting the steady trajectory of Pakistan-ASEAN relations, the secretary underlined the high priority accorded by Pakistan to its relations with South East Asian nations and its recognition of ASEAN’s vast economic potential and centrality in the regional architecture.
He specifically stressed the importance of forging closer cooperation in political, economic, security, tourism, education and socio-cultural domains. The official highlighted the range of steps taken by Pakistan to foster multifaceted engagement with ASEAN and the commitment to deepen trade and economic linkages with its member states.
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He maintained that this was in line with Pakistan’s economic diplomacy outreach and consistent with the leadership’s emphasis on geo-economics. He further encouraged ASEAN member countries to consider investment in Special Economic Zones of CPEC.
The secretary also underlined the importance for Pakistani business community to see how mutually-beneficial collaboration could be achieved by engaging with the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), recently concluded by ASEAN and its key trading partners.
He reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to continue working towards upgradation of its relationship with ASEAN to the level of a Full Dialogue Partner.
The official further emphasised the importance of hard and soft connectivity between Pakistan and ASEAN, including in transportation, communication and cyber domains, between the ports, and among its populations.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 3rd, 2021.
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