Islamabad, NOV 12 /DNA/ – Khazar Farhadov, Ambassador of Azerbaijan said that Pakistan, Azerbaijan and Turkey have good potential to develop an economic block to achieve better outcomes for their respective economies. He said that Azerbaijan is keen to enhance bilateral trade with Pakistan, which would be very beneficial for both countries. He said that Azerbaijan and Turkey collaborate in a variety of economic fields and their bilateral trade is in billions. Therefore, Azerbaijan wants to develop similar kinds of trade ties with Pakistan to complement the economy of each other. He said this while addressing the business community during his visit to Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI).

The envoy said that Azerbaijan’s economy has been on a steady growth trajectory and has positioned itself as a strategic transport hub between Europe and Asia. Therefore, close cooperation of Pakistan with it would open up new avenues for Pakistan to promote trade ties with Central Asia. He said that many Pakistani products including pharmaceutical products, textiles, optic and medical equipment, rice and fruits can find a good market in Azerbaijan. Similarly, Azerbaijan can export many products to Pakistan including tomato, hazelnuts, strawberries and other fruits, berries, vegetables, fruit juices, sauces and other preserves, cotton & cotton yarn, polymers and black fermented tea. He said that Azerbaijan has set up many industrial zones and Pakistani investors should explore them for JVs and investment. He highlighted potential sectors for investment in Azerbaijan including agriculture and processing, construction, petrochemicals, renewables, transport, trade, logistics, mining, digital economy, tourism and light industry. He said that ICCI should form another delegation for Azerbaijan and assured that his Embassy would fully support it to make its tour successful.

Speaking at the occasion, Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that Azerbaijan is rich in oil & gas reserves while Pakistan is facing problems in purchasing LNG. He said that Azerbaijan should cooperate with Pakistan to address this issue. He said that Pakistan and Azerbaijan are enjoying cordial relations that should be transformed into growing trade and economic relations to achieve better benefits for both countries.  He said that the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Azerbaijan is quite low as compared to their actual potential. He said that both countries can trade in many items for which it is very important to develop strong business linkages between the private sectors of both countries to explore all untapped areas of mutual cooperation.

Faad Waheed, Senior Vice President ICCI said that Pakistan and Azerbaijan can cooperate in multiple fields including military, defence industry, security, agriculture, trade, banking, energy, tourism, transport, information & communication technologies, science, education.

Zafar Bakhtawari, former President ICCI said that Pakistan and Azerbaijan should explore promoting trade through road links that would boost bilateral trade ties.

Muhammad Ejaz Abbasi, Zahid Maqbool, Usman Khalid, Maqsood Tabish, Khalid Chaudhry, Raja Imtiaz, Fatma Azim, Javed Iqbal, Dr. Muhammad Usman and others were present in the meeting.