Ambassador of Republic of Turkiye in Pakistan Irfan Neziroglu has said that his country is keen to boost mutual trade with Pakistan, and pledged to help remove all hurdles to it. He stated this during an important meeting with Sialkot exporters at the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI). SCCI President Ikram-ul-Haq, Vice President (VP) Omer Khalid and Sialkot business community representatives were also present. The ambassador expressed hope that the trade volume between Pakistan and Turkiye would grow significantly in the near future. He assured his full commitment and support for further strengthening ties between the two countries and stressed that Turkiye was making efforts for enhancing and strengthening its economic ties with Pakistan. “Sialkot is the hometown of Allama Iqbal and Iqbal is our common hero,” he added. The ambassador highlighted key potential sectors for collaboration, including education, textiles, leather and pharmaceuticals. “Entrepreneurs of both countries should know each other more and work hard to expand trade and economic relations while the embassy will fully cooperate in the efforts,” he said and stressed the importance of joint ventures, business-to-business (B2B) interactions and sector-specific meetings between both countries. He added that regular exchange of trade delegations would be crucial in exploring untapped potential. “I believe that commercial relations will make it easy for political, cultural and other relations. I will motivate the Turkiye business community to buy Sialkot-made products directly from Sialkot instead of purchasing them indirectly from other countries at high prices. The bonds between the people of Pakistan and Turkey are strong and enduring, with both nations standing by each other through thick and thin,” he maintained. He said that Pakistan and Turkiye are two brotherly countries having centuries-old relationship. “The Turkish people have great love for Pakistani brethren.” The ambassador showed keen interest in SCCI’s documentary “Sialkot, the City of Progressive People”, which was screened during the meeting. Speaking on the occasion, Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Ikram-ul-Haq said that there was a huge potential to increase the volume of bilateral trade. “Sialkot is an important economic hub and totally export-oriented city of the country. Sialkot represents an industrial setup producing specialized products that are supplied to top brands and buyers all over the world. We produce sports goods, surgical instruments, leather products, gloves of all sorts, textiles items, sports wear, martial arts uniform and accessories, musical instruments, kitchen ware & table ware, hollow ware, hunting knives, table cutlery/flatware, and military uniform badges,” he added. He said that Sialkot-made footballs, field hockey sticks, cricket gear and boxing gloves were used in international games including the Olympics and World Cups. Earlier, the ambassador visited several leading industrial units in Sialkot. He witnessed the craftsmanship of artisans and took keen interest in the production process of spots goods and surgical instruments.