Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday that Pakistan was committed to working closely with the European Union (EU) on mutually beneficial trade enhancement initiatives, especially through the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) preferential trade scheme.
The EU’s GSP+ offers developing countries preferential access to European markets in return for commitments on sustainable development and good governance.
Under the scheme, eligible countries are required to implement 27 international conventions covering human rights, labour rights, environmental protection, and good governance. In exchange, the European Union reduces import duties to zero on more than two-thirds of the tariff lines applied to its exports. Pakistan is currently one of eight countries who currently benefit from this scheme.
According to a statement released by the PM’s Office, EU Ambassador to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis, who assumed his post a few months ago, called on the premier at the PM House in Islamabad today.
“Pakistan is committed to working closely with the EU on mutually beneficial trade enhancement initiatives, especially through the GSP,” the statement quoted the premier as saying.
PM Shehbaz further reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further strengthen cooperation with the EU in all areas of mutual interest, particularly trade, investment, development, security, migration and climate change.
He also highlighted the key role of the GSP+ scheme in boosting Pakistan-EU trade, adding that the government was dedicated to working closely with the EU to promote mutually beneficial trade under the programme.
The prime minister welcomed the outcome of the seventh Pakistan-EU Strategic Dialogue, held in Brussels in November last year under the leadership of Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar.
During the dialogue in Brussels, both Pakistan and the EU had reaffirmed their commitment to deepening trade and investment ties, including through the GSP+ scheme.
Ambassador Karoblis expressed gratitude for the warm reception since his arrival in Pakistan and said he would continue to play an active role in further strengthening Pakistan-EU relations across all sectors.
He stated that the EU remained committed to enhancing engagement with Pakistan through trade promotion under GSP Plus, as well as broader commercial activities, including the first EU-Pakistan Business Forum scheduled for April.