Daily Times

In International Relations, inter-state bilateral relations-combined with realpolitik-are considered one of most important aspects for states to cooperate on a variety of issues that range from economic to security matters. Successful diplomacy is only possible when the concerned parties largely have common or overlapping interests. Since its inception in 1947, Pakistan’s foreign policy has mainly focused on establishing stable and peaceful relations, not only, with its immediate neighbours, but also with the West and the Arab world.

While a lot has been discussed and researched on relations with most of the key global and regional powers, there has been a lack of academic and journalistic research by think tanks and media on the importance of Pakistan-Germany relations that have largely remained strong ever since the late Pakistani President Ayub Khan made a much-publicised visit to the former West Germany back in 1961.

Why relations with Germany are of crucial significance? Well, it’s a premier world economy, in fact the fourth largest economic power in the world. Moreover, it is Pakistan’s 5th largest trading partner in the world and leading trading partner in the European Union (EU) with trade surplus on a positive trend –approximately three billion dollars’ worth of trade. With its growing interest in world affairs, Germany is already considered the leader of EU and increasingly the whole Europe (with Russia being a Eurasian power).

For Pakistan, Germany has multiple significances. Besides, the trade, investment and development cooperation elements, the Pakistani Diaspora of over 100,000, which has doubled when compared to just a decade ago, is important.

The trade between the two countries has been growing steadily for the past many years with many German companies – including the world renowned Siemens – currently having their operations in Pakistan. Furthermore, German automobile companies such as Audi have started envisioning strong presence in the country, since 2015 due to the federal government’s new automobile policy that broke the monopoly of Japanese carmakers. A visit by Sindh Investment Board to Germany in early 2016 has also paved way for Audi to establish an assembly plant in Karachi soon. This is a welcome sign given how Japanese carmakers in the past have been producing lower standard cars at a much higher cost on domestic level when compared to the international market.

Textile, sports and surgical products have been a vital part of the bilateral trade between the two states with annual visits by large Pakistani delegations to fairs held in cities such as Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich. The GSP-plus status provided to Pakistan in 2014 by the EU has also had positive impact on economic production that helped boost exports. While Pakistan’s own exports have weakened since recent years internationally, they have been on an upward path in Germany. With Pakistani economy rebounding due to economic stability returning to the country as recognised by major international news outlets and magazines such as Forbes, Barron’s and Bloomberg, all signs point to a bright future in terms of economic relations with Germany.

Education and vocational training have also played a key role in forging close relations between Pakistan and Germany. Around 5000 Pakistani students are currently enrolled in various German universities, which is the third largest Pakistan-origin student population after the United Kingdom and the United States. In terms of vocational training, Germany is considered a world leader and German institutes have maintained a strong presence in Pakistan for such purposes. This has led to a significant increment in employability for the locals.

As for the crucially important energy sector, Germany – once again – is a pioneer in the world, particularly, in providing alternative energy as a key resource. Solar panels and wind turbines of German-origin are of the best quality in the world and Pakistan has imported such products for its own energy needs. Although, it still largely relies on lower priced imports from China that are sometimes prone to be defective or low quality.

Multiple state-level and business delegations from Pakistan have been visiting Germany. Ministerial and committee-level visits by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Senator Mushahid Hussain, Chief of Army Staff and Foreign Secretary in the past one year have helped discuss bilateral and international issues so to promote further understanding and cooperation.

In the realm of inter-state relations, both countries have also maintained strong defence relations. Pakistan and Germany have been exchanging official visits for both training and cooperation purposes. Former Pakistani Army Chief General Raheel Sharif, who himself was an officer-level graduate from Germany, knew the importance of defence ties with Berlin and paid a much-highlighted visit to the German capital in Summer 2016.

In the current global scenario, the rise of Donald Trump in the United States has shaken the international order to such an extent that many analysts believe that Germany is the next leader of the free world that world should look upon for stability and peace in the world, given the threat of right-wing nationalism, stemming from exaggerated fear and bigotry. The Brexit which resulted from such nationalism and populism has already diminished UK’s role as a viable great power contrary to what British Prime Minister Theresa May’s government believes in.

Pakistan should continue focusing more on maintaining strong ties with the strongest economies of the world with growing international clout such as Germany. It is heartening to see the embassies of the two countries working well for fostering greater positive interaction. Besides political and economic diplomacy; public and cultural diplomacy have acquired new importance as key areas of diplomatic focus worldwide and Pakistan’s Embassy in Berlin has been quite active in these domains.

Although German Chancellor Angela Merkel is currently at a critical juncture of her political career with federal elections due in September 2017, the recent election of former German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier as German President has led to further hope for Germany’s stability and ascendance. With mutual interest and commitment, Pakistan-Germany relations can continue to thrive in the future, since both have more in common to work on rather than any divergences.

The writer is a geopolitical analyst at Business Plus. He can be reached at hassankhan440.com and tweets @mhassankhan06