Pakistan and Afghanistan on Thursday agreed to extend the transit trade agreement by signing a protocol in a ceremony held through video link. Advisor to the Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood and Afghan Minister for Commerce and Industry Nisar Ahmad Ghoryani signed the document in the presence of other government functionaries and representatives of the two embassies. Speaking on the occasion, Abdul Razak Dawood said that his vision for economic relations with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics is to make Pakistan a trade, transit and transshipment hub. “Our trade must be based on secure, open, consistent, reliable and legal movement of goods at the Afghan border along with enhanced connectivity with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics,” he said. Dawood said that it is a long-term vision, though he added that his country is doing its best to implement it through constructive engagement with Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. He hoped that these efforts would help Pakistan leverage its geo-economic location in the region to enhance its international trade. “Our discussions with Afghanistan and Uzbekistan are a step in this direction,” he further said. The two countries expressed satisfaction with the extension of the agreement and decided that their technical teams would conclude the revised agreement soon.