Pakistan, US to resume, broaden investment treaty talks
The News | Sunday, January 30, 2011
Pakistan, US to resume, broaden investment treaty talks
By Aftab Maken
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States have agreed to resume negotiations on a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) through broad inclusion of stakeholders from both sides, said an official announcement.
This was decided in a meeting between a US delegation led by David Lipton and officials of ministry of commerce led by secretary Zafar Mehmood on Friday evening.
Pakistan and US are engaged in bilateral trade negotiations for quite some time under the platform of TIFA and Strategic Dialogue in order to secure favourable conditions for long-term development and diversification of bilateral trade, it said.
Mehmood said that Pakistan is holding the next TIFA meeting in Islamabad this year.
Lipton said that a delegation of major textile and apparel buying houses of US would be arranged to visit Pakistan before Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) meeting.
The ministry of commerce said that it would organise a networking event for Pakistan’s major textile manufacturers with US buying houses.
Pakistan informed the visiting US delegation that the new transit trade agreement with Afghanistan would be implemented from February 12, 2011, and the relevant ministries are in the process of taking necessary actions in ensuring its timely enforcement, said the statement.
Mehmood briefed Lipton on the steps taken by Pakistan to enforce the new agreement with Afghanistan.
Secretary commerce stressed the importance of expediting the congressional approval of the pending legislation about reconstruction opportunity zones (ROZs) and requested Lipton to use his good office in improving the package by enhancing the geographic and product coverage. A comprehensive overview of all the bilateral trade initiatives took place in the meeting.
