Islamabad, Mar 25: A Pakistani commerce ministry delegation will visit Afghanistan on Monday to address issues related to trade between the two countries, amidst strain in their bilateral ties.Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that Secretary Commerce Khurrum Agha would undertake a two-day visit to Afghanistan on March 25 to discuss trade-related matters.
“Pakistan remains committed to promoting trade and people-to-people ties with Afghanistan,” she said in a post on X.
Other delegation members include Commerce Ministry Joint Secretary Maria Qazi, Additional Secretary of Commerce Dr Wajid Ali Khan, Director General Transit Trade and Additional Secretary of Interior Khushal Khan.
The Afghan side also confirmed the visit, with spokesman for the Afghan Commerce Ministry Abdul Salam Jawad telling the Dawn newspaper that Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi would lead the Afghan delegation and discussions would be held on overall bilateral and transit trade.
“We will take up the issue of a ban on several transit items. Pakistan has banned the import of certain items under the transit agreement. Around 50 per cent of transit trade has been decreased due to this ban and shifted to Iran,” Jawad said.
Earlier, Azizi held an online meeting with Agha on March 11 and invited him to visit Kabul with a delegation for talks on trade issues.