Trade contacts between Pak-iran stressed

Tariq Sayeed, Chairman of the Pakistan Iran Business Council of FPCCI and former President of FPCCI and founder and former President of SAARC CCI has stressed the need for exchange in trade delegations and opening new land routes in Iran in order to increase the level of formal trade between the two countries. He stated this while welcoming Mehdi Sobhani, the Consul General of Iran in Karachi, during his visit to the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry Head Office.

Tariq Sayeed appreciated the recent progress on the Pak-Iran pipeline project and called for its early completion in order to address the energy crisis facing Pakistan. He said that he was pleased to note that the Government of Pakistan was not backing down on this issue in spite of international pressure.

He reiterated that Pakistan was a sovereign state, and nobody could dictate us on issues of national interest. He said that Pakistan was currently facing an acute shortage of gas, and the pipeline project would help address this shortage to a great extent. He also appreciated the role of the Iranian Government in financing the project. Furthermore, Tariq Sayeed spoke about the need to curb smuggling along the PakIran border, ensuring better access for Pakistan's competitive items such as rice and citrus fruits, and the duty structure in Iran for textile products.