News
Sunday, April 25, 2010
US to help Pakistan on market access, ROZs* US trade representative says Obama admin recognises need for expanded trade and economic cooperation
WASHINGTON: Pakistan looked forward to concrete progress towards getting greater market access to US markets, including the realisation of the Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZ) programme, as Washington and Islamabad concluded high-level talks on Friday evening on spurring trade and economic cooperation.
Finance Adviser Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and US Trade Representative Ron Kirk emerged from the day long meeting of the US-Pakistan Trade and Investment Council, with the agreement to support Islamabad’s efforts for market access to major economic powers in Europe and Asia and advance bilateral trade and economic ties under the strategic partnership.
“I think progress has been made in the discussions here, so we look forward to continuing this dialogue and generating concrete results both in terms of enhancement of access to the US market as well as in terms of getting the economic opportunity zones in operation,” Dr Sheikh said alongside Kirk.
The US trade representative expressed the Obama administration’s recognition that expanded trade and economic cooperation would complement security efforts the two anti-terrorism allies have launched in the region.
The two sides issued a joint statement after the fourth meeting of the US-Pakistan Trade and Investment Council, under the US-Pakistan Trade and Investment Agreement (TIFA) that was signed in 2003.
“We reaffirmed our commitment to support Pakistan through market access initiatives,” the statement said.
Both sides agreed to “work together and with the US Congress to move ROZ legislation forward so that we realise the key priority of creating legitimate and productive jobs in areas vulnerable to the influence of violent extremism”. app
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk