Pakistan-India trade likely to resume

Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said that Pakistani businessmen want to restore trade with India and Pakistan will review the opening of trade with the neighbouring country.

Speaking to the media in London, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said that the 16-month government under the leadership of Shehbaz Sharif was only to save the country from bankruptcy and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) fulfilled its promise well.

He said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had been saying that landmines were being laid, adding those who had turned the 24th economy into the 47th economy in the world had drowned Pakistan.

In response to a question, the foreign minister said that if the American ambassador requests to meet the PTI, the court will decide, not the government.

He said that Pakistani businessmen want trade with India to be restored. The government will review the opening of trade with India, he added.

Dar said that Donald Lu’s talk about the elections in Pakistan is not a new thing. If there was rigging, how could a party get 75 per cent of the seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa? In Sindh, PPP got 70 percent seats, if anyone has complaints about the elections, there are courts and tribunals.

The foreign minister said that neighbours cannot be changed. We have to stay with the neighbours. I got the news of attack during a meeting with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. I told the Afghan minister that Gul Bahadur group was responsible for the attack.

Dar said that Afghanistan did not take meaningful action, then Pakistan took action against Gul Bahadur group.

The foreign minister said that British Foreign Minister David Cameron will visit Pakistan in a few weeks. Cameron is returning from a visit to Australia.

Regarding participation in the Brussels Nuclear Conference, Ishaq Dar said that Pakistan is ready to share its experiences regarding the safe use of nuclear energy with the world and international financial institutions should cooperate with nuclear energy projects.