Kuwaiti premier vowed to support on FTA during his visit to Pakistan in November 2013
ISLAMABAD: The Commerce Ministry has failed to lure the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) into signing preferential trade agreement (PTA) and free trade agreement (FTA).
A source in the ministry told Customs Today on Thursday that the ministry under the terms of Article-II of the Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation between Pakistan and GCC started negotiations in this regard. The Framework Agreement on Economic Cooperation was signed in Islamabad in August 2004.
The source said that GCC agreed to engage with Pakistan to establish a free trade area in the first round of negotiations held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2006.
“The second round took place in 2008 in Riyadh. In this round, architecture (text of FTA) modalities, regarding the concession lists and rules of origin were discussed. The discussion in the first two rounds included negotiations on goods as well as services sector,” the source said, adding that the commerce minister after getting encouragement from the talks took steps such as circulation of draft text to the stakeholders, preparation and circulation of concession lists as well as convening the inter-ministerial meeting.
Resultantly, the source said, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the GCC and Pakistan in 2010, which included conducting negotiations on FTA.
He added that the signing of FTA lingered because the GCC suspended all its ongoing FTA negotiations in 2008 because of the global economic crisis.
“According to decision by the Supreme Council of GCC, member countries can only negotiate free trade agreements collectively with the exception of the US,” the source added.
He said that Kuwait chaired the GCC in 2013. The Kuwaiti premier vowed to support Pakistan for the FTA during his visit to Pakistan in November 2013.
“The Commerce Ministry again requested the Qatari side to take up the matter in the 3rd session of Pak-Qatar Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) held on February 18 this year,” the source said, adding that on the recommendations of the Commerce Ministry, the government also took up the issue with Bahrain’s king Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa during his visit to Pakistan on March 19, 2014.
The source said that the commerce minister also raised the issue with Saudi Arabia at Pak-Saudi 10th JMC session in Riyadh in April.
He said that Pakistan in all JMCs with the Gulf countries had raised the issue for early conclusion of Pak-GCC FTA.
