Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Cairo on the sidelines of the D-8 Summit and discussed ways to improve bilateral relations, especially in the economic and trade sectors.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Sharif congratulated President Widodo on his recent inauguration. Both leaders expressed their commitment to strengthening their countries’ relations, focusing on political, economic and commercial cooperation.
Prime Minister Shehbaz emphasized Indonesia’s role as a reliable trading partner for Pakistan, particularly highlighting the crucial import of palm oil from Indonesia to meet Pakistan’s edible oil needs. Both leaders agreed on the importance of maintaining close communication to deepen bilateral ties.
The Prime Minister also expressed Pakistan’s keen interest in promoting its relations with ASEAN and thanked Indonesia for its support in Pakistan’s bid for Sector Partner status in ASEAN. Prime Minister Shehbaz expressed hope that with Indonesia’s support, Pakistan could soon become a full ASEAN dialogue partner.
In addition to bilateral issues, the two leaders reaffirmed their unwavering support for Palestine, advocating a ceasefire in Gaza and a comprehensive approach to resolving the Palestinian issue. They reiterated their commitment to the creation of an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Prime Minister Sharif invited President Widodo to visit Pakistan, which was accepted.
Prime Minister arrives in Egypt to attend D-8
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Egypt on Wednesday on a three-day official visit to attend the 11th Developing Countries (D-8) Summit in Cairo, whose theme was “Investing in youth and supporting SMEs: shape the economy of tomorrow.
At the summit, the prime minister will highlight the importance of investing in young people and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for a strong and inclusive economy based on job creation, innovation and the promotion of local entrepreneurship, according to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office.
It will demonstrate Pakistan’s strong commitment to cooperate and implement the fundamental principles set out by the D-8, as well as emphasize the importance of partnerships for mutual benefit and development among participating countries, as well as cooperation in agriculture, food security and tourism.
The Prime Minister will highlight the measures taken by the Government of Pakistan for the empowerment of youth and their economic development.
He is also scheduled to attend the D-8 special session on the humanitarian crisis and reconstruction challenges in Gaza and Lebanon to deliberate on the situation resulting from Israeli aggression in the Middle East.
He will underline Pakistan’s principled stand on the situation in Palestine and call for peace in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Shehbaz will also hold bilateral meetings with the heads of state of various countries who have come to attend the summit in Cairo.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar and Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi will attend the conference along with the prime minister.
