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Islamabad wants FTA with Dhaka

Pakistan PM stresses opening bilateral shipping services

UNB, Dhaka
Pakistan is keen to enter into a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Bangladesh to foster bilateral trade and economic cooperation, ■Pakistan Prime Mipister Shaukat Aziz said here yesterday.
Tire FTA, he said, would spur business and trade between the two friendly countries. Besides, Pakistan is willing to open bilateral shipping services to promote trade.
The Pak leader also stressed the need for expansion of trade in the region through South Asian Free
TYadeArea (Safta).
Talking to a group of newspaper editors yesterday morning, Aziz said Pakistan is also willing to help Bangladesh in vertical integration of the country's textile sector.
He also emphasised the need for setting up a Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) development fund for poverty alleviation programmes in the region.
The Pakistan prime minister observed that South Asia has the richest reserve of "human capital" which, he said, should be tapped for economic development of the region. "But we have to improve the human development index in South Asia," he added.
Fie said Pakistan has recently said "good bye" to International Monitory Fund (IMF) because his country has been able to turn around its economy.
In this context, he mentioned the recent public auction of cellular licences in his country which netted about 5500 million in lincence fees. "There are no sweetheart deals in Pakistan anymo re," he said.
Pakistan also floated Eurobond issues to raise $500 million which was eventually oversubscribed, Aziz said.
About the process of privatisation in his country, Aziz said, "It's a very complex issue... Pakistan had to restructure the process and inject required capital and take some other steps before privatising the state-owned enterprises."
The Pakistan prime minister, who is also the current chairperson of Saarc, was here on a two-day official visit as part of his tour of the member states. On reform measures in his country, Aziz said Pakistan has lowered taxes and tariff regimes that in turn helped to curb leakage and raise revenue earnings.
In reply to a question, he said Pakistan's parliament is "supreme and sovereign" and the parliament has decided that President Gen. Pervez Musharraf "can hold the two offices simultaneously," adding, "We don’t need to learn any lesson on democracy from anywhere."
Replying to another question on Indian allegation about ISI agents operating from Bangladesh soilan allegation that Bangladesh has always denied the Pakistan prime minister expressed his ignorance on this, saying, "It might have come from the archives!"
Asked about the political situation in Pakistan, Aziz said, "Every country’s politics is different from other... and politics goes its own course.’
About any possible return to Pakistan of two exiled former Pak prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif he said they might not be returning soon for "legal or other reason...
But their parties are functioning in Pakistan."