No change in trade policy with India, says Pakistan amid appointment of Trade Minister

An official announcement from Pakistan's commerce ministry said, "There is no change in Pakistan's policy on trade with India." According to an official source in the Prime Minister's Secretariat, the appointment of a trade officer in New Delhi is one of the routine postings.

Qamar Zaman, a senior officer of the Commerce and Trade Group, has been appointed for the posting in New Delhi. He is one of the 15 officers appointed for posting in various countries. As per a source, the post of trade officer in the Pakistan embassy in New Delhi has been vacant for years, reported Dawn.

The official in the Prime Minister's Secretariat said, "The selection process for the appointment of all these trade officers was started by the previous government." "We have not changed anything in the summary of the previous government," the source added.

The current cycle for the selection of Trade and Investment Officers (TIOs), including New Delhi, was initiated in December 2021, and the final recommendations of the Interview Board were sent to the Prime Minister's Office on April 1 of the previous government.

The present Shehbaz government has given final approval to the recommendations of the previous government for the selection of 15 TIOs.

On August 19, 2019, Pakistan formally downgraded its trade relations with India to the level of Israel, with which Islamabad has no trade ties at all.

After India's decision to revoke Article 370 of its constitution that granted Kashmir a special status, Pakistan has downgraded diplomatic relations with India and suspended bilateral trade with it, as per the media outlet.

Pakistan has suspended trade relations with New Delhi. However, since the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic, the government has only allowed the import of pharmaceutical products from India. The only related imports from India were pharmaceuticals. (ANI)