Some serious developments have been set in motion due to a delegation-level meeting between Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Dr Nayef Falah M Al-Hajraf this week. After this meeting, Pakistan and the GCC have finalised the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue in order to increase cooperation on various fronts between the GCC countries and Pakistan.
The GCC is an important regional alliance for Pakistan, with which broader cooperation and dialogue can lead to a further strengthening of our foreign policy and the achievement of ambitious long-term goals. The member countries of the GCC consist of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates; these are countries with which Pakistan already has very good relations.
However, as recent times have shown, alliances can always be shaky, and the games of superpowers can always lead to vulnerability in the region. In this unsteady environment, more avenues for dialogue and partnership are helpful in keeping alliances strong.
Pakistan needs to affirm its existing social capital, in particular, due to the prevailing humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the deteriorating human rights situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Kashmir.
Moreover, while Pakistan has been dependent on the GCC countries for finance facilities and assistance, it would be a better and more sustainable approach if more economic routes towards a more open and equal trade with these countries were established, which would uplift our currency, employment and GDP, rather than just increase the import bill.
Such initiatives include the pending Free Trade Agreement between Pakistan and the GCC. The majority of Pakistan’s remittances come from GCC countries; it is important to conclude this agreement to ensure a stronger environment for trade and travel with the GCC.
Source: Published in The Nation​