LCCI welcome Turkish President’s visit

LAHORE, Feb 13 (APP): The Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) has welcomed the historic visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Pakistan, saying it would prove to be another milestone in further cementing the bilateral ties and cooperation between the two countries in diverse fields.

In a statement issued here on Thursday, the LCCI President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh said that Turkey is a time-tested friend and a very important partner of Pakistan in Economic Development and bilateral trade, adding that mutual relations of the both countries were based on solid foundation.

The LCCI president said that Pakistan and Turkey have long historical ties and both the countries have been cooperating with each other since long for mutual benefits. He said that governments as well as the private sectors of the two countries were taking keen interest in developing close relations between Pakistan and Turkey.

He elaborated that Pakistan largely exports cotton, plastics, articles of apparel and clothing (knitted and non-knitted), other value added textiles, cereals etc. to Turkey.

He said that strong Free Trade Agreement between the two countries could potentially help in increasing the bilateral trade substantially. “In order to achieve this objective, elimination in tariffs along with the concerns regarding non-tariff barriers needed to be addressed”, he said.

LCCI Senior Vice President Ali Hussam Asghar and vice president Mian Zahid Jawaid Ahmad were also optimistic that the visit of Turkish President would encourage Turkish firms to invest in Pakistan, adding that Pakistan’s economic potential and geo-strategic location could benefit the bilateral trade and cooperation in diverse fields.