RIYADH - Pakistan is “no longer” considering India for Most-Favored Nation (MFN) status, said Federal Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastagir Khan.
Dastagir Khan, however, said that Pakistan and India have agreed to work together and boost commercial relations by giving non-discriminatory market access (NDMA) status to each other. He said, “Islamabad will not give MFN status to India,” adding “We don’t talk about MFN anymore.”
Khan was speaking to Arab News in an exclusive interview in which he gave an overview of the growing relations between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Pakistani Ambassador Mohammed Naeem Khan was also present.
Referring to the commercial relations with India, the Pakistani minister said that, “The two sides had agreed to work within the framework of the NDMA.”
In 2012, Pakistan committed itself to giving the MFN status to India after a strong persuasive note by the World Bank, and having done all the necessary spadework in this regard, opted to miss its own deadline, owing to domestic opposition and lack of reciprocal response from New Delhi.