Overview
- Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan met Turkish Ambassador Dr. Irfan Neziroglu in Islamabad to prioritize higher Pakistani rice shipments to Türkiye.
- Both sides discussed activating government-to-government procurement and coordinating Pakistan’s state trading entities with Turkish public and private buyers for bulk purchases.
- Market access talks covered better use and potential expansion of the 18,000 metric ton tariff-rate quota under the PTA, streamlined import licensing, and possible zero or reduced tariffs on basmati.
- Technical delegations are scheduled to convene in the coming weeks to convert proposals into concrete arrangements, including PTA-related updates and cooperation on value-added rice products.
- Business engagement will be stepped up through trade delegations, exhibitions, and B2B links, and Türkiye reiterated the shared goal of lifting overall bilateral trade to $5 billion.