by Shafqat Ali

 

Islamabad, March 6: Pakistan on Friday evening urged the ASEAN member countries to promote the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

 

Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood held a roundtable discussion with the resident ASEAN Heads of Missions (HOMs).

 

It was agreed to optimally utilize the bilateral and ASEAN-wide institutional mechanisms and to explore the possibilities presented by far-reaching initiatives like Regional Economic Comprehensive Partnership (RECP) and China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), said an official statement.

 

The meeting was attended by the Heads of Missions of Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

 

Pakistan is a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN since 1993 and is also a member of ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) since 2004.

 

Consistent with “Vision East Asia” policy, the Foreign Secretary reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthen Pakistan-ASEAN partnership in all dimensions. He specifically underscored the importance of forging closer cooperation in political, economic, security, tourism, education, and cultural domains.

 

The Foreign Secretary underlined the high priority accorded by Pakistan to its relations with South East Asian nations and its recognition of ASEAN’s centrality in the regional architecture.

 

The Foreign Secretary recounted the range of steps taken by Pakistan to enhance engagement with ASEAN and the commitment to deepen trade and economic linkages with ASEAN member states. He added that this was in line with Pakistan’s economic diplomacy initiative and consistent with the leadership’s emphasis on geo-economics, said the statement.