Azerbaijan President says removing custom duty on rice import from Pakistan a result of meetings with PM Shehbaz

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev has said that Pakistan's Gwadar Port offers a huge opportunity to connect the region, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

He further stated the decision to import rice from Pakistan with tax exemption of five years is the outcome of his meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held in the last couple of months.

Addressing an international conference titled “Along the Middle Corridor: Geopolitics, Security and Economy” held at ADA University, Baku, the other day, the president said he discussed with Pakistan’s Prime Minister, the prospects of further intensifying the bilateral economic and trade cooperation and the decision over special regulations for rice from Pakistan, reflected that.

He said they had decided to take this step for stimulating the growth of mutual trade between the two countries. He had discussed with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif what kind of goods they could provide to each other, he added.

“Why should we buy rice from some other place if we have high quality rice in the brotherly country. So, that decision was clearly based on our brotherly relations,” the Azeri media quoted the president as saying.

He said that he knew that the Gwadar Port of Pakistan was transforming into a big international hub. It is not a difficult thing to connect it with our infrastructure, he added.

Ilham Aliyev noted connecting the region will create new opportunities for trade and that all countries have to establish a foundation for sincere cooperation.

He was appreciative of Pakistan for consistently supporting Azerbaijan in the context of Azerbaijan-Armenia relations saying the people of his country highly values this political and moral support.

Commenting further, the Azerbaijan president said that his country enjoyed excellent relations with Pakistan.

Pertinent to mention here, Azerbaijan's government has announced an exemption of customs duty on rice imports from Pakistan till 31 December 2027.

In a tweet, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Pakistan Khazar Farhadov hoped this tax exemption would significantly increase trade turnover and enhance brotherly ties between the two countries.

https://twitter.com/presidentaz/status/1596016269865648129