The Prime Minister extended an invitation to President Sanchez to visit Pakistan at his earliest convenience.

Meanwhile Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met with Chancellor of Austria Karl Nehammer on the sidelines of the 77th session of UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Tuesday. During the meeting, the two leaders reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional issues of common interest.

The Prime Minister highlighted the immense devastation caused by the unprecedented climate-induced floods in Pakistan and the government’s actions to address the colossal challenge. The Prime Minister thanked the Austrian government for its expression of solidarity with the affected people and for extending flood relief assistance. The Prime Minister stressed that Pakistan had become a major victim of the adverse impacts of climate change, while its contribution to global carbon emissions was less than 1%. He added that collective action by the world community to meaningfully and substantially address the climate challenge was imperative.

In the bilateral context, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan viewed Austria as an important country and a key member of the European Union. The Prime Minister underscored that the Austrian Foreign Minister’s visit to Pakistan in March 2022 imparted a strong momentum to bilateral exchanges and growing cooperation. The Prime Minister added that Pakistan and Austria enjoyed long-standing, cooperative relations and there was a huge potential for enhancing mutually beneficial collaboration in diverse areas, particularly energy, IT, higher education, and climate change.

The Prime Minister thanked Austria for its steadfast support for the GSP+ scheme, stressing that this mutually-beneficial arrangement had yielded positive results for both sides. The Prime Minister invited Chancellor Nehammer to visit Pakistan at his earliest convenience to further carry forward the positive trajectory of Pakistan-Austria relations.