United Arab Emirates is one of the major economic partners of Pakistan: Ishaq Dar

ISLAMABAD, Dec 20, (SABAH): Federal Minister for Finance and revenue Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar held a meeting with a delegation of Etisalat International led by Mikhail Gerchuk, CEO e& International at Finance Division on Tuesday.

The delegation comprised Abdulrahim Abdulla Abdulrahim Al Nooryani, CEO Etisalat Pakistan, Hatem Bamatraf President and CEO PTCL & Ufone and Kamal Shehadi Chief Strategy e& International. Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Dr. Ayesha Ghous Pasha, SAPM on Finance Tariq Bajwa, SAPM on Revenue Tariq Mehmood Pasha, Secretary Finance, Secretary IT & Telecom and senior officers from Finance and Privatization Divisions attended the meeting.

Senator Ishaq Dar welcomed the delegation and highlighted the deep rooted brotherly relations between Pakistan and the UAE. He further said that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the major economic partners of Pakistan. Pakistan attaches great value to the brotherly relations with the UAE. The Finance Minister recalled his meetings with Etisalat in Abu Dhabi and Dubai during his recent visit to the UAE and underscored the significance of resolving outstanding issues between Etisalat and the Privatization Commission and moving ahead for a mutually beneficial solution.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar also highlighted prospects of foreign investment in Pakistan especially in IT and Telecom sector which is growing rapidly and said that the Government is providing conducive environment and facilitation to attract foreign investment.

Mikhail Gerchuk, CEO e& International briefed the meeting on company’s profile and its future investments in Pakistan and expressed readiness to further invest in IT and Telecom sector in Pakistan. Both sides agreed to proceed ahead for resolution of all outstanding issues between Etisalat and the Privatization Commission in a spirit of goodwill.