LAHORE: Bangladesh Ambassador to Pakistan Muhammad Iqbal Khan has said that Pakistanis can now obtain visas to his country online as Dhaka has relaxed visa requirements for the country. During his visit to the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), the ambassador said that the people of Bangladesh want to have a loving relationship with the people of Pakistan and that there is now a need to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. Noting that LCCI could play a role in increasing bilateral trade between Pakistan and Bangladesh, the envoy called for strengthening economic and financial cooperation between Islamabad and Dhaka. The development comes amid melting ice between the two countries since a caretaker government led by Bangladeshi professor Muhammad Yunus came to power in Dhaka following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Last month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Professor Yunus on the sidelines of the D-8 summit in Cairo and stressed the need for joint efforts to explore new avenues of economic cooperation. During the meeting, he highlighted the utilization of great potential to boost trade in various sectors including chemicals, cement clinker, surgical goods, leather goods and IT. He also expressed his gratitude to Bangladesh for the recent steps taken to facilitate trade and travel between Pakistan and Bangladesh. This includes lifting the condition of 100% physical screening of shipments from Pakistan and abolishing the special security desk at Dhaka airport that was previously set up to screen Pakistani passengers. Prime Minister Shehbaz also thanked Bangladesh for removing additional screening requirements for Pakistani visa applicants. Both representatives expressed satisfaction with the recent positive developments in bilateral relations and noted with satisfaction the increasing frequency of high-level contacts. They also agreed to expand and deepen bilateral cooperation in all areas of common interest and emphasized the need to coordinate efforts to achieve mutually beneficial development goals. Prime Minister Shehbaz had earlier met Professor Yunus on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2024, where he highlighted Pakistan’s strong fraternal ties with Bangladesh, based on common faith, history and culture, and supported strengthening ties through parliamentary exchanges. . , interpersonal contacts and interactions between academics, artists, students, etc. Following the meeting, the first ever direct sea link was established between the two countries after a cargo vessel from Karachi arrived at the Chittagong Port. This was followed by the purchase of 25,000 tonnes of high-quality sugar from Pakistan by Bangladesh, according to a publication in the first week of December, which said that Dhaka usually imports sugar from India. Apart from common economic interests, Islamabad and Dhaka share common concerns about Indian aggression.
