A final draft of the free trade deal between Iran and Pakistan is expected to be hammered out in negotiations due to be held in Islamabad on April 22 and 23, the International News reported.
A Pakistani official said technical teams from the two countries have been working hard on the draft agreement and will hold sensitive talks in Islamabad.
In another report, a Pakistani website quoted sources as saying that Pakistan has proposed that the talks would be held on April 23-24.
It also noted that lack of a banking channel for direct trade ties between the two neighbors appears to be the main obstacle to the FTA.
In May 2018, Pakistani media said officials at Pakistan’s Ministry of Commerce were examining the last points to finalize the long-awaited FTA with Iran.
In December 2016, Pakistan and Iran launched negotiations on an FTA under an agreement signed by Islamabad and Tehran on 5-year strategic trade cooperation plan.
