President Dr. Arif Alvi has said that Pakistan is a peaceful and sovereign country, desirous of having good relations with all its neighbors. He further stated that Pakistan believes in dialogue with all countries including India on all matters of mutual interest, but not at the cost of its territorial integrity. He noted that that we would like all friendly countries to urge India to cooperate with Pakistan for peaceful resolution of Jammu & Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UNSC resolutions. The President said this while talking to Minister of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Hasanov Zakir Asgar Oglu, who called on him in Islamabad on Friday. The President noted that Pakistan highly values its brotherly relations with Azerbaijan. He highlighted the tremendous bilateral goodwill and appreciated the participation of H.E. President Ilham Aliyev’s in the 13th ECO Summit held on 1st March 2017 in Islamabad. He also appreciated Azerbaijan’s support to Pakistan’s candidature for the membership of OIC’s Independent Permanent Human Rights Commissioner (IPHRC). Furthermore, he appreciated Azerbaijan’s continued support on Jammu and Kashmir. The President said that the present state of our bilateral economic cooperation is not commensurate with the true potential and there is a need to enhance the volume of our bilateral trade. He highlighted the need to explore possibilities of cooperation and trade in the agriculture, manufacturing, services sector, ready-made garments, cotton products, engineering goods, consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, rice, textile, fabrics, sports goods, surgical instruments and tents. He underlined that with the liberalization of visa regime by Pakistan will increase the number of tourists and businessmen from Azerbaijan. The President highlighted the potential for defense cooperation between the countries. He noted that Pakistan has heavily invested in installing effective border controls while facilitating legitimate travel of common people on Pak-Afghan border. He also underscored that the whole region needs to play its role in reconstruction and rebuilding of Afghanistan. The Defense Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan said that the bilateral relations of Pakistan and Azerbaijan are marked by continuity and that the two brotherly countries have always stood by each other. He also highlighted that the frequent military trainings between the armed forces of the two nations have served as an immense source of learning. The President expressed immense pleasure to see our brothers from Azerbaijan participate in the Pakistan Day’s celebrations. He also extended invitation to H.E. President Ilham Aliyev to visit Pakistan at his convenience.
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