Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan, Mr. Kuninori Matsuda called on the Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, here today. The Adviser welcomed the Ambassador and called the relations between the two countries having immense importance for both sides. He expressed his desire to expand the trade relations existing between the two countries on mutually beneficial and supportive terms. The Ambassador congratulated the Adviser on assuming his responsibilities as the leader of the financial team of the government and briefed the Adviser on the existing level of cooperation between the two countries. He told the Adviser that currently the government of Japan and JICA are cooperating with the government of Pakistan on social development programmes, technical assistance in counter terrorism activities and health and hygiene sector. Moreover, the Japanese investors are planning to invest in pharmaceutical and food & agriculture sectors. The Ambassador briefed that they are planning to invite high level Pakistani business delegations to Japan to explore the possibilities of finding new trade ventures. The Adviser welcomed the interest taken by the Japanese side in improving the economic relations with Pakistan and said that he would continue to support the further strengthening this relationship. The Adviser also shared with the Ambassador the details of his recent visit along with the Prime Minister to the United States. Progress made on FATF was also shared. He said that the relationship with the United States under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan is on a more stable footing than the previous tenures and on the FATF programme, the government is making all possible efforts to come out of the grey list; the US authorities have acknowledged the hard work and seriousness of the Pakistani government on controlling terror financing and money laundering. The Ambassador briefed the Adviser that JICA is also planning the next level of economic partnership with the government of Pakistan. He said, Pakistan could prove an important gateway for expanding the regional trade between Japan and Central Asian States.
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