FO, ministry deny trade ties with Israel
Pakistan
The American Jewish Congress (AJC) had claimed that a bilateral trade occurred with Pakistan.
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) – Amid reports of trade between Pakistan and Israel, the Foreign Office (FO) and Ministry of Trade and Commerce on Sunday denied any dealing with the Jewish state.
The American Jewish Congress (AJC) had claimed that a bilateral trade occurred with the offloading of the first shipment carrying Pakistani food products in Israel.
Issuing a clarification over the purported trade, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch denied Pakistan having diplomatic or trade relations with Israel.
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce said that the Jewish Congress press release was wrongly attributed as it does not make any mention of Pakistan's official trade relations with Israel.
Terming the rumours of Pakistan-Israel trade “pure propaganda,” the spokesperson said “we neither have nor do we intend to start trade relations with Israel."
Earlier, Commerce and Trade Secretary Sualeh Ahmad Faruqui denied sending any export consignment to Israel, and “any claims suggesting otherwise are mere disinformation and politically motivated.”
The customs officials at the Karachi Port also seconded the trade secretary's statement.
