ISLAMABAD - Pakistan on Thursday acknowledged Brazil’s principled position regarding Pakistan’s membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
At a meeting with a Brazilian government delegation led by Ary Quintella, the Under-Secretary-General for Asia Pacific, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi said that Pakistan was eligible for the NSG membership.
The delegation is visiting Pakistan for the 4th round of bilateral political consultations. The adviser thanked Brazil for its principled position regarding (Pakistan’s) membership of the NSG,” said a foreign ministry statement.
Fatemi apprised the visiting delegation of the government’s efforts for peace and security in South Asia including continued outreach to Afghanistan and India.
He also referred to the human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir that have “highlighted the urgency of promoting a peaceful resolution of the long-standing issue of Jammu and Kashmir.”
He underscored the importance attached by Pakistan to its relations with Brazil while underlining the need for boosting economic and trade linkages between the two countries.
He also highlighted the important gains made by Pakistan in fighting terrorists and in achieving macroeconomic stability, which has laid the basis for sustained economic growth.
Fatemi invited the Brazilian delegation to take note of the remarkable economic turnaround in the country, which had opened up investment opportunities in Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the fourth round of Pakistan-Brazil bilateral political consultations was held here.
Shuja Alam, Director General (Americas) led the Pakistan side, while the Brazilian delegation was led by Ary Quintella. Brazil’s Ambassador to Pakistan Claudio Lins accompanied the delegation.
The two sides reviewed the entire spectrum of relations and identified specific areas of opportunities for further strengthening bilateral cooperation, a foreign ministry statement said.
The evolving peace and security environment in the region and coordination on multilateral issues also came under discussion, it said.
“The two sides particularly looked at expanding commercial and trade sector cooperation and explored possibilities for enhanced collaboration in the field of defence, education, and culture.”
A memorandum of understanding between Foreign Service Academy and Rio Branco Institute and an agreement on technical cooperation was finalised and will be signed soon.
Both sides also agreed to speed up the finalisation of pending MoUs/agreements between the two countries covering a range of fields such as defence cooperation, aviation, investment, trade and eradication of poverty, the statement said.
The bilateral political consultations between Pakistan and Brazil were institutionalised in 2010 with the first session convened in Brasilia on February 11, 2010. The last session of consultation was held in Brasilia on March 12, 2015.
