ISLAMABAD GNP: In a significant diplomatic engagement reflecting the growing depth of relations between Pakistan and the European Union, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, will arrive in Islamabad on June 1 for a high-level bilateral visit and the 8th EU-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue.
During her visit, Kallas is scheduled to hold meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, and Chief of Defence Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, underscoring the broad-based nature of Pakistan-EU cooperation spanning political, economic, security, and regional affairs.
The centrepiece of the visit will be the 8th round of the EU-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue, which will be co-chaired by Kallas and Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar. The dialogue is expected to review the full spectrum of bilateral relations and explore avenues for enhancing cooperation under the EU-Pakistan Strategic Engagement Plan, signed in June 2019.
Diplomatic sources said the discussions are likely to cover regional and global developments, trade and investment, climate cooperation, migration, security collaboration, human rights, and connectivity initiatives, as well as the evolving geopolitical situation in South Asia and beyond.
The visit comes at a time of increasing engagement between Pakistan and the European Union, with Brussels remaining one of Islamabad’s largest trading partners and an important stakeholder in Pakistan’s economic development and reform agenda.
At the conclusion of the Strategic Dialogue, Kallas and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will address a joint press conference, where they are expected to outline key outcomes of the talks and reaffirm the commitment of both sides to strengthening their long-standing partnership.
The EU-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue serves as the highest-level institutional mechanism for political engagement between the two sides and has played a pivotal role in advancing cooperation across multiple sectors since its inception.
