PM Shehbaz meets President Macron on fringes of UNGA session in New York
NEW YORK: France on Tuesday agreed to work towards reviving Pakistan’s economy in the aftermath of the recent climate change-induced devastating floods.
The decisions were announced through a joint statement after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and French President Emmanuel Macron held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
The meeting was the first encounter by the country’s prime minister with the leader of a key European country in seven years.
Shehbaz was joined by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Finance Minister Miftah Ismail, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb.
It was also decided that France will host an international conference before the end of the year, aiming at contributing to the rehabilitation and reconstruction of flood-affected people and areas of Pakistan.
Besides the exchange of views on enhancing bilateral relations, the two leaders agreed to mobilis international support for Pakistan to help recover and rebuild its economy on a sustainable footing.
In order to gather the relevant international financial partners and development partners, “France will host an international conference before the end of the year aiming at contributing to the rehabilitation and the reconstruction of flood-affected areas of Pakistan and, with the help of climate-resilient reconstruction related financing, to accelerate the transition to renewable energy.”
The statement was simultaneously issued in Islamabad and Paris.
The prime minister reaffirmed the high importance Pakistan attached to its long-standing friendly relations with France — both bilaterally and in the context of the European Union.
He stressed the importance of further strengthening the bilateral relations across a range of areas, including trade and investment, energy, agriculture, IT, defence and security, and higher education.
The prime minister also thanked France for its support for GSP+ scheme, noting that it served to enhance trade and economic ties with the European Union as well as France.
Courtesy : Express Tribune