BERN, SWITZERLAND: The 12th round of Pakistan-Switzerland Bilateral Political Consultations was held in Bern, the capital city, on 24th January 2024.
Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe), Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan, led the Pakistan side, while the Swiss side was headed by Ambassador Heinrich Schellenberg, Assistant Secretary of State for Asia and Pacific, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).
The two sides discussed all aspects of bilateral political relations and cooperation in trade and investment, security, and migration.
Regional dynamics and multilateral issues were also discussed. They reaffirmed the value of Bilateral Political Consultations in strengthening Pakistan-Switzerland relations and agreed to continue cooperation in all matters of mutual interest.
In Berne, the Additional Foreign Secretary also called on the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Alexandre Fasel and exchanged views on further strengthening Pakistan-Switzerland bilateral relations including in the areas of climate change, human rights, and development cooperation.
They agreed on the importance of high-level exchanges and to further strengthen bilateral exchanges and dialogue.
Meanwhile, in July last year, Pakistan and Switzerland signed an MoU in Islamabad about collaboration in the field of natural disaster management.
Both countries will harness technology and expertise in the future to jointly tackle any natural catastrophe.
Speaking at the MoU signing ceremony in Nathiagali, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that they looked forward to the Swiss cooperation in terms of getting an advanced warning system and other gadgets to secure Pakistan as much as possible from natural disasters.
Premier said that Pakistan has been facing the impacts of global climate change though the country had a minimal carbon footprint.
He said, “Islamabad wanted to further expand bilateral ties with Switzerland in diverse fields including the tourism sector as Pakistan was blessed with natural beauty.”
Prime Minister said that it was important to maintain peace in this part of the world. He also said that Switzerland could play the role of catalyst to promote regional peace.
He said that Pakistan liked to promote progress, and prosperity, eradicate unemployment, and poverty, and enhance education, IT, industry, women empowerment, and agriculture for the well-being of the people.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister of Switzerland Ignazio Cassis said that the MoU was vital for collaboration against climate change.
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