Islamabad, Oct 22: Pakistan has accused India of refusing to finalise bilateral trade concessions at the recently concluded fifth round of talks of the South Asian Free Trade Area (Safta) in Kathmandu. India again "refused to finalise" the bilateral exchange of concessions despite Pakistan's reiteration of the commitments given to the Indian delegation to conclude the exchange of preferences during the current session, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman said in a statement. The 5th round of talks of the Safta Committee of Experts (CoE) was held in Kathmandu from October 14 to 17.
However, he said that in the spirit of "constructive and meaningful regional engagement" Pakistan has agreed to meet the Indian side once again at the 6th round of CoE meeting of Safta to be held in Kathmandu next month to finally concluding the exchange of preferences under Safta.
The Pakistan spokesman hoped that India by then would be in a position to conclude Safta negotiations without further delay.
Bureau Report