Faad Waheed, Acting President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) said that Pakistan and Syria are two brotherly Islamic countries and they can complement each other’s economy in many fields, therefore, they should focus on promoting trade and economic ties to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes. He said that the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Syria is quite negligible, that can be improved by promoting business linkages between the private sectors of both countries. He expressed these views while talking to H.E. Dr. Ramez Alraee, Ambassador of Syria during his visit to Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Faad Waheed briefed the Syrian Ambassador about the key industries and major exportable products of Pakistan that can be very beneficial to the Syrian consumers. He highlighted the importance of frequent exchange of trade delegations to explore untapped areas of mutual cooperation between the two countries and reiterated the commitment of ICCI to work with the Syrian Embassy to improve business and investment relations between Pakistan and Syria.

Speaking at the occasion, H.E. Dr. Ramez Alraee, Ambassador of Syria said that his country is eager to promote trade and economic cooperation with Pakistan, which is very important to reduce unemployment and improve living standards of people. He said that Syria and Pakistan enjoy good political relations that should be transformed into growing business relations to achieve mutual economic benefits. He said that Pakistan can cooperate with Syria in many sectors including energy, infrastructure development, IT and many other fields. He stressed that a delegation of ICCI should visit Syria to see the potential for business and investment opportunities and assured that his Embassy would provide them all possible support and cooperation. He also thanked Pakistan for providing support to Syria at international forums and reaffirmed that he would work to further strengthen trade and economic bonds between the two countries.

Engr. Muhammad Azhar ul Islam Zafar, Vice President ICCI said that Pakistan considers Syria an important country for trade and said that he would lead a delegation of ICCI to Syria to explore business collaboration with Syrian counterparts.

Mian Shaukat Masud, Dr. Muhammad Usman, Parveen Khan Durrani and others also spoke at the occasion and shared useful ideas to improve business relations between Pakistan and Syria.