SAPM Syed Tariq Fatemi Leads Pakistan Delegation to the Asia-Europe Meeting Summit
Special Assistant to Prime Minister, Syed Tariq Fatemi, arrived in Milan, Italy, on 15th October, to lead the Pakistan delegation to the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit in Milan from 16th to 17th October, 2014.
ASEM is a process of dialogue and cooperation between European and Asian countries to address political, economic and cultural issues. It brings together the European Union, Association of Southeast Asian Nations and a number of other European and Asian countries. Pakistan joined ASEM in 2008.
The theme of the 10th Summit is "Responsible Partnership for Growth and Security" which will be attended by a total of 51 countries. Italy is hosting the Summit in its capacity as the incumbent President of the European Union.
Over 40 Heads of State and Government are participating in the Summit. These include the Sultan of Brunei, Presidents of Russia, France, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, and Kazakhstan; Chancellors of Germany and Austria; Prime Ministers of China, Finland, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Thailand, Spain, Sweden and Presidents of the European Commission and Council.
Pakistan enjoys excellent relations with European countries – both bilaterally and in the European Union framework. Trade, investment and cooperation in social sectors are on the upswing. A ministerial level strategic dialogue between Pakistan and EU was held in March 2014. Building deeper trade and economic linkage with Southeast Asia/ASEAN countries is also the focus of Pakistan’s economic diplomacy.
The Special Assistant will utilize the forum to highlight Pakistan’s centrality in promoting regional connectivity between Europe and Asia as well as Pakistan’s contribution to regional peace and stability.
He will also have bilateral meetings with different European and Asian leaders on the margins of the Summit including the Finnish Prime Minister, the Chinese Foreign Minister, Norwegian Foreign Minister and will interact with many important European and Asian leaders.
Islamabad
16th October 2014