Pakistani Commerce minister says his country will not accept Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTA) until India improve ties with Pakistan.

Simultaneously with the suggestion of India for membership of trade transit agreement, Pakistan said that India should improve its relation with Pakistan that can gain membership of this agreement.

While opening the exhibition of Pakistan products in Kabul, the Pakistani official, Khuram Dastager warned that Pakistan will not allow any Afghan traders to transfer their goods to India through Pakistan.

Dastager declared that Pakistan has not decided yet about the sharing of APTA project with India.

“India first should make its relation better with Pakistan to gain the membership of APTA” Khuram Dastager said.

In the meantime, India’s embassy in Kabul announced its complete readiness for expanding trade ties with Afghanistan and joining to PATA agreement via an official letter to Afghanistan government on Monday.

The acting minister of Afghanistan commerce ministry also stressed on regional convergence to improve trade relations.

Mazmal Shinwari, acting minister of commerce said, “The region countries should cooperate with each other to improve their economics and can introduce their goods to the world.”

The APTTA was concluded after years of effort and replaces an outdated agreement dating from 1965. It is a major breakthrough, demonstrating strong economic and political cooperation between the two countries.

To complete implementation, both countries demonstrated their continuing commitment to work together to overcome technical and political obstacles.
Full implementation of the agreement will provide a boost to the economies of both countries by reducing the costs and delays in transport between Pakistan and Afghanistan – and serve as a model for the region.

It will help both countries expand their reach to world markets and improve the competitiveness of Afghanistan’s exports.

It will also help reduce cross-border smuggling, increase government revenues from legitimate trade, and have a multiplier effect as supporting services grow to support increased trade.

Both countries have already expressed interest in extending APTTA’s reach through negotiations with interested countries in Central Asia.

The United States and other partners support APTTA’s role in strengthening regional cooperation and building prosperity.

Pakistan—Afghanistan Transit Trade Agreement (also known as TTA) is a bilateral trade agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan has been renegotiated several times, with the most recent being signed on 28 October 2010.

This treaty allows Afghanistan access to the dry port of Lahore, and also access to a land route to export goods to India. It does not allow India to use the land route to export goods to Afghanistan.