Islamabad fears Kabul may block goods supply to ECO states

[Firdousi]

Islamabad fears Kabul may block goods supply to ECO states

By Zafar BhuttaPublished: August 30, 2017

Without accession to the CMR and the regulatory framework, the transportation of goods by Pakistani vehicles via land routes to the ECO member states and European countries will not be permissible. PHOTO: FILE
Without accession to the CMR and the regulatory framework, the transportation of goods by Pakistani vehicles via land routes to the ECO member states and European countries will not be permissible. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD: As the diplomatic row escalates, Pakistan voices fear that Afghanistan may create hurdles to prevent the use of its territory for goods transportation to member states of the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) and European countries.

At present, Pakistan and China are executing a $57-billion economic corridor project. In the wake of this, Pakistan is exploring the option of connecting to the Central Asian states via land routes.

Earlier, Pakistan and Tajikistan were desirous of signing a transit trade agreement with Afghanistan, but the latter was hesitant and demanded inclusion of India in the agreement. However, Pakistan dismissed the demand, saying India could not be part of the deal unless it improved diplomatic ties.

Pakistan is a signatory of the ECO Transit Transport Framework Agreement (TTFA), which came into force on May 19, 2006. Its objectives include development and maintenance of mutually beneficial transit transport arrangements for regional and international trade.

However, Pakistan, along with Afghanistan, has so far not accepted the Convention on the Contract for International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR) while other ECO member states are party to the agreement.

Without accession to the CMR and the regulatory framework, the transportation of goods by Pakistani vehicles via land routes to the ECO member states and European countries will not be permissible.

In a meeting held on August 4, sources said, cabinet members emphasised that all the authorities concerned, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and all provinces backed Pakistan’s accession to the CMR convention, 1978.

They cautioned that the move would not bear fruit if Kabul did not accept the convention, which would create hurdles to the use of land routes linking with Central Asia and Europe.

The cabinet members felt that more consultation needed to be undertaken and put off decision on the critical issue at a time when Pakistan’s exports had weakened steadily.

In the first four years of the current government, exports of the country dipped around $4 billion, prompting the government to aggressively explore markets of Central Asia and Russia, which were energy and trade hubs.

Pakistan is close to Central Asia that may become a gateway to Russia and Europe. However, there is no land connection, making it difficult for Pakistan to gain access to markets of these countries.

ECO is an inter-governmental regional organisation established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation. Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan later joined the bloc.

All ECO member states, except for Uzbekistan, signed the TTFA in May 1998. It is a broad-based agreement with eight protocols approved by the 3rd ECO ministerial meeting on transport and communications held in Islamabad in April 2000.

These are pertaining to road, rail and inland water transportation, motor vehicles including third-party policy insurance, customs control and terms of reference for the Transit Transport Coordination Council.

Islamabad fears Kabul may block goods supply to ECO states - The Express Tribune

[Firdousi]

I have been waiting for years but now I can say it (clear my throat): "Enough is enough! Seal the border! Dont let those namak-haram dalkhors use our land!"

What goes around comes around. Pakistan is finally an isolated landlocked failed state. :D

[Elite Pakhtun]

hahahahaha

[khushal]

Nawaz Sharif, who is an industrialist, wants trade to flow freely between Central Asia and South Asia. The Paki Generals, who are feudalists, deposed him because they would be the big losers of free trade. All the people would benefit from free trade, especially the people of Pakistan cause they are in the middle of it.

[toughpashtun]

Afghanistan gets a lot of its products via Pakistan too , don't forget its a landlocked country.
Why go towards fighting and bitterness?Its harmful for both nations.

[Firdousi]

Afghanistan gets a lot of its products via Pakistan too , don't forget its a landlocked country.
Why go towards fighting and bitterness?Its harmful for both nations.

Its Pakistan who rejects trade. Both Afghanistan and India have several times asked Pakistan to allow them to trade, you would benefit from the taxes, fees and other stuff. Pakistan refuses to do so, and its always using its borders and ports as a leverage over Afghanistan. Thanks gone the 60th´s and 70th´s are gone for good. Your country kept the border closed for almost three months and nothing happened to us.

If Pakistan wants to play this game we have every right to do it too. Borders should be closed and so should be other projects that are under construction right now such as TAPI. Afghanistan is building several dam along our border (so is doing India) we should cut the war if you don't allow us to trade with India.

[Firdousi]

Nawaz Sharif, who is an industrialist, wants trade to flow freely between Central Asia and South Asia. The Paki Generals, who are feudalists, deposed him because they would be the big losers of free trade. All the people would benefit from free trade, especially the people of Pakistan cause they are in the middle of it.

Most of Pakistanis believe their civilian government is corrupt which is true. But they fail to understand that their army is even more corrupt. They have been enjoying from "aid" and other bribes coming from abroad and they are actually ruling over a country. Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world where they country doesn't own an army, but its the army who owns the country. Those corrupt useless generals will never give up on their privileges. Most of Pakistanis are s tupid so this won't change in the short term.

[Friends of Baloch]

This crap ECO organisation achieves very little but that is not surprising since it includes a black mark to its membership, Pakiland.

Pakiland should be kicked out. No other state will ever seriously want to open up to Pakiland where 150,000,000 uneducated Dravidians are waiting for any chance to illegally emigrate from.

[Da Bannu Mazdigar]

sweet little firdosiya

Four-nation accord

Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce in February this year that in the face of slow progress by Kabul on the trilateral transit trade agreement, Pakistan wanted to revive its trade accord with China, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to reach markets of Central Asia.

The four-nation pact was signed in 1995, but it came into force in May 2004, allowing goods transport to Central Asia via China. This is an alternative route on which Pakistan and China are working since transit and bilateral trade with Kabul has been at a standstill. This has upset both Delhi and Kabul with warnings and allegations coming from the latter from time to time.

Why there is little need to worry about Kabul’s threat - The Express Tribune

[khushal]

Most of Pakistanis believe their civilian government is corrupt which is true. But they fail to understand that their army is even more corrupt. They have been enjoying from "aid" and other bribes coming from abroad and they are actually ruling over a country. Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world where they country doesn't own an army, but its the army who owns the country. Those corrupt useless generals will never give up on their privileges. Most of Pakistanis are s tupid so this won't change in the short term.

Most colonial created gov are like that especially in the Middle East and Africa. Look at Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Algeria, Somalia, Uganda, even etc.

The reason that most paki populous follow the Paki Army's narrative is because their media is well developed and the only areas where the narrative is not believed is in FATA who does not have well developed media and it is the same reason why the Afghan gov has failed to brainwash its population with a certain narrative because its media is not developed well. Most of the population is still without electricity.

[Firdousi]

Most colonial created gov are like that especially in the Middle East and Africa. Look at Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Algeria, Somalia, Uganda, even etc.

The reason that most paki populous follow the Paki Army's narrative is because their media is well developed and the only areas where the narrative is not believed is in FATA who does not have well developed media and it is the same reason why the Afghan gov has failed to brainwash its population with a certain narrative because its media is not developed well. Most of the population is still without electricity.

My own experience says to me that vast majority of Afghans, regardless their faith or ethnicity, are brainwashed fools. Every time I hear them bragging about their country´s fake 5000 years history, about how everything going wrong in our country its Pakistans or any other random country it piss me off. Sooner or later, rural Afghans will be brainwashed too. Modernization can not be stopped and i guess brainwashing is a strong part of it.

In general Afghan media is quite "good" if we compare it with other regional countries. We have a strong private media that can criticize the government or warlords and also analyze regional conflicts almost with no interference by the establishment. Thats why so many Iranians are addicted to Afghan media: for the first time in our history we have a bit of soft power over our stronger neighbors.

[Firdousi]

sweet little firdosiya



Why there is little need to worry about Kabul’s threat - The Express Tribune

Thats actually great. Instead paying fees and taxes to one country you are going to pay to several others. I am quite sure your friendly Chinese brothers are going to rip you off once again lol

[khushal]

My own experience says to me that vast majority of Afghans, regardless their faith or ethnicity, are brainwashed fools. Every time I hear them bragging about their country´s fake 5000 years history, about how everything going wrong in our country its Pakistans or any other random country it piss me off. Sooner or later, rural Afghans will be brainwashed too. Modernization can not be stopped and i guess brainwashing is a strong part of it.

In general Afghan media is quite "good" if we compare it with other regional countries. We have a strong private media that can criticize the government or warlords and also analyze regional conflicts almost with no interference by the establishment. Thats why so many Iranians are addicted to Afghan media: for the first time in our history we have a bit of soft power over our stronger neighbors.

The 5000 year history thing and blame everything on paki is the Afghan media's narrative at work. Paki media also criticize their gov and the paki also claim a 5000 year history all the way back to the indus civilization(ancient pakistan as they like to call it) and even before. The Afghan gov is just a copy of the paki gov.

Indians watch Afghan media because they like watching and hearing anti paki stuff which the Afghan media is filled with. Anything that creates or fuels conflict within the region is a self destructive policy.