A lasting symbol of exemplary friendship between Pakistan and China, Karakoram Highway (KKH) added a new chapter to its history with the arrival of the first container from Pakistan in Almaty through it.
Of course, credit for this may in all fairness be claimed by "Pak Caspian Trade Link" as the first Pakistani company to have used the quadrilateral inter-governmental agreement on transit transportation between Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China and Pakistan, which was signed in 1995.
It goes without saying that the event marked the beginning of fulfilment of a cherished dream of providing the shortest route to the Indian Ocean and South Asian countries to the Central-Asian region and Russia. However, it has yet to make its appeal to the businessmen as KKH passes through a narrow mountainous terrain, as well as fears of snowfalls and landslides during severe winter months.
Notwithstanding these impediments, the psychological barrier to its tremendous gains will appear to have started breaking. It was for the first time in 10 years that the first container from Pakistan, brought rice, furniture, canned foods, marble and brass articles to understandable excitement of the Kazakhstan business community.
This should leave little to doubt from the prospects the rare trade voyage has opened for posterity. Certainly, the Embassy of Pakistan in Almaty did well to hold a grand meeting to mark the big event.
It will be noted that, speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Irfan-ur-Rehman Raja, viewed it, and rightly so, as a major step toward revival of the ancient silk route which once passed through the territories of Pakistan. As such, his observation that it would provide Kazakhstan, and other Central Asian countries and Russia with tremendous opportunities to develop trade relations with South Asian countries having access to the sea, should appeal to reason.
Again, emphasising the importance of KKH for export of goods from Kazakhstan to South Asia through Pakistani ports of Karachi, Qasim and the upcoming Gwadar deep-sea port, he pointed out that it would help reduce transport charges and enhance competitiveness of Kazakhstani goods.
The same can be said about his remarks with regard to Pakistani businessmen's interest in importing grain, skins, cotton, pulses, fertilisers and other goods through this route.
It will be recalled that the National Highway Authority recently signed an agreement with China Road and Bridge Corporation for upgrading its Khunjerab-Raikot section. Widening and improvement of Raikot-Khunjerab section (335-Km) has its own importance in view of Pakistan's trade relations with China and the Central Asian Republics.
Reference in this regard may also be made to the recent observation of Kazakhstan envoy in Pakistan, Bakhitbek Shabarbayev, who expressed the hope that the trade volume between Pakistan and Kazakhstan could swell by 300 percent in the next few years. He said this in the wake of presentation of his credential papers to President General Pervez Musharraf.
Notably, he had also stated that in 2005 and up to the beginning of November 2006, trade had risen to $10.4 million and $10.7 million, against $8.9 million in 2002 and $9.1 million in 2003.
Again, according to him, this level of Kazakhstan and Pakistan trade was yet unmatched to the real potential of the two countries, identifying the principal cause of this problem as absence of direct transport communication between the two countries, saying the Karakoram Highway (KKH) would contribute a lot to the surge in bilateral trade between the two countries.
Recalling that in 1994 Pakistan and Kazakhstan had signed an agreement on 'Development of Transport Co-operation', he pointed out that in the same year the governments of Kazakhstan, Pakistan, China and Kyrgyzstan also signed an agreement on 'Traffic-in-Transit', envisaging exploitation of transit potential of the Karakoram Highway.
More to this, he noted that the parliament of Kazakhstan had ratified the agreement between Kazakhstan and Pakistan on mutual incentives and protection of investments. As this agreement comes into force, it would create more favourable conditions for implementation of mutual investment projects for Pakistani businessmen.
He said that there exists lot of potential for investors of both countries to co-operate in petroleum and other sectors, and the investors of both countries would come forward and take benefit from each other's experience, especially in oil and gas sector. All in all, Karakoram Highway will be seen as marking the beginning of a new era of gainful economic and business co-operation between Pakistan and the Central Asian Republics, and beyond.