Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Monday met with Prime Minister of Laos, Thongsing Thammavong and appreciated the arrangements made for Asia-Europe Meeting Summit (ASEM-9). During the meeting, PM Ashraf, who is visiting Laos Capital to attend ASEM-9, thanked people and government of Laos for extending a warm welcome to him and his delegation. He said the excellent arrangements made by Laos for the Summit speak volume of capability of people and government of Laos.
He congratulated the Laos Prime Minister for successfully holding the mega event. The PM said Pakistan and Laos enjoyed close relations which would be further cemented with the passage of time. He said the volume of bilateral trade was low but had a great potential for improvement.
He expressed the hope that the negotiations on Preferential Trade Agreement between the two countries were progressing well which would boost trade and economic ties. He thanked the government of Laos for its support to Pakistan for Full Dialogue Partner Status in Asean and extended an invitation to Prime Minister of Laos to visit Pakistan. Thongsing Thammavong said his government is grateful for the support extended by Pakistan for the Full Membership of World Trade Organisation (WTO). This, he said would help Laos to open up foreign investment and increase trade with world in general and Pakistan in particular. He expressed the hope investors from Pakistan would be encouraged to invest in Laos.