The date of Sheikh Tamim’s anticipated visit to Pakistan is still unclear as Qatar has yet to publicly comment on the reports.
Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani has reportedly accepted Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s invitation to visit the country as Islamabad seeks to draw in foreign investments, according to Pakistani state-run media.
Prime Minister Sharif received the confirmation of amir’s visit to Pakistan in a letter delivered by Qatar envoy to Pakistan, Ali bin Mubarak Al-Khater.
“The Prime Minister emphasised Pakistan’s profound appreciation for its historic fraternal relations with Qatar and reiterated Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to further strengthening mutual cooperation between the two brotherly nations,” Radio Pakistan reported.
The date of Sheikh Tamim’s anticipated visit to Pakistan is still unclear as Qatar has yet to publicly comment on the reports.
On Monday, Qatar’s state-run news agency (QNA) reported that Sheikh Tamim sent a written message to the Pakistani prime minister “pertaining to bilateral relations and ways to support and develop them” without mentioning the invitation.
Qatar’s Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Khulaifi visited Pakistan on May 9.
A statement by Qatar’s foreign ministry at the time said the meeting dealt with “cooperation relations and the latest regional developments”.
In recent weeks, Pakistan received a number of foreign officials and business delegations, including from Saudi Arabia and Japan. Kuwait’s Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah also accepted an invitation by Prime Minister Sharif on Sunday to visit Islamabad.
Such efforts come as the indebted country seeks a way to resolve its economic woes.
In March, Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund reached a staff-level agreement to release $1.1bn out of a $3bn bailout package.
Pakistan’s external debts amount to more than $130bn, with foreign reserves of $8bn.
The currency has also lost more than 50 percent of its value against the US dollar in the last two years.
A United Nations survey in April projected economic growth of at least two percent by 2025, and ease in inflation from 26 percent to 12.2 percent in the same period.
In 2023, Qatar’s exports to Pakistan amounted to $604,300 (around QAR 2.2 million), according to Doha’s Planning and Statistics Authority. The trade volume between both countries also reached $3.5m (QAR 12.8 million).
Qatar also stands as a key supplier of liquified natural gas to Pakistan, which significantly boosts the bilateral trade volume.
During Sharif’s visit to Qatar in 2022, the Qatar Investment Authority announced plans to pump $3bn into Pakistan’s economy through a number of commercial and investment sectors.
Last January, Doha and Islamabad signed agreements and letters of intent to “significantly enhance employment opportunities for the Pakistani workforce in Qatar”.
