The Prime Minister will also deliver talks at the prestigious International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) on Pakistan's role in peace, stability and progress in the region.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz will discuss economic ties, regional and international affairs, Kashmir issue and the sacrilegious caricatures, when he meets his British counterpart Tony Blair during his three-day official visit.
On the second leg, the Prime Minister will visit Jordan from March 8-9 at the invitation of his Jordanian counterpart.
The visit, Prime Minister Aziz' first to the UK, will focus on entire range of bilateral relations, with emphasis on exploring ways and means of further enhancing cooperation in various fields including commercial, economic, trade and defence.
The Prime Minister who will be accompanied by members of the Cabinet and senior officials, has a tightly packed schedule ahead.
Topics for Agenda
It includes talks with Prince of Wales, Prime Minister Tony Blair, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown and Defence Secretary John Reid, as well as meetings with Parliamentarians, religious and business leaders,
members of the Pakistani and Kashmiri communities and media.
Prime Minister in his talks with the British counterpart will review
progress on the joint statement on "Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in the 21st Century" issued during President General Pervez Musharraf's visit to the UK in December 2004.
The two leaders will also review the regional situation, including Composite Dialogue with India with focus on Kashmir dispute and Afghanistan.
Prime Minister will discuss the issue of publication of sacrilegious
caricatures to convey the sentiments of the people of Pakistan and explore ways and means to initiate inter-faith dialogue, which has assumed great significance in recent months.
He will emphasize the need for enacting laws to discourage acts of sacrilege that hurt and offend others.
Prime Minister will deliver a keynote address at the conference titled, "Asia 2015--Promoting Growth, Ending Poverty".
The address will focus on the challenges to Asian development up to 2015 and explore ways and means to respond to those challenges.
Prime Minister will also deliver talks at the prestigious International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) on Pakistan's role in peace, stability and progress in the region.
Prime Minister's meeting with Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan D. Williams will focus on promotion of inter-faith harmony.
Aziz will also use this opportunity to thank the British Government and the Pakistani community for their important contribution to the earthquake relief efforts.
The UK was one of the first countries to send its rescue teams to earthquake affected areas in the aftermath of devastating October 8 earthquake, with one of the British rescue teams arriving in Islamabad the morning after the earthquake to assist in rescue efforts.
Expanding economic relations is high on Prime Minister's agenda in the UK, and he will extensively interact with prospective investors including CEOs of leading multinational corporations.
Pakistan-Britain Trade
He will also address Pakistan-Britain Trade and Investment Forum (PBTIF), as well as portfolio investors and importers, and brief them on the lucrative investment opportunities in Pakistan, which
has been rated by World Bank as the 10th most attractive state for investment in the world.
The UK is the second largest investor in Pakistan. Total investment from UK since 1989-90 to 2004-05 has been on the rise for past several years. In Financial Year 2004-05, total bilateral trade reached US $ 1,425.5 million.
There are around 102 British companies operating in Pakistan covering sectors such as manufacturing, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, textiles and cement among others.
To facilitate bilateral investment, Pakistan and the UK have signed Bilateral Investment Treaty and Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement. Prime Minister's visit will give further impetus to trade and investment between Pakistan and UK.
Pakistan-UK relations have been steadily growing in the past several years. The two countries enjoy excellent relations, with a convergence of views on many important regional and international issues.
