Pakistan reverses decision to allow imports of Indian sugar, cotton and wheat
- Pakistan Finance Minister Hammad Azhar on Wednesday said the government made the decision to allow imports ‘in the interest of the people’
- But on Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the decision had been ‘deferred’ until New Delhi restores Indian-administered Kashmir’s special status
The government’s economic coordination committee on Wednesday said import permits would be approved in a bid to rein in rampant inflation, but politicians criticised the apparent thaw in relations with their rival neighbour.
Pakistan Finance Minister Hammad Azhar had said the government made the decision “in the interest of the people”, when asked why trade was resuming despite no change in New Delhi’s position on Kashmir – a divided territory claimed in full by both countries.
But on Thursday Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told reporters the decision had been “deferred” until New Delhi restored Indian-administered Kashmir’s special status.
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The Kashmir conflict
Islamabad suspended trade and diplomatic ties with India in 2019, when New Delhi imposed direct rule on the restive Muslim-majority region and enforced a heavy security lockdown. Both countries withdrew their top diplomats, and consular staff were expelled or withdrawn.