ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States (US) have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening economic ties, the Pakistani commerce ministry said on Tuesday, following a series of high-level meetings in Islamabad aimed at enhancing bilateral trade and investment.
The statement came after a delegation of the US Chamber of Commerce and the US-Pakistan Business Council (USPBC), led by Charles Freeman, met with Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan in Islamabad. The delegation was accompanied by US Charge d’Affaires Natalie A. Baker.
Khan welcomed the visit and described it as a step forward in strengthening economic relations between the two nations, acknowledging the USPBC’s pivotal role over the past two decades in fostering commercial engagement between the two sides.
“Pakistan values the United States as its largest export destination and deeply appreciates this strategic trade relationship,” he said. “Efforts are underway to address trade deficit and market access issues through a comprehensive strategy involving relevant stakeholders.”
He noted the recent 90-day pause in reciprocal tariffs, announced last month, between the two countries offered a significant opportunity for “constructive” dialogue and the formulation of a sustainable, mutually beneficial trade roadmap.
US President Donald Trump has imposed a 10 percent baseline tariff on all imports to the US and higher duties on dozens of other countries. Pakistan faces a 29 percent tariff due to a trade surplus with the US of about $3 billion.
US goods exports to Pakistan were $2.1 billion in 2024, up 4.4 percent ($90.9 million) from 2023, according to US government data. The import of goods from Pakistan to the US totaled $5.1 billion in 2024, up 4.9 percent ($238.7 million) from 2023.
During the meeting, US Charge d’Affaires Baker praised positive developments in bilateral agricultural trade, particularly the resumption of US soybean exports to Pakistan.
“Enhanced cooperation in the cotton sector is also a key area for mutual growth, given Pakistan’s textile industry’s demand for high-quality cotton and the US’s position to meet this demand,” she was quoted as saying.
Kamal assured the US delegation of Pakistan’s commitment to maintaining a predictable, transparent and fair trade environment for American businesses and investors. He reiterated that his government remains dedicated to fostering a strong working relationship with the US on both bilateral and multilateral platforms.
Freeman, the US Chamber of Commerce’s senior vice president, appreciated the Pakistani government’s commitment to facilitating businesses and said they looked forward to continued dialogue and technical cooperation to support economic growth and job creation in both countries.
The visit of the US delegation came at a time when Pakistan is striving to boost trade and foreign investment as it slowly recovers from a prolonged economic meltdown. The South Asian country has pursued aggressive economic diplomacy in recent years, signing several agreements and memoranda of understanding with countries in Central Asia and the Middle East and beyond.
The US delegates later held a meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who appreciated the USPBC’s role in advancing economic ties between Pakistan and the US.
“My government looks forward to a constructive partnership with the US government, businesses, investors and industrialists to increase bilateral trade and investment in goods and services, especially in the IT sector,” Sharif said, adding that Pakistan’s market was ripe for investment.
“The government of Pakistan is in touch with the US administration on the tariff issue and I hope that a mutually beneficial solution will be found.”
The delegates expressed their “keen interest” in investing in various Pakistani sectors and to benefit from existing opportunities, Sharif’s office said.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Wednesday it had downed five Indian fighter jets in a major escalation between the nuclear-armed South Asian rivals, a claim partly corroborated by Indian government sources who confirmed at least three, as the international community urged both countries to exercise restraint and avoid further conflict.
The military confrontation follows a missile attack by India on Tuesday, when the Indian armed forces said they had struck nine Pakistani sites described as “terrorist infrastructure” allegedly linked to an April 22 militant assault in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.
According to Pakistan’s military, six locations across its territory, including Ahmedpur East, Muridke, Sialkot, Shakargarh, Kotli and Muzaffarabad, were targeted, resulting in the deaths of 26 civilians and injuries to at least 46 others.
Pakistan said it had also responded to the Indian strikes, though details were a bit murky initially.
“The aggression they committed has been responded to by Pakistan many times over,” Pakistan’s Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said in a televised statement on Wednesday.
“Not only were five of their jets shot down, but a drone was also brought down,” he added. “We also targeted their posts along the Line of Control. Their posts were destroyed, and they were forced to wave the white flag.”
According to Reuters, local government sources on the Indian side of Jammu and Kashmir said three of their fighter jets had “crashed” in the region. Pakistan’s military also told the news agency it had shot down five Indian aircraft, though the Indian authorities have not officially confirmed any planes were brought down by hostile fire.
In New Delhi, the Indian defense ministry maintained that its strikes had targeted militant infrastructure and avoided civilian or military installations.
The escalation prompted immediate international concern. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was closely monitoring the situation and echoed President Donald Trump’s earlier remarks hoping the conflict would end quickly.
“I will continue to engage both Indian and Pakistani leadership toward a peaceful resolution,” he said.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged both nations to exercise “maximum military restraint,” warning that the world could not afford a broader military confrontation between the two nuclear-armed countries.
China’s foreign ministry also called on both sides to de-escalate and said it regretted India’s military action while expressing concern about the rising tensions.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) during the day to finalize Islamabad’s response and review military preparedness.
Authorities in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province declared an emergency, placed hospitals and security forces on high alert and ordered schools to remain closed.
The latest crisis was triggered by the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in Indian-administered Kashmir, in which 26 people were killed. India accused Pakistan of orchestrating the attack but provided no public evidence.
Pakistan, in response, denied any involvement and called for an international investigation.
Kashmir has remained a flashpoint between the two countries since 1947. Both nations claim the region in full but administer separate portions. They have fought two of their three wars over the disputed territory, and tensions have remained high, particularly since India revoked the special semi-autonomous status of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
India accuses Pakistan of supporting militant groups that have waged an insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir since 1989, a charge Islamabad denies, saying it provides only moral and diplomatic support for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination.
The current confrontation recalls the last major military standoff between the two nations in 2019, when an Indian airstrike in Balakot was followed by Pakistani retaliatory action, including the downing of an Indian fighter jet and the capture of its pilot, who was later released in a gesture of goodwill.