ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan explored ways to enhance trade and connectivity cooperation with officials from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Qatar on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Initiative summit in Hong Kong, the commerce ministry said on Saturday, as Islamabad eyes greater economic cooperation with regional states.

Khan arrived in Hong Kong on Sept. 8 to represent Pakistan at the BRI summit, where policymakers, investors and business leaders discussed opportunities in trade, investment and development. This year’s gathering focused particularly on cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Central Asia and the Middle East.

The BRI is the name that the Chinese government has given to multi-billion-dollar network transnational connectivity across Eurasia and the Indian Ocean. The project will feature road, railway, energy, maritime and digital linkages aimed at supporting industrial clusters and free-trade zones in several nations.

Khan met Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs Ahmad bin Mohammad Al Sayed on the sidelines of the summit, during which both sides explored avenues for transit and trade through the Middle East and Central Asia, the Pakistani commerce ministry said.

“The two ministers also discussed the potential for connecting Pakistan and Qatar through broader regional trade routes extending through the Middle East toward Türkiye and onward into Europe,” the ministry added.

The ministers also discussed bilateral trade, reaffirming their commitment to exploring new areas of economic cooperation and expanding existing trade volumes.

Khan held a separate meeting with Sri Lanka’s Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.

They emphasized the importance of enhanced business-to-business and people-to-people exchanges, while Samarasinghe highlighted the importance of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity in today’s tech-driven world.

“The two sides also discussed food security, particularly its impact on poorer and developing nations, as well as the implications of tensions in the Middle East for the global economy and international trade,” the commerce ministry said.

Khan met Bangladesh’s Minister of Commerce, Industry, Textile and Jute Khandakar Abdul Muktadir. The statement said Muktadir appreciated Pakistan’s commitment to regional solidarity and peace, acknowledging its role in efforts aimed at resolving regional tensions between the US and Iran.

“Minister Khan referred to Pakistan’s rice exports to Bangladesh as an encouraging example of expanding bilateral trade and said there was significant potential to diversify trade into other areas, including textiles,” the statement added.

Pakistan has sought to forge greater trade and investment ties with traditional allies and the Middle East as it eyes sustainable economic growth. Pakistan has suffered a macroeconomic crisis that almost forced it to default on its international financial obligations in 2023 before an International Monetary Fund loan program averted the crisis.