PM Shehbaz invites Norwegian investment in oil & gas sector, calls for enhanced bilateral trade

ISLAMABAD, Aug 13 (APP): Prime Minister, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday invited Norwegian companies to invest in Pakistan’s oil and gas exploration sector, while calling for enhanced bilateral trade between the two nations.

During a meeting with the Foreign Minister of Norway, Espen Barth Eide, here at the Prime Minister House, PM Shehbaz welcomed the visiting dignitary and expressed satisfaction over the warm and cordial ties between Pakistan and Norway, a Prime Minister’s Office news release said.

He appreciated Norway’s bilateral cooperation with Pakistan, particularly in the areas of education, skilled labour, climate resilience and technology, while reiterating Pakistan’s strong desire to further expand trade relations between the two countries.

During discussions on the regional and global situation, the prime minister appreciated Norway’s principled stand in support of Palestine and thanked the country for its consistent support to Pakistan’s regional peace efforts in the Gulf.

The Norwegian foreign minister thanked the prime minister for the warm reception and conveyed the good wishes of Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre. He praised Pakistan’s significant role in regional peace efforts and reaffirmed Norway’s interest in further strengthening bilateral ties across diverse sectors, particularly appreciating the positive contribution of the Pakistani diaspora in Norway.

Prime Minister Shehbaz extended an invitation to the Norwegian prime minister to undertake an official visit to Pakistan.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Minister for Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan, Minister for Climate Change, Dr. Musadik Malik, Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Tariq Fatemi, and other senior officials were also present during the meeting.