Ambassador Dr. Zahoor Ahmed is a career Foreign Service officer with diplomatic experience spanning over 3 decades that includes various assignments at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as Pakistan’s missions abroad in both bilateral and multilateral arenas.Prior to being Pakistan’s Ambassador to Spain with concurrent accreditation to Andorra, he was Ambassador of Pakistan to Sweden with concurrent accreditation to Finland from November 2020 to March 2024. He was also National Coordinator for Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a multilateral organization comprising of China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russian federation, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan besides Pakistan. Mr. Ahmed represented Pakistan at the SCO Regional Anti Terrorism Structure Council from October 2018 till September 2020.
How would you describe the current state of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Spain? What are some recent highlights or significant developments in the bilateral relationship between our two countries?
Bilaterally, Spain is an important country for Pakistan. We have a history of more than 7 decades of cordial and friendly relations. Spain is Pakistan’s 2nd largest export destination in the EU, and has been supporting Pakistan in the renewal of the GSP plus and GI tagging of Basmati Rice. Pakistan assisted Spain in evacuation of their personnel from Afghanistan in 2021 after Taliban takeover.
Spain and Pakistan enjoy shared outlook and commonality of views on a number of international forums especially the United Nations. Both countries support each other’s candidatures at various UN bodies like Human Rights Council, UNESCO Executive Board, Council of International Maritime Organization (IMO) for various terms. Pakistan and Spain are in close collaboration as members of the ´Uniting for Consensus Group´ for Security Council reform.
An important aspect of our bilateral relations is presence of large number of Pakistani origin people in Spain, mainly concentrated in Barcelona, Valencia and Logroño.
One of the significant milestone in our bilateral relations was completion of 70 years of establishment of bilateral relations in 2021. To commemorate that several events were held, for instance; the Embassy in collaboration with Casa Asia organized a musical performance “Soniche´”, a fusion of jazz, flamenco and Pakistani music. The occasion was also commemorated back in Pakistan with an event that celebrated Spanish and Pakistani culture and art.
We have also signed an agreement between Pakistan Embassy Madrid and the prestigious University of Alcalá de Henares for promotion of Pakistani culture and art in Spain. In this regard, first event, an exhibition of art pieces of famous Pakistani cartoonist Ms. Nigar Nazar in collaboration with Instituto de Quevedo de las Artes del Humor (IQAH) of University of Alcalá de Henares was held.
What opportunities do you see for enhancing trade and investment between Pakistan and Spain? Are there any specific sectors where both countries could benefit from increased collaboration?
Spain is an important global economic player. It is world’s 14th largest economy and 28th most complex economy according to Economic Complexity Index (ECI). Pakistan enjoys very cordial relations with Spain, both diplomatically and commercially. Trade relations between Pakistan and Spain have experienced a fillip in recent years, with bilateral trade now touching a figure of almost USD $2 billion, with Pakistan enjoying a good trade surplus. After Brexit, Spain is now the 2nd largest trade partner of Pakistan in the European Union (EU).
In recent years, the bilateral trade between two countries has witnessed an impressive increase, primarily due to easing up of restrictions imposed due to Covid-19, a rebound of Spanish economy, and continued preferential access of Pakistani products in European markets under the GSP+ regime.
Our major exports to Spain are Home Textiles, Non-Knitted Garments, Knitwear, toys and games, and plastics. We would like our trade to extend beyond these product lines. There is huge untapped market of non-traditional goods like minerals, rock salt, grains, and agro-based value-added goods like packages fruit or fruit products – confectionary items, and services like IT enabled services, and hospitality services exports. In addition, we are also working on opportunities to benefit from Spanish technology and expertise in renewable energy and agro-based industry especially olive oil.
How does Pakistan view its relationship with the European Union? Are there any specific areas where Pakistan seeks closer cooperation with the EU? And what are the main challenges hindering closer cooperation between both sides?
Relationship with European Union is important for Pakistan. The EU is one of the largest trading partners of Pakistan. The European Union (EU)’s GSP Plus schemes has allowed Pakistani products a duty-free access to European markets including Spain which has resulted in remarkable enhancement of our exports volume. In 2023, Pakistan´s total trade with EU-27 was Euros 11.87 billion. Pakistan´s exports to EU increased by 165% whereas EU´s exports to Pakistan grew by 63%, since the inception of the scheme in 2014. We are planning to bring top Spanish buyers, i.e. medium to large companies, and buying agents to Pakistan to further augment export growth with Spain in particular and EU in general.
We are aiming for overall growth in cooperation; with specific focus on attracting trade and investment. Pakistan has recently established Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) aimed as a single window for facilitating investors. In addition, we are also seeking closer cooperation with EU on legal migration. Pakistan and EU have started a Migration and Mobility Dialogue which has huge potential to enhance our cooperation in most important area of legal migration besides curbing illegal migration. Controlling illegal migration as a major challenge. We look forward to engaging with EU, especially Spain, on meaningful dialogue on this.
Pakistan aims to expand educational and cultural partnerships with the EU, particularly through higher education initiatives like the Erasmus+ program, to foster greater people-to-people ties. Among main challenges, first one would be controlling illegal migration. As stated above, Migration and Mobility Dialogue is aimed at mitigating this challenge.
What role can the EU or Spain play in addressing the effects of climate change in Pakistan? Are there opportunities for cooperation in areas such as renewable energy and environmental conservation?
Pakistan is among the top ten countries most impacted by climate change even though its contributions to greenhouse gas emissions is negligible. The 2022 floods in the country were the most dreadful manifestation of a climate-induced disaster. Over 33 million people were affected across the country due to the floods. Besides loss of life, damage to livelihoods and critical infrastructure was colossal.
With the support of the global community, Pakistan is seeking to build back better and greener with climate-resilient infrastructure based on the Government’s 4RF vision of Resilient Recovery, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Framework.
There is an urgent need for enhanced global climate action and international cooperation to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change before it is too late, based on the established principles of ‘Equity’ and ‘Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities’ (CBDR-RC).
It is equally important that the gap between the global climate finance commitments and their implementation be narrowed, with a balanced focus on adaptation and mitigation, as well as loss and damage.
At COP27 (Sharm El-Sheikh 2022), Pakistan, in its capacity as the Chair of the G77 & China, successfully led the developing countries in pushing for a dedicated fund to address loss and damage caused by climate-induced disasters. The COP’s consensus decision to this effect was a significant achievement, as the developing countries had been demanding such a fund for the past 30 years.
Pakistan also contributed to the successful operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund at COP28 last year (2023) in Dubai.
We have also committed to achieve the emissions reductions with 15% from the country’s own resources and 35% subject to provision of climate finance by developed countries.
We look forward to continuing our close coordination with Spain during COP-29 in Baku in November 2024.
As you know, YEL engages a lot with the G7 and G20 by representing the EU at the Youth 7 and Youth 20 summits. Pakistan itself is a country with over 241 million people, the 5th largest population in the world. Several publications list Pakistan as a nation that is likely to be among the top 10 largest economies by 2050, certaintly within the top 20. Yet, Pakistan is not a member of the G20. What is the stance of your government towards this and what do you think Pakistan can do to be better represented on the international level.
One third of Pakistan´s population is between the age of 10 and 24. This means that this is about right time for capacity building, creating jobs and educational opportunities to channel their energies towards constructive opportunities. Having an organization on lines of YEL would be ideal for having Pakistan´s voice, especially that of its youth, heard on crucial international platforms.
Pakistan’s government has been working to increase its influence by engaging in more active participation in international organizations like the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the United Nations, as well as through diplomatic outreach. The expectation is that by voicing its opinion on these platforms, Pakistan will form partnerships that would help in its pursuit of having its opinion heard on international forums.
On a matter adjacent to the G20, as you know, this year Brazil holds the rotating presidency of this group. Since he was first president in 2003, Brazil’s president has been a vocal advocate of expanding the UN Security Council. It has been rather public that his proposed expansion would include his own country, Brazil, along with India, Germany, and Japan. While these four countries have been working together to achieve a permanent seat on the council, a group of nations including Argentina, Spain, Italy, Turkey, and Pakistan have come together to block any expansion of the security council. The stated joint reason behind this has been that simply adding members to a broken system will not fix the problem. Could you speak a bit about Pakistan’s position on this topic and what the Pakistani government envisions could be a true reform of this organization.
The reforms of UNSC involves taking into account strategic interests of every member state. Pakistan´s position is clear in terms of UNSC reforms, that the Council needs to be more democratic, accountable, transparent and efficient. As part of the Uniting for Consensus Group, Pakistan believes that UfC´s proposal for the creation of additional non-permanent seats, with equitable geographical representations, regularly elected to ensure accountability, is the best option.
The UfC opposes expansion of permanent membership in the Security Council, with or without a veto. Adding more permanent members will (a) compound the paralysis of the Council; and (b) prevent representation of the majority of the UN´s small and medium-sized states.
To conclude on a personal note, what do you most wish to achieve during your time as Ambassador to Spain? And is there anything that you wish to say about your work or about your country to our young European audience?
Our countries enjoy friendly relations spanning over more than 70 years. Our relations have evolved over the years particularly our economic ties. It gives me much satisfaction that Pakistan-Spain bilateral trade has grown and almost doubled in the past three years. Now with Pakistan´s increased focus on attracting foreign investment, I wish that now Spanish companies take further advantage of our conducive business environment.
A broad range of sectors of Pakistan’s economy offer major opportunities for the Spanish companies in field of textile, housing and construction, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, agriculture and sports goods.
We would like to enhance linkages in the fields of culture and tourism. Pakistan is a proud owner of vibrant array of cultures with the richness of diverse traditions. From the artful expression of devotion through calligraphy to the soulful qawwalis, our cultural tapestry is dynamic and eye-catching. In tourism sector, Pakistan offers beautiful green terrain in north for leisure travelers, snow covered mountains for thrill seekers and a gastronomically appetizing array of cuisine for food lovers. For history buffs, we have Lahore that narrates stories of Mughal era and Peshawar which is one of the oldest cities of South Asia.
There is something for everyone!! People who have visited Pakistan have fallen in love with it. As the Ambassador of Pakistan to the Kingdom of Spain, me and my team look forward to further enhancing the already existing ties, particularly those in the cultural, business and educational sectors. I am particularly looking at increasing tourism on both side and enhancing cultural collaboration by promoting cultural exchanges between Pakistan and Spain. In this regard, I am also working on a book on voyages of Allama Muhammad Iqbal, our national and a well-known poet in Urdu and Persian, to Spain.