Islamabad:
The federal government, in application of the historic defense agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, was a high -level committee of 18 members. The committee’s task is to carry out economic negotiations between the two nations in the economic framework of Pakistan – Saudi Arabia, said government notification.
According to the notification, the Committee, trained by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, will supervise discussions aimed at extending cooperation beyond defense and energy to include environmental protection and climate stability.
The committee will be co-chaired by the federal minister of the Senator of Climate Change Musadik Masood Malik and the National Coordinator of the National Council of Special Investments (SIFC), Lieutenant-General Sarfraz Ahmed.
The other members include the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Ahad Cheema; The Minister of Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan; Minister of Energy, Awais Leghari; The Minister of Food Security, Rana Tanveer Hussain; The Minister of Information Technologies, Shaza Fatima Khawaja; And the Minister of Communications, Abdul Aleem Khan. High officials such as the president of the SECP, Akif Saeed and the vice-government of the State Bank, Dr. Inayat Hussain, are also part of the team.
The Committee will also include representatives of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Federal Board of Return (FBR), Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and the Pakistani Embassy in Riyadh to ensure complete coordination.
According to the notification, co -chairs will form teams dedicated to making rapid negotiations with their Saudi counterparts. All members were invited to ensure their availability from October 6, 2025.
The creation of the committee reflects Pakistan’s intention to expand bilateral cooperation with Saudi Arabia beyond traditional sectors. The inclusion of civil and military officials aims to ensure close coordination between economic diplomacy and defense institutions.
The Prime Minister’s office ordered the committee to accelerate negotiations with Saudi Arabia. He also indicated that travel approvals for all related meetings are processed on the same day, an hour. SIFC will facilitate committee operations and send travel recommendations to the Prime Minister’s office for rapid approval.
The Committee can indulge additional members if necessary and submit performance reports every two weeks to the Prime Minister.
Sources have said that during future talks, Pakistan should request a renewal of Saudi investments in the oil and agriculture sectors as part of a “redemption” model.
Islamabad also plans to improve exports from Pakistan to reduce the trade deficit by $ 3 billion currently in favor of Saudi Arabia. The long -delayed oil refinery project for almost a decade, should also be discussed.
They added that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif should undertake an official visit to Saudi Arabia during the last week of October to finalize economic agreements in the new bilateral framework.
