Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba had a telephone conversation with the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Hussain Qureshi.

The interlocutors agreed to hold shortly the first political consultations between the foreign ministries after a five-year hiatus, and the first-ever meeting of the Joint Ukrainian-Pakistani Commission on Economic Cooperation.

Dmytro Kuleba noted with pleasure that Ukrainian traders exported the critically needed volume of grain to Pakistan, which compensated for two-thirds of the deficit during last year's food crisis. The Minister noted that Ukraine is ready to increase exports, in particular, to develop together with Pakistan trade with other countries in the region. 

The ministers expressed a common desire to increase significantly the number of Pakistani students coming to study in Ukraine. 

The parties exchanged invitations to pay visits.

For reference: bilateral trade between Ukraine and Pakistan shows positive dynamics, in particular in 2020 it increased by 288% compared to 2019, and in the first half of 2021 - by 58% compared to the same period in 2020.

Ukraine is among the top 20 largest exporters to Pakistan for the period from March 2020 to June 2021.

The Joint Ukrainian-Pakistani Commission on Economic Cooperation was established in 2012, however, its inaugural meeting has not been held yet.

The last political consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Pakistan were held in 2016.