Event Summary
The Institute released its new report Sustaining Reform with a US-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement by a team of Institute economists led by senior fellow Gary Hufbauer. Pakistan and the United States have not announced negotiations on an FTA, or even exploratory talks, but a key part of the Administration’s diplomatic agenda in the Middle East is to encourage economic reform on the basis of market principles and a free trade agreement between the two countries could be an important component of this strategy.
The meeting began with a presentation by Minister of Commerce Humayun Akhtar Khan of Pakistan, describing his country’s interest in the FTA idea and the prospects as he sees them. Gary Hufbauer summarized the economic implications of an agreement, based on the findings of the report, and offered a US perspective on its prospects.