December 9, 2003	Tuesday	Shawwal 14, 1424

ISLAMABAD, Dec 8: Pakistan and Kazakhstan on Monday signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral trade and investment and enhance economic, scientific and technical cooperation.

The agreement was signed by Pakistan’s Minister for Investment and Privatization Dr. Abdul Hafeez Sheikh and Kazakhstan’s Minister for Industry and Trade Adilbek Dzhaksybekov on behalf of their respective governments.

Under the agreement, the

two sides would create favourable conditions for investment by each others investors for reciprocal promotion and protection of investments between the two countries and encourage development of mutually beneficial trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation.

The countries guaranteed fair and equitable treatment to the investments of the investors in accordance with national legislations and not to infringe through arbitrary or discriminatory measures.

The agreement also covers avoidance of double taxation, and investment of investors of either countries shall not be expropriated, nationalized, requisitioned or subjected to other such measure.