ISLAMABAD, May 15: The Pakistan-European Union Joint Commission will meet here on May 24 after a gap of 10 years amid hopes of making some progress on the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA), officials told Dawn.

The first joint commission constituted under Third Generation agreement — a trade related pact - will meet in Pakistan covering all aspects of trade, including initiation of dialogue on FTA as a major part of the discussion.

The last meeting of the joint commission was held in later part of the year 1996. But after the nuclear tests by Pakistan, the joint commission was suspended. A high-powered EU delegation is expected to arrive in Pakistan next week.

A senior official in the commerce ministry told Dawn on Tuesday that the government was trying to persuade the European Commission (EC) to start negotiation on FTA.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has approved a strategy in this regard to seek support from various capitals of the 35-member block of the EU on FTA. On the other hand, the EC had already approved a draft for initiation of talks on FTAs with many countries, including India, Pakistan’s main competitor in the EU market.

According to the official, commerce minister as part of his first leg of the tour aimed at lobbying for FTA had reached Paris to be followed by Germany, United Kingdom and Rome. He would meet trader ministers, parliamentarians, trade associations and major exporters of machinery to Pakistan and large textile importing companies.

According to the approved strategy, the prime minister has also written letters to his counterparts in all European capitals and to the president of the commission for immediate start of FTA negotiations with Pakistan.

But, according to the official, Pakistan has not got any positive response of the letter sent to the EU member countries.

At the same time, Pakistan's ambassadors in the EU capitals have been provided Aid Memoir for taking up the FTA with respective trade authorities persuading them for FTA with Pakistan through building pressure on the commission.

Pakistan has already conducted a futile exercise in almost all the EU capitals seeking support for its inclusion in the generalised system of preferences (GSP) plus scheme allowing zero rate of duty. However, the EU had right from beginning informed Pakistan that they will not consider Islamabad for the facility.

Analysts said that the EU has already conveyed similar response in case of the FTA but Islamabad is still hopeful to continue lobbying for getting some positive response from the major EU capitals.In case, Pakistan did not get any preferential market in the EU its products exported to the region are likely to be replaced by the products made in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Pakistan's export to EU has already started declining, particularly the textile exports because of capture of market by Bangladesh, and China etc.