DOHA – Prime Minister Imran Khan held one-on-one meeting with Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at Diwan-e-Amiri in Doha Tuesday during his first official visit to the Gulf country.
Later, two sides had delegation level talks which were led by Prime Minister Imran Khan and Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
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During the delegation level meeting all issues of bilateral nature were discussed especially the strengthened economic and trade relations between the two countries.
Emir of Qatar also hosted a lunch for the Prime Minister and the members of his delegation.
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Earlier, a formal welcoming ceremony in the honor of Prime Minister Imran Khan was held at Amiri Diwan in Doha on Tuesday.
Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani received the Prime Minister on reaching Amiri Diwan.
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A red carpet was rolled out to welcome the premier at the Amiri Diwan where a formal ceremony was held in his honour. The PM was presented with a Guard of Honor by a smartly turned out contingent of Qatari armed forces.
National anthems of both the countries were played at the occasion.
Prime Minister Imran Khan also held meeting with his Qatari counterpart Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani in Doha.
Bilateral relations, with a focus on economic cooperation between the two countries, were discussed during the meeting.
The Qatari PM also hosted a dinner in honour of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Besides meetings with Qatari leadership, the Prime Minister will also meet business and investment community of Qatar.
He will also address Pakistani community during his visit to Qatar.
The PM’s visit comes after Khan last month opened a visa facilitation center in Islamabad for swift processing of visas of members of the Pakistan workforce wishing to work in Qatar.
Doha has promised 100,000 jobs for Pakistani workers.
Qatari foreign minister in a meeting with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last year had offered 100,000 jobs for skilled and semi-skilled workers from Pakistan.
PM Imran has also previously called for increased trade between the two countries.
The trade between the two countries had increased by 104 per cent to about $1.6 billion in 2017 from $782 million in 2016.
Reports in local media suggest PM Imran is likely to ask Qatar authorities to provide Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) worth $4 billion on deferred payment and reduced price to support balance of payment.
Pakistan’s annual import bills of LNG is around $4 billion.
