Pak-Iran border trade goals will stay symbolic without real reforms: BMG

The Businessmen Panel (BMP) of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has cautioned that Pakistan and Iran’s latest commitment to enhance border infrastructure and expand bilateral trade will remain largely symbolic unless both governments act decisively to remove deep-rooted trade barriers, complete the long-delayed Iran–Pakistan gas pipeline, and introduce genuine structural reforms to enable real economic integration between the two neighbouring states. BMP Chairman and former FPCCI president Mian Anjum Nisar said here on Sunday that the business community has heard similar assurances many times over the years, but the outcomes have remained negligible. He said that despite repeated announcements and numerous memorandums of understanding, the trade potential between Pakistan and Iran continues to be restricted by bureaucratic delays, banking limitations, policy confusion, and lack of political will.