Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Muhammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan is scheduled to arrive in Islamabad on January 6.
Sheikh Mohammad, who is also Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, had accepted an invitation to visit the country extended by Prime Minister Imran Khan in a telephonic conversation last year.
Sources said that the crown prince will be accompanied by a high-level delegation. He is expected to announce investments in Pakistan. Sources within the Petroleum Division said Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan is expected to announce oil worth $3.2 billion on deferred payment for Pakistan during his visit to the country starting January 6.
They said Pakistan is also likely to get $1.5 billion loan from Islamic Development Bank’s International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) for the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on deferred payment facility. Currently, Pakistan is importing LNG worth $4.5 billion annually.
The sources added that Pakistan, in collaboration with the UAE, is also starting construction of Parco Coastal Refinery in Balochistan worth over $5 billion. A UAE delegation was expected to come to Pakistan in October, 2018 but it was cancelled as PM Imran was scheduled to meet Qatar’s foreign minister. In December, 2018, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced it will deposit $3 billion into Pakistan’s foreign currency account to help it successfully overcome international payment crisis and to avoid a stringent International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal.
Published in Daily Times, January 5th 2019
