While India has continued to demand MFN status from Pakistan, however one needs to understand that the MFN status alone cannot resolve the glaring fissures between both the countries. The first and foremost step that both the countries need to take is trade liberalization, and with this, they need to encourage engagement from the business community of both the countries. The ground realities must be taken into account. While India has given Pakistan the MFN status for the last 15 years however, trade volumes have been low given the other barriers for Pakistani traders to trade commodities across the border. A dynamic approach needs to be taken to resolve this issue.
Maliha Anjum
islamabad
