Italy to cancel Pakistan’s debt Pak-Italy JEC meeting on January 29-30 By Staff Report - January 27

[Shahzaz ud din]

Italy to cancel Pakistan’s debt
Pak-Italy JEC meeting on January 29-30

By Staff Report -
January 27, 2018
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ISLAMABAD: The third session of Pak-Italy Joint Economic Commission (JEC) is scheduled to be held in Rome, Italy on January 29-30, 2018. Finance and Economic Affairs Minister for State Rana Muhammad Afzal Khan will lead the Pakistani delegation and co-chair the session along with Italy’s Economic Development Deputy Minister Ivan Scalfarotto.

Meanwhile, Italy had previously cancelled debt amounting to Rs 6.4 billion (€ 64 million) and is expected to cancel the rest at the completion of Pak–Italian Debt Swap Agreement (PIDSA) by end of 2018.

On January 29, 2018, both sides will hold discussions and negotiations on various agenda items and sign the protocol and agreed minutes of the JEC on January 30.

Both sides will review the recent economic outlook and the economic development goals of their respective countries in the coming years. They will exchange views on the prospects of the bilateral commercial and investment relationship between the two countries.

Both countries will also sign three Letters of Intent (LoI) on cooperation in the areas of textile, footwear and gemstones industry. A MoU between Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) and ICE-Italian Trade Agency is also expected to be signed at the JEC.

Moreover, a Memorandum of Intent between Pakistan Stone Development Company (PASDEC) and its Italian counterpart Confidustria Mardomacchine will also be inked on this occasion.

The JEC will especially focus on joint projects to expand technology transfers, multi-sector training, services and technical support, by engaging public and private actors, sharing the common objective to support the growth and competitiveness of SMEs.

It is worth mentioning that Italy has been supporting Pakistan through humanitarian as well as technical assistance in rehabilitation projects carried out through the provincial governments and civil society organisations, as well as by a contribution worth € 40 million to poverty reduction through Rural Development in Balochistan, KPK and bordering areas of Afghanistan.

Italy has also approved soft loans amounting to € 22.50 million for Gilgit-Baltistan Economic Transformation Initiatives and € 20 million for Professional Capacity Building and Extension in Agriculture (TVET). Italy has also cancelled debt amounting to Rs 6.4 billion (€ 64 million), roughly 77 per cent of the total amount of debt amounting to Rs 8.2 billion (€ 72 million) owed by the government of Pakistan. Pak–Italian Debt Swap Agreement (PIDSA) will be completed by end of 2018, and the remaining debt will also be cancelled by the Italian government.

 

[BHarwana]

And here come Europeans for the mouth watering CPEC investment.

 

[Samlee]

Both Italy and Germany Have Already Cancelled Pakistan's Debts In The Past.Is There Any New Debt????

 

[Śakra]

@ValerioAurelius

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

@Oscar Do you see Italy's move here as a mulligan to get some kind of deal in return down the line? I wouldn't count radars here as those (while under Leonardo) technically from the UK (Selex), I think (in civil) it's probably infrastructure or energy contracts and, in defence, the assault rifles.

 

[YeBeWarned]

@Oscar Do you see Italy's move here as a mulligan to get some kind of deal in return down the line? I wouldn't count radars here as those (while under Leonardo) technically from the UK (Selex), I think (in civil) it's probably infrastructure or energy contracts and, in defence, the assault rifles.

Possibility of Aster 30 Block 3 ? or mobile SPADA 2000? presented at Ideas 2016

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

Possibility of Aster 30 Block 3 ? or mobile SPADA 2000? presented at Ideas 2016

In my opinion, if there's any interest in the Aster 30, it would probably be through the Turkish-Eurosam program. In that case, you'd have Turkey managing the front-end of the deal. However, that's a massive stretch right now - the missile has yet to even be defined.

The mobile SPADA 2000 is certainly something Italy wants to push, but it's unclear if the Pak Army is pursuing the mobile SAM program at the moment. In this case, there will also be competition from China, South Africa, Turkey and possibly even Russia.

I think there's also interest in the MILGEM and Damen OPV programs. Leonardo and MBDA could be looking to fit those ships with their sensors, subsystems and weapons. For example, at the minimum Leonardo could be looking at least selling 76 mm main guns. In the case of the MILGEM, the potential opportunity could climb to Kronos Naval radars, CMS, ESM, ASW suite, Otomat AShM and, if there's space for VLS, the Aster-15. In fact, as the status of the Swiftships corvette is unclear, Fincantieri might be interested in the chance of filling in with its own OPV designs.

 

[Thəorətic Muslim]

Italy has also approved soft loans amounting to € 22.50 million for Gilgit-Baltistan Economic Transformation Initiatives

Interesting.

 

[CriticalThought]

@Oscar Do you see Italy's move here as a mulligan to get some kind of deal in return down the line? I wouldn't count radars here as those (while under Leonardo) technically from the UK (Selex), I think (in civil) it's probably infrastructure or energy contracts and, in defence, the assault rifles.

It's a debt swap. I am wondering if this was cancelled in lieu of some laundered money kept in Italian accounts.

 

[YeBeWarned]

The mobile SPADA 2000 is certainly something Italy wants to push, but it's unclear if the Pak Army is pursuing the mobile SAM program at the moment. In this case, there will also be competition from China, South Africa, Turkey and possibly even Russia.

2 Things , did PA even open tender for a new Short range mobile SAM ? i thought they are pretty satisfied with FM-90's performance specially after that testing of shooting down the drone .. second , does mobile SPADA 2000 bring anything new to the existing SPADA 2000 ? apart from it just been mobile ? as for Ship Package, it is possible that Pakistan might take the Italian way for Radar, but do we even have any experience of using Italian radar's ?

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

2 Things , did PA even open tender for a new Short range mobile SAM ? i thought they are pretty satisfied with FM-90's performance specially after that testing of shooting down the drone .. second , does mobile SPADA 2000 bring anything new to the existing SPADA 2000 ? apart from it just been mobile ? as for Ship Package, it is possible that Pakistan might take the Italian way for Radar, but do we even have any experience of using Italian radar's ?

Not sure about a tender, we rarely see those (in public) from Pakistan. But at IDEAS 2016 we know that MBDA was talking about a Pakistan Army program for a mobile SAM. I think the idea might have been to have a system between the FM-90 and HQ-16, i.e. a short-to-medium range system that can move with armour and artillery.

As for experience with Italian radars, it's a non-issue. The Italian radars are basically NATO-standard radars from Leonardo's Selex ES division in the UK. Leonardo, Thales (France), Saab (Sweden) and Hensoldt (Germany) have to follow the same end-user principles as they're competing for the very same markets (i.e. NATO, Middle East, Southeast Asia, etc). That said, the Kronos - along with the Sea Giraffe, SMART-S Mk2, TRML, etc - are phased-array radars, which the Navy has yet to deploy on any surface warship. So including any one of those (or a Chinese alternative) would be a generational climb-up for the Navy.