Pakistan faces uphill GSP+ battle

• As Islamabad negotiates its reapplication for critical trading scheme, EU envoy says GSP+ benefits ‘can’t be taken for granted’ • Country may continue to receive benefits until 2028-end, but this doesn’t mean automatic rollover into new scheme • Islamabad remains engaged with bloc on ‘effective implementation of international conventions’; FO says EU assessment didn’t offer ‘sufficiently balanced picture’ of Pakistan’s performance ISLAMABAD: Amid an ongoing intense engagement between Islamabad and Brussels over a trading scheme and its future, the European Union’s ambassador has cautioned that GSP+ benefits cannot be taken for granted.

The cautionary note comes as the current EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences framework is set to expire at the end of this year, and Pakistan is required to seek inclusion in the successor regime, which would carry more stringent requirements. “The government will need to take steps towards improving the situation, which will also be very important in the reapplication process,” EU Ambassador Raimundas Karoblis told Dawn . “The situation is not certain. And, of course, GSP+ preferences cannot be taken for granted. ” Though the new trading…