ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Italy have reaffirmed the shared commitment to further deepen bilateral cooperation in education, migration, trade and people-to-people exchanges.
This was agreed during a meeting between Acting President Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and Ambassador of Italy Ms. Marilina Armellin, who called on the Acting President in Islamabad today.
The meeting focused on further strengthening Pakistan-Italy relations and expanding cooperation in key areas.
The Acting President said Pakistan and Italy enjoy over 75 years of diplomatic relations rooted in a long-standing friendship and cooperation at important international fora.
He expressed appreciation for Italy’s support in multilateral platforms and thanked the Italian government for hosting more than three hundred thousand members of the Pakistani diaspora.
Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani noted the presence of several Italian companies in Pakistan, particularly in pharmaceuticals, oil and gas and railways and underscored Pakistan’s interest in expanding trade and investment ties.
He also emphasized the need for faster visa processing for Pakistanis travelling to Italy and looked forward to an increased quota of skilled workers under the labour migration programme, for which an MoU between the two countries is under process.
In her remarks, Italian Ambassador Ms. Marilina said Italy deeply cherishes its long-standing friendship with Pakistan and noted that Pakistan was among the first countries with which the Italian Republic established diplomatic relations.
She shared that in 2025, Italy issued visas to over fifteen thousand Pakistani students who got admission to Italian universities for postgraduate and PhD programmes.
Referring to Italy’s shortage of skilled manpower, particularly in scientific, IT-related fields and healthcare, the Ambassador said Italian institutions welcome initiatives by Pakistani universities to offer Italian language courses to improve employment prospects.
