Turkish firms to begin joint offshore energy exploration in Pakistan, says Türkiye's foreign minister

Turkish companies will conduct oil and natural gas exploration activities off the coast of Pakistan, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced on Wednesday.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar in Islamabad, Fidan underlined the ongoing efforts to boost the bilateral trade volume to $5 billion.

He noted that both countries are evaluating cooperation mechanisms in sectors such as mining, natural gas, oil, and rare earth elements.

“In this context, the agreement signed in April between Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) and Pakistan's national oil companies represents a highly significant step forward,” Fidan said.

Thanks to this agreement, Turkish and Pakistani firms will be able to jointly explore oil and gas in Pakistan's offshore zones—an unprecedented move in the history of Turkish-Pakistani energy collaboration.

“This is one of the outcomes of the more institutionalized approach we are working to establish,” he added.

Ishaq Dar said Islamabad and Ankara agreed to further bolster cooperation in a string of areas, including economy, defense industry, energy and infrastructure.

Lauding the Turkish defense industry, Dar said that Islamabad wishes to further strengthen its ongoing strategic and defense industries cooperation and promotion of peace and stability in the region.

The two sides are "actively" engaged in different activities, including capacity building in counterterrorism, said Dar.

Turkish companies will also be participating in the privatization of distribution companies in the power sector, he added.

The two sides, Dar said, are pursuing the establishment of a special economic zone dedicated to Turkish entrepreneurs in Karachi and Istanbul.

"We are actively following up on benefiting from Turkish experience and expertise in ship breaking and storage and efficient use of agricultural water," Dar said.

He said Islamabad and Ankara have agreed to revive the long-dormant joint ministerial commission after a hiatus of 11 years, which will be co-chaired by Pakistan's Commerce Minister Jam Kamal and Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler.

"All this work will lay a solid foundation for the eighth high-level Strategic Cooperation Council," which will be held next year in Türkiye, he added.