The United Arab Emirates is now processing around 500 visas per day for Pakistani nationals, its new ambassador to Pakistan has said, as both countries pledged to deepen strategic and economic ties.
Ambassador Salem M. Salem Al Bawab Al Zaabi made the announcement during a meeting on Thursday with Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb, where the two sides discussed expanding trade, investment, defence cooperation, and visa facilitation.
Visa Reforms and Daily Processing
Ambassador Al Zaabi said the UAE government has introduced major reforms to make travel easier for Pakistanis, including online visa applications, e‑visas without passport stamping, and stronger system‑to‑system links with Pakistani authorities.
He added that a newly opened UAE visa centre in Pakistan is helping to speed up processing, allowing roughly 500 visas to be issued each day for business and visitor travel.
Finance Minister Aurangzeb welcomed the move, noting that smoother mobility is key to boosting business-to-business ties, especially given the UAE’s role as a global hub for trade, investment, and technology exhibitions
Economic and Investment Ties
During the meeting, Aurangzeb outlined Pakistan’s shift toward a private-sector-led, investment-driven growth model, with stable foreign exchange reserves, declining inflation, and rising remittances, particularly from the UAE.
He highlighted ongoing UAE investments in ports, digital banking, logistics, and infrastructure, and encouraged further participation from UAE sovereign funds, private companies, and multinationals.
Ambassador Al Zaabi said expanding bilateral trade and investment is a top priority of his tenure, and expressed strong interest in attracting more Pakistani businesses and tech firms to the UAE, while bringing more UAE investors into Pakistan.
Both sides pointed to Pakistan’s potential in IT, fintech, artificial intelligence, agriculture, minerals, and higher education as areas ripe for collaboration.
Defence and Strategic Cooperation
The meeting also covered defence cooperation, military training exchanges, and long‑standing security collaboration between the two countries.
Ambassador Al Zaabi reaffirmed the UAE’s commitment to further strengthening defence ties during his time in Islamabad, describing Pakistan as a close and trusted partner.
Historical and People-to-People Links
Al Zaabi, who recently took up his post, praised the warm reception he has received in Pakistan and highlighted the deep historical and cultural linkages between the two nations.
He noted the significant contributions of Pakistani professionals across sectors in the UAE, including banking, finance, defence, and public administration, and said enhancing people-to-people exchanges would remain a key focus.
Aurangzeb, in turn, reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to deepening its fraternal partnership with the UAE, acknowledging the UAE’s consistent support in trade, investment, remittances, government financing, and its backing in Pakistan’s dealings with international financial institutions.
