Visit to Pakistan and the new defense pact in Mecca: The multilateral world of the 21st century and opportunities for Czech industry

Greetings from a state visit to Pakistan

Now he's in the thick of things: A Pakistan-Turkey-Saudi Arabia defense pact was signed in Mecca today to bring stability and peace to a region torn by the US-Israeli war with Iran. The old hegemony ends, the multilateral world of the 21st century is here.

I was received today in Islamabad at the highest level of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Amna Baloch, Foreign Secretary) and yesterday in Lahore by the leadership of the Punjab province (Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister) - notice how high a position women occupy even in such a typically Islamic country. I also had the opportunity to speak with the provincial ministers of health, the environment and minorities, the honorary consuls of the Czech Republic, Italy and Hungary and university representatives.

Pakistan is the fifth most populous country in the world, the province of Punjab alone is larger than Germany and Poland combined with 130 million people. It is an ancient culture, but also a country with enormous human and industrial potential, a nuclear power, but at the same time an important peacemaker in the war over the Strait of Hormuz.

The Czech Republic is open in Pakistan, although little is known about it. Already in 1942, Bata founded the factory town ("Batapur") not far from Lahore, and Czech industry still has a great chance here today. The Pakistanis told me the names of several Czech manufacturers of medical devices, in which they would be interested, both in importing and in the eventual establishment of production in Pakistan - not unlike "behind the Baťs". So why not go against it?

I thank the Pakistani embassy in Brussels and the Czech embassy here in Pakistan for their excellent cooperation, whose representative helped me organize a meeting with the consuls. In the next few days, I will have an "exchange of opinions" with colleagues from the local Parliament and from the national ministries of trade, environment and justice, to discuss topics that we deal with in the European Parliament across committees - from trade agreements, GSP+ and Global Gateway, to university student exchanges, the status of minorities, to disputes over water from the mighty Indus River. What the region needs most is stability.

As an opposition MEP, I only have limited power, but I can at least contribute to peace and prosperity - by building relationships, looking for opportunities, refuting pro-war delusions, and last but not least, promoting my own country. From Pakistan I will head to China, Mongolia and India, with the same goal and purpose. Details always on Wednesday at To be clear.

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