PRESS RELEASE : New British High Commissioner, Jane Marriott CMG OBE, makes trade push on first visit to Karachi [August 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 27 August 2023.

Newly appointed British High Commissioner, Jane Marriott CMG OBE, will visit Karachi ahead of the expected arrival of the Royal Navy’s HMS Lancaster.

During her visit, she will be meeting with business, political and community leaders, with a focus on boosting UK-Pakistan trade links. Bilateral trade is currently worth over £4 billion, nearly doubling in 3 years.

The British High Commissioner will also visit HMS Lancaster, which is in Karachi on a routine bilateral Royal Navy-Pakistan Navy training exercise. These exercises are part of a range of ‘Defence Diplomacy’ activities, part of the UK’s commitment to maintaining its well-established defence relationship with Pakistan.

British High Commissioner, Jane Marriott CMG OBE, said:

Karachi is one of the best places in Pakistan to discuss business, the country’s beating heart and home to some of the country’s most pioneering industries. I am looking forward to hearing from UK and Pakistani businesses on how we can support each other’s ambitious trade goals.

In a demonstration of the breadth of the UK-Pakistan relationship, I am also looking forward to welcoming HMS Lancaster for a bilateral exercise.

Earlier this year, Pakistan welcomed the British Army’s Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Patrick Sanders KCB CBE, to strengthen senior relationships. Every year British Army Officers attend Quetta Staff College, whilst Pakistani Officers attend the UK’s military academies to improve mutual understanding.

Notes to editors

• HMS Lancaster is in Karachi for Ex WHITESTAR, a routine bilateral Royal Navy-Pakistan Navy exercise involving HMS Lancaster, PNS Taimur and PNS Yarmook.
  This is the fourth iteration of the exercise, an important calendar event in maintaining our well-established defence relationship.
• HMS Lancaster’s visit comes one year on from Pakistan’s floods. The UK’s Ministry of Defence was at the forefront of responding to last year’s floods, airlifting in eight boats and ten portable generators at the request of Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff to support the relief effort.