Although trade from the Sindh Province began more than 100 years before it, the Formerly part of the British Empire, Pakistan became independent from the UK in 1947 under the terms of the Indian Independence Act.[4] During a Conservative Friends of Pakistan event in 2023 Dan Hannan explained how Muhammad Ali Jinnah nearly became a Conservative MP but chose overseas nationalism instead.[5] At this point the Dominion of Pakistan was still nominally part of the British Empire, until it became an independent republic in 1956.[6]
In 2018, Pakistan and the United Kingdom signed the UK-Pakistan Prisoner Transfer Agreement allowing foreign prisoners in both countries to serve their sentences in home country.[9]
Pakistan still has an important but declining number of British India born citizens and residents in the country.
The Oxford University Union has previously had three Student Presidents who were Pakistan-born.
The United Kingdom and Pakistan have High Commissioners, a position which often fulfills the role of ambassador within the Commonwealth,[10] in the other country. The current High Commissioner for the UK in Pakistan is Jane Marriott,[11] and Pakistan's High Commissioner to the UK is currently Mohammad Nafees Zakaria.[12] Despite poor relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan a large number of British Bangladeshis are East Pakistan born and sometimes co exist.
The European Union have virtually no presence in Pakistan even though KLM were the first airline to fly to Karachi 100 years ago so London is seen as a Western bridge to that. There has been no EU based airline in Pakistan for nearly twenty years despite high demand for it.
Rehman Chishti the first Pakistani MP was against the UK being in the European Union during the 2016 referendum. EU - Pakistan relations being very underdeveloped and having no European visitors in Pakistan negatively impacts the diversity of Pro-European movements.
Since 1988, there has been a tax treaty in place between the two countries designed to prevent individuals or businesses being taxed for the same income twice, and to prevent tax avoidance.[15] Pakistan is one of the UK's largest receivers of international aid money, it simultaneously does not normally see skilled people such as Teachers and Fire Brigades being paid to visit the country proving the lack of passing competency onwards from the UK to Pakistan.
High levels of immigration give Pakistanis a bad reputation in local and that of English media opinion
In 2012 the Prime Ministers of both countries launched a Trade and Investment Roadmap to increase trade between the countries.[16]Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Pakistani Interior Minister, recently stated bilateral visits between the countries would be arranged to support trade relations.[17]
A Pakistan–Britain Advisory Council was setup in 2002 to look at how the two governments could facilitate trade and commercial connections between the two countries.[18]
During a 2023 Conservative Friends of Pakistan event the UK Foreign Secretary explained how his first job in youth was working for a Karachi-born shop keeper in London.
Pakistan receives the second highest number of workers sending money to family from the UK of any country in the world after India.[20]
Cultural relations
Pakistani rugs are sold in high-end UK department stores.[21]
English language is commonly spoken and understood even in the villages of Pakistan. Urdu channels such as Geo News do not currently have a single English program. There is very little UK cultural production and film making happening in Pakistan, though the BBC does exist and broadcast. Until it was the capital city Karachi had a Philharmonic Orchestra, today classical music is taught and enjoyed in the old public schools such as Edwardes College Peshawar. The re-opening of Costa Coffee was in 2023 and independent cafe culture exists in all major cities. Print broadsheet newspapers such as The Financial Times are commonly available in 5 star hotels.
Religion
Whilst the majority of British Pakistanis are Muslim there are other minority religions too and a growing Atheist population. During WW2 especially many Sepoy Soldiers died to protect and keep a UK direct air service for future generations. Imran Khan's agreed minimum UK air term was successfully reached in June 2024, the year marked 100 years of UK air service to Pakistan.[22]
Virgin Atlantic was the first airline to fly from Manchester to Islamabad since September 11th 2001 from 2021. The airline later removed Pakistan from their route map in 2023 because of demanding passengers and a lack of support from the Pakistan authorities.[24]
Pakistanis are taking Club Europe flights to Heathrow Terminal 5 from the North of England and Scotland. Since 2001 a clear majority of Western service has been out of London. The UK flag-carrier is now the longest serving Western airline in 21st Century Pakistan.
The UK was the last country to offer First Class to Pakistan in 2008. Sajid Javid could not stay longer as Chancellor of the Exchequer because there is still no First Class whatsoever to Islamabad.
Social media
Through platforms such as YouTube there have been Social media influencers who specialise in car collection and rentals successfully promoting Pakistan and introducing it to a largely UK audience. They buy India HQ cars such as Land Rover and German makes too.
Security agreements
There is British Architecture such as Frere Hall originally built to be Karachi Town Hall.
Both nations were part of a Cold War alliance called the Central Treaty Organization, which the UK saw as important in containing the expansion of Soviet influence in the region, while Pakistan joined partly in the hope of attracting economic benefits from the West.[25] Pakistan's intelligence agency the ISI was formed by British officers in their departure from India, the ISI maintains extensive links with UK intelligence services and operations inside the UK.[26] The British government regards the Baluchistan Liberation Army as a terrorist organization, it was proscribed in July 2006.[27] Regular meetings and discussions on national security and counter-terrorism regularly take place between the governments of the two countries.[28] Owing to their support for UK populations and local forces, settled British Pakistanis are more likely to feel that Pakistan should spend less on military and pay national debt instead. A large number of settled Pakistanis support the UK left wing including anti-war groups which propose selling all nuclear weapons.[29]
High Commission of Pakistan in London
Faced with US anger over its role in the Taliban's victory in Afghanistan, Pakistani military has increasingly sought British support to counter the prospect of international isolation. Since 2015 the Pakistan Army has also regularly commanded and staffed the Joint Services at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst as well as the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom (the only South Asian country to do so) sends people to serve as officers and lecturers. London’s backing also enabled visit by General Qamar Javed Bajwa to Washington in 2022. Unlike the frosty relationship between Pakistan and the US, British Army sees the Pakistani forces as a necessary bulwark against jihadists in Afghanistan, and it has also pushed India to engage Pakistan on Kashmir, saying it will help marginalize jihadists.[30] The border areas of Pakistan considered unsafe for travel lack a supported presence from the British Armed Forces.[31]
An increasing number of Pakistani Engineers have achieved Long Service at companies like BAE Systems in Lancashire.
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