India prohibits the imports of all commodities from Pakistan economy

India announced today, Saturday, an immediate ban on the import of all commodities coming from Pakistan or transferred through it. New Delhi justified the decision with considerations related to national security and public policy, accusing Pakistan of involvement in the attack that took place in the part of India from Kashmir on April 22, killing more than 20 people.

While tension between the two nuclear states is escalating, Islamabad strongly denied its relationship to the attack.

The General Directorate of Foreign Trade in India said that the embargo will enter into force immediately, according to the notification issued on May 2, noting that any exception to this ban will need prior government approval.

The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Pakistan, accused the attack, and pledged to punish those responsible for it.

Pakistan denied any connection with the attack and warned against responding if India took a military action. It responded to the Indian measures that targeted Pakistan after the attack with a series of measures, including the suspension of border trade, the closure of its air field in front of Indian airlines, and the expulsion of Indian diplomats.

It also warned that any attempt by India to block the flow of common rivers will be considered a hostile action.

It should be noted that the value of bilateral trade between India and Pakistan reached its climax in 2018, as it reached about 3 billion dollars, but the trade relations between the two countries had witnessed a remarkable deterioration since 2019, as India imposed customs duties by 200% on imports from Pakistan and withdrew from them the “first state care”. By 2024, this value decreased to $ 1.2 billion.

Despite some limited attempts to resume trade in subsequent years, the ongoing political and security tensions prevented the return of trade relations to normal.

Before the ban, India was importing a number of commodities from Pakistan, although the volume of trade between the two countries was relatively limited. The most important goods that India imported from Pakistan included: salt, gypsum and limestone, used as raw materials for Indian industries. In addition to some fresh and dried fruits, cement, textiles, leather, chemicals and pharmaceutical materials in a limited way.