President of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bakir Izetbegovic, arrived in Islamabad early Tuesday on a two-day state visit on the invitation of President Asif Ali Zardari for talks on bilateral matters, focusing on trade relations, officials said.

During his stay in Islamabad, President Izetbegovich will meet the president and the prime Minister. The ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense will also call on the Bosnian president, a Foreign Ministry statement said. He will begin meetings later today.

He will also address the business community of the two countries. In addition, the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) will confer an honorary doctorate to President Izetbegovic.

Pakistan Communication Minister, Arbab Alamgir and other senior officials and diplomats received the Bosnian president on his arrival in Islamabad.

The Foreign Ministry says that the visit would not only help further enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries particularly in trade, investment, education and defense, but would also provide an opportunity to exchange views at the highest political level on various important international issues of mutual interest.

President Izetbegovic is the son of late Alija Izetbegovic, the revered former President of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The last presidential visit from Bosnia took place in 2004 when Mr. Sulejman Tihic, the then President of Bosnia, paid a state visit to Pakistan.

Pakistan extended support to the people of Bosnia, especially during their struggle for independence, and Bosnia supported their Pakistan brethren during the devastating earthquake in 2005 and floods in 2010-2011, the Foreign Ministry said.

"Pakistan and Bosnia and Herzegovina enjoy excellent relations deeply embedded in shared values and mutuality of interest on major global issues of common concern. The two countries also jointly pursue the common objective of global peace and stability in international forums," it said.