ISLAMABAD: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in Islamabad late Thursday to hold “delegation level” talks with Pakistani leaders in the backdrop of ongoing tensions between Tehran and the United States, the foreign office said on Friday.
Relations between Iran and Pakistan have been strained in recent months, with both sides accusing each other of not doing enough to stamp out militants allegedly sheltering across the border.
“During delegation level talks, Iran will discuss issues of mutual interest, regional security and others,” the foreign office said in a statement, adding that Zarif was greeted upon his arrival in Pakistan by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.
This is Zarif’s third visit to Islamabad since becoming foreign policy head of Iran. He is expected to hold talks with Foreign Minister Qureshi in Pakistan, followed by meetings with Prime Minister Imran Khan and and Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, the foreign office told Arab News.
In comments to media at a briefing on Thursday, foreign office spokesperson Dr. Mohammad Faisal said Pakistan was “concerned over the grave situation prevailing in the Arabian Gulf and during talks with his Iranian counterpart, the foreign minister will have a detailed discussion on it.”
“Pakistan always supports dialogue and desires that all issues should be settled peacefully and through engagement by all sides,” Faisal said. “If required, Pakistan is ready to play a constructive and positive role in this regard.”
The United States pulled out of an agreement between Iran and world powers a year ago that limited Iran’s nuclear program in return for lifting economic sanctions.
This month tensions have risen sharply following US President Donald Trump’s decision to try to cut Iran’s oil exports to zero and beef up US military presence in the Gulf in response to what he says are Iranian threats.
Pakistan has described the mounting tensions as “disturbing” and asked all sides to show restraint.
“Any miscalculation can lead to a large scale conflict in the region,”the foreign office spokesman said at a press briefing last week.
During Khan’s trip to Iran in April, the two sides announced they would form a joint quick reaction force to combat militant activity on their shared border.
A new umbrella group representing various insurgent groups operating in Pakistan’s southwestern Baluchistan province claimed responsibility for an attack in April when 14 passengers were killed after being kidnapped from buses in the province, which borders Iran.
Tehran has also stepped up security along its long border with Pakistan after a suicide bomber killed 27 members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards in mid-February in southeastern Iran, with Iranian officials saying the attackers were based inside Pakistan. Pakistan denies the accusation.
Earlier this month, Pakistan said it had started fencing certain areas along the 950km shared Pakistan-Iran border.
Relations are also tense over a $7 billion Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project. Pakistan says it has recently informed Iran in writing that it cannot execute the project as long as Tehran is under a United States sanctions regime, driving the final nail in the coffin of a project that was conceived in the 1990s to connect Iran’s giant South Pars gas field to India via Pakistan.
Tehran formally issued a notice to Islamabad in February this year, saying it was moving an arbitration court against Pakistan for failing to lay down the pipeline in Pakistani territory in the timeframe stipulated in the bilateral agreement. Pakistan has until August this year to legally respond to Iran’s notice and settle the issue through negotiations.
Iranian foreign minister in Pakistan amid rising tensions with US
Iranian foreign minister in Pakistan amid rising tensions with US
- “Will discuss issues of mutual interest, regional security and others,” Pakistani foreign office says
- Pakistan concerned over “grave” situation unfolding in Arabian Gulf, ready to play mediatory role
No tension with Pakistan, US says after sanctioning firms for ‘aiding’ ballistic missile program
- US announced sanctions against three Chinese companies, one Belarus-based firm
- Washington says the firms were supplying items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program
ISLAMABAD: The US State Department said on Thursday there were no tensions with Pakistan following Washington’s move to impose sanctions on four international firms for supplying to the South Asian nation’s ballistic missile program.
In a press release issued last Friday, the US State Department announced sanctions against three Chinese companies and one Belarus-based firm on charges they supplied items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program.
Pakistan has said it rejects the “political use of export controls.”
“Absolutely not … Pakistan continues to be one of our most important partners in the region,” State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters in response to a question about tensions between Washington and Islamabad following the sanctions.
“There continues to be a lot of cooperation that we have with the Government of Pakistan, especially in the security space, especially in the trade sector … This is a robust relationship and we’ll look to continue strengthening it.”
The companies listed by the US for sanctions are the China-based Xi’an Longde Technology Development Company Limited, Tianjin Creative Source International Trade Co. Ltd, Granpect Company Limited and Belarus-based Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant.
The sanctions mean all property and interests in property of the companies in the US or in possession or control of American citizens are blocked and must be reported to the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), according to the State Department.
They also mean that all transactions by American citizens, or those within (or transiting) the US that involve any property or interests in property of the companies, are prohibited unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC.
Officials from global container logistics company in Pakistan for talks on developing ports
- Maersk is integrated container logistics company operating in 130 countries
- Company delegation meets Pakistani finance and maritime affairs ministers
ISLAMABAD: A delegation from a leading logistics company, A.P. Moller-Maersk (APM) Terminals, met Pakistani officials in Islamabad this week for talks on developing and modernizing the South Asian nation’s ports, state-run Radio Pakistan reported on Friday.
Maersk is an integrated container logistics company operating in 130 countries. APM Terminals has been developing and operating advanced ports and container terminals for over half a century and has 60 strategically located ports and container terminals around the globe and several more in development.
On Thursday, a delegation from the company led by its CEO Keith Svendsen separately met Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Minister for Maritime Affairs Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh.
“Pakistan is keen to explore future projects and investments with APM especially in the maritime sector,” Aurangzeb was quoted as telling the APM delegation in a report by Radio Pakistan. “The government is fully committed to facilitate an environment conducive to business and investments.”
Radio Pakistan quoted Svendsen as telling Aurangzeb APM was “pleased” to engage with Pakistan and saw “great potential” in the Pakistani market.
“Affirming confidence in the country’s growth prospects and development agenda, he expressed commitment to enhance its investment and operations to support the country’s trade,” the report said.
Svendsen and his delegation also met the maritime affairs minister and discussed investment prospects in Pakistan’s ports and terminals sector.
“The delegation head highlighted Moller-Maersk’s prominent global position and its robust relationship with Pakistan, which reflects a market share of approximately 20 percent in containerized import-export activities,” Radio Pakistan said.
“Recognizing the immense growth potential, Keith Svendsen proposed investments to enhance integrated supply chain solutions, including the upgrading of ports and logistics infrastructure. The delegation pledged support for the advancement of maritime affairs in Pakistan and for nurturing a skilled workforce in this sector.”
On Monday, Pakistani and United Arab Emirates (UAE) officials performed the groundbreaking of a $175 million Bulk and General Cargo terminal as part of a new 25-year concession agreement signed between AD Ports Group and Karachi Port Trust (KPT) in Feb. 2024 to outsource operations of the terminal.
Under the terms of the agreement, Karachi Gateway Terminal Multipurpose Limited (KGTML), a joint venture between AD Ports Group, as a majority shareholder, and Kaheel Terminals, a UAE-based company, will develop, operate and manage the Bulk and General Cargo Terminal, berths 11 to 17 at Karachi Port’s East Wharf.
Pakistani PM to attend Islamic Summit Conference in Gambia on May 4
- Palestine, Islamophobia, climate change on agenda of meeting arranged by OIC
- Summit to be attended by concerned heads of state such as PMs, presidents, emirs
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will attend the 15th session of the Islamic Summit Conference organized by the OIC on May 4-5 in the Gambian capital of Banjul to discuss a variety of regional and global issues, including Palestine, Islamophobia, climate change and the status of minorities, state-run APP reported.
The session will be held under the slogan “Enhancing Unity and Solidarity through Dialogue for Sustainable Development,” according to a press release issued by the OIC General Secretariat.
The Islamic Summit Conference attended by Sharif will be preceded by a preparatory meeting of senior officials on April 30 and May 1, who will discuss the documents of the session and submit a report to a preparatory meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM).
“The preparatory CFM meeting will be held on May 1-2 to consider the results of the senior officials meeting and in turn, submit its report to the Summit,” the OIC said.
Pakistani foreign minister Ishaq Dar will attend the CFM meeting.
“Leaders of the member states will discuss the political issues of the Islamic world, most notably the Palestinian cause, and the economic, humanitarian, social and cultural issues, in addition to the issues of youth, women, family, science and technology, information, Muslim communities and minorities in non-OIC member states, and legal matters,” the OIC said.
The Summit will also tackle issues related to hate speech and Islamophobia, the promotion of dialogue, climate change and food security.
“The 15th session will issue a final communique that includes the OIC positions on the issues submitted to the Summit, a resolution on Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif, and the Banjul Declaration,” the OIC added.
The Islamic Summit is a principal organ of the OIC focused on the formulation, development, and implementation of decisions made by 57 member states. The Summit is attended by concerned heads of state such as prime ministers, presidents, emirs and other equivalent heads.
Hit repeatedly by floods in northwest Pakistan, 70-year-old to rebuild house for 10th time
- Mian Awal Khan lives in Charsadda district, prone to floods after heavy rains
- 65 killed, 80 injured in heavy rains in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province since Apr. 12
CHARSADDA, Pakistan: Mian Awal Khan stared at the remains of his house, destroyed by flooding in the River Khyali earlier this month, and cried quietly into his sleeve.
This is the 10th time the 70-year-old would have to rebuild his house in Charsadda, a district in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province prone to floods after heavy rains.
At least 65 people have been killed and 80 injured in downpours and subsequent flooding in KP since Apr. 12. Charsadda district is one of the worst hit, with three rivers, Jindi, Khyali and Kabul, meeting downstream at the Shahbara village.
Unfortunately for Khan, his house initially stood on the banks of the River Kyali and was first washed away by floods in 2010. He built a new house 500 meters away from that spot after the river carved out a path for itself on his land.
Flooding would destroy his house many times again.
“This will be the tenth time I will rebuild my house,” an emotional Khan told Arab News, seated on the concrete remains of his three-room house.
“My house was washed away by the floods six times when it was over there [initial spot] and four times when it was here.”
Khan’s 35-year-old son, Mian Fawadullah, said the family was unable to save any belongings on the day of the flooding.
“When we were busy rescuing our children and women, this [destruction] happened to our house,” he told Arab News. “We didn’t take any household items as our life was in danger. We left everything just as it was in its place.”
The flood had cost the family Rs1.5-1.6 million [$5,385-$5,744], Fawadullah said, and also destroyed 108,900 square feet of fields as well as washed away livestock and filled the fields with mud at a critical time for farming.
“Farming has also vanished now,” he lamented. “The wheat and the sugarcane have rotten in the water. This is a real mess. We do labor, prepare the field and the river washes it away [every single time].”
“EATEN MY YOUTH”
Flood survivors say they want the government to build protection walls and put in place preventative mechanisms in a country consistently ranked among the most affected by climate change impacts.
Unprecedented rains in 2022 triggered flash floods that killed over 1,700 people and caused damages worth $33 million.
Ihsan Dawar, a public relations officer at the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority, said the government was carrying out relief works, particularly to rebuild around 3,500 houses partially or fully damaged in the recent floods.
“Up until this time, about Rs200 million [$718,096] have been distributed among the victims of the fresh spell of rain incidents,” Dawar told Arab News.
But Khan has little hope floods won’t wreak havoc on his life again.
“The river is not going to spare it [my house] here also,” he said, adding that it was cutting at the edges of the land like a “butcher cutting meat.”
When asked what he would do now, he broke down and cried quietly.
“This is too difficult,” he said about having to rebuild his house yet again. “It has eaten all my youth.”
He was ‘joyous’ in Australia, says family of Pakistani guard killed in Sydney attack
- Faraz Tahir, 30, was the only male killed in fatal Sydney knife attack on April 13
- Tahir’s was working his first day shift when Bondi Junction stabbing took place
ISLAMABAD: The family of Faraz Tahir, a 30-year-old Pakistani security guard killed in a deadly shopping center knife attack in Sydney this month, said he had been “joyous” about making a new life for himself as a refugee in Australia.
Six people were killed and 12 hurt when 40-year-old Joel Cauchi stabbed citizens at the Westfield Bondi Junction on April 13 in one of the city’s worst violent crimes in recent years. Among the dead were five women and Tahir, a refugee from Pakistan who worked as a security guard at the ball.
Police have said the man who fatally stabbed the six people seemed to have targeted women, as the attacker’s family has opened up about Cauchi’s long history of mental illness and frustrations with women.
Mass killings are rare in the country of about 27 million people, which has some of the world’s toughest gun and knife laws.
Speaking to the media, Tahir’s brother Mudasar Bashir said the day he was killed was the first time he was working the day shift.
“We are very proud of him because Islam, our religion, says that if you save even one human, you save all of humanity,” Bashir said.
“So he saved, I don’t know how many people he saved in that time. I think there are lots of people.”
He said Tahir was happy to have moved to Australia from Pakistan.
“He was very happy, he was joyous,” Bashir said. “So, every time he was saying that ‘I am happy here, it’s a very good place. At least I can pray, I can go to my mosque’.”
Bashir last spoke to his brother the night before the attack.
“Night [before the attack] we spoke and he said that ‘I have a job, let me sleep, it’s nighttime’,” Tahir’s brother said. “I said, ‘Okay don’t worry, sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow.’ And it was the last time we spoke with him.”
With inputs from Reuters
