ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Raja Farooq Haider strongly condemned the “unprovoked fire” by Indian forces on his civilian helicopter near the militarised Line of Control (LoC) in Haveli district on Sunday and said it was against the rules of engagement.
All on the chopper including Haider, his two ministers, pilot and two other staff members, escaped unhurt.
“The Indian forces’ act was against the diplomatic norms, rules of engagement and morality. They did not give us any warning,” he told Arab News on Monday.
Haider said that unprovoked fire on the civilian helicopter was a tactic used to raise tensions in the area, which is already stressed.
“The international community needs to tell India that any misadventure on the LoC will threaten the peace of this region,” he said, “because the LoC is an active border and the situation is already tense.
“The two ministers were with me in the chopper and we were in our own airspace, when Indian forces fired on us,” Haider said.
“The President of Pakistan (Arif Alvi), leader opposition in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif, and People’s Party central leader Khurshid Shah spoke to me and said they would raise this issue in Pakistan’s National Assembly,” Azad Kashmir Prime Minister said.
The President of Azad Kashmir, Sardar Masood Khan, said in a statement from his office late on Sunday that “such acts by the Indian forces will not intimidate our leadership and civilians in their struggle toward ascertaining the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people living under the oppressive Indian rule in the occupied territory.”
He added: “This act displays India’s insecurities and has exposed their aggressive posturing and warmongering.”
Leader of the opposition in Pakistan’s National Assembly and President of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz Shehbaz Sharif also condemned the firing on Haider’s helicopter.
“India wants to hide its oppression on Kashmiris through such incidents. Pakistan will continue 2 stand by the people of Occupied Kashmir in their just struggle for right to self-determination,” he tweeted.
In Kashmir the LoC serves as a de-facto border dividing the contested region between Pakistan and India.
There has been a surge in cross-border firing and shelling, especially in the past two years between two nuclear-armed countries Pakistan and India.
The incident of fringing on the helicopter of the Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir came at a time when just a day ago at the United Nations General Assembly session in New York, the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India accused each other of being involved in cross-border terrorism and sabotaging the peace dialogue.
Fire on my chopper was against the rules, PM Azad Kashmir tells Arab News
Fire on my chopper was against the rules, PM Azad Kashmir tells Arab News
- Indian forces fired on PM Azad Kashmir’s helicopter near the militarised Line of Control
- Two ministers, a pilot and two other staff members of PM Azad Kashmir were on board
Kazakhstan president to explore trade, connectivity cooperation in first state visit to Pakistan tomorrow
- Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to visit Pakistan from Feb. 3-4 with high-level delegation, says Pakistan’s foreign office
- Kazakh president to meet Pakistani counterpart, hold talks with PM Shehbaz Sharif and address Pakistan-Kazakhstan Business Forum
ISLAMABAD: Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will explore bilateral cooperation with Pakistan in trade, regional connectivity, logistics and other sectors when he undertakes his first state visit to the country this week, Pakistan’s foreign office said on Monday.
Tokayev will arrive in Pakistan leading a high-level delegation comprising senior cabinet ministers and high-ranking officials from Feb. 3-4, the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement.
Tokayev is expected to meet his Pakistani counterpart President Asif Ali Zardari, hold talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and address the Pakistan-Kazakhstan Business Forum during the visit, the foreign office said.
“The visit will provide the two sides an important and timely opportunity to undertake a comprehensive review of bilateral relations, discuss new avenues for broadening cooperation, particularly in trade, logistics, regional connectivity, people-to-people contacts, and explore collaboration at regional and international forums,” the statement said.
The foreign office said Tokayev’s visit reflects the strengthening bonds between Pakistan and Kazakhstan, their mutual commitment to transforming historic and cultural affinities into robust cooperation, as well as their common desire for peace and progress in the region.
Relations between Pakistan and Kazakhstan are rooted in shared Islamic heritage and a growing strategic partnership, with Pakistan offering landlocked Central Asian republics access to southern seaports for global trade. Pakistan was among the first countries to recognize Kazakhstan when it gained independence in December 1991 and formally established diplomatic relations with it on Feb. 24, 1992.
The two countries have held regular interactions over the past couple of years on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meetings and other international events. Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister Murat Nurtleu visited
Pakistan in September 2025 to discuss economic and trade cooperation with Islamabad.
Islamabad and Astana engage with each other to promote business and political ties via three forums mainly, which are: Bilateral Political Consultations, the Intergovernmental Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation, and the Joint Business Council.
According to the government of Kazakhstan, bilateral trade between the two countries amounted to $53.7 million in 2024. Pakistan’s main exports to Kazakhstan include citrus fruits, pharmaceutical products, garments, soap, sports equipment and gear and others.
Kazakhstan’s exports to Pakistan primarily include onions and garlic, dried leguminous vegetables, oats, buckwheat and other cereal grains, seeds and fruits of other oil-bearing crops, among others.
