ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s health ministry has said the country had not yet reported any cases of the “Indian strain” of the coronavirus considered to be responsible for a catastrophic second wave of the pandemic in its South Asian neighbor, while the prime minister’s special adviser on health said on Tuesday it was “incorrect” to say the government was only relying on gifts and donations of vaccine jabs to meet its demand.
India recorded more than 320,000 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday as a grim surge of illness and death ripped through the country.
Syed Sajid Shah, a spokesperson for the Pakistani health ministry, told reporters on Monday the country was still “safe” from the Indian variant while cases of the UK variant were being reported in Pakistan.
Pakistan has already banned land and air travel from India. Last week, it offered “relief support” to India as hospitals in the neighboring nation begged for oxygen supplies and coronavirus infections soared.
On Tuesday, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health, Dr. Faisal Sultan, said the government was not solely relying on gifts and donations of vaccines and had a purchase plan in place, including contracts with three vaccine companies.
“To say that the government is waiting to receive vaccines as gifts is incorrect,” Sultan said, adding that the delay in the arrival of more vaccines in Pakistan was due to global supply shortages.
We have signed deals for 30 million doses, including a deal for technology transfer and joint manufacturing of China’s CanSino vaccine, the health chief said, adding that money was not a concern and the government was willing to spend.
“Many countries were not able to get vaccines despite advance booking,” Sultan said, giving the examples of Canada and Australia and adding that the government was also yet to receive vaccine jabs from global alliance COVAX, delayed due to supply chain issues.
He said the government had purchased three million doses of available vaccines by March 30 and two million people had so far been inoculated.
Pakistan says ‘Indian variant’ of COVID-19 not detected, denies only relying on vaccine donations
https://arab.news/nq8xg
Pakistan says ‘Indian variant’ of COVID-19 not detected, denies only relying on vaccine donations
- Heath chief says government has signed contracts for 30 million doses including technology transfer from China
- Says delays in arrival of more vaccines due to global supply shortages, two million people vaccinated so far
Pakistan plans Benghazi consulate, lending legitimacy to Libya’s eastern authorities
- Libya descended into turmoil after a 2011 NATO-backed uprising toppled Muammar Qaddafi and has been divided into eastern, western authorities
- The UN-recognized government in Tripoli controls the west, while the Libyan National Army forces based in Benghazi hold the east and the south
KARACHI: Pakistan is in talks to open a consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, a move that could give a diplomatic boost to eastern authorities in their rivalry with Libya’s west.
Libya descended into turmoil after a 2011 NATO-backed uprising toppled Muammar Qaddafi and has been divided into eastern and western authorities since a 2014 civil war. The UN-recognized government in Tripoli controls the west, while
Libyan National Army leader Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar’s forces based in Benghazi hold the east and south, including major oilfields.
Islamabad would be joining a small group of countries with a diplomatic presence in Benghazi. Haftar discussed the move with officials during an ongoing visit to Pakistan, the sources said.
Haftar met Pakistan’s army chief on Monday to discuss “professional cooperation,” the Pakistani military said. He was due to sit down with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday, the sources said, declining to be identified because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Pakistan’s prime minister’s office and foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
The LNA’s official media page said Haftar and his son Saddam met senior Pakistani army officials “within the framework of strengthening bilateral relations and opening up broader horizons for coordination in areas of common interest.” It did not give further details and Reuters could not immediately reach eastern Libyan authorities for comment.
Pakistan’s air force said in a statement that Saddam Khalifa Haftar met Air Chief Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu to discuss expanding defense cooperation, including joint training, with Islamabad reaffirming its support for the “capability development” of the Libyan air force. Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir visited Benghazi in December, where he signed a multibillion-dollar defense deal with the LNA, previously reported by Reuters.
All three sources said the decision to open a consulate in Benghazi was linked to the $4 billion defense deal, one of Pakistan’s largest-ever arms sales.
Libya has been under a UN arms embargo since 2011, although UN experts have said it is ineffective. Pakistani officials involved in the December deal said it did not violate UN restrictions. Haftar has historically been an ally of the UAE, which supported him with air power and viewed him as a bulwark against extremists, while Pakistan — the only nuclear-armed Muslim-majority nation — signed a wide-ranging mutual defense pact with Saudi Arabia late last year.
