Pakistan committed to further deepen its relations with UAE – PM Sharif 

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (R) meets UAE's ambassador to Pakistan Hamad Obaid Al-Zaabi in Islamabad on September 30, 2022. (PM Office)
Short Url
Updated 01 October 2022
Follow

Pakistan committed to further deepen its relations with UAE – PM Sharif 

  • UAE is Pakistan’s largest trading partner in Middle East and home to more than 1.6 million Pakistanis 
  • PM Shehbaz Sharif expresses gratitude for relief assistance provided by the UAE to the flood-hit people 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday said his country wished to further deepen its ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as he met Emirati Ambassador Hamad Obaid Al-Zaabi, according to PM Sharif’s office. 

Pakistan and the UAE have close fraternal relations and bilateral cooperation in a range of fields. The UAE is also Pakistan’s largest trading partner in the Middle East and home to more than 1.6 million Pakistani nationals. 

In his meeting with Ambassador Al-Zaabi, the Pakistan premier reaffirmed the importance Islamabad attached to its relations with the UAE. 

“Pakistan was committed to further deepen its relations with the United Arab Emirates in all areas of common interest,” PM Sharif said. 

“Pakistan and the UAE enjoy close fraternal ties for five decades that are rooted firmly in common belief and shared values and culture.” 

The prime minister also expressed gratitude for the relief assistance provided by the UAE and for establishing an air corridor to provide humanitarian assistance to the flood-hit people in Pakistan. 

The UAE started operating an air bridge to transport humanitarian aid on August 28 and has since dispatched more than 40 relief flights to support Pakistan, where floods have killed more than 1,600 people and affected 33 million others. 

The relief aid includes shelters, food and medicines for people affected by unprecedented rains and floods in the South Asian country since mid-June. 


UN Security Council calls on states to help Pakistan bring Balochistan attackers to justice

Updated 7 sec ago
Follow

UN Security Council calls on states to help Pakistan bring Balochistan attackers to justice

  • Security officials say counterterrorism operations have killed 197 separatist militants over three days
  • Security Council calls such acts of militant violence criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of motivation

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday condemned coordinated attacks in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, urging all countries to actively cooperate with Islamabad in bringing the perpetrators to justice, as security officials said 197 separatist militants had been killed in counterterrorism operations over the past three days.

The attacks, claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), targeted security installations and government facilities across multiple districts in the province, killing more than 50 people, including 22 members of the security forces, Pakistani authorities said.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused BLA militants of acting as “Indian proxies” and receiving logistical support from Afghanistan, allegations that both New Delhi and Kabul deny.

“The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the heinous and cowardly terrorist attacks across multiple locations in Balochistan province, Pakistan, on 31st January 2026,” the Council said in a statement circulated by its president, James Kariuki.

“The members of the Security Council underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice,” it said. “They urged all States, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with the Government of Pakistan in this regard.”

The statement said the attacks resulted in the deaths of Pakistani nationals, among them five women and three children.

“The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and the people of Pakistan, and wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured,” it added.

A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said “follow-up and sanitization operations against these terrorists are still ongoing,” adding that 36 Baloch civilians had also “fallen victim to the barbarity of these terrorists.”

He also confirmed the exact death toll on both sides, saying 36 “Baloch citizens who have fallen victim to the barbarity of these terrorists.”

The Council reiterated that such acts of militant violence are criminal and unjustifiable regardless of motivation.

Pakistan is currently serving as a non-permanent Security Council member for the 2025-26 term.