ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Foreign Office said on Thursday Islamabad would share its concerns regarding terror groups that threatened its security with Washington as the two countries hold counterterrorism talks in the United States this week.
The three-day talks, which commenced on Wednesday and will conclude on May 10, are part of the Pakistan-US Counterterrorism Dialogue. The Pakistani delegation is led by the Additional Secretary United Nations division at the foreign ministry, Syed Haider Shah.
The initial round took place last year in Islamabad, where discussions centered on the counterterrorism landscape in Pakistan and the wider region.
“The counterterrorism talks between Pakistan and the United States are ongoing and the two sides will discuss issues related to security and countering violent extremism and combating terrorism financing,” foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told reporters in a weekly briefing in Islamabad, saying terrorism posed a collective threat to the international community.
“It is important for Islamabad to share its concerns about terrorist groups that threaten its security with its interlocutors during these dialogues and this is a priority for Pakistan when we engage in these talks,” she added.
The FO statement comes two days after Pakistan’s military said a suicide bomb attack that killed five Chinese engineers was planned in neighboring Afghanistan, and that the bomber was also an Afghan national.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have soured in recent months as Islamabad says Kabul is not doing enough to tackle militant groups targeting Pakistan from across the border. Kabul says rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue for Islamabad and has denied allowing the use of its territory to militants.
Gaza
At Thursday’s press briefing, the Pakistan foreign office also condemned Israel’s attack on a Jordanian aid corps for humanitarian assistance to occupied Gaza.
“It is not just a flagrant violation of the obligations of the occupying power but a dangerous provocation that may lead to further escalation of tensions in the region,” Baloch said, condemning the invasion and seizure of the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza by Israeli forces in what Islamabad said was defiance of international warnings and acceptable international behavior.
“With its latest actions, Israeli occupation authorities have once again demonstrated their contempt for international humanitarian law as they continue to pursue an abhorrent policy of genocide and extermination in Gaza,” Baloch added.
Pakistan-Saudi Arabia relations
Amid a flurry of visits between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, including by the Saudi foreign minister and a high-powered business delegation to Islamabad and two visits by the Pakistani prime minister to Riyadh, the foreign office spokesperson said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia were engaged in a “robust dialogue” on cooperation in diverse domains, including in the energy sector.
“The two sides are also engaged in discussions for increased Saudi investments in Pakistan,” she added.
Baloch highlighted Pakistan’s emphasis on increased engagement, particularly with the Middle East, to attract foreign investment, saying the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) set up last year to oversee foreign financing was implementing measures to offer incentives to foreign investors in support of this effort.
Pak-Iran Gas pipeline
Baloch said the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline was a “priority” for the country and reiterated that the South Asian nation would decide on the issue based on its own interest.
“Pakistan will take decisions based on its own national interest, and the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline is a priority for Pakistan,” she added.
The two countries signed an agreement to construct the pipeline from Iran’s South Fars gas field to Pakistan’s Balochistan and Sindh provinces in 2010, but work on Pakistan’s portion has been held up due to fears of US sanctions.
In March, Islamabad said it would seek a US sanctions waiver for the pipeline. Washington, however, has said it does not support the project and cautioned about the risk of sanctions in doing business with Tehran.
Pakistan says will share concerns about terror groups threatening its security in ongoing US talks
https://arab.news/c25vr
Pakistan says will share concerns about terror groups threatening its security in ongoing US talks
- Pakistan and United States are holding Pakistan-US Counterterrorism Dialogue in Washington
- Pakistan has said suicide attack that killed five Chinese workers in March was planned in Afghanistan
Systems Limited to acquire Confiz in one of Pakistan’s biggest tech mergers
- Pakistan’s largest listed IT firm to absorb Confiz through court-sanctioned merger, PSX told in disclosure
- Deal expands Systems’ footprint in North America, Europe amid rising global demand for AI, cloud services
ISLAMABAD: Systems Limited, Pakistan’s largest listed IT services company, said on Thursday it will acquire Confiz, a global technology firm with strong operations in North America and Europe, in a merger that industry analysts describe as one of the biggest IT consolidation deals in Pakistan’s recent history.
In a disclosure to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), Systems Limited said its board had approved a plan to merge Confiz with the company. Under Pakistani company law, such mergers require a court-approved process in which one company is legally absorbed into another. Instead of paying cash, Systems will issue new shares to Confiz’s owners, effectively exchanging ownership in Confiz for ownership in Systems Limited. The merger still needs formal approval from shareholders, creditors, regulators and the Lahore High Court before it can take effect.
Announcing the deal, Systems Limited said the acquisition would significantly expand its global delivery capacity and strengthen domain expertise in high-value markets.
"This high-powered acquisition marks the beginning of a new era in how we deliver innovation, create value, and empower enterprises globally,” Systems Limited Group CEO and Managing Director Asif Peer said in a company statement.
“By integrating Confiz’s expertise with Systems Limited’s global platform, we are positioned to drive deeper innovation, further expand our footprint in North America and Europe, and deliver transformative outcomes for clients worldwide,” he added.
“This acquisition strengthens our position as a leading technology organization and contributes to the ongoing evolution of Pakistan’s IT landscape."
The draft merger scheme will be circulated to shareholders following directions from the Lahore High Court, Systems Limited said.
According to the PSX filing, the merged entity will issue new Systems Limited shares to Confiz shareholders once the amalgamation is cleared by regulators and the court. The company’s CEO, CFO and company secretary have been authorized to finalize the Scheme of Arrangement and all associated transaction documents.
Systems Limited, founded in 1977 and widely regarded as the pioneer of Pakistan’s IT industry, has grown into a global systems integrator with operations across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The company provides large-scale digital transformation, cloud, AI engineering and managed services to Fortune 500 and major public-sector clients.
Confiz, established in 2005, has built a strong presence in the United States, Canada and Europe, specializing in retail and consumer-goods (CPG) digital transformation, advanced data engineering, AI-driven modernization and cloud solutions. The company serves several Fortune 100 enterprises and operates talent hubs across North America, EMEA, South Asia and Latin America.
A cornerstone of the merger is Confiz’s longstanding strength in retail digital transformation, a sector where demand for AI-enabled forecasting, supply-chain modernization and omnichannel commerce is accelerating. Systems said combining its scale with Confiz’s accelerators and technical depth would allow it to compete more aggressively in the US and European enterprise markets.
Pakistan’s IT exports have risen sharply in recent years as global companies expand outsourcing and cloud engineering partnerships. Analysts say the merger signals the increasing international ambition of Pakistani IT firms as they look to scale into full-service digital transformation providers competing for global enterprise contracts.
