Turkmenistan set to become first Central Asian state to gain access to Gwadar port under CPEC — report

In this photograph taken on October 4, 2017, a Pakistani naval personnel stands guard near a ship carrying containers at Gwadar Port. (AFP/File)
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Updated 16 September 2024
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Turkmenistan set to become first Central Asian state to gain access to Gwadar port under CPEC — report

  • Pakistan and Turkmenistan will soon sign agreement in this regard, Pakistani state media says
  • Both countries already working on TAPI gas pipeline, rail track and fiber connectivity projects

ISLAMABAD: Turkmenistan is set to become the first Central Asian country to gain access to Pakistan’s strategically positioned Gwadar port under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Pakistani state media reported on Sunday.

The Gwadar port lies at the heart of CPEC, a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative under which Beijing has pledged more than $60 billion in infrastructure and energy projects in Pakistan.

It aims to connect China to the Arabian Sea through a network of roads, railways, pipelines and ports in Pakistan and help Islamabad expand and modernize its economy.

Pakistan and Turkmenistan will soon sign an agreement in this regard, the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

“The government has constituted a committee to examine the draft agreement between Gwadar Port and Turkmenbashi Port under CPEC,” the report read.

Pakistan and Turkmenistan are already working on various joint projects, including Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India (TAPI) gas pipeline, rail track and fiber connectivity, to connect South and Central Asia.

Cash-strapped Pakistan hopes to leverage its strategic geopolitical position and enhance its role as a pivotal trade and transit hub connecting the landlocked Central Asian republics with the rest of the world.


Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

Updated 11 February 2026
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Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

  • At least 9 dead, 27 wounded in shooting incident at secondary school, residence in British Columbia on Tuesday
  • Officials say the shooter was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after the incident

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday expressed solidarity with Canada as a high school shooting incident in a British Columbia town left at least nine dead, more than 20 others injured. 

Six people were found at the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School while a seventh died on the way to the hospital, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a statement on Tuesday. Two other people were found dead at a home that police believe is connected to the shooting at the school. A total of 27 people were wounded in the attack. 

In an initial emergency alert, police described the suspect as a “female in a dress with brown hair,” with officials saying she was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“Saddened by the tragic shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.

He conveyed his condolences to the families of the victims, wishing a swift recovery to those injured in the attack. 

“Pakistan stands in solidarity with the people and Government of Canada in this difficult time,” he added. 

Canadian police have not yet released any information about the age of the shooter or the victims.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the violence, announcing he had suspended plans to travel to the Munich Security Conference on Wednesday.

While mass shootings are rare in Canada, last April, a vehicle attack that targeted a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver killed 11 people.

British Columbia Premier David Eby called the latest violence “unimaginable.”

Nina Krieger, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, described it as one of the “worst mass shootings” in Canada’s history.