ISLAMABAD: The chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Major General (r) Hafeezur Rehman, said this week the body would facilitate the “positive use” of virtual private network (VPN) services even as the government was determined to move ahead with plans to block unregistered VPNs by the end of this month.
The PTA says businesses and freelancers can continue to legally use VPNs by registering with the government, but unregistered VPNs will be blocked in Pakistan after Nov. 30. Authorities say the measures are meant to deter militants and other suspects who use VPNs to conceal their identities and spread “anti-state propaganda” and promote “blasphemous” or other illegal content online.
Digital rights activists say the move is part of government attempts to block vital tools that allow users to bypass restrictions amid a wave of digital crackdowns, particularly since the use of VPNs has sharply risen in Pakistan since February this year when the government banned X.
The federal government is also moving to implement a nationwide firewall to block malicious content, protect government networks from attacks, and allow the government to identify IP addresses associated with what it calls “anti-state propaganda” and terror attacks. Internet speeds have dropped by up to 30-40 percent over the past few months due to the firewall, according to the Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan (WISPAP).
“We don’t say to block the VPNs but to regulate the VPNs,” the PTA chairman said on Thursday during an address at Youth Safety Summit Pakistan, jointly organized by TikTok and the PTA.
“If somebody needs VPN for the business purposes, for some positive use, nobody will stop him, let me reassure you, we will facilitate him.”
Rehman said the authority issued its first letter for VPN registration back in December 2010.
“It is now 15 years,” he said. “We have been pushing people to please register with us so that their business is not disturbed.”
The PTA chairman urged TikTok and other social media platforms to use artificial intelligence tools to “block anti-state and blasphemous content.”
“This summit marks a significant step in our mission to secure a safe and inclusive digital environment for Pakistan’s youth,” Rehman said. “PTA remains steadfast in its efforts to implement innovative measures that protect children online and promote a digitally responsible society.”
Emir Gelen, the director of government relations and public policy at TikTok for the Middle East, Turkiye, Africa, Pakistan and South Asia, reaffirmed TikTok’s commitment to online safety at the summit.
“At TikTok, we are committed to ensuring the online safety and well-being of our users, particularly children and youth,” he said.
“We believe that this summit marks an important step toward creating a safer online environment in Pakistan … We’re dedicated to promoting digital literacy and online safety through our initiatives, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration with the PTA to achieve this goal.”
In August, the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) warned that frequent Internet disruptions and low speeds caused by poor implementation of the national firewall had led many multinational companies to consider relocating their offices out of Pakistan, with some having “already done so.” The Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), the country’s top representative body for the IT sector, warned this week Internet slowdowns and the restriction of VPN services could lead to financial losses and closures and increase operational costs for the industry by up to $150 million annually.
Pakistan’s IT and ITeS exports have been growing at an average of 30 percent per year, and are on the way to achieve over $15 billion in the next 5 years, according to industry data, provided the government ensures continuity in export, fiscal, financial, SME, infrastructure and IT policies.
“If the VPNs are blocked, most of IT companies, Call Centers, BPO [business process outsourcing] organizations of Pakistan will lose all the major Fortune 500 clients, as well as others – as data protection and cybersecurity are of paramount importance to our clients, and connecting to client systems through VPN is a global norm and standard, and is a basic requirement and expectation of clients around the world,” P@SHA Chairman Sajjad Mustafa Syed said in a statement released on Tuesday.
“Additionally, no international company of any size tolerates any intrusion into their security protocols by any private or public institution.”
Pakistan telecom regulator affirms support for ‘positive use’ as VPN ban deadline looms
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Pakistan telecom regulator affirms support for ‘positive use’ as VPN ban deadline looms
- PTA says businesses can use VPNs by registering with government but unregistered VPNs will be blocked after Nov. 30
- Rights activists say government wants to block vital tools that allow users to bypass restrictions amid digital crackdown
Fifteen militants, two soldiers killed in military operations in Pakistan’s northwest
- Pakistani security forces carried out three separate raids in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
- PM Sharif praises security forces for successful operations, pays tribute to the dead soldiers
ISLAMABAD: Two soldiers and 15 militants were killed as Pakistani security forces launched three separate operations in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said on Saturday.
Pakistani militant network, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has intensified attacks in the region in recent years. Pakistan refers to TTP fighters as “khwarij,” a term rooted in Islamic history for an extremist sect that rebelled against authority and declared other Muslims to be apostates.
“On 25-26 April 2025, fifteen khwarij were killed in three separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province,” the ISPR said in a statement.
The operations were conducted in Karak, North Waziristan and South Waziristan districts.
In Karak, eight militants were killed during an intelligence-based operation.
“In an another operation conducted in North Waziristan District, four khwarij were killed by the security forces,” the statement continued. “However, during the intense fire exchange, two brave sons of soil, Lance Naik Usman Mohmand (age: 28 years, resident of District Charsadda) and Sepoy Imran Khan (age: 26 years, resident of District Kurram) having fought gallantly, paid the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat [martyrdom].”
The ISPR said that in South Waziristan’s Gomal Zam area, three more militants were killed. Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the dead militants, who, according to the statement, were involved in “numerous terrorist activities.”
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the security forces for the successful operations and paid tribute to the soldiers who died.
“The entire nation stands with the security forces in the fight against terrorism,” he said in a statement circulated by his office.
Pakistan has seen a surge in militant violence, particularly in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and southwestern Balochistan, since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.
Islamabad accuses TTP factions operating from Afghanistan of fueling unrest, a charge the Afghan Taliban denies.
Pakistan requests extra 10 billion yuan on China swap line, says finance minister
- Muhammad Aurangzeb says Pakistan aims to diversify its lending base by issuing panda bond
- He expects IMF board to approve first loan review, climate resilience disbursement early next month
WASHINGTON: Pakistan has put in a request to China to augment its existing swap line by 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion), Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said, adding he expected the country would launch a Panda bond before year-end.
Pakistan has an existing 30 billion yuan swap line already, Aurangzeb told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group spring meetings in Washington.
“From our perspective, getting to 40 billion renminbi would be a good place to move toward ... we just put in that request,” Aurangzeb said.
China’s central bank has been promoting currency swap lines with a raft of emerging economies, including the likes of Argentina and Sri Lanka.
Pakistan has also made progress on issuing its first panda bond — debt issued on China’s domestic bond market, denominated in yuan. Talks with the presidents of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) — the two lenders who are in line to provide credit enhancements for the issue — had been constructive, he said.
“We want to diversify our lending base and we have made some good progress around that — we are hoping that during this calendar year we can do an initial print,” he said.
Meanwhile, Aurangzeb expected the IMF executive board to sign off in early May on the Staff Level Agreement on its new $1.3 billion arrangement under a climate resilience loan program as well as the first review of the ongoing $7 billion bailout program.
Getting the green light from the IMF board would trigger a $1 billion payout under the program, which the country secured in 2024 and has played a key role in stabilizing Pakistan’s economy.
Asked about the economic fallout from the tensions with India following the killing of 26 men at a tourist site earlier this month, Aurangzeb said it was “not going to be helpful.”
The attack triggered outrage and grief in India, along with calls for action against neighbor Pakistan, whom New Delhi accuses of funding and encouraging terrorism in Kashmir, a region both nations claim and have fought two wars over.
After the attack, India and Pakistan unleashed a raft of measures against each other, with Pakistan closing its airspace to Indian airlines and suspending trade ties, and India suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty that regulates water-sharing from the Indus River and its tributaries.
Trade flows between the two countries had already fallen off sharply following past frictions and totalled just $1.2 billion last year.
Aurangzeb estimated growth around 3% in the current financial year which ends in June 2025, and in the 4-5% range next year, with a view to hitting 6% thereafter.
Pakistan engages Egypt, Turkiye, China after rejecting India’s accusations over Kashmir attack
- Ishaq Dar reaffirms Pakistan’s commitment to safeguarding its national interests in his conversations
- China and Pakistan agree to have close communication, coordination over the regional developments
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Foreign Minister (FM) Ishaq Dar on Saturday engaged with his counterparts from Egypt and Turkiye and held a meeting with China’s envoy as Islamabad seeks to rally diplomatic support after rejecting India’s accusations over a deadly militant attack on tourists in Kashmir.
At least 26 people were killed earlier this week when gunmen opened fire at a popular tourist site in Indian-administered Kashmir, in one of the deadliest attacks on civilians in the disputed region in decades.
India blamed Pakistan for orchestrating the attack amid calls for retaliatory strikes from its media. Islamabad denied any involvement, warning of a “befitting response” to any escalation and offering a neutral investigation into the incident.
India has already unilaterally suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a landmark river water distribution mechanism signed in 1960, expelled Pakistani diplomats and shut down a major land border crossing.
Dar discussed recent regional developments over the phone with Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty during the day.
“DPM/FM Dar firmly rejected India’s baseless allegations, condemned its unilateral actions, and false propaganda against Pakistan,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement after the two officials held the conversation.
“He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to safeguarding its national interests while promoting regional peace and stability,” it added.
In a separate call with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Dar briefed him on decisions taken by Pakistan’s National Security Committee in response to India’s accusations.
He thanked Turkiye for its consistent support to Pakistan at international forums, and the two sides agreed to maintain close coordination as tensions rise in the region.
Earlier in the day, the deputy prime minister met Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong in Islamabad.
Reaffirming their “all-weather strategic partnership,” both Pakistan and China agreed to maintain close communication and coordination, said another statement.
Dar’s conversation with Jiang comes at a time when Pakistan has rejected India’s move to suspend the IWT, warning that any attempt to block waters from flowing into Pakistan would constitute an act of war and set a dangerous precedent for New Delhi, given India’s own reliance on rivers originating from China.
Pakistan PM speaks to Iranian president after deadly port blast, discusses regional tensions
- The explosion that killed four took place at Iran’s largest commercial port in the southern Bandar Abbas city
- The blast, likely caused by a fire at a hazardous materials depot, was felt by people within 50-kilometer radius
KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday, expressing condolences over a deadly explosion at Iran’s Shahid Rajaee port and discussing recent regional developments, including tensions with India.
At least four people were killed and more than 500 injured when a powerful blast ripped through the port in the southern city of Bandar Abbas earlier in the day, according to Iranian state media.
Authorities in Tehran said the explosion likely originated from a fire at a hazardous materials storage depot, with footage showing thick black smoke rising from the site and helicopters deployed to control the blaze.
“I spoke to my brother, Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian @drpezeshkian, President of Iran this evening, to express my deep shock at the tragic explosion at Shahid Rajaee Port, Bandar Abbas,” Sharif said in a social media post, adding that he expressed solidarity with the neighboring state on the loss of lives and prayed for early recovery of the injured.
The Shahid Rajaee port, located in Hormozgan province, is Iran’s largest commercial port. Iranian President Pezeshkian has ordered an investigation into the explosion, dispatching the interior minister to oversee the situation.
The blast caused significant damage to port infrastructure and was felt up to 50 kilometers away, according to Iranian news agencies.
During the call, Sharif also briefed Pezeshkian on Pakistan’s position regarding India’s recent actions following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people earlier this week.
India has blamed Pakistan-based groups for the assault, expelled Pakistani diplomats and suspended the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty.
Islamabad has denied any involvement, offered a neutral investigation and warned that the use of water as a weapon was unacceptable and would be resisted.
Sharif said Pakistan desired regional peace and condemned militant violence in all forms and manifestations. He also reaffirmed Islamabad’s support for the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination as enshrined in UN resolutions.
President Pezeshkian thanked Sharif for Pakistan’s message of solidarity and invited him to visit Tehran, according to the statement.
Pakistan and Iran share a long border and maintain complex political and economic ties.
Only a day earlier, Tehran had offered to mediate between Pakistan and India following the Kashmir attack, expressing readiness to help de-escalate tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
– With input from AFP
Pakistan’s forex reserves triple since early 2023 as central bank targets $14 billion
- Central bank governor says Pakistan’s reserves have seen both qualitative and quantitative improvement
- Governor Jamil Ahmed was briefing executives of global financial and investment institutions in the US
KARACHI: Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have more than tripled since early 2023, driven by a surplus in the external current account rather than fresh borrowing, the top central bank official said, according to a statement on Saturday, as the country targets $14 billion in reserves by June.
Pakistan’s forex reserves had touched critically low levels two years ago, giving it an import cover of less than a month. Faced with the threat of a sovereign debt default, the country secured a $3 billion short-term International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout, tightened fiscal and monetary policies, restricted imports and allowed greater exchange rate flexibility.
Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, Jameel Ahmad, told senior executives from global financial and investment institutions on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington the country’s external buffers had seen a “substantial qualitative as well as quantitative improvement” since then, as he briefed them about the current economic situation.
“Unlike previous episodes of reserve build-up, the ongoing rise in external buffers is not due to any further accumulation of external debt,” he said. “In fact, Pakistan’s public sector external debt, both in absolute terms and as a percent of GDP, has declined since June 2022.”
Ahmad added that the central bank had been able to strengthen reserves through foreign exchange purchases in the open market, supported by a current account surplus.
“The SBP is targeting to increase [forex] reserves to $14 billion by June 2025,” he said.
Ahmad said Pakistan had made tangible progress in stabilizing its economy, crediting a prudent monetary policy and sustained fiscal consolidation efforts for the improvement.
He informed that headline inflation had declined sharply over the past two years, reaching a multi-decade low of 0.7 percent in March 2025, while core inflation had also dropped from above 22 percent to a single digit and was expected to moderate further in the coming months.
