ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has asked authorities to expedite privatization of Pakistan-owned Roosevelt Hotel in New York, Pakistani state media reported on Tuesday, amid Islamabad’s efforts to streamline its fragile $350 billion economy.
Roosevelt Hotel, a 19-story building located at a prime location in New York, was inaugurated in Manhattan on September 22, 1924. Named after the 26th President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, Pakistan’s national airline leased it in 1979 through the Pakistan International Airlines Investments Limited (PIA-IL).
The hotel closed its doors to guests in Dec. 2020 after the coronavirus pandemic shuttered the tourism industry worldwide. In 2023, New York City (NYC) administration struck a $220 million, three-year deal with PIA to convert the hotel into a shelter, as per a report in The New York Times.
On Tuesday, Dar presided over a meeting of Pakistan’s federal cabinet committee on privatization in Islamabad to review the progress of the ongoing privatization initiatives, including that of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.
“Deputy Prime Minister urged the Privatization Commission to fast track the privatization process of the Roosevelt Hotel,” the report read.
Roosevelt Hotel and PIA are among the main entities Pakistan is pushing to privatize as part of economic reforms undertaken by Islamabad under its loan agreements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with a $7 billion extended funds facility agreed in Sept. being the latest such bailout.
The development comes at a time when an IMF mission is visiting Pakistan to review the South Asian country’s progress on key IMF conditions as part of the first review of the $7 billion bailout. A successful review will result in the release of around $1 billion to Pakistan as second installment under the program.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb last month said they were confident of meeting targets of the IMF program. Pakistan was able to build some trust with the IMF by completing a short-term, nine-month program last year.
Previous loan programs in Pakistan ended prematurely or saw delays after the governments at the time faltered on meeting key conditions. However, the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is making rigorous efforts to boost trade and foreign investment in order to revive the country’s economy and end its reliance on foreign loans.
Deputy PM asks authorities to expedite privatization of Pakistan-owned Roosevelt Hotel in New York
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Deputy PM asks authorities to expedite privatization of Pakistan-owned Roosevelt Hotel in New York
- The development comes at a time when an IMF mission is visiting Pakistan to review progress on its $7 billion bailout
- Islamabad is pushing for privatization of loss-making state entities as part of the conditions set by the global lender
Pakistan Navy seizes $3 million of narcotics in Arabian Sea under regional security patrol
- Official statement says the haul was made during an anti-narcotics operation conducted by PNS Yamama
- Seizure comes after a record haul of nearly $972 million was reported in the North Arabian Sea in October
KARACHI: Pakistan Navy said on Sunday a patrol vessel operating in the Arabian Sea had seized 1,500 kg of narcotics, the latest interdiction under a regional maritime security deployment aimed at curbing illicit activity along key shipping routes.
The operation took place under the Regional Maritime Security Patrol (RMSP), a Pakistan-led initiative that deploys naval assets across the Arabian Sea and adjoining waters to deter smuggling, piracy and other non-traditional security threats.
The framework combines independent patrols with coordination involving regional and international partners.
“Pakistan Navy Ship Yamama, while deployed on Regional Maritime Security Patrol in the Arabian Sea, successfully conducted an anti-narcotics operation, leading to the seizure of 1,500 kilograms of hashish valued at approximately 3 million US dollars,” the Navy said.
The interdiction, it added, underscored the force’s “unwavering commitment to combating illicit activities and ensuring security in the maritime domain.”
Pakistan Navy said it routinely undertakes RMSP missions to safeguard national maritime interests through “robust vigilance and effective presence at sea,” and continues to play a proactive role in collaborative maritime-security efforts with other regional navies.
The seizure comes amid heightened counter-narcotics activity at sea.
In October, a Pakistani vessel seized a haul worth nearly $972 million in what authorities described as one of the largest drug seizures ever reported in the North Arabian Sea.
Last month, Pakistan Navy units operating under a Saudi Arabia-led multinational task force seized about 2,000 kg of methamphetamine, valued at roughly $130 million, highlighting the role of regional cooperation in disrupting trafficking networks.
