KARACHI: The Bureau of Industry and Security of the United States (US) Department of Commerce has added more than a dozen Pakistani firms to its entity list for their contributions to “unsafeguarded” nuclear activities and seven others for contributing to the South Asian nation’s ballistic missile program.
Late last month, the US authorities changed their Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and added 70 entities from China, Pakistan, Iran, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates to the list that identifies entities which have been involved or pose a significant risk to national security or foreign policy interests of the US, according to the US federal register website.
Pakistani companies that have been restricted for their alleged involvement in unsafeguarded nuclear activities include Britlite Engineering Company, Indentech International, IntraLink Incorporated, Proc-Master, Rehman Engineering and Services, The Sadidians, Sine Technologies, Supply Source Co., Ariston Trade Links, Professional Systems (Pvt) Ltd., RASTEK Technologies and NA Enterprises.
“These entities have been determined by the US Government to be acting contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States,” the US federal register website said.
“[The EAR impose] additional license requirements on, and limit the availability of, most license exceptions for exports, re-exports, and [in-country] transfers when a listed entity is a party to the transaction.”
Pakistani firms put under additional restrictions for allegedly contributing to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program include Allied Business Concerns (Pvt) Ltd, Global Traders, Linkers Automation (Pvt) Ltd, Otto Manufacturing, Potohar Industrial & Trading Concern, Rachna Supplies (Pvt) Ltd. and Resource Enterprises.
Most of the above-mentioned companies are based in Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad and Wah Cantonment, but they could not be immediately reached for comments.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said last month the US “unfairly targeted” Pakistan’s commercial entities without any evidence whatsoever.
“Such biased and politically motivated actions are counterproductive to the objectives of global export controls and obstruct the legitimate access to technology for socio-economic development,” Shafqat Ali Khan, a foreign ministry spokesperson, said during a weekly media briefing in Islamabad on March 27.
Pakistan’s relations with the US, its largest export destination, have mostly been patchy since Washington’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.
Last week, President Donald Trump’s administration imposed a 29 percent reciprocal tariffs on imports from Pakistan, which analysts believe may hurt the South Asian nation’s textiles industry that fetched $17 billion for the cash-strapped country in the last fiscal year that ended in June.
Pakistan, which enjoys a trade surplus with the US, plans to send a high-level delegation to Washington for discussions on the new tariffs that Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said could be turned into an opportunity for the benefit of the two trading partners.
In December, the US government also sanctioned Pakistan’s National Development Complex and three Karachi-based commercial entities, including Akhtar and Sons Private Limited, Affiliates International and Rockside Enterprise.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry called the sanctions as “unfortunate and biased” and said the country’s strategic capabilities are meant to defend its sovereignty and preserve peace and stability in South Asia.
Regretting the sanctioning of private commercial entities, the ministry said similar listings of commercial entities in the past were based on mere doubts and suspicion without any evidence.
US sanctions 19 Pakistani firms over ‘unsafeguarded’ nuclear, ballistic missile program activities
https://arab.news/gh5ef
US sanctions 19 Pakistani firms over ‘unsafeguarded’ nuclear, ballistic missile program activities
- Washington says actions of these Pakistani companies were ‘contrary to its national security’
- Pakistan has termed the move biased and counterproductive to global export controls objectives
US freezes visa processing for 75 countries, media reports Pakistan included
- State Department announces indefinite pause on immigrant visas starting Jan 21
- Move underscores Trump’s hard-line immigration push despite close Pakistan-US ties
ISLAMABAD: The United States will pause immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries starting Jan. 21, the State Department said on Wednesday, with Fox News and other media outlets reporting that Pakistan is among the countries affected by the indefinite suspension.
The move comes as the Trump administration presses ahead with a broad immigration crackdown, with Pakistan included among the affected countries despite strong ongoing diplomatic engagement between Islamabad and Washington on economic cooperation, regional diplomacy and security matters.
Fox News, citing an internal State Department memo, said US embassies had been instructed to refuse immigrant visas under existing law while Washington reassesses screening and vetting procedures. The report said the pause would apply indefinitely and covers countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
“The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people,” the Department of State said in a post on X.
According to Fox News and Pakistan news outlets like Dawn, the list of affected countries includes Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Russia, Somalia, Brazil and Thailand, among others.
“The suspension could delay travel, study, and work plans for thousands of Pakistanis who annually seek US visas. Pakistani consulates in the US are expected to provide guidance to affected applicants in the coming days,” Dawn reported.
A State Department spokesman declined comment when Arab News reached out via email to confirm if Pakistan was on the list.
The Department has not publicly released the full list of countries or clarified which visa categories would be affected, nor has it provided a timeline for when processing could resume.
Trump has made immigration enforcement a central pillar of his agenda since returning to office last year, reviving and expanding the use of the “public charge” provision of US immigration law to restrict entry by migrants deemed likely to rely on public benefits.
During his previous term as president, Trump imposed sweeping travel restrictions on several Muslim-majority countries, a policy widely referred to as a “Muslim ban,” which was challenged in US courts before a revised version was upheld by the Supreme Court. That policy was later rescinded under the President Joe Biden administration.
The latest visa freeze marks a renewed hardening of US immigration policy, raising uncertainty for migrants from affected countries as Washington reassesses its screening and vetting procedures.
The freeze on visas comes amid an intensifying crackdown on immigration enforcement by the Trump administration. In Minneapolis last week, a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good, a US citizen, during a federal operation, an incident that has drawn nationwide protests and scrutiny of ICE tactics. Family members and local officials have challenged the federal account of the shooting, even as Department of Homeland Security officials defended the agent’s actions. The case has prompted resignations by federal prosecutors and heightened debate over the conduct of immigration enforcement under the current administration.
