Pakistan | News

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday stressed the need to utilise local resources to drive economic growth and make Pakistan self-reliant.

ISLAMABAD - ASEAN Heads of Missions in Pakistan including Myanmar, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia called on the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar yesterday ahead of his participation in the 32nd ARF Ministerial Meeting later this week.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan on Tuesday expressed condolences over the martyrdom of 12 Turkish soldiers after they were exposed to methane gas during a search operation in northern Iraq.

Posts from users on social media platform X on July 3 shared a post from digital media outlet Siasat.pk that attributed a statement to Adviser to the Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah that Pakistan should follow the Arab position on the Abraham Accords. However, the PML-N leader actually said that Pakistan should follow the position of the Muslim world on the issue. The Israeli offensive, which began in response to Hamas’s unprecedented attack on October 7, 2023, has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians and destroyed much of the housing and hospital infrastructure in the enclave. The Abraham Accords, brokered by the United States in 2020, are landmark agreements for diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. These accords paved the way for formal ties, such as embassies and trade deals, underpinned by mutual interests in security, economic collaboration, and technology exchange. While celebrated as a diplomatic shift in the Middle ...

Pakistan has established the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) to oversee and regulate the country’s crypto sector. Pakistan’s federal government has launched the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA), a new body tasked with overseeing the country’s digital asset industry. According to a Tuesday report by English-language local news outlet Dawn, PVARA will operate as an independent regulator tasked with licensing, monitoring and supervising virtual assets service providers. It will also ensure compliance with international standards, including alignment with guidelines from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The report follows a late May announcement by Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance, which endorsed the creation of the regulatory body. Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, said that the country “must regulate not just to catch up, but to lead.” Read more

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) stands as the most vulnerable province in Pakistan to the ongoing monsoon crisis, revealing critical infrastructural weaknesses and governance gaps that intensify the disaster’s impact.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday announced the 15-member squad for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh set to be held later this month. Pakistan’s tour will be a reciprocal one after they hosted Bangladesh for three T20Is over the last two months, all won by the home team and played in Lahore. According to a press release by the cricket board, Salman Ali Agha will continue to lead the side in the T20Is. “The three-match T20Is series between Pakistan and Bangladesh will be played from July 20-24 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka,” the statement said. The matches will be held on July 20, 22 and 24. The squad for the white-ball series against West Indies will be announced in due course, the statement added. Pakistan squad Salman Ali Agha (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hassan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Haris (wicket keeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Sahibzada Farhan (wicket keeper), Saim Ayub, Salman M...

Pakistan has called on the United Nations to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a hub for terrorism, warning that groups like the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) pose a serious threat to regional and global peace.

ISLAMABAD - Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq extended his profound gratitude for the warm reception accorded by President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and solemnly reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering and resolute support for the brotherly Republic of Azerbaijan.

Pakistan on Tuesday extended heartfelt condolences to Turkiye over the tragic death of 12 Turkish soldiers who were martyred after being exposed to methane gas during a military operation in northern Iraq.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Afghanistan held the inaugural session of the Additional Secretary-Level Mechanism of Foreign Ministries to discuss key bilateral issues, including trade, transit cooperation, security, and regional connectivity. The inaugural round of the Additional Secretary-Level Mechanism was a follow-up to decisions made during the visit of Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister of Pakistan to Kabul, Afghanistan, […]

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif greeted a top-tier delegation from UAE-based Etisalat Group, led by CEO Hatem Dowidar, to explore scaling investment prospects in Pakistan’s economy, ARY News reported. During the meeting, Shehbaz Shareef presented a formal proposal to the Etisalat Group to raise its investment in Pakistan, promising full easing and a business-friendly […]

Pakistan and Afghanistan recognised terrorism as a serious threat as the inaugural round of the Additional Secretary-Level Mechanism between the Foreign Ministries of Pakistan and Afghanistan was held in Islamabad on Monday. The talks are the latest in a series of steps between both nations to improve ties, such as the revival of the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) and the upgrading of each country’s diplomats from the rank of chargé d’affaires to ambassador. According to a press release from the Foreign Office, the Pakistani delegation was led by Additional Secretary (Afghanistan and West Asia) Ambassador Syed Ali Asad Gillani, while the Afghan side was led by the Director General of the First Political Division at the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor.   “Discussions covered key areas of bilateral interest, including trade and transit cooperation, security, and connectivity. Both sides recognised terrorism as a serious threat to regional peace and security. The Pakistani side emph...

The Foreign Office (FO) on Monday announced that Sweden has resumed visa services in Islamabad and Pakistani nationals will be able to apply for a Schengen visa from today onwards Sweden in April 2023 indefinitely closed its embassy in Islamabad, citing the security situation as the reason. As a result, the Migration Section was unable to handle requests, nor could any documents be sent to consulates, Gerry´s, or applicants’ addresses. “We understand that this will cause inconvenience; however, the safety of our applicants and staff members are of highest priority,” a notice placed on the embassy’s website had read at the time. The embassy reopened in April this year, according to its website. According to the FO, the Swedish and Pakistani foreign ministries held bilateral consultations in Stockholm on July 2, where the decision to resume visa services was announced by the Swedish side. “Effective July 7, 2025, Pakistani nationals can apply for a Schengen visa from within Pakistan for visits to Sweden of up t...

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), under the direction of Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, has, for the first time in Pakistan’s history, introduced the Artificial Intelligence-based Custom Clearance and Risk Management System (RMS).

Pakistan’s seafood exports have reached a record USD 489.

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has issued a warning for widespread rain, wind, and thundershowers expected across several regions of the country from the night of July 06 to July 10. According to Pakistan’s state-run news agency, the APP, the wet spell is likely to bring heavy to very heavy rainfall at various locations, […]

Youm-e-Ashur, the 10th of Muharram-ul-Haram, is being observed across Pakistan today (Sunday) with due solemnity and deep respect to commemorate the supreme sacrifice of Hazrat Imam Hussain (RA) and his loyal companions in the historic Battle of Karbala.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Poland have agreed to enhance collaboration thro­ugh the exchange of high-level visits, parliamentary interactions and dialogue. The agreement was reached during the 9th round of Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) between Pakistan and Poland held in Warsaw. According to the Foreign Office, Pakistani delegation was led by Ambassador Muhammad Ayub, Additi­onal Foreign Secretary (Europe), while the Polish delegation was headed by Secretary of State at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wadysaw Teofil Bartoszewski. The Ambassador of Pak­is­tan to Poland, Muhammad Sami-ur-Rehman, and the Polish Ambassador to Pakistan, Maciej Pisarski, were also present during the consultations. The two sides reviewed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations. The additional foreign secretary reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further broadening and deepening its ties with Poland in various fields, including trade, investment, energy, security and defence cooperation, science and technology, agric...

Pakistan were knocked out of the qualifiers for the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup on Saturday despite a 2-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan, as Chinese Taipei scored the most points in their group. The national squad was drawn in Group ‘D’ of the qualifiers in Jakarta alongside Chinese Taipei, Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan. Pakistan lost their first match of the campaign to Chinese Taipei 8-0 on June 29, but beat hosts Indonesia 2-0 in their second group match this week. Mariam Mahmood scored her first international goal in the very first minute of the match. “Layla Aliya won possession at the halfway line and threaded a pass that initially looked to be claimed by Dilnura Abibulla, only for the Kyrgyz Republic custodian (goalkeeper) to drop the ball, allowing Mariam Mahmood to roll it into an unguarded net,” said an AFC press release. Mahmood then doubled Pakistan’s tally by converting a penalty in the 18th minute. Kyrgyzstan scored their only goal of the match when Alina Gaparova scored a low ...