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WASHINGTON: Pakistan has been invited to the first proposed meeting of US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” (BoP) on Gaza, reported to be held in Washington on Feb 19, and is likely to attend, diplomatic sources told Dawn. According to the sources, Islamabad received the invitation as part of the outreach to countries that have already joined the board, which was launched by Trump late last month. The meeting is expected to focus on giving formal shape to the board, including its structure, mandate and secretariat, the sources said. “This will be a key meeting aimed at giving a shape and structure to the board,” one diplomatic source said. Asked whether Pakistan could be approached to contribute troops to a proposed international stabilisation force for Gaza, the source said such discussions were premature. “That would come later. First, we have to give shape to the board, form a structure, set up a secretariat and define its direction,“ he added. Another source also said it was “still too early” for ...

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday congratulated the nation on Pakistan’s victory against the Netherlands in their opening match of the ICC T20 Cricket World Cup.

Pakistan and Canada emphasised the importance of cooperation in trade and investment in the sixth round of Bilateral Political Consultations between the two countries held in Islamabad on Saturday. According to the Foreign Office (FO), United Nations Special Secretary Ambassador Nabeel Munir and the director general (Americas) participated in the consultations, while the Canadian side was represented by Assistant Deputy Minister (Indo-Pacific) from Global Affairs Canada, Ambassador Weldon Epp and High Commissioner Tarik Ali Khan. A press release by the FO said that the two sides expressed satisfaction over the steady growth of bilateral relations, marked by recent “substantive interactions” between Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand. “They noted that these engagements had provided strategic guidance and momentum to the partnership and reaffirmed their shared commitment to further deepen these ties,” the FO statement said. Recognising the significant ...

Pakistan won the toss and elected to field first against the Netherlands in the opening match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground on Saturday, as overcast conditions and the threat of rain loomed large over the contest.

Both countries issue joint declaration Pledge to strengthen trade, investment relations PM Shehbaz invites Uzbek business firms to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan’s textile, pharmaceutical, mining, agri and tourism sectors.

ISLAMABAD - Akamatsu Shuichi, Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan, yesterday said that Japan and Pakistan are celebrating the enduring 74 year milestone of diplomatic friendship between the two countries and outlined a roadmap for future cooperation centered on people-to-people interaction.

Pakistan and Uzbekistan on Friday reaffirmed their commitment to elevating bilateral relations to a qualitatively new level as President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev concluded a two-day state visit to Pakistan, marked by wide-ranging agreements on trade, connectivity, culture, security, and regional cooperation.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday said that ties between Pakistan and Uzbekistan from now onwards would be measured by trade flows, investment projects, industrial partnerships and people-to-people exchanges, Radio Pakistan reported. According to the report, he made the remarks while addressing the Pakistan-Uzbekistan Business Forum in Islamabad alongside Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is in Islamabad on an official visit. In his remarks, the premier said that it was in this spirit that both countries had set an “ambitious yet easily achievable target of increasing our bilateral trade to $2 billion”, the report said. He said the two countries had also signed a protocol, which would lead to the constitution of a working group to draft a five-year roadmap in order to promote trade, investment, and joint collaboration in research and development, information technology and agriculture, it added. PM Shehbaz also said that tourism was another area in which both countries could benefit from each othe...

The United States on Friday expressed solidarity with Pakistan following recent militant attacks in Balochistan, reiterating its support for efforts to bring those responsible to justice. In a post on X, the US State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) said it stood “steadfast with Pakistan” in the wake of the attacks, which it described as “horrific”. The bureau noted that the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) remains a designated Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO). In August last year, the US State Department added the BLA and its alias, the Majeed Brigade, to its FTO list, according to a press release. FTO designations are made by the secretary of state, following section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), and “are an effective means of curtailing support for terrorist activities and pressuring groups to get out of the terrorism business”. “We support efforts to hold the perpetrators of these horrific attacks accountable,” the SCA added. Earlier on Thursday, securi...

LAHORE: Former International Cricket Council (ICC) president Ihsan Mani has called on incumbent Jay Shah to play a role in defusing tensions after Pakistan decided to boycott its match against arch-rivals India, scheduled to be held in Colombo on Feb 15. Speaking to Dawn from London, Mani — who has also served as the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) — said that being the current ICC chief, Jay Shah should not only speak to Mohsin Naqvi to defuse tensions, but also save world cricket from potential financial losses. “He should go to Pakistan to convince the government to end the boycott and also listen to their grievances,” he said. Asked about media that the ICC had appointed Deputy Chairman Imran Khawaja to negotiate with the PCB, Mani said that Khawaja represented associate member Singapore, and was not the right man to deal with the matter. “It is better for the ICC chairman to deal with the government of Pakistan on his own.” He was of the opinion that if the government of Pakistan had taken such ...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Thursday signed a protocol for enhancing bilateral trade between the two countries to $2 billion within the next five years. This was one of the several agreements reached between the two sides on the first day of President Mirziyoyev’s two-day visit to Pakistan. Under the protocol, the two sides shall constitute a joint working group to formulate an action plan for identifying sectors for enhancing bilateral trade and economic cooperation through mutual consultations, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. It is worth mentioning that last month, the two countries had agreed to expand bilateral trade to $2bn as PM Shehbaz met with President Mirziyoyev in Tashkent. Taking to X on Thursday, PM Shehbaz said he was “delighted” to welcome President Mirziyoyev to Pakistan. “We had a warm and most productive round of talks, covering the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, with special focus on trade and investment, regional connectivity,...

Sri Lanka’s cricket board on Thursday asked Pakistan to reconsider its decision to boycott their first-round encounter with arch-rival India in the T20 World Cup co-hosted by the island. Pakistan decided not to play India on February 15 in Colombo to express solidarity with Bangladesh, who were excluded from the tournament after refusing to play their matches in India. Pakistan and India have not played bilateral cricket for more than a decade and meet only at global or regional tournament events. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) told the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that a boycott would result in a financial hit and also hurt the island’s tourism industry, which is still recovering from the 2022 economic meltdown. “Any non-participation will have wide-ranging implications, including substantial financial exposure for SLC and the potential loss of anticipated tourism inflows,” the board said. It recalled that Sri Lanka had toured Pakistan to express solidarity and revive international matches there when other nations ...

Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrived in Pakistan on Thursday for a two-day state visit, where he was warmly received by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Nur Khan Airbase.

Pakistan must create up to 30 million jobs over the next decade to turn its youth bulge into an economic dividend or risk instability and outward migration, World Bank President Ajay Banga has stressed. Pakistan is entering the implementation phase of a 10-year Country Partnership Framework (CPF) deal agreed with the World Bank last year, while also working with the International Monetary Fund to stabilise its economy. But Islamabad is still facing mounting pressure to deliver sustained growth and jobs. “We’re trying to move the bank group as a whole from the idea of projects to the idea of outcomes,” Banga said in an interview with Reuters in Karachi during a visit to Pakistan this week. “Job creation is the North Star.” ‘Generational challenge’ Pakistan needs to generate 2.5m to 3m jobs a year — roughly 25m to 30m over the next decade — as millions of young people come of age, Banga said. Failure to do so could fuel “illegal migration or domestic instability”. Banga said Pakistan’s population dynamics mean ...

The Foreign Office (FO) said on Wednesday that Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev would arrive in Pakistan on Thursday on a two-day official visit. In a statement, the FO said that at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the president would lead a high-level delegation, comprising cabinet ministers and business leaders for the state visit on Feb 5-6. FO added that the visiting dignitary will meet President Asif Ali Zardari, hold delegation-level talks with PM Shehbaz, and address the Pakistan-Uzbekistan Business Forum. “Discussions will focus on reviewing the entire gamut of bilateral relations and identifying new avenues to further deepen cooperation in diverse sectors including trade, energy, defence, education, people-to-people exchange and regional connectivity,” it stated. The FO statement said that this was the Uzbek president’s second visit to Pakistan, “which reflects the upward trajectory in Pakistan-Uzbekistan bilateral relations and the brotherly ties between the two brotherly coun...

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan on Wednesday urged the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to move swiftly to designate the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) as a terrorist organisation under its sanctions regime, saying the listing request was already under consideration by the council. “We hope the council will act swiftly to designate BLA under the 1267 sanctions regime, acceding to the listing request that is currently under consideration,” Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, told a UNSC briefing on ‘Threats to International Peace and Security caused by Terrorist Acts’. In his remarks, the envoy thanked UNSC members for issuing a press statement condemning the recent attacks in Balochistan and expressed appreciation for what he described as an international “outpouring of support and solidarity with Pakistan”. “We remain resolute in eliminating this externally sponsored scourge from our soil and exposing the sponsors, financiers, aiders and abettor...

Islamabad - On the eve of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s state visit to Pakistan, Uzbekistan’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Alisher Tokhtayev, highlighted the rapid expansion of bilateral ties, describing Pakistan as a key partner in Central and South Asia.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Kazakhstan on Wednesday signed a joint declaration for the establishment of strategic partnership between the two countries.

Islamabad - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said that the government is committed for complete eradication of terrorism from the country with the support of all provinces, stakeholders and the people of Pakistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday offered Pakistan’s deep-sea ports at Gwadar and Karachi as a vital trade outlet for Central Asian states, saying that this could change the fate of the entire region.