Pakistan | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Japan on Tuesday signed a ¥379 million grant agreement in Islamabad to fund higher educa­tion for young civil officers under the 2025 Human Resource Development Scholarship Programme.

RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Indonesia have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation and explore new avenues in economic, strategic, and defence sectors.

Indonesia’s Defence Minister Lt Gen (retired) Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin expressed his country’s desire to boost defence ties and explore possible collaboration in defence production as he met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad on Tuesday. Pakistan and Indonesia maintain strong bilateral relations rooted in shared religion and culture, with both countries cooperating in trade, education, and health. Gen Sjamsoeddin called on PM Shehbaz at the PM Office today, where he reiterated Indonesia’s desire to “further strengthen defence ties with Pakistan and to explore possible areas for cooperation, especially in defence production”, according to a statement from government-run PID. The Indonesian minister conveyed the best wishes of President Prabowo Subianto for the prime minister and people of Pakistan, the press release added. Meanwhile, PM Shehbaz “reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to explore and expand collaboration with Indonesia in joint ventures of investment in mutually beneficial projects”, the state...

Posts from users and Indian accounts on social media platform X on Monday were claiming that China has removed Pakistan from its list of countries allowed visa-free entry. However, no such development has occurred since Pakistan was never included in China’s list of countries with visa-free entry. Pakistan and China share a longstanding strategic partnership rooted in mutual trust, economic cooperation, and regional connectivity. Over the decades, ties have expanded across different sectors, including trade, energy, infrastructure, and media collaboration, with initiatives like the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor symbolising a shared vision for development. On July 14, a user, who appears to be a PTI supporter based on his previous posts, claimed in a post on X that China has removed Pakistan from its list of visa-free countries. A social media graphic from a news outlet accompanying the post reads: “China just announced visa-free entry for 74 countries, but Pakistan didn’t make the list.” The post garnered ...

Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan on Tuesday reaffirmed Pakistan’s unwavering solidarity with Turkiye, praising the Turkish people’s courage and resilience during the failed coup attempt of July 15, 2016 – a defining moment he described as a “beacon of democratic will and national.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar represented Pakistan at the joint meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Member States during a call on Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has reaffirmed Iran’s deep commitment to strengthening relations with Pakistan, highlighting the importance of unity among Muslim nations and appreciation for Pakistan's past support.

Pakistan lags behind its regional peers in digital connectivity, with the lowest 4G network coverage and inadequate readiness for 5G deployment, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a recent report, highlighting serious challenges in the country’s digital ecosystem.

ISLAMABAD - In a significant diplomatic development, the interior ministers of Pakistan, Iran, and Iraq convened in Tehran for a landmark trilateral conference aimed at enhancing facilitation for religious pilgrims traveling between the three countries.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued a comprehensive report detailing the devastation caused by monsoon rains across Pakistan between June 26 and July 14.

The United Kingdom and Pakistan have taken a significant step forward in boosting bilateral trade and investment by establishing a new UK-Pakistan Business Advisory Council, announced during the inaugural UK-Pakistan Trade Dialogue held in London.

Google has announced that it will expand its Ads in AI Overviews feature to several Asia-Pacific markets later this year, including Pakistan.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Monday announced that he and his counterparts in and Iran and Iraq will form a trilateral working group to prevent illegal migration under the guise of pilgrimage, Radio Pakistan reported. Earlier this month, the government, during a meeting, decided that under the new measures, the traditional Salar System for zaireen (pilgrims) will be abolished and replaced with a zaireen group organisers model. From 2026 onwards, pilgrims will only be allowed to travel under registered organisers. Speaking at a trilateral conference of the interior ministers of Pakistan, Iran, and Iraq in Tehran, Naqvi told journalists the conference agreed to take all possible measures to facilitate zaireen travelling to Iran and Iraq. View this post on Instagram “We had a great and good discussion,” Naqvi said. “We will have a joint working group between the three countries so we can have better coordination. “The most important thing to acknowledge is that there are several million people who go to Ira...

PTI leader Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, a former aide to ex-premier Imran Khan, is set to offer testimony on “political repression” in Pakistan before the United States Congress’ Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, it emerged on Monday. According to its website, the bipartisan commission was established in 2008 and is charged with promoting, defending and advocating for international human rights as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other relevant human rights instruments. The commission’s hearing notice states that the session will take place on Tuesday (tomorrow) at 3:30pm (12:30am PKT on Wednesday) and will “examine the government of Pakistan’s persecution of opposition political figures and journalists, and its actions to control media communications and prevent free and fair elections in Pakistan”. The session is open to the public and the media. “Many date the current phase of repression in Pakistan to 2022, when, with the involvement of the Pakistan military, popular Prime Minister ...

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi reaffirmed Pakistan’s strong condemnation of the recent attack on Iran, expressing full support for Tehran’s right to defend itself.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will lead Pakistan’s delegation at the three-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers, scheduled to begin tomorrow in Tianjin, China.

Pakistan’s Men’s Hockey U-18 Asia Cup dream came to an end as Japan won the final 3-0 on Sunday in Dazhou, China. The final score of the match was 3-0, with Japan’s Yuma Fujiwara scoring goals in the 22nd and 38th minutes of the game and Tatsuaki Yasui converting a penalty corner to score in the 49th minute. Pakistan had secured their place in the finals of the U-18 Asia Cup with a penalty shootout victory over Malaysia, maintaining an unbeaten streak in the tournament till the final. View this post on Instagram Both teams drew 3-3 in regular time, forcing the game to a penalty shootout, which Pakistan clinched 4-3. Before beating Malaysia, Pakistan had beaten hosts China 2-1 to qualify for the semi-final. They also defeated Bangladesh (6-3), Sri Lanka (9-0) and Hong Kong (8-0) during their campaign. Last month, New Zealand beat Pakistan 6-2 in the final of the FIH Nations Cup in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, retaining their title. Pakistan is also reviewing the security situation in India before taking a call on s...

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) representative hailed Pakistan’s “strong” economic reforms carried out under the lender’s $7 billion loan programme, the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) said on Sunday. Pakis­tan had secured a three-year aid package deal in July 2024. The programme, approved by the IMF two months later, is set to allow the country to “cement macroeconomic stability and create conditions for stronger, more inclusive and resilient growth”. IMF’s Resident Representative for Pakistan Mahir Binici noted that the country’s performance under the 2024 Extended Fund Facility (EFF) had been “strong so far”, according to a press release issued by the SDPI on its guest lecture in Islamabad. Binici termed the EFF’s successful first review — also encompassing agreement on the federal budget blueprint — by the IMF Executive Board in May as a key milestone. “Early policy measures have helped restore macroeconomic stability and rebuild investor confidence, despite persistent external challe...

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, has clarified that there is no pressure from Washington for Islamabad to recognize Israel.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif said the government of Pakistan will continue to extend its political, diplomatic and moral support to the people of Jammu and Kashmir who are waging struggle to gain their right to self-determination and freedom.