Pakistan | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has efficiently expanded its international health cooperation with key partners, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, and China, signalling a strategic push to modernize its healthcare system and strengthen public health security, in a series of high-level diplomatic engagements.

Pakistan’s ambassador to the US Rizwan Saeed Sheikh hailed the potential of Starlink services — soon to be functional in the country — as a means to bridge Pakistan’s digital divide during a visit to SpaceX headquarters in Los Angeles, Associated Press of Pakistan reported on Wednesday. Starlink Services, owned by tech billionaire Elon Musk, is one of the most technologically advanced companies globally among those providing internet via low-Earth orbit satellites. Last month, the Federal Minister for IT and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja announced that Starlink services are expected to be operational in the country by the end of this year. The ambassador, accompanied by a delegation, was briefed on the collaboration efforts between Pakistan and SpaceX, particularly how Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellite infrastructure and SpaceX’s commercial capabilities held “transformative” potential for Pakistan’s digital landscape. The delegation was received at SpaceX Headquarters by the vice-president of Star...

Pakistan raised alarm at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over India’s growing naval ambitions, warning that such expansionist policies threaten maritime stability in the region.

Pakistan confirmed two new polio cases on Wednesday, bringing renewed attention to the country’s ongoing struggle to eradicate the virus, according to sources at the National Institute of Health (NIH).

Pakistan has decided to extend the closure of its airspace for Indian flights by another month, amid sustained diplomatic and military tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

ISLAMABAD - Islamabad yesterday rejected Indian army’s claim that Pakistan attempted to target the Golden Temple through drones and missiles on the intervening night of 7 and 8 May.

• GDP expands at 2.6pc, per capita income sees modest rise to $1,824 • Economy size swells to $411bn, agriculture grows just 0.56pc and LSM contracts 1.5pc ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita income increased in dollar terms at a modest pace in 2024-25, reflecting a sustained recovery in the country’s overall output compared to the previous year, the government said on Tuesday. It was announced on Tuesday that the country’s economy is expected to grow by 2.68 per cent in the current fiscal year, a revision from earlier projections of 3.6pc, suggesting that Pakistan will fall short of its GDP target. The leading global financial institutions’ estimates also show that Pakistan’s economy is expected to grow between 2.6 and 2.8pc in FY25, a slower-than-expected recovery with challenges in agriculture, industrial output, and external financing weighing on economic momentum. The lenders have already revised downward their earlier GDP projections for Pakistan. The IMF revised the growth...

China said on Tuesday it supports Pakistan in defending “national sovereignty and territorial integrity”, after a ceasefire ended four days of fighting with India over a deadly attack in occupied Kashmir. Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said China welcomed the two countries “handling differences through dialogue” as he met Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in Beijing. Wang called Pakistan an “ironclad friend” and vowed to deepen the “all-weather strategic cooperative partnership” between the two countries, a readout from China’s foreign ministry said. Likewise, Dar appreciated China for firmly supporting Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Foreign Office said Dar met his Chinese counterpart for in-depth discussions during his visit to discuss regional stability. “Both sides exchanged views on evolving situation in South Asia, future trajectory of Pakistan-China friendship and CPEC (China Pakistan Economic Corridor) 2.0. “Hailing all-weather strategic cooperative partnersh...

Pakistan has condemned in the strongest possible terms the continued Israeli aggression in Gaza.

In a significant development following the US-brokered ceasefire between Pakistan and India, the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) from both countries held fresh contact on Monday, agreeing to a phased withdrawal of troops to peacetime positions by May 30.

The Government of Pakistan is working on a plan to raise $4.

The Foreign Office (FO) on Tuesday rejected the claim made by India that Pakistan had attempted to attack the Golden Temple in Amritsar — one of the holiest sites in Sikhism — during the recent tensions with the neighbouring country. New Delhi had accused Islamabad, without evidence, of orchestrating last month’s deadly attack in occupied Kashmir’s Pahalgam. Pakistan had strongly denied the allegations and called for a neutral probe. As the situation turned into a military confrontation between the nuclear powers, it took American intervention for both sides to agree to a ceasefire. A day earlier, the Indian army claimed that Pakistan had attempted to target the Golden Temple and the attacks were “successfully thwarted”, The Hindu reported. The management of the temple was allowed to deploy guns to “counter potential drone and missile threats from Pakistan”, a senior army official told ANI. He was quoted as saying, “Fortunately, we visualised what they [Pakistan] were capable of doing … They were more interes...

Pakistan has categorically denied Indian allegations that it attempted to target the Golden Temple in Amritsar through drone and missile attacks during the night of May 7-8.

Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has said that Pakistan and China are working together to promote regional peace and remain united in combating terrorism.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and China have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation in the health sector during a high-level meeting on the sidelines of the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is seeking loans totalling up to $350 million from commercial banks in the United Arab Emirates to meet its external financing needs. According to informed banking sources, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has been in discussions with these banks to revive their loan portfolio with Pakistan, and the finalisation of the loan is expected to occur very soon. In the first three quarters of the current fiscal year, the government received about $504m from foreign lenders (mostly UAE-based), showing a minor recovery from commercial banks that had stayed away from financing Pakistan last year. The government has budgeted $3.8bn in financing from foreign banks for the current fiscal year, but the actual realisation has been sluggish in the first nine months. The government had also targeted $1bn in international bonds for FY25. Another projection of $9bn inflows from bilateral partners — China and Saudi Arabia — was targeted for the current fiscal year. These projections include a $5bn time dep...

India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has said that the United States had no role in mediating the ceasefire between New Delhi and Islamabad, according to Indian media reports on Tuesday. Misri’s statement comes despite US President Donald Trump taking credit multiple times for his administration’s role in the truce, which Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also thanked him for. New Delhi had accused Islamabad, without evidence, of orchestrating last month’s deadly attack in occupied Kashmir’s Pahalgam. Pakistan had strongly denied the allegations and called for a neutral probe. As the situation turned into a military confrontation between the nuclear powers, it took American intervention for both sides to agree to a ceasefire. During a meeting yesterday of the parliamentary committee on external affairs, led by Congress lawmaker Shashi Tharoor, Misri claimed that the offer for a ceasefire came from Pakistan and that no other country was involved in the negotiations, Hindustan Times reported, citing a “senior law...

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan yesterday rubbished Indian propaganda that Shaheen missiles were used in the Operation Bunyanun Marsoos (BM).

WASHINGTON: Paki­stan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) opened high-level policy talks in Islamabad on Monday to discuss the upcoming federal budget for fiscal year 2025-26, officials said. The current round of discussions, which will continue till May 23, will help determine whether Pakistan’s proposed bud­get meets the fiscal and reform targets agreed with the IMF under the Exte­nded Fund Facility (EFF). An IMF delegation arrived earlier in Islamabad for the formal policy-level nego­t­­i­ations on budget final­isation, after last week technical discussions held via video link amid heig­htened tensions between India and Pakistan. The Islamabad talks focus on revenue targets, expenditure controls, and budgetary projections as Pakistan grapples with mounting fiscal and external financing pressures. An agreement between the IMF staff mission and the authorities on next year’s budgetary measures and macroeconomic framework would lead to the announcement of the federal budget on June 2. IMF staff have emp...

In a development to preserve cultural goods, French authorities have returned Balochistan’s smuggled archaeological artefacts to Pakistan after keeping them seized. The artefacts, which hold enormous historical significance, were detained by French Customs in recent years and transferred to the Embassy of Pakistan in Paris. In accordance with France’s obligations under the UNESCO Convention of […]