Pakistan | Pakistan

Pakistan on Friday strongly condemned India’s unilateral and illegal suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), calling on the international community to prevent the “weaponisation” of shared natural resources.

The Foreign Office has confirmed that Pakistan is engaged in ongoing negotiations with the Afghan Taliban in Istanbul, advising the public and media to disregard unverified claims circulating on social media.

Pakistan has denounced India’s unilateral suspension of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), saying that such acts set a precedent for “resource-based coercion”. Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s permanent representative, made the remarks while addressing the UN Security Council (UNSC). According to a press release issued by the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations (UN), the envoy sounded alarm over the “deliberate weaponisation of shared natural resources”, citing the suspension of the IWT as an example. In his remarks, he warned that the move “should be of grave concern for every member of this council and for the international community as a whole”. “For more than six decades, this treaty has stood as a model of cooperation, ensuring equitable and predictable sharing of the Indus basin’s waters between Pakistan and India even in times of war,” he said. “India’s unlawful unilateral decision to suspend this framework undermines the letter and spirit of this treaty, threatens ecosystems, disr...

Pakistan and the United Kingdom have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening economic cooperation under the recently established Pak–UK Trade Dialogue Mechanism, aimed at expanding bilateral trade and investment.

ISLAMABAD - President Asif Ali Zardari Thursday left for Pakistan after his visit to Doha, Qatar.

Quinton de Kock’s masterful unbeaten 123 powered South Africa to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over Pakistan in the second One-day International at Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on Thursday, levelling the three-match series 1-1 with a chase completed in just 40.1 overs. Chasing 270, South Africa openers Lhuan-dre Pretorius and de Kock made a confident start, adding 81 in 11.5 overs. Pretorius, dropped by Mohammad Nawaz at deep square, raced to 46 off 40 balls with seven fours and a six before edging Mohammad Wasim to Rizwan. De Kock reached his fifty off 55 balls and accelerated seamlessly. De Kock anchored with poise and power for his 22nd ODI century, and Tony de Zorzi, whose aggressive 76 off 63 balls formed a match-winning 153-run partnership for the second wicket with the former after Pretorius had set the tone with 46. De Zorzi shifted gears immediately upon arrival, smashing two sixes off Nawaz in the 23rd over. He fell in the 35th over after hitting nine fours and three sixes — chipping a leading...

Pakistan on Thursday “strongly rejected” claims made by Afghanistan that Islamabad instigated a border clash in the Chaman area, stating that firing started from the Afghan side and that the situation is under control. This development comes as Islamabad and Kabul are having talks in Istanbul to expand a ceasefire called after five days of border clashes last month. In a post on X, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting strongly rejected the allegations coming from Kabul. “Firing was initiated from the Afghan side, to which our security forces responded immediately in a measured and responsible manner,” the ministry wrote. It added that the situation was brought under control thanks to the “responsible action by Pakistani forces” and emphasised that the ceasefire remains intact. “Pakistan remains committed to ongoing dialogue and expects reciprocity from Afghan authorities,” the post concluded. Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid levelled allegations that Pakistani forces opened fire in the S...

President Asif Ali Zardari Thursday left for Pakistan after his visit to Doha, Qatar.

Pakistan has categorically rejected the unfounded and misleading allegations that members of the Hindu community were denied entry into its territory.

Türkiye’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya met with Pakistan’s Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Islamabad to discuss enhanced collaboration in counterterrorism, anti-narcotics operations, human trafficking prevention, border management, cybercrime, coast guard coordination, and police training.

Pakistan resumed talks with Afghan Taliban representatives in Istanbul today in a third round of engagement aimed at ending cross-border terrorism and consolidating a fragile ceasefire that was initially agreed upon after border clashes last month. Since the skirmishes between October 11 and 15, Pakistan and Afghan Taliban representatives have held two rounds of talks — first in Doha and then in Istanbul — but a final agreement has not yet been achieved. For the third round, under the joint mediation of Turkiye and Qatar, delegations from both sides arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday. The talks are expected to continue for two days. In this round, Pakistan’s delegation is being led by Lt Gen Asim Malik, director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence, and includes senior officials from the military, intelligence agencies, and the Foreign Office. The Afghan Taliban’s delegation, meanwhile, includes General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) chief Abdul Haq Waseq, Deputy Interior Minister Rehmatullah Najib, Ta...

ISLAMABAD - Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has said that Pakistan and Iran share a relationship rooted in common faith, culture, and history.

As the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) opens for business at COP30 later this month with money grossly insufficient to address damage caused by climate change, Pakistan is expected to submit proposals to the tune of $10-20 million to the FRLD board despite reservations. Three years after its operationalisation at COP27 in Egypt, the fund has about $300 million in total and pledges of $700m by the Global North countries. Intended as a rapid response fund, the fund, with its interim secretariat based in the World Bank, has failed to disburse even a single penny to the affected countries, said civil society leaders spearheading the ‘Fill the Fund’ campaign. Climate minister Musadik Malik also confirmed that Pakistan did not receive a single dollar from the loss and damage fund despite the catastrophic losses it has faced due to global warming. Speaking to Dawn, Malik said the fund decided to operationalise $250m for its call for proposals at COP30 in Belem and 50 per cent of this amount was exclusi...

The second round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban is set to take place in Istanbul on Thursday as scheduled, with Pakistan expected to reiterate its demand for an end to terrorism originating from Afghan soil.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday termed population and climate change as “existential issues” that Pakistan must address to realise its potential. Pakistan is home to a vast population of over 251 million, according to the World Bank. The Bank states the annual population growth rate for 2024 at 1.5 per cent, with the government’s 2023 census showing that the population grew by 2.55pc from 207.7m in 2017 to 241.5m in 2023. “I am very clear: we cannot realise the potential of this country unless we address two existential issues — population and climate change,” Aurangzeb said while addressing a gathering of the business community in Karachi. “Only saying that we do not make emissions but have to adapt, so demonstrate it,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s oft-repeated argument that the country contributes less than 1pc to global carbon emissions but faces catastrophic climate change-induced events. “We have funding. First utilise the funding we have,” the finance minister stressed as he respond...

A fresh spell of snowfall and rain has gripped the northern regions of Pakistan, deepening the cold and disrupting travel across parts of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

BERLIN: Berlin is offering cash to Afghan refugees in Pakistan if they agree to give up their places on a programme for resettlement in Germany, activists said on Tuesday. The Afghans were accepted under a refugee scheme set up by the previous German government but around 2,000 have been stuck in Pakistan since conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office in May and froze the programme. According to the initiative Airbridge Kabul, refugees have been sent a letter offering them money and other support in return for exiting the resettlement programme. In the case of a single woman, the payments would be an initial 1,500 euros (about $1,700) in Pakistan and a further 5,000 euro payment if she travels to Afghanistan or a third country. A spokeswoman for the interior ministry said that “there are offers within the framework of a voluntary return programme to Afghanistan or departure to another third country”. Single woman may get 1,500 euros in Pakistan and a further 5,000 euros if she travels to Afghanistan...

Pakistan seeks Qatar LNG deal review

ISLAMABAD - Acting President Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, while addressing the inaugural ceremony of MG’s flagship dealership in Pakistan, said that today marks a new era for the rapidly growing automotive industry of the country.

After the bowlers had done their job, the batters came good for Pakistan — albeit an all too familiar late collapse — at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on Tuesday. In the first international match at the venue in 17 years, Pakistan marked the start of Shaheen Shah Afridi’s era as One-day International captain with a two-wicket victory over South Africa to strike the opening blow in the three-match series. Shaheen had won the toss and elected to field with his side riding on inspired spells of bowling by pacer Naseem Shah and spinners Saim Ayub and Abrar Ahmed to bowl South Africa out for 263. South Africa had got off to the ideal start with half-centuries for debutant Lhuan-dre Pretorius (57) and the returning Quinton de Kock (63) — the duo sharing a 98-run opening stand. But with the exception of skipper Matthew Breetzke (42) and Corbin Bosch (41) in the end, none of their batters could get going as Naseem (3-40), Saim (2-39) and Abrar (3-53) scythed through their line-up. Half-centuries by Salman Ali Agha ...