Switzerland | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said US-Iran talks in Switzerland have entered a second phase focused on nuclear issues, sanctions, and Lebanon, but could have been “derailed” by Israeli attacks on Lebanon.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said that Sunday’s US-Iran talks in Switzerland were nearly “derailed” due to Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon, it emerged on Tuesday. In an exclusive interview with Al Arabiya, which was recorded before the talks began, DPM Dar said, “The parlays starting in Switzerland could have started a few days earlier, but Israel’s attacks on Lebanon derailed and stopped everything.” At the outset of the interview, DPM Dar recalled Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts since the start of the conflict on February 28, recalling the Pakistan-mediated ceasefire followed by the talks in Islamabad in April. “Those parlays were the first time direct talks between the US and Iran after 47 years, and Pakistan was asked to be the witness,” DPM Dar said. He said that Pakistan’s continued efforts after the Islamabad talks culminated in the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 18. “You see, during this period, Pakistan has been … very active. Not on...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressed Pakistan’s continued commitment to play an “honest and sinere” role in advancing dialogue in what were his first remarks after the conclusion of a high-level meeting between the United States and Iran under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding aimed at ending the Middle East conflict. In a post on X, PM Shehbaz expressed satisfaction at the “successful conclusion” of the meeting held in Switzerland’s Burgenstock. The premier stated that the discussions were held in a “positive and constructive atmosphere and yielded encouraging progress,” which included a roadmap towards the final deal within 60 days, the establishment of a high-level committee for political oversight and the commencement of further technical talks. PM Shehbaz commended the leadership of both the US and Iran for “continued commitment to constructive engagement”. He also expressed thanks for “all brotherly and friendly countries for their valuable support in advancing this historic process...

Oil prices declined on Monday after US-Iran talks concluded in Switzerland with Tehran saying it had secured waivers for oil and petrochemical exports, easing worries about a supply shortage in global markets. Brent crude fell $1.68, or 2.09 per cent, to $78.89 a barrel by 0633 GMT (11:33am PKT). Prices had climbed to $82.30 at the start of trading, fuelled by a bumpy start to the talks with threats from US President Donald Trump to restart the war on Iran and Tehran’s announcement it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $76 a barrel, down 60 cents, ahead of the contract’s expiry later on Monday. The more active August contract fell 69 cents to $75.16 a barrel. There was no settlement in the US market on Friday due to a holiday. “The decline has been driven primarily by improving prospects for a diplomatic breakthrough between the United States and Iran … reviving hopes that sanctions on Iran could eventually be eased,” said Sugandha Sachdeva, founder of SS W...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir departed early on Sunday morning for Switzerland to attend technical-level talks between Iran and the United States in Burgenstock on June 21. The development comes after the long-awaited peace deal was signed on Thursday, heralding an end to months of bitter animosity that had gripped the Middle East and plunged the world into an economic crisis. Under the agreement, the US and Iran have agreed on a framework to end the war, lift the US blockade of Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. “Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and COAS & CDF Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir will participate in these talks,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a post on X, adding that the two are accompanied by a “high-level delegation”. FO announces talks in Switzerland Earlier on Saturday, the Foreign Office (FO) announced that technical-level talks will be held in Buergenstock, Switzerland, on Sunday. “Representatives of the United States and Ira...

As a follow-up to the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, technical-level talks between the United States and Iran will be held in Bürgenstock, Switzerland, on Sunday.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s planned visit to Switzerland has been postponed following recent developments related to the reported understanding between Iran and the United States, in which Pakistan has been described as playing a facilitating diplomatic role.

Pak team in Switzerland for peace deal signing

Switzerland voted on Sunday on whether to back a proposal to cap the country’s population in a ​referendum likened to Britain’s Brexit vote, which could have far-reaching consequences for the economy and Bern’s relations with the European Union. Driven by concern about ‌immigration, pressure on public services and housing, the constitutional change pitched by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party, or SVP, would mandate that the population must not exceed 10 million by 2050. Official projections put it on track to do so by the early 2040s. The unprecedented scheme to dictate population levels by law sits alongside burgeoning efforts by the political right in Europe to set ​tougher curbs on immigration, fed by discontent about the cost of living, weak economic growth and crime. “If it goes above 10m, it will ​become tight, and immigration should be restricted,” said Helen Gulea, a 58-year-old seamstress and part-time kiosk worker in Zurich, originally ⁠from Kenya, who voted by post for the cap. Signs stand in fro...

Switzerland ready to offer good offices to ease US-Iran dialogue between the two nations, spokesman says

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Sheh­baz Sharif has arrived in Switzerland to attend the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed deep sorrow over the tragic fire incident at a ski resort in Switzerland on New Year night.

Ukraine and the US will soon meet in Switzerland to discuss Washington’s plan for ending the war with Russia, Kyiv said Saturday, as it seeks to fix the draft that heeds to some of Moscow’s hardline demands. US President Donald Trump gave Ukraine less than a week to approve the 28-point plan to end the nearly four-year conflict, which would see the invaded country ceding territory, cutting its army, and pledging to never join NATO. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s European allies, who were not included in drafting the agreement, said the plan requires “additional work” as they scrambled at the G20 summit in South Africa to come up with a counter-offer to Trump’s plan to beef up Kyiv’s positions. “In the coming days, consultations will take place with partners regarding the steps needed to end the war,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said, after he issued a decree stating Ukraine’s team for the talks, which will be led by his top aide, Andriy Yermak. “Our representatives know how to defend Ukraine’s national interests and w...

Swiss authorities on Thursday were monitoring for possible flood risk in a southern valley, following a massive glacier collapse that created a huge pile of debris after destroying a small village. On Wednesday, the Birch glacier in Switzerland’s southern Valais (Wallis) region collapsed, sending tons of rock, ice and scree hurtling down the mountain slope and into the valley below. The barrage largely destroyed the hamlet of Blatten, which had been home to 300 people and was evacuated last week due to the impending danger. One person, a man aged 64, believed to be in the affected zone at the time, remained missing. A police spokesman said the difficult conditions had forced the search for him to be called off on Thursday afternoon. Authorities declared a local state of emergency on Thursday as they monitor the situation after the huge pile of glacier debris, stretching some two kilometres, blocked the river Lonza. “There is a serious risk of an ice jam that could flood the valley below,” Antoine Jacquod, a m...

Peshawar - Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Faisal Karim Kundi, on Sunday declared the southern districts of the province more beautiful than Switzerland and Europe, emphasizing that peace is essential to unlocking their true potential.