Tag: FM

  • Pakistan asks Afghanistan to take strict action against those responsible for Chaman attack

    Pakistan asks Afghanistan to take strict action against those responsible for Chaman attack

    Pakistan has condemned the unprovoked and indiscriminate firing on civilian population by Afghan border forces in Chaman, in which six Pakistani nationals were killed and seventeen others wounded.

    In a press release, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that such unfortunate incidents are not in keeping with the brotherly ties between the two countries.

    She said that the Afghan authorities have been informed that recurrence of such incidents must be avoided and strictest possible action must be taken against those responsible.

    The spokesperson stated that both sides are accountable for safeguarding residents at the borders.

    She noted that in order to prevent a further escalation of the situation and a repetition of similar situations, the relevant authorities from both nations continue to be in communication.

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has also condemned the attack.

    “Unprovoked shelling & fire by Afghan Border Forces at Chaman resulting in martyrdom of several Pakistani citizens & injuring more than a dozen is unfortunate & deserves the strongest condemnation. The Afghan Interim government should ensure that such incidents are not repeated,” wrote the PM in a tweet.

  • Federal Minister Hina Rabbani likely to attend FIFA World Cup

    Federal Minister Hina Rabbani likely to attend FIFA World Cup

    Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Hina Rabbani Khar, is expected to attend the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup in Qatar in the first week of December.

    According to The News, the dates for her trip are still being finalised. Earlier this week, Ambassador of Qatar in Islamabad Saoud Abdulrahman Al-Thani called on Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to extend an invitation from his Qatari counterpart to watch the World Cup.

    Pakistan’s Foreign Office had received the invitations before the World Cup started with the inauguration being attended by world leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

    According to the newspaper, it is important for Pakistan to show solidarity with a fellow Muslim state which was the first to hold the World Cup and which is being attacked by the West over alleged human rights records.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif showed solidarity with Qatar in the face of western media onslaught, tweeting, “Unfortunate that Qatar is being subjected to a barrage of propaganda as host of FIFA World Cup. It should be rather commended for wonderful arrangements for the mega event and being a promoter of global peace and development. Pakistan stands in solidarity with HH Emir and the people of Qatar.”

  • Zardari wishes to ‘see Bilawal as prime minister’

    Zardari wishes to ‘see Bilawal as prime minister’

    Former President and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has expressed his wish to see his son Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari as prime minister of Pakistan in his lifetime.

    Zardari said that when his son became foreign minister, his old friends told him that Bilawal would brighten the country’s name.

    “Islamabad says you have weakened us but I say I have strengthened the provinces,” added Zardari. He said that when he was the president, he transferred power to the prime minister and the provinces through constitutional amendments. He said that the PPP had always raised its voice against political and social injustices and it would continue to fight against poverty and ignorance.

    “We are fighting for a society where every citizen has economic and social justice and the state is a paradise for them.”

  • Bilawal going to meet Nawaz to make Zardari president: report

    Pakistan People’s Pakistan (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is expected to meet Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif in London, reports Geo News.

    As per the news outlet’s sources, Bilawal will discuss the inclusion of Balochistan National Party (BNP) and Moshin Dawar in the federal cabinet with Nawaz Sharif during his visit to the UK. PPP Secretary-General Farhatullah Babar told The News, “The main purpose of meeting Nawaz Sharif is to congratulate him on the coalition government and discuss the current political situation.”

    However, according to Journalist Saleem Safi, “Bilawal is giving a false impression that he is going to London for the sake of allies. He is going to beg for the governorship of Punjab, more ministries and to make Zardari President.”

    As per the media outlet’s sources, there is no deadlock between PPP and PML-N on the issue of the Foreign Ministry. There is an understanding between the PPP and the PML-N that Bilawal would take over as the Foreign Minister (FM). There are speculations that there are some issues in the coalition government that’s why Bilawal did not take oath as FM despite attending the cabinet oath-taking ceremony on Tuesday.

    Earlier, it was reported that Asif Ali Zardari and other PPP leaders are not in favour of Bilawal joining the cabinet.

    Recently, PPP Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar has excused from taking oath as minister of state for personal reasons and said he wants to focus on the upcoming general elections.

  • Chinese Foreign Minister pays unannounced visit to Kabul

    Chinese Foreign Minister pays unannounced visit to Kabul

    Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister (FM) Wang Yi arrived in Kabul on Thursday after attending the three-day Organisation on of Islamic Conference (OIC) in Islamabad, which ended on Wednesday. His visit was not announced earlier.

    Yi is the first senior Chinese leader to visit Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover in August. He was received by Afghanistan’s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

    The two sides will hold talks on important issues, focusing on China’s role in stability and development, reports Afghan state-run Bakhtar News Agency.

    On March 30-31 Beijing is set to host a two-day conference to discuss the Afghan situation. It is pertinent to mention that the Taliban government is yet to be recognised by any country.

    Foreign Minister Yi last visited Kabul in 2017 after a huge bombing incident after which he tried to ease tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

    China has been involved in the Afghan peace process since the US started its withdrawal of troops in 2014. Moreover, in the past few years, Taliban political representatives have paid several visits to China.

  • ‘PPP is no more a party of Benazir Bhutto’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    ‘PPP is no more a party of Benazir Bhutto’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in an address to media persons and supporters of the party’s ‘Huqooq-i-Sindh March’, said that the Zardari group had ruined Sindh in its 15-year-rule and it is time to get rid of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government from the province, reports Dawn.

    The minister said that [former Prime Minister] Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was a man of character and his daughter [former PM] Benazir Bhutto was a fine lady, but now Zardari had firmed up his grip on their party.

    “PPP is no more a party of Benazir Bhutto, it has turned into a party of Zardari,” he remarked.

    Qureshi urged people to vote for PTI in the next general elections and claimed that their party successfully ran governments in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Punjab, Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).

    “We have come to your doorstep with a message from Imran Khan to support PTI in Sindh to bring about real change and brighten the destiny of the province,” he added.

    Qureshi said, “It is pathetic that a sensible minister of Sindh has used uncivilised language against Imran Khan who is a decent person.” He further said that how could a man like Khan be a fraud or corrupt who had developed a charity hospital [Shaukat Khanum] for people.

    Federal Minister Maritime Affairs Syed Ali Haider Zaidi also addressed a large number of marchers at different places along the route. He said, “Sindh government had ruined farmers and growers by creating an artificial crisis of urea in the province.”

    Zaidi, taking a jibe at Zardari, said that he had made record corruption and even the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) admitted that they had recovered Rs10 billion and still Rs19bn was to be recovered.

  • Kashmir crisis not Muslim Ummah’s issue, UAE had told Pakistan; claims Hamid Mir

    Kashmir crisis not Muslim Ummah’s issue, UAE had told Pakistan; claims Hamid Mir

    United Arab Emirates (UAE) had said that Pakistan and India should not make the Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK) crisis an issue of the Muslim Ummah as it was a dispute between two neighbouring countries, The News International reported Thursday.

    According to reports, senior journalist Hamid Mir on Wednesday quoted federal government officials as saying that UAE Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan is visiting Pakistan apparently to express solidarity with Pakistan on the IoK issue.

    However, the foreign minister, in his earlier interaction with Pakistani authorities, conveyed that Kashmir issue should not be made an issue of the Muslim Ummah as, according to him, it is a bilateral issue and should be resolved through talks between Pakistan and India.

    The report quoted Mir as saying that Pakistani leadership must convey to the world in general and the Muslim countries in particular that Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s atrocities were not limited to the troubled valley, rather he wanted to unleash a reign of terror across India to forcibly convert Muslims.

    In this context, he added, the Kashmir issue was not a dispute only between Pakistan and India.