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SCO summit: Indian journalists hail Jaishankar’s Pakistan visit as ‘positive’ for bilateral ties

Media workers walk past screens airing the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Islamabad, Pakistan, on October 16, 2024. (AN photo)
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Updated 17 October 2024
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SCO summit: Indian journalists hail Jaishankar’s Pakistan visit as ‘positive’ for bilateral ties

  • Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s visit to Pakistan this week marked first by top Indian diplomat in nearly 10 years
  • Indian journalists say longstanding issues between both nations hinder any major breakthrough in strained ties
Updated 17 October 2024
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: Indian journalists accompanying External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to Pakistan this week described his visit to Pakistan as a “positive” sign for bilateral ties between the two states, but expressed little hope the move would trigger a major thaw in strained relations between them. 

Around a dozen Indian journalists accompanied Jaishankar to Islamabad when he arrived in the capital on Tuesday to attend the two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) Council of Heads of Government summit. This marked the first visit by a top Indian diplomat to Pakistan in nearly 10 years. 

Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan are bitter adversaries with longstanding political tensions, having fought several wars and numerous skirmishes since the partition of British India in 1947. Cross-border militancy and territorial dispute over the Himalayan Kashmir region ruled in parts by both countries have fueled their conflicts over the years. 

Jaishankar shook hands with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during the visit, exchanged greetings and sat with Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar during a luncheon for SCO delegates. Hours after the two-day regional gathering concluded, Jaishankar thanked the Pakistani leaders and government for their “hospitality and courtesies.”

“The fact that he [Jaishankar] did choose to come, that the prime minister [Narendra Modi] did ask the foreign minister to attend this summit meeting, that is a positive signal and a construct,” Smita Sharma, an Indian freelance journalist, told Arab News on Wednesday. 

She noted that the SCO Charter does not permit member states to highlight bilateral issues, describing it as a “blessing in disguise.” 

“This adds to the pressure on both New Delhi and Islamabad to not really bring their differences to the table and derail this platform as well,” Sharma noted. “But whether they utilize this opportunity to pave the way for a larger bilateral construct, I have very little hopes of it.”

Sharma blamed India and Pakistan’s “inflexible issues” and difficult, principled positions on “terrorism” and the Kashmir disputed for longstanding tensions.

“I do not see a peace dividend or a peace appetite at the moment as far as the political leaderships are concerned,” she said.

Ashish Kumar Singh, the national bureau head at ABP News in New Delhi, called for greater access between the two countries. This he said could be achieved by easing visa restrictions to enhance people-to-people exchanges and journalists.

“As far as people-to-people exchanges are concerned, before 2014 there were more exchanges between India and Pakistan,” Singh pointed out. “But then the relationship was made hostage primarily due to India’s concerns on terrorism.”

During his address at the summit, Jaishankar spoke of three major issues facing the region, “terrorism, separatism and extremism.” He said the multi-nation platform sought greater regional cooperation but also noted that lack of good neighborliness and trust was impeding cooperation within the SCO. 

’POSITIVE’ BODY LANGUAGE 

Singh said he observed that the body language of both Pakistani leaders and Jaishankar at the summit was “positive.”

“The kind of body language that I have just noted, and in diplomacy, body language matters,” Singh said. “When an external official is there, to see him for two consecutive days sharing good smiles with the prime minister of Pakistan is positive,” he said.

Pakistan’s current premier Sharif is the younger brother of former three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who during his previous tenure in office tried to improve Pakistan’s relations with India. Nawaz Sharif faced criticism from his political opponents for warming up to Pakistan’s traditional rival.

Singh noted that whenever the Sharif family comes into power in Pakistan, both countries take steps in a positive direction for India-Pakistan relations.

“The kind of body language we are seeing here during the SCO summit, it gives a way of hope and maybe in days to come, both sides may sit and find some way of increasing the people-to-people contact,” he said. 

Talking to the media, Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar described Jaishankar’s visit as an “ice breaker.” He said that by hosting the SCO summit, Pakistan had enhanced its capacity at the regional level.

“We have chaired this session of the SCO summit and for regional connectivity, for climate change, for counterterrorism, we can play our role and the world accepts that we have a key role to play as a major player,” Tarar told Arab News. 

Topics: SCO summit 2024 Pakistan India Ties

Pakistan condemns US veto of Gaza ceasefire bid, condemns storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque

Updated 7 sec ago
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Pakistan condemns US veto of Gaza ceasefire bid, condemns storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque

  • It criticizes UN inaction over ‘one of the most grave and sustained humanitarian catastrophes of our time’
  • The foreign office also condemns Al-Aqsa storming as assault on the sanctity of a revered Muslim holy site
Updated 7 sec ago
UROOSA JADOON

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday condemned Washington’s decision to veto a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, describing it as tacit approval for the “continued annihilation” of Palestinians, while also denouncing the storming of Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli settlers this week.

The US blocked a draft resolution tabled by the 10 elected members of the Security Council, which called for an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” between Israeli forces and Hamas, along with unhindered humanitarian access across the war-battered enclave.

The United States said it would not support any measure that did not include provisions for Hamas to disarm and withdraw from Gaza.

Reacting to the US decision, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, regretted the council’s failure to adopt the resolution tabled by its ten elected members “to address one of the most grave and sustained humanitarian catastrophes of our time.”

“Let us be clear: this failure will not go down in records as a mere procedural footnote,” he told the council. “It will be remembered as complicity, a green light for continued annihilation, a moment where the entire world was expecting action, but yet again, this Council was blocked and prevented by one member from carrying out its responsibility.”

Calling the humanitarian situation in Gaza a collapse of both international law and moral responsibility, Ahmad cited figures of over 54,000 civilian deaths, including 28,000 women and girls and 18,000 children, with nearly 100 Palestinians reported killed in the last 24 hours alone.

He said the enclave had been “decimated,” with famine, disease and displacement spreading faster than aid could arrive.
The ambassador rejected arguments that called for delaying action to allow negotiations to proceed, questioning how much more “space filled with rubble, graves and the anguished cries of children” would be needed before meaningful intervention took place.

He reiterated Pakistan’s support for a ceasefire, unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza and a negotiated two-state solution based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital of a sovereign Palestinian state.

Ahmed said the international community had spoken clearly through the General Assembly and the International Court of Justice, while the Security Council remained “muzzled.”

AL-AQSA MOSQUE STORMING

In a separate statement issued in Islamabad, Pakistan’s foreign ministry condemned the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem by Israeli settlers this week, calling it a “direct assault” on the sanctity and legal status of one of Islam’s holiest sites.

According to media reports, dozens of Israeli settlers entered the mosque compound and performed Talmudic rituals, prompting condemnation from several Muslim-majority countries.

“These reprehensible acts, including violations at multiple entrances of the Mosque, are a direct assault on the sanctity, historical character, and legal status of the revered Muslim holy site,” the foreign ministry said, warning that such actions could ignite further unrest in an already volatile region.

The ministry also expressed concern over the continued targeting of civilians in Gaza, saying that nearly 100 Palestinians had been killed in the span of a single day, including people waiting at food distribution points.

It noted that Israeli forces were operating with impunity and called for their international accountability.

Reaffirming Pakistan’s position on the conflict, the ministry called for immediate steps to halt the violence, ensure access to humanitarian assistance and revive efforts toward a political resolution to the conflict.
 

Topics: Pakistan in United Nations Asim Iftikhar Ahmad In Solidarity With Palestine

Pakistan seeks IMF nod to sell surplus power to industry, agricultural sector

Updated 45 min 32 sec ago
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Pakistan seeks IMF nod to sell surplus power to industry, agricultural sector

  • Power minister says talks with IMF on 7.5 cent per unit tariff have been underway for the last six months
  • He says 7,000 megawatts of surplus electricity will be supplied to industries and farms without subsidy
Updated 45 min 32 sec ago
Ismail Dilawar

KARACHI: Pakistan is seeking the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) approval to supply surplus power to the industrial and agriculture sectors at an unsubsidized tariff of seven to 7.5 cents per unit, the country’s power minister, Awais Leghari, said, according to an official statement on Wednesday.

The once energy-deficient South Asian nation now boasts 7,000 megawatts of surplus electricity that it began generating with Beijing’s help under the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.

“We have been consulting with the IMF for the past six months to approve the scheme,” Leghari told a consultative meeting held in the federal capital Islamabad regarding Pakistan’s transition from solar net metering to a net billing system.

The government plans to generate as much as 60 percent of its power from renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydropower and nuclear energy over the next five years to cut the cash-strapped country’s oil import bill.

“There is no direct financial pressure on us [from the IMF],” the minister said, adding the move would balance the nation’s supply and demand of electricity, strengthen the power system and benefit consumers.

The Washington-based lender approved a $7 billion loan for Pakistan last year to help support export-led growth and is reviewing the government’s budgetary plans for FY26, starting in July.

According to the National Accounts Committee, Pakistan’s economy is expected to expand by 2.7 percent during the outgoing FY25 due to lackluster agricultural and industrial performance.

The power minister said the government, since June, has provided cross-subsidies of Rs 174 billion ($617 million) to industries, a measure that brought down industrial tariffs by 31 percent and significantly increased consumption.

Under its ongoing energy reforms, the minister said, the government is considering various proposals, including changing the current solar net metering system into a more effective, transparent and sustainable model.

“The government is not abolishing net metering,” he continued, adding that its scope had expanded so significantly that it was now seriously impacting the national grid, thus requiring timely intervention.

In the fast-solarizing Pakistan, net metering allows consumers to utilize the electricity generated by their in-house solar systems and send the surplus to the national grid at an agreed rate.

Topics: IMF Surplus electricity Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif

Beauty at a price: Rajanpuri Nukra goats steal the show at Islamabad’s Eid cattle market

Updated 05 June 2025
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Beauty at a price: Rajanpuri Nukra goats steal the show at Islamabad’s Eid cattle market

  • Native to southern Punjab, this prized breed attracts customers with large size, muscular build, striking white coats
  • Breed highly prized for meat production, popular choice for Eid Al-Adha sacrifices, with some selling for over $7,000
Updated 05 June 2025
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: With their snow-white coats, drooping pink ears and regal built, Rajanpuri Nukra goats are turning heads and emptying wallets at Islamabad’s bustling Eid Al-Adha cattle market this year.

A strain of the Beetal goat native to the Rajanpur region of Pakistan’s Punjab province, these goats are known for their large size, muscular build and striking white coat. They are highly prized for meat production and are a popular choice for Eid Al-Adha sacrifices, with some selling for as much as Rs2 million ($7,140) this season.

At Islamabad’s cattle market on Bhatta Chowk earlier this week, many people gathered around the goats to admire their appearance and snap pictures, while others negotiated deals. 

“We have come here from Rajanpur as people in Islamabad and Rawalpindi prefer Rajanpuri goats over other breeds due to their white and pink coloration and impressive height,” said merchant Hamza Ali, adding that he had brought 20 of the prized animals to the market and sold most of them within four days.

“We’re getting good prices for them here. Of the 20 goats we brought, one sold for Rs2 million last night.”

On an average, traders at the market have been selling the Rajanpuri goats for anywhere between Rs200,000 and Rs2 million ($715 to $7,140), a number of merchants said. 

Highlighting the care involved, Muhammad Umair, a cattle trader, said the goats were nurtured from birth, referring to them as a “purebred line.”

“We divide them into two groups. Those with good height and large size receive a special diet that includes wanda, choker, desi ghee and other nutritious ingredients,” he told Arab News as he petted one of his animals. 

Goats similar in size to regular breeds were available at lower prices but still higher than other strains. 

“It has large pink ears, white eyes, and a pink nose, along with a pure white coat, which makes it highly attractive to buyers,” Umair added.

Muhammad Bilal, a 23-year-old student from Islamabad, said he wanted to buy a Rajanpuri goat because of its white coat and long ears.

“Although the price is a bit higher, we will still buy it because we really like it,” he told Arab News.

Another customer Ilyas Khan, 40, expressed frustration over the high prices of the breed, saying they were unaffordable for most visitors at the market.

“My children took pictures with them,” Khan, a businessman, said, “but these are out of our reach as even the smallest ones are starting at Rs150,000 ($535), which is too much.”

Topics: Rajanpuri Goats Eid Al Adha 2025 Hajj 2025

Islamabad says Iranian authorities confirm killing of two Pakistanis in Sistan-Baluchistan

Updated 04 June 2025
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Islamabad says Iranian authorities confirm killing of two Pakistanis in Sistan-Baluchistan

  • Pakistan says efforts underway to repatriate bodies of its nationals, Mujahid and Mohammed Faheem, from Iran
  • Pakistan and Iran are often at odds over instability on their shared, porous border plagued by militant attacks
Updated 04 June 2025
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson on Wednesday confirmed the killing of two Pakistanis in Iran’s volatile Sistan-Baluchistan province, saying that efforts were underway to repatriate the bodies.

In a brief statement, the foreign office spokesperson said Iranian authorities have confirmed the killing of Pakistani nationals named Mujahid and Mohammed Faheem in Sistan-Baluchistan. However, the statement did not mention how the two were killed.

The spokesperson said Pakistan’s embassy in Tehran is in “active communication” with Iranian authorities, who were extending the necessary support and assistance.

“Efforts are being made to repatriate the dead bodies as soon as necessary administrative and legal requirements are fulfilled,” he said.

Thousands of Pakistanis, mostly from economically disadvantaged areas, frequently cross into Iran to take up informal work in sectors such as vehicle repair, construction and agriculture.

One of Iran’s poorest regions, Sistan-Baluchistan on the border with Pakistan has long been plagued by unrest involving drug-smuggling gangs, rebels from the Baloch minority and religiously motivated militants.

Eight Pakistanis were killed in its Mehrestan County in April. The attack was claimed by the Balochistan National Army (BNA), one of several separatist outfits operating in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province.

Pakistan and Iran have had a history of rocky relations despite a number of commercial pacts, with Islamabad being historically closer to Saudi Arabia and the United States.

Both countries are often at odds over instability on their shared porous border, routinely trading blame for not rooting out militancy.

Pakistan energy minister says net metering to be reformed, not scrapped

Updated 04 June 2025
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Pakistan energy minister says net metering to be reformed, not scrapped

  • Net metering allows consumers to generate electricity through solar panels and sell excess power back to the national grid
  • Minister says expansion of net metering now impacting national grid, reforms needed to address this in a “timely manner”
Updated 04 June 2025
Ismail Dilawar

KARACHI: Pakistan will not abolish its solar net metering policy but is working to reform the mechanism to make it more “transparent and sustainable,” Energy Minister Sardar Awais Leghari said on Wednesday.

Net metering allows consumers to generate electricity through solar panels and sell excess power back to the national grid, receiving credits or monetary compensation in return. The policy was introduced in 2017 to promote renewable energy and ease pressure on the national grid.

“The government is not abolishing net metering but is considering changing its current mechanism to a more effective, transparent and sustainable model,” the Ministry of Energy’s Power Division said in a statement.

The minister said the expansion of net metering was now impacting the national grid and reforms were needed to address this in a “timely manner.”

Pakistan’s current policy pays Rs21 per unit of solar electricity, resulting in a government subsidy of Rs1.90 per unit, according to the energy ministry. Officials say the cost is ultimately borne by domestic and industrial consumers, effectively subsidizing wealthier users who can afford to install solar panels.

Leghari said the government may align the solar purchase rate with overall energy procurement prices, allowing it to adjust with market fluctuations. However, he stressed that the aim was not to eliminate incentives.

“We are not saying that net metering consumers should provide us with electricity at the rates of the cheapest sources of electricity,” Leghari said. “These reforms are not a deterrent, but a step toward a better, balanced and sustainable system.”

He said the typical payback period for solar investments in Pakistan was around three years, provided that consumers use 40 percent of the electricity they generate.

Leghari also said the government was in discussions with the International Monetary Fund about the scheme but stressed “there is no direct financial pressure on us.”

In a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Leghari said the government was reviewing all stakeholder proposals and would not take steps that harmed businesses.

“We strongly hope that any changes in these regulations will be in the best interest of all stakeholders, the national grid and the electricity consumers of Pakistan,” he said.

In January, Leghari called for a review of the net metering policy, saying it was becoming financially unsustainable. A government report from last year said the existing net metering framework had shifted a burden of Rs103 billion ($366 million) onto other electricity consumers in 2024.

Pakistan has set a goal of generating 60 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and cutting projected carbon emissions by 50 percent. But the country remains far behind on those targets, despite growing solar adoption and abundant sunlight across most regions.

Topics: Pakistan energy

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