Several agreements expected to be signed as Pakistani PM in Belarus

Several agreements expected to be signed as Pakistani PM in Belarus
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is being received by Belarus Prime Minister Alexander Turchin (right) as he arrives at Minsk’s International Airport on April 10, 2025. (PID)
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Updated 11 April 2025
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Several agreements expected to be signed as Pakistani PM in Belarus

Several agreements expected to be signed as Pakistani PM in Belarus
  • Corresponding with Sharif’s arrival, second Pakistan-Belarus Business Forum was held on Thursday in Minsk
  • Volume of trade between Belarus and Pakistan ranges from $50 to 65 million annually, according to foreign office data 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is on an official visit to the Republic of Belarus today, Friday, with several agreements to strengthen cooperation expected to be signed, the foreign office said.

During his stay, Sharif will hold talks with President Aleksandr Lukashenko to review progress in areas of mutual interest. Over the past six months, a series of high-level bilateral engagements, including the 8th Session of the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in February 2025 and a subsequent visit by a high-powered mixed ministerial delegation to Belarus in April 2025, have laid the groundwork for Sharif’s visit. 
“The two sides are expected to sign several agreements to further strengthen cooperation,” the foreign office said in a weekly statement. “The Prime Minister’s visit underscores the strong and ongoing partnership between Pakistan and Belarus.”

Corresponding with Sharif’s arrival, the second Pakistan-Belarus Business Forum was held on Thursday in Minsk, marking a “significant step toward strengthening bilateral trade and economic cooperation between the two countries,” state-owned Pakistan Television reported. 

Senior government officials, business leaders and other key stakeholders from both nations attended. 

In recent years, the volume of trade between Belarus and Pakistan ranges between $50 to 65 million annually, according to foreign office data. 

“Our presence here is part of a journey that reflects the evolving and deepening partnership between our two countries,” Pakistani Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan said as he addressed the forum. 

He said the eighth session of the Pakistan-Belarus Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC), held earlier this year in Minsk, had opened “new avenues of cooperation” in sectors such as trade, agriculture, education, technology, and pharmaceuticals, emphasizing that both governments were committed to removing trade barriers and promoting involvement of the private sector.

Discussing potential trade opportunities, Khan identified key areas for joint ventures including textile machinery, agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, information technology, and e-commerce.

He also announced a recent cooperation agreement between the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) and the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BelCCI), describing it as an active platform for trade promotion and partnership development.

Khan invited Belarusian investors to explore opportunities in Pakistan’s Special Economic Zones, saying they offered attractive incentives and access to markets of over three billion people. He also noted the recent reduction in Pakistan’s energy tariffs as an additional facilitative measure for investment.

“Today’s forum is not just a ceremonial gathering but a practical advancement. We are witnessing the signing of a cooperation agreement between TDAP and BelCCI that will provide an institutional foundation. This includes participation in trade exhibitions, B2B events, exchange of market intelligence, and facilitation of sector-specific delegations,” Chief Executive of the Trade Development Authority, Faiz Ahmed, said in his address at the business forum. 

“This formal collaboration will ensure that the momentum created today translates into tangible outcomes in the coming months.”


Pakistan inaugurates national intelligence, threat assessment center amid India tensions

Pakistan inaugurates national intelligence, threat assessment center amid India tensions
Updated 23 sec ago
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Pakistan inaugurates national intelligence, threat assessment center amid India tensions

Pakistan inaugurates national intelligence, threat assessment center amid India tensions
  • Pakistan has already been battling twin insurgencies and ties between Islamabad and New Delhi have recently plummeted to new lows over an attack in Kashmir
  • The new platform will coordinate Pakistan’s counterterrorism strategy by leveraging the “full spectrum” of institutional capabilities, PM Sharif office says

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday inaugurated the National Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Center (NIFTAC) Headquarters, Sharif’s office said, amid heightened tensions with India.
Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors have plummeted after India accused Pakistan of backing an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam that killed 26 tourists on April 22. Islamabad has rejected the charge and both countries have since exchanged gunfire in Kashmir, taken diplomatic measures against each other, expelled citizens and ordered the border shut.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to pursue the attackers “to the ends of the earth” and there have been fears that India may carry out limited airstrikes or special forces raids near the border with Pakistan. The Pakistan military has conducted two missile tests since the standoff, with Islamabad saying it had “credible intelligence” that India was planning to attack Pakistan.
NIFTAC integrates over 50 federal and provincial departments and agencies into a unified intelligence and threat management architecture supported by a centralized national database. At the sub-national level, it is linked to six provincial intelligence and threat assessment hubs, including those in Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, to ensure seamless coordination between the federation and provinces.
“This integrated framework is designed to harmonize intelligence gathering, analysis, and operational responses across multiple domains,” Sharif’s office said. “By leveraging the full spectrum of institutional capabilities, NIFTAC will enhance national preparedness, optimize resource utilization, and enable a coherent and timely counterterrorism response.”
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militancy in its northwest by religiously motivated militant groups like the Pakistani Taliban. The South Asian country has also been faced with a decades-long insurgency by Baloch separatists in its southwest, which has intensified in recent months.
On Tuesday, seven Pakistani army soldiers were killed when their vehicle was targeted by an improvised explosive device in the southwestern Balochistan province, Pakistan’s military said in a statement.
Sharif was accompanied by federal ministers and services chiefs at Tuesday’s inauguration of the NIFTAC headquarters, which will coordinate Pakistan’s national counterterrorism strategy. He commended all stakeholders involved in operationalizing this vital capability and described NIFTAC as a quintessential national platform for collaborative threat assessment and response.
“Dismantling the nexus between terrorism, illicit networks, and external sponsorship requires robust and efficient institutional mechanisms,” Sharif was quoted as saying by his office.
“[NIFTAC] will play a pivotal role in uprooting terrorism and its support structures from the country.”


Bears dominate Pakistan stocks as risk-averse investors wary of India standoff fallout

Bears dominate Pakistan stocks as risk-averse investors wary of India standoff fallout
Updated 38 min 16 sec ago
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Bears dominate Pakistan stocks as risk-averse investors wary of India standoff fallout

Bears dominate Pakistan stocks as risk-averse investors wary of India standoff fallout
  • Benchmark index surged to intraday high of 990 point but later succumbed to selling pressure, hitting an intraday low of 683 points
  • Moody’s on Monday warned that India-Pakistan standoff could set back Islamabad’s economic reforms as world powers called for calm

KARACHI: Pakistan’s stocks lost more than 500 points on Tuesday after early morning gains as risk-averse investors remained wary of the country’s ongoing tensions with nuclear-armed neighbor India, analysts said. 

The benchmark KSE-100 Index rose as much as one percent or 900 points after trading kicked off at the bourse in the morning, following a surprise move by the central bank on Monday to slash the key policy rate by 100 basis points 11 percent to spur growth amid challenges posed by US trade tariffs and geopolitical tensions with archrival India.

However, as the day progressed, profit-taking emerged across key sectors, gradually eroding the morning gains. The index ultimately succumbed to selling pressure, hitting an intraday low of 683 points and closing the session at 113,568 level, down by 533 points or 0.47 percent.

“Index remained bullish in intraday trade following the State Bank of Pakistan’s 100 basis points policy rate cut [on Monday],” Najeeb Ahmed Khan Warsi, head of international trading at Foundation Securities Ltd., told Arab News in Karachi, adding that the rate cut had lifted investor sentiment and triggered buying across key sectors such as oil, cement, and energy. 

Market participants were optimistic about lower financing costs and improved earnings potential under a more accommodative monetary policy stance, Warsi added.

At 11 percent, the interest rate is at its lowest since December 2021, creating further room for the economy to expand amid easing inflation.

Shankar Talreja, director of research at brokerage firm Topline Securities Ltd., said the market was positive in the morning primarily on the back of reports that banks would release payments to settle energy sector debt, also called circular debt.

Energy scrips like Pakistan State Oil, Oil & Gas Development Company Ltd. and Pakistan Petroleum Ltd. rallied more than two percent in daily trade “on the hope of payment disbursement from the banking sector to settle the Rs1.2 trillion circular debt,” said Muhammad Rizwan, director brokerage at Chase Securities Pakistan, in a note to clients.

Talreja said there was a solid ground for the central bank to cut borrowing costs. 

“However, the market was uncertain earlier on the timings just due to geopolitical tensions,” he said in a text message to Arab News.

But Tuesday’s early morning rally proved short-lived as investors started selling their shareholdings to book profits, dragging the benchmark index 0.5 percent to close at 113,568 points.

Cement stocks bore the brunt of profit-taking and dropped as much as three percent.

“Indo-Pak issues (are) clouding the gains actually,” Talreja said. 

“Despite an unexpected cut in the monetary policy statement, investors preferred to book gains in PSX as border tensions are still at a high level,” said Rizwan of Chase Securities.

Warsi said profit-taking, regional uncertainty with India and caution ahead of the new federal budget for FY26 were weighing on investor sentiment despite a supportive monetary stance.

Pakistan is expected to announce its budget for 2025-26 next month. 

On Monday, Moody’s said the standoff with India could hurt Pakistan’s $350 billion economy, which is on a path to recovery after securing a $7 billion bailout program from the International Monetary Fund last year and staving off a default threat.

“Sustained escalation in tensions with India would likely weigh on Pakistan’s growth and hamper the government’s ongoing fiscal consolidation, setting back Pakistan’s progress in achieving macroeconomic stability,” Moody’s said.

“A persistent increase in tensions could also impair Pakistan’s access to external financing and pressure its foreign-exchange reserves,” it added.

The report comes two days after Reuters reported that India has asked the IMF to review its loans to Pakistan.

India’s economy is not expected to see major disruptions since it has “minimal economic relations” with Pakistan — although higher defense spending could weigh on New Delhi’s fiscal strength and slow fiscal consolidation, Moody’s added.

Pakistan on Tuesday also accused India of altering the flow of the Chenab River, one of three rivers placed under Pakistan’s control according to the now suspended Indus Waters Treaty of 1960. 

The stoppage of water is likely to negatively impact Pakistan’s agriculture, which contributes more than 20 percent to gross domestic product.


Pakistan, Saudi Arabia agree to deepen anti-narcotics cooperation amid growing drug seizures

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia agree to deepen anti-narcotics cooperation amid growing drug seizures
Updated 49 min 46 sec ago
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Pakistan, Saudi Arabia agree to deepen anti-narcotics cooperation amid growing drug seizures

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia agree to deepen anti-narcotics cooperation amid growing drug seizures
  • Pakistan’s state minister for interior meets Saudi director general of narcotics control in the federal capital
  • He says Pakistan has a ‘zero-tolerance policy’ on narcotics while calling drug trafficking an international issue

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia agreed to increase bilateral cooperation on anti-narcotics efforts, according to an official statement on Tuesday, as Islamabad described the drug trade as a global problem requiring collaboration among friendly nations.
The issue came up for discussion during a meeting in Islamabad between Pakistan’s Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry and Saudi Arabia’s Director General of Narcotics Control, Major General Mohammed bin Saeed Al-Qarni, who was accompanied by a high-level delegation.
Pakistan has faced a significantly intense drug problem, with Chaudhry saying the government seized narcotics worth $21 billion last year.
“Pakistan has a zero-tolerance policy on narcotics,” the interior ministry statement quoted him as saying during the meeting. “Drug trafficking is an international issue, and only through mutual cooperation between friendly countries can this menace be effectively addressed.”
The meeting was also attended by Saudi envoy to Pakistan Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki and senior Saudi military and narcotics officials.
The Pakistani minister pointed out that over 40 percent of the world’s drug production originates from neighboring Afghanistan.
He also praised his country’s Anti-Narcotics Force for effectively dealing with the challenge despite its limited resources.
Chaudhry linked recent crackdowns on undocumented migrants to broader concerns about drug trafficking and militancy.
Major General Al-Qarni described the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan as exemplary and called for joint work to address the “scourge” of narcotics, according to the statement.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Chaudhry presented honorary shields to the Saudi delegation and conveyed his best wishes.


Pakistan envoy stresses continued engagement with Afghanistan to secure border with India

Pakistan envoy stresses continued engagement with Afghanistan to secure border with India
Updated 06 May 2025
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Pakistan envoy stresses continued engagement with Afghanistan to secure border with India

Pakistan envoy stresses continued engagement with Afghanistan to secure border with India
  • Pakistan has been battling twin insurgencies in its western regions that border Afghanistan, while Islamabad’s tensions with Indian have also flared up recently
  • Analysts’ term simultaneous pressure on both eastern and western borders a ‘serious challenge’ for Pakistan, warning it could dilute Islamabad’s focus on militancy

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s special representative to Afghanistan, Ambassador Muhammad Sadiq, said on Tuesday it was important for Islamabad to continue engagement with Afghanistan to better manage the country’s western border with India, amid friction between the neighbors over a surge in militancy in Pakistan.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militant violence since the Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), called off their months-long ceasefire with the government in late 2022. Islamabad has frequently accused that militant groups use Afghan soil to launch cross-border attacks in Pakistan, an allegation the Afghan Taliban deny, maintaining there are no militant groups operating in their territory.
Late last month, Pakistan’s army said it had killed over 70 militants who were attempting to cross into Pakistan from Afghanistan. The development came amid Pakistan’s tensions with another neighbor to the east, India, following an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 tourists on April 22. Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tatar has said that New Delhi blamed the attack on Islamabad to divert Pakistan’s security focus from its western border.
“The important thing [for Pakistan] to do, particularly with Afghanistan, is to continuously remain engaged with them, to act when it’s required and act in a required way,” Sadiq said, addressing a regional conference in Islamabad on ‘Pathways to Peace and Prosperity in Turbulent Times.’
“The sooner we act on something, the sooner we engage with Afghanistan and the government and people of Afghanistan, the sooner we will get results and whenever we delay, we actually get into trouble, more and more trouble.”
Pakistan’s focus should be prevention of smuggling and promotion of trade with Afghanistan, according to the envoy. The “one-document regime” should regulate travel between the two countries and not “hinder people-to-people contact.”
“Anybody who’s going to Afghanistan or coming from Afghanistan should take a passport and get a visa, so that we can have a proper record of entry and exits,” he added.
Pakistan implemented the one-document regime with Afghanistan on January 1, 2023, which requires Afghan nationals to present a valid passport and visa for entry into Pakistan, ending the previous practice of cross-border movement showing local identity documents. The regime aims to regulate travel, enhance border security, and maintain a proper record of entry and exit.
Speaking at the event, Faisal Karim Kundi, governor of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province that borders Afghanistan, said Islamabad seeks peace not for political gains, but to unlock the true potential of the region.
“Pakistan always believes in dialogues, but dialogues are not our weakness as we are ready for any adventure from India,” he said, adding that Pakistan’s defense was in “safe hands” which was portrayed in the past as well.
Defense analysts and security expert term simultaneous pressure on both eastern and western borders a “serious strategic challenge” for Pakistan, warning it could dilute the country’s focus in its fight against militancy.
Besides a surge in militancy in the northwest, Pakistan is also facing an intensifying separatist insurgency in the southwestern Balochistan province, where separatist militants have mounted their attacks on security forces, police and foreign nationals in recent months.
Dr. Qamar Cheema, a defense analyst, said if India engaged Pakistan through “kinetic means,” it could undermine Pakistan’s ability to effectively combat militancy.
“Any direct attack on Pakistan at the eastern border will definitely challenge [Pakistan’s] capabilities because it will stretch the armed forces,” he told Arab News on the sidelines of the conference.
Muhammad Ali, a security expert, agreed with Cheema.
“It seems that India seeks to divert Pakistan’s attention, resources and force posture to provide relief to TTP and BLA (Baloch Liberation Army) in KP and Balochistan,” he said, adding that Islamabad was “well aware of the challenges” in simultaneously facing rising militancy and an escalation on the Pakistan-India border.
Cheema said Pakistan did not want to be stretched further, which was why it was telling the international community that the transnational militant threat was more important.
“I think this is where the West needs to jump in so that Pakistan’s efforts against the war against terrorism and militant organizations do not get compromised,” he added.


Seven soldiers killed as separatists attack security vehicle in southwest Pakistan

Seven soldiers killed as separatists attack security vehicle in southwest Pakistan
Updated 06 May 2025
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Seven soldiers killed as separatists attack security vehicle in southwest Pakistan

Seven soldiers killed as separatists attack security vehicle in southwest Pakistan
  • Pakistan army says IED attack launched in Kachhi District by BLA separatist group, accuses it of being an Indian “proxy”
  • BLA carried out train hijacking in March in which 23 soldiers, three railway employees, five passengers were killed

KARACHI: The Pakistan army said on Tuesday seven soldiers were killed after militants attacked a security vehicle in the southwestern Balochistan province, where the military is fighting an intensifying separatist insurgency. 

The army said the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) has targeted the vehicle with an improvised explosive device in Mach in Kachhi District.

“Resultantly, seven brave sons of soil embraced shahadat [martyrdom],” a statement from the army said.

The military accused the BLA, the strongest of a number of insurgent groups long operating in Balochistan, of being a proxy of India. 

“Nefarious designs of India and its proxies operating on Pakistani soil will be defeated by the valiant security forces, law enforcement agencies and the brave nation of Pakistan,” the military statement said. 

The latest attack is the worst since March when the BLA carried out a train hijacking that resulted in the deaths of 23 soldiers, three railway employees and five passengers. At least 33 insurgents were also killed.

In what was previously a low-level insurgency, the militants have in recent months stepped up their activities using new tactics to inflict high death and injury tolls and target Pakistan’s military. It has also targeted Chinese interests.

The BLA seeks independence for Balochistan, a province located in Pakistan’s southwest and bordering Afghanistan to the north and Iran to the west.

It is the biggest of several ethnic insurgent groups that have battled the federal government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Balochistan’s rich gas and mineral resources. Balochistan’s mountainous border region serves as a safe haven and training ground for the Baloch and other insurgents.

The BLA often targets infrastructure and security forces in Balochistan, but has also truck in other areas — most notably the southern port city of Karachi. 

The insurgents target Pakistan’s army and Chinese interests, in particular the strategic port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea, accusing Beijing of helping Islamabad to exploit the province.

Militants have killed Chinese citizens working in the region and attacked Beijing’s consulate in Karachi.

Balochistan is an important part of China’s $65 billion investment in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, a wing of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative. It is home to key mining projects, including Reko Diq, run by mining giant Barrick Gold (ABX.TO), and believed to be one of the world’s largest gold and copper mines. China also operates a gold and copper mine in the province.

The decades-old insurgency has continued to keep the province of some 15 million people unstable and created security concerns around Pakistan’s plans to access untapped resources.

It is Pakistan’s largest province by area, but smallest by population. Balochistan also has a long Arabian Sea coastline, not far from the Gulf’s Strait of Hormuz oil shipping lane.

Islamabad accuses India and Afghanistan of backing the militants to damage Pakistan’s relations with China, a charge both countries deny.
With inputs from Reuters