ISLAMABAD: Pakistani army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa said on Monday Pakistan looked forward to enhancing ties “based on common interests” with the European Union.
Bajwa was meeting Androulla Kaminara, ambassador of the European Union, who called on the chief of army staff (COAS) at the army headquarters, GHQ, in Rawalpindi.
“During the meeting matters of mutual interest, regional security situation including recent developments in Afghan Peace Process were discussed,” the Pakistan army said in a statement. “COAS said that Pakistan values its relations with EU and we earnestly look forward to enhance mutually beneficial multi-domain relations based on common interests.”
Kaminara “appreciated Pakistan’s sincere efforts for bringing peace and stability in the region, especially the Afghan Peace Process.”
The meeting comes just weeks after violent protests by a rightwing political party that demanded the government expel the French envoy before April 20 over the publication of blasphemous cartoons in France.
At the time, Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed the nation and said severing ties with France would hit Pakistani exports to the EU and fuel poverty, unemployment and inflation in the country.
“The biggest effect [of breaking ties with France] will be that after great difficulty our economy is rising, the large-scale industry is getting up after a long time, people are getting jobs, wealth is increasing in our country, our exports are rising and after a long time, our rupee is strengthening,” Khan said in a televised address to the nation, adding that breaking ties with France was tantamount to severing relations with the entire European Union.
“Half of our textile exports go to the EU and that will be stopped, resulting in unemployment, devaluation of the rupee, increase in inflation and poverty,” Khan said. “We will be at loss but this won’t make any difference to France.”
Pakistani army chief says looks forward to ‘enhance’ ties with European Union
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Pakistani army chief says looks forward to ‘enhance’ ties with European Union

- Bajwa was meeting EU ambassador to Pakistan Androulla Kaminara who called on him at the army headquarters in Rawalpindi
- Meeting comes weeks after violent protests by rightwing group calling on government to expel French envoy over publication of blasphemous cartoons
Pakistan’s Imran Khan orders party to stay silent on infighting, focus on protests

- Reports of rifts within Khan’s party grew after a senior leader spoke about lack of clarity over ongoing nationwide protest drive
- Khan orders party members to avoid sharing grievances publicly, says time for negotiations with government “has passed”
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday urged party members to put aside their grievances amid reports of rifts within the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and focus on the ongoing protest movement, reiterating that the time for negotiations with the government “has passed.”
Reports of a rift within the party began to emerge after Ali Amin Gandapur, a close Khan aide and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chief minister, announced on July 13 that a 90-day “do-or-die” protest drive against the government is underway. The protest call, however, appeared to contradict an earlier call for a nationwide protest posted on Khan’s official X account, set to culminate on August 5. The day marks the second anniversary of the former prime minister’s imprisonment on corruption charges.
Speculation of conflicts within the party further grew after senior PTI leader and Punjab Chief Organizer Aliya Hamza Malik publicly voiced concerns on X about a lack of clarity around the campaign. Malik questioned the origin of the 90-day plan and asked for details on the party’s strategy to secure Khan’s release.
According to a statement shared from his official X account, Khan told his family and lawyers at Adiala Jail where he is imprisoned, that he and others from the PTI are currently undergoing “some of the harshest imprisonments.”
“Therefore, I direct every member of the party to put aside all personal grievances,” the statement read. “Publicly airing internal matters or individual concerns before the media is entirely unacceptable.”
Khan instructed his party members, both juniors and seniors, to avoid sharing “internal differences” on social media, electronic media, print media or other platforms, urging them to “focus exclusively” on the protest movement.
“If any party official fails to participate in this movement, I will make the final decision about them myself, even from within jail,” he warned.
The cricketer-turned-politician directed the PTI leadership to decide about nominations for the party’s Senate tickets through “mutual consultation.”
Khan urged his party supporters to continue protesting against the government.
“The time for negotiations has passed,” the statement said. “What remains now is the time for the nation to rise in protest.”
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar last week dismissed the party’s protest call as a “political gimmick.”
“PTI has lost street power and its credibility, and is heading toward irrelevance,” the minister said.
Khan was ousted from the PM’s office in a no-confidence vote in April 2022 and jailed in August 2023. Since then, the PTI has repeatedly mobilized street protests, including a large march to Islamabad in November 2024, to demand his release and challenge the legitimacy of the February 2024 general election.
The government accuses the PTI of using the protests to incite instability and disrupt efforts at economic recovery.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari said earlier this week that peaceful protest was a democratic right of every individual. However, she accused the PTI of abusing that right in the past.
“PTI has a history of violence and anarchy,” she told reporters. “No political party is allowed to attack with weapons as Pakistan is our red line.”
Hundreds of PTI supporters were arrested after riots allegedly incited by the party against the military on May 9, 2023. The government also says four soldiers were killed in November protests last year. PTI denies the charges.
Pakistan to close national chain of subsidized retail stores amid privatization push

- Government pushes ahead with shut down of decades-old Utility Stores Corporation by end of July
- Voluntary Separation Scheme under discussion as committee reviews financial and legal implications
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will shut down the state-owned Utility Stores Corporation (USC) by July 31 as part of a broader government effort to restructure and privatize loss-making public sector entities, according to a statement from the finance ministry carried by state broadcaster Radio Pakistan on Wednesday.
The decision follows years of declining performance, mismanagement allegations, and heavy financial losses at the USC, a nationwide retail chain originally established in 1971 to provide essential commodities at subsidized prices to low-income households. The stores were once a key instrument in the government’s food security and price control policies but have faced mounting criticism over inefficiency, politicized staffing and weak oversight.
A high-level committee formed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to oversee the closure and privatization of the USC met on Wednesday in Islamabad, with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb chairing the session.
The committee is responsible for ensuring a transparent shutdown process, designing a fair Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) for USC employees and recommending a timeline for privatization or asset disposal.
“All operations of Utility Stores Corporation will be closed by 31st of this month in accordance with the government's directives,” the Radio Pakistan report said.
The committee “discussed at length the formulation of a fair and financially viable Voluntary Separation Scheme for the Utility Stores employees” and examined various aspects including its potential size, fiscal impact, and legal implications.
To support the analysis, a sub-committee led by the secretary of the Establishment Division has been formed and will submit recommendations on the structure and feasibility of the VSS by the end of the week.
The committee also advised that the government’s Privatization Commission be consulted on whether the USC's assets should be sold off or restructured for privatization.
The closure of the USC marks a significant step in Pakistan’s ongoing efforts to reduce the burden of state-owned enterprises on the national budget in line with reforms encouraged by the International Monetary Fund. Over the years, several audits and parliamentary reviews have pointed to chronic inefficiencies at the USC, including procurement irregularities and an inability to meet its mandate effectively in remote and underserved areas.
Pakistan military officer killed in clash with India-linked militants in Balochistan — army

- Army says three militants killed in intelligence-based operation in Awaran district
- Accuses India of sponsoring terrorism inside Pakistan, vows to continue operations
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani army officer was killed during a clash with militants in the southwestern province of Balochistan on Tuesday, the military said, saying the assailants were Indian proxies operating inside Pakistan.
The fighting took place in Awaran district during an intelligence-based operation targeting suspected members of “Fitna al Hindustan,” a term the Pakistani military uses for militants it says are backed by India. The region, part of Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province, has long experienced separatist and insurgent violence, and Islamabad has frequently alleged Indian involvement in destabilizing activities there, a charge New Delhi has repeatedly denied.
According to the Pakistani military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), troops engaged the suspected militants at their hideout and killed three.
“During the conduct of operation, own troops effectively engaged the terrorist location and resultantly, three Indian sponsored terrorists were sent to hell,” ISPR said in a statement.
The military said Major Syed Rabnawaz Tariq, 34, was killed in the firefight while leading the operation. He was a resident of Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
“Major Syed Rabnawaz Tariq … a brave officer who was leading his troops from the front, fought gallantly and paid the ultimate sacrifice,” the statement said.
A sanitization operation was underway following the clash to clear the area of any remaining militants, the military said, adding that such actions were part of Pakistan’s broader effort to eliminate what it described as “Indian Sponsored Terrorism” within its borders.
“The security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of Indian Sponsored Terrorism from the country, and such sacrifices of our brave men further strengthen our resolve,” the statement added.
The incident follows a series of recent accusations and military tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors, including most recently when they exchanged in a four-day long air war in May. They have in the past fought multiple wars and regularly trade blame over unrest in disputed Kashmir and border regions.
Three killed, 12 injured as gunmen target passenger bus in southwestern Pakistan

- Armed men shot indiscriminately at bus traveling from Karachi to Quetta at N-25 highway, say police
- Gunmen last week abducted, killed nine people after stopping two passenger buses in Balochistan
QUETTA: Three people were killed while 12 others were injured in Pakistan’s southwestern Kalat district on Wednesday, police and an official confirmed, after unidentified men opened fire on a passenger bus headed toward Quetta.
Kalat Station House Office (SHO) Habibullah Baloch said unidentified armed men shot indiscriminately at a passenger bus from Karachi headed toward Quetta on Wednesday. The attack took place near Nimragh Cross in Kalat district, located on the N-25 highway connecting Balochistan to the southern port city of Karachi.
“Three passengers, residents of Karachi, were killed in the attack and 12 others were wounded,” Baloch told Arab News, adding that the injured were shifted to the District Hospital Kalat for treatment.

The police official said the attackers did not stop the bus to check the National Identity Cards (NICs) of the passengers before firing at them, adding that the gunmen “sprayed” the vehicle with bullets.
He said dozens of passengers were traveling in the bus, adding that most of them were residents of Karachi.
Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind condemned the attack in a statement.
“The security forces have surrounded the area and a hunt for the attackers is underway,” Rind said.
The latest attack has taken place after gunmen abducted and killed nine people last week when they stopped two passenger buses on a highway in Balochistan’s Zhob and Loralai districts. Those buses were traveling from Quetta to the eastern Punjab province.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but most impoverished province, has been the site of a long-running insurgency that has intensified in recent months, with separatist militants attacking security forces, government officials and installations and people from other provinces, particularly Punjab, the country’s most populous and prosperous province and a major recruitment base for the military.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) is the strongest of a number of insurgent groups operating in the mineral-rich region bordering Afghanistan and Iran. The group accuses the central government of stealing their resources to fund development in Punjab and other parts of the country. The federal government denies the allegations and says it is working for the uplift of local communities in Balochistan, where China has been building a deep-sea port as part of its Belt and Road Initiative.
Pakistan accuses India of backing separatists in Balochistan as well as religiously motivated militant groups, like the Pakistani Taliban, in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. New Delhi denies the allegations.
Balochistan has seen a rise in militant attacks since last year. Last August, nearly two dozen passengers were killed after BLA militants forcibly removed them from Punjab-bound buses in a string of coordinated attacks in Balochistan. Another seven Punjabi commuters were offboarded from buses and killed in Balochistan’s Barkhan district in February this year.
In March, BLA separatists hijacked a train that carried hundreds of passengers near Balochistan’s Bolan Pass, which resulted in the deaths of 23 soldiers, three railway employees and five passengers. At least 33 insurgents were also killed.
Pakistan’s HUBCO seeks extension of $51 million guarantees to safeguard coal plants

- New transmission charges, which HUBCO says were not originally included, have pushed investors to seek extended guarantees
- Coal-fired power is crucial amid rising use of solar power, whose variability could potentially cause blackouts if mismanaged
KARACHI: Pakistan’s largest independent power producer Hub Power (HUBCO) said on Wednesday it was seeking an extension to $51 million in bank guarantees to protect its coal-fired power plants, a crucial source of stable power amid Pakistan’s rising use of solar.
The guarantees, previously short-term, would now stay in place until 2034 to cover future loan repayments and potential penalties, the company said in a notice to the country’s stock exchange.
New government-imposed transmission charges, which HUBCO is contesting and says were not included in its original contracts, have pushed investors to seek extended guarantees. The cost of borrowing to provide these guarantees would remain below the expected returns from the projects, it said.
“The extended guarantee will cover any fines or funding gaps that may arise,” HUBCO said in a notice to the country’s stock exchange, adding that the company has invested about $131 million in the projects so far.
The South Asian nation has faced chronic electricity shortages and challenges to grid stability because of rising solar power use, fuel import constraints due to a foreign exchange crisis and a debt-burdened electricity sector.
Stable coal-fired power supply is crucial amid rising use of solar power, whose variability could potentially cause blackouts if mismanaged.
HUBCO will hold an extraordinary general meeting in August to seek shareholder approval for the plan for its two 330 megawatt (MW) plants operating on locally mined coal “to ensure the plants’ continued operation,” it said.
The plants’ problems stem from broader challenges faced by Pakistan’s power sector. Pakistan last year authorized an early termination of a power supply deal running to March 2027 as a part of an IMF mandate to cut energy debt.