PESHAWAR: Following a statement by the Afghan interim government’s spokesman that his country wanted improved relations with Pakistan, analysts urged Islamabad on Wednesday to constructively engage the administration in Kabul since the issues facing the two estranged neighbors were complex and required negotiations.
Last week, Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Afghan administration, said his country was looking for good neighborly relations all countries, including Pakistan.
Responding to the development, Defense Analyst Brig. (r) Said Nazir said the main source of contention between the two countries was the presence of the outlawed Tehreek-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Afghan soil, creating a trust deficit between both sides.
He noted that Pakistan was forced to close its border with Afghanistan and suspend bilateral trade several times in the past to put pressure on Afghan authorities who did not address the TTP issue, leading to major militant attacks in Pakistan.
He maintained time was ripe for the new Pakistani government to reach out to the Afghan authorities to resume talks and settle disputes without further delay to improve the bilateral trade situation and benefit ordinary people.
“Both Kabul and Islamabad should now bury the hatchet and move forward,” Nazir said. “Once Afghanistan reins in the TTP, I believe the rest of the issues will be settled automatically. Tackling the TTP problem is an issue of national security for Islamabad and Kabul should ponder over this.”
Former ambassador Ayaz Wazir told Arab News Pakistan and Afghanistan should take suitable measures to restore bilateral trust and strengthen their businesses and economies.
Wazir noted said that countries, such as India and China, had border issues, but they did not allow these disputes to affect their normal working relationship and bilateral trade.
“Unfortunately, most of the time a minor issue flares up into a serious dispute between Kabul and Islamabad, suspending businesses and passengers’ movement between the two countries,” he added.
Political analyst Aamer Raza said the vicious cycle of violence unleashed by militants posed serious security threats to Pakistan, saying that Islamabad should engage the Afghan Taliban to help mitigate the scale of that looming threat.
“There are a number of challenges when it comes to TTP’s relationship with the Afghan Taliban,” he noted. “There are ideological similarities and past partnership. Any cooperation between the two will continue to pose a challenge.”
“The new government in Pakistan can certainly repair ties with Afghanistan,” he continued. “The PML-N is traditionally known as a party that puts economics before politics when it comes to foreign relations. The same approach might help repair some of the damage to Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan.”
Last year, Pakistan launched a deportation drive against illegal foreign immigrants, mostly Afghan nationals, after a surge in militant attacks, including deadly suicide bombings, which claimed hundreds of lives.
Pakistan’s newly appointed information minister, Attaullah Tarar, did not respond to requests for comment on how his government wanted to deal with the country’s bilateral relations with Afghanistan.
Analysts seek constructive engagement between Pakistan, Afghanistan to resolve bilateral challenges
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Analysts seek constructive engagement between Pakistan, Afghanistan to resolve bilateral challenges
- Last week, an Afghan government spokesperson said his country was hoping for good relations with Pakistan
- Pakistani analysts recognize security challenges emanating from Afghanistan but seek continued business and trade
Pakistani firm partners with UAE’s NymCard to promote fintech innovation in MENAP
- Dellsons Associates is a Pakistani consultancy firm while Nymcard is a UAE-based financial services provider
- Dellsons to act as a partner agent and refer new business opportunities to Nymcard, says press release
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani financial consultancy firm Dellsons Associates has partnered with NymCard, a leading financial services provider in the UAE, to promote innovation in the fintech landscape and empower businesses in Pakistan and the Middle East, Nymcard said on Wednesday.
NymCard is a leading provider of end-to-end embedded finance solutions, simplifying payments with its modern platform since 2018. It empowers businesses of all sizes to launch new payment products quickly, including prepaid cards, multi-currency offerings and credit cards.
Dellsons Associates is a leading provider of strategic banking consultancy, training, conferences, event management, IT services, and more, its website says.
The partnership between the two entities was signed at the Dubai Fintech Summit, a press statement from NymCard said, adding that the strategic alliance would synergize NymCard’s cutting-edge technology with Dellsons’ regional expertise and industry connections in the financial and banking sectors.
“We are excited to partner with Dellsons Associates, believing the synergies from this collaboration would catalyze cross-regional expansion for both institutions,” Shiraz Ali, the chief business officer at NymCard, was quoted as saying in the press release.
The press release said Dellsons would act as a partner agent and refer new business opportunities to NymCard, focusing on the fintech and banking sectors in the UAE and Pakistan. It said the partnership would create a powerful alliance to “revolutionize the financial services landscape.”
Dellsons Associates Chairman Ibrahim Amin said his firm was working in Pakistan and the Middle East to promote fintech innovation, financial inclusion, and digitization of cross-border channels of remittances to facilitate different states.
“Our key objective is to bring social and economic development through technological solutions, collaborations with emerging players, and networking with communities in Pakistan, the UAE, and different countries of the Middle East and South Asia,” Amin was quoted as saying by the press release.
Pakistani court grants bail to ex-PM Khan in graft case, says party
- Ex-PM Khan, wife were charged with receiving land worth millions of dollars as bribe from real estate tycoon
- Khan’s party says “fake” cases were designed to damage his and wife’s reputation, keep him away from polls
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani high court on Wednesday granted bail to former prime minister Imran Khan in a land corruption case, his party confirmed in a statement, rejecting the “fabricated and politically motivated” cases against the cricketer-turned-politician.
Government officials allege Khan, 71, and his wife received land worth millions of dollars as a bribe from a real estate tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain through the Al-Qadir Trust, a non-governmental welfare organization set up by Bushra Watto, Khan’s third wife, and Khan in 2018 when he was still in office.
The trust runs a university outside Islamabad devoted to spirituality and Islamic teachings, a project inspired by the former first lady, who is also commonly known as Bushra Bibi and has a reputation as a spiritual healer.
Khan was briefly arrested on May 9 in connection with the case, with riots breaking out throughout the country that saw military and government installations attacked. Khan was released shortly but was arrested in August in a separate case related to the sale of state gifts illegally.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Pakistan’s corruption watchdog, filed a reference against Khan in December 2023 saying he and his wife committed the offense in the land corruption case. In February this year, the former prime minister and his wife were indicted by an accountability court.
Khan, who denied the charges, appealed against the indictment at the Islamabad High Court. A two-member bench of the IHC comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri had reserved the verdict on Tuesday after both sides concluded their arguments.
“Islamabad High Court has accepted bail petition from the Former Prime Minister Imran Khan & has ordered his release,” Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said in a statement.
The PTI said it had contended that the land of the trust was not for personal gain. It said the former prime minister had established a religious and scientific educational institution with the intention of providing quality education to people regardless of caste, creed, race, religion, or financial status.
It said that since the trust deed mentioned Khan and his wife could not derive any benefit from it, the “false, fabricated and politically motivated cases were filed against them only to damage their reputation.”
“And to keep him in prison, impeding his participation in general elections,” it added.
Despite the order, Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023, will not be immediately released as he is serving sentences in two other cases, one in which he and his wife are charged with violating the country’s marriage law when they wed in 2018 and in another where he is accused of leaking state secrets for political gain.
Pakistan conducts successful training launch of rocket system capable of engaging ‘deep targets’
- Fatah II Guided Rocket System can defeat any missile defense system, says army’s media wing
- Pakistan sees its missile development as deterrent against nuclear-armed neighbor and rival India
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army on Wednesday successfully conducted the training launch of the Fatah-II Guided Rocket System capable of engaging “deep targets” with high precision, a statement from the army’s media wing said, adding it can defeat any defense system.
Pakistan sees its missile development as a deterrent against nuclear-armed neighbor India, with which it has fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947. Both nations have been developing missiles of varying ranges since they conducted nuclear tests in May 1998. In December 2023, Pakistan Army successfully conducted the flight test of the Fatah-II missile, which has a range of 400 kilometers.
“Equipped with state-of-the-art navigation system, unique trajectory and maneuverable features, Fatah-II is capable of engaging targets with high precision and defeating any missile defense system,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the army’s media wing, said.
“Fatah -II is being inducted in Pakistan’s Artillery Divisions for stand-off, precision engagement of deep targets.”
The army said the rocket system would “significantly upgrade” the reach and lethality of Pakistan Army’s conventional arsenal.
The flight test was witnessed by Pakistan Army’s chief of general staff and senior officers of the country’s air force, army and navy forces, apart from scientists and engineers.
President Asif Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Shamshad Mirza and Army Chief General Syed Asim Munir congratulated the participating troops and scientists over the achievement.
As Pakistan and India continue to test missiles and build their weapons armor, analysts warn Asia may be sliding into an accelerating arms race.
Ancient spring festival kicks off in Pakistan’s Chitral, drawing crowds with traditional music and dance
- Chilam Joshi festival is celebrated by the Kalash people, often described as pagan due to their religious practices
- The annual event is integral to the identity of the Kalash community and the continuity of its ancient traditions
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Tourism Authority on Tuesday announced the beginning of a popular cultural festival in Pakistan’s northwestern Chitral region, saying the event had attracted large numbers of foreign and local tourists like in the past.
The Chilam Joshi festival is celebrated by the Kalash people, who are often described as pagan due to their religious beliefs and practices involving the worship of multiple gods and spirits, to mark the arrival of spring and celebrate the bounty of nature.
Known for music, dance, and colorful clothes, the festival is also associated with the preparation for new crops, symbolizing hope and prosperity for the community.
“The ancient Kalash festival ‘Chilam Joshi’ has kicked off in full swing,” the KP tourism authority said in a statement. “Young women of Kalash danced to the beat of drums while wearing intricately embroidered garments, enhancing the colors of the festival.”
The statement added that district administration officials, members of the Kalash Development Authority and a large number of domestic and foreign tourists were also attending the festivity.
“The district administration has arranged foolproof security for the festival,” it added. “Tourism police are also providing services for the guidance of tourists.”
Chilam Joshi is said to be the oldest festival of the Kalash tribe. It involves various rituals, the most well-known being the one where people dance with walnut branches in hand.
The festival will last for three days in the area known for its rugged terrain and scenic beauty. The annual event is considered integral to the identity of the indigenous Kalash community and the continuity of its ancient traditions.
Pakistan shares hit fresh record on rate cut hopes, IMF talks
- Pakistan last month completed a short-term, $3 billion IMF program, seeking fresh, longer-term bailout
- IMF mission is in Pakistan to discuss financial year 2025 budget, policies, reforms under potential new program
Pakistan’s benchmark share index touched a lifetime high on Wednesday, breaching the key level of 75,000, on hopes that easing inflation could pave the way for interest rate cuts as early as June.
Still attractive stock valuations, expectations of more foreign inflows, and the start of talks with the IMF on a new loan program added to the bullish sentiment.
The index was trading at 75,013 points at 0531 GMT, up 0.7 percent, after hitting an intraday high of 75,115. It has surged 80 percent over the past year, and it is up 16.1 percent year-to-date after an IMF rescue last summer helped the government avert a debt default.
On Monday, the index closed at a record of 73,822, up 1 percent.
Mohammed Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, said Wednesday’s gains were fueled by foreign fund buying.
On Tuesday, the MSCI index added a Pakistani bank, National Bank of Pakistan, to the MSCI frontier market index. Its shares rose 1.6 percent on Wednesday, outperforming the benchmark index.
“We estimate Pakistan’s weight will also increase, thereby having the potential to attract more passive foreign funds,” said Sohail.
The market is picking up steam due to an anticipated decline in inflation to 13.5 percent for May and expectations of a monetary easing cycle starting in June, said Shahid Habib, CEO of Arif Habib Limited.
Investors were also optimism about discussions on a new International Monetary Fund financing program and the economic roadmap ahead, Habib said.
Pakistan last month completed a short-term, $3 billion IMF program, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has stressed the need for a fresh, longer-term program.
An IMF mission is in Pakistan to discuss the financial year 2025 budget, policies, and reforms under a potential new program.
Wall Street bank Citi expects Pakistan to reach a four-year agreement with the IMF worth up to $8 billion by end-July, and recommends going long on the country’s 2027 international bond.
