WEATHER ISLAMABAD Sunny
ISLAMABAD ISSUE: 41 VOL: 1
33°C 92°F
Precipitation: 0% Humidity: 64% Wind: 23 km/h Thursday– June 22, 2017
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Ramadan 26 1468 AH.
Pakistan, Iran to sign free trade pact: Dastgir
Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan has said Pakistan and Iran will soon sign the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) as the two countries have reached consensus in this regard. In an interview, he said, “Under the first major step towards FTA, central banks of Iran and Pakistan signed an agreement few months ago and all the required notifications have been done.” He said, “The negotiations are underway to immediately open letters of credit at Pakistani banks for trade with Iran.” Khurram Dastgir said, “Our bilateral trade has exceeded one billion dollars and this will grow even further in future.”
CPEC to give new dimension to
regional, global scenario: President
Kushner in Jerusalem to restar t Israel i Palestinian peace talks
The US chief Middle East adviser, Jared Kushner, has arrived in Jerusalem for a daylong visit aimed at restarting long-dor mant IsraeliPalest i n ia n peace t al k s. During his visit, he will have meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the issue.
ISLAMABAD—President
Romanian PM ousted Mamnoon Hussain has after no-confidence expressed the confidence vote in parliament that operations Zarb-e-Azb Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu has been forced from power by his own party, in a no-confidence vote in parliament. He has been accused for failing to carry out necessary economic reforms in the country. Grindeanu lost the censure motion by 241 votes to 10.
SC not usi ng any account, page on social networking websites
The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday clarified that it is not using any account or page on the social networking websites. According to a statement issued by SC, a fake facebook page carrying name of Supreme Court of Pakistan is being run on social media. “It is, therefore, clarified that Supreme Court of Pakistan is neither using any facebook account or page nor any other ID on any other social networking websites,” the SC said. “Moreover, concerned quarters i.e. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and Pakistan Telecommunications (PTA) have also been asked to block such IDs, pages and take legal action against the delinquents in accordance with law.
Australia to resume airstrikes against IS in Syria
Australia says it will resume soon air strikes against Islamic State targets in Syria which were suspended following U.S. fighter jet shot down a Syrian warplane this week. Australian Defense Force Chief Mark Binskin told media in Canberra that their warplanes suspended operations in Syria just after shot down of Syrian warplane but it has been decided to restart the operation. He said that Australian warplanes had also been supporting Iraqi security forces in retaking the city of Mosul.
Govt decides to streaml i ne v isa issuance process to Chinese nationals
The government has decided to streamline and regulate the entire process of visa issuance to Chinese nationals to ensure their maximum security in Pakistan.
and Radd-ul-Fasaad would yield positive results soon to make Pakistan a citadel of peace. He was addressing 17th Convocation of National Security and War Course at the National Defence University in Islamabad on Wednesday morning. The President said challenges facing the country multiplied mainly because of extremism and terrorism but Pakistani nation and state institutions emerged victorious in fighting the war of survival. He said the Government and state institutions are courageously implementing the National Action Plan and have taught a bitter lesson
to the enemy. Mamnoon Hussain said Pakistan came into being to play a positive and constructive role for regional and global peace and stability. He said internally the objective for creation of the state was to portray to the world a model of welfare state where citizens could live with dignity and honour. He said there have been impediments in realization of these cherished objectives but the country has moved forward. The President referred to China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and said this, together with One Belt, One Road project, would give a new strategic dimension to the regional and global scenario. He said a new Strategic Doctrine would emerge and hoped that institutions like
National Defence University would be taking stock of the emerging changes. The President said the participation of friendly countries in the War and Security Course will help further promote Pakistan’s relations with them. Recognizing the role being played by the National Defense University as a think tank , Mamnoon Hussain expressed the confidence that the institution will further improve its perfor mance in the days to come. Earlier, the President gave away certificates to the participants of the course. Speaking on the occasion President of NDU Lieutenant General Rizwan Akhtar said that one hundred and fifty nine participants including from twenty six friendly countries attended the course.
The President appreciated that, “NDU has played a valuable role in the study of defence matters, training of the officials of different tiers in state institutions and honing their skills.” He hoped that, “With the passage of time the performance of this national institute will further improve which will be useful in the defence issues not only for our country but also for the friendly countries.” Senior officers from armed forces and state institutions as well as 42 senior officers from 23 friendly countries also attended the course. President NDU Lt. Gen. Rizwan Akhtar also addressed the ceremony which was attended by National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. (R) Nasir Janjua.
Pakistan starts fencing of entire Pak-Afghan border to check infiltration
Pakistan has started fencing of entire Pak-Afghan border to check infiltration. According to ISPR, the fencing will be done in phases. In the first phase, high infiltration prone border areas in Bajaur, Mohmand and Khyber Agencies are being fenced. Fencing of remaining border areas including Balochistan will be executed in the second phase. Besides fencing, Pakistan Army and
FC Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are constructing new forts and border posts to improve surveillance and defensibility. These measures are being taken to improve security situation along the Pak-Afghan border. A secure Pak-Afghan border is in common interest of both countries and a wellcoordinated border security mechanism is essential for enduring peace and stability.
Pakistan and France sign credit facility agreement for sustainable energy sector reform programme
Pakistan and France signed 100 million Euros Credit Facility Agreement for the Sustainable Energy Sector Reform Program yesterday. Mr. Tariq Mahmood Pasha, Secretary, Economic Affairs Division (EAD), Mr. René Consolo, Chargé d’Affaire a.i., Embassy of France, and Mr. Jacky Amprou, Country Director of the French Agency for Development (A FD), signed the agreement. The Asian Development Bank has also approved $300 million in co-financing of the program. The Finance Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar congratulated EAD and AFD on the signing of the agreement. He underscored
the importance of reforms in the energy sector which will directly impact the overall economic growth of Pakistan. He expressed appreciation for AFD’s continuous support for development projects in Pakistan, including in the energy sector. He added that with signing of this agreement, economic cooperation between Pakistan and France would be further strengthened. The main objective of the program is to revamp the energy sector to make it more affordable, reliable and sustainable, supporting the country’s economic growth, and alleviating the energy crisis through expeditious implementation of the National Power Policy, 2013.
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Pakistan to remain neutral in Qatar-Gulf rift, Sartaj Aziz
Briefing to members of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, Aziz said that Pakistan would remain neutral by taking neither sides in the recent stand-off between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. “Pakistan will adhere to its non-partisan policy on the Middle East issue, hence it will not intervene in matters of other countries, ”Aziz asserted. Apprising the Senate committee, he said that the parliamentary resolution on the Saudi-Yemen issue was also passed in
April of 2015 by determining that the country would keep distance from Saudi-led campaign inside Yemen and continue with its pursuit of a diplomatic solution to the war in Yemen. “Pakistan’s policy remains unchanged,” he added. On June 5, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya and the United Arab Emirates announced that they were cutting off all ties with Qatar, accusing the Gulf state of supporting terrorism.
Later, the diplomatic and business boycott was adopted by Yemen, one of the Libyan governments, Maldives and Mauritius. However, Kuwait is attempting to play the role of a mediator and hopes to diplomatically resolve the crisis among the Gulf Cooperation Council members. Subsequently, Qatar has denied the claims made by Saudi Arabia and the other states, but hopes to resolve the crisis fearing an economic downturn.
Uzbekistan to take part in the meeting of the CIS Economic Council at Moscow
T he delegat ion of t he Republic of Uzbekistan headed by Deputy Prime Minister Ulugbek Rozukulov will attend the 74th meeting of the Economic Council of t he Com monwealt h of Independent States in Moscow, scheduled for June 23, 2017. The Economic Council of t he Com monwealt h of Independent States is the main executive body
ensuring the implementation of agreements adopted within the framework of the CIS, decisions of the Council of Heads of State and the Council of Heads of Gover n ment of t he Commonwealth on the formation and functioning of a free trade zone and other issues of socio-economic cooperation. The main functions of the Economic Council are the
development of proposals for the establishment of a system of mutual settlements and payments for trade and other transactions, the creation of legal, economic and organizational conditions for the transition to higher levels of economic cooperation based on the free movement of goods, services, labor and capital, the entry of the CIS member states into the world economic system.
Europe sizzled under a continent-wide heatwave on Wednesday, with London bracing for Britain’s hottest June day since 1976 as Portugal struggled to stamp out deadly forest fires. More than 1,000 firefighters were
still battling to control the flames that broke out in central Portugal at the weekend, killing at least 64 people. Two forest fires have also broken out since Sunday on Croatia’s southern Adriatic coast, prompting the authorities
to evacuate 800 tourists, although the blazes have now been brought under control. “We were scared, it’s true,” Swedish tourist Karolina told local media. “From the hotel room window it seemed like the fire was at our doors.”
Heatwave scorches Europe, from London to Siberia
PCB announces players for high performance camp T he Nat ion a l Sele c t ion Committee on Wednesday announced 27 players for a 10-week High Performance Camp at the National Cricket Academy, Lahore commencing from July 3, 2017 to September 9, 2017. According to PCB, the camp has been organized keeping in view the future commitments of Pakistan cricket team where the players would train under the supervision of
NCA Coaches. The selected players are advised to report at NCA on July 2, 2017 except for Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan who will join the program in the 3rd week. 27 players for the camp include Sami Aslam, Fakhar Zaman, Imam ul Haq and Sahibzada Farhan (O peners), Umar Amin, Haris Sohail, Usman Salahuddin, Asif Zakir and Umar Akmal (Middle Order), Usman Shinwari, Sameen
Gul, Muhammad Irfan, Mir Hamza and Ruman Raees (Fast Bowlers), Muhammad Asghar, Shadab Khan, Bilal Asif, Muhammad Irfan and Usama Mir (Spinners), Amir Yamin, Fahim Ashraf, Ammad Butt and Hussain Talat (Fast Bowli ng A ll Rou nders), Mu h a m m a d Nawa z a nd Agha Salman (Spin Bowling All Rounders), Muhammad R iz wan and Mu ham mad Hassan (Wicket Keepers).