Prime Minister of Pakistan Mian Mohamed Nawaz Sharif’s nominees from among parliamentarians to act as envoys who would highlight the Kashmir case abroad came amidst an opaque selection criteria, which presented to the opposition an opportunity to question it. The job necessarily entails expertise in diplomatic affairs and knowledge of geopolitical realities so that they could effectively articulate Pakistan’s case. Unfortunately, it appears that the ruling party used this opportunity to distribute patronage as out…
Posts published in August 2016
In the latest Government hosted lottery, 22 parliamentarians will get to be special envoys to a list of countries, to advocate Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir and highlight human rights abuses in Indian held Kashmir. There was of course a dire need for Pakistan to strengthen its diplomatic efforts internationally, but would it not be better if actual diplomats were doing the job and not legislators who need to be sitting in assemblies sorting out domestic…
LAHORE: Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) patron and religious scholar Dr Allama Tahir ul Qadri has claimed that as many as 54 Indian nationals were working at factories of the Sharif family across country. Talking to media after addressing his party’s ‘qasas rallies’ in Quetta and Karachi via video link on Sunday, Qadri claimed that the high-profile RAW agent, Kalbhoshan Yadev, was arrested from Balochistan on hint from an Indian citizen working at a factory of…
ISLAMABAD – Pakistan and India are set for further tensions in the coming weeks as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif prepares to internationalise the Kashmir issue amid bloodshed in the held territory. The nomination of 22 special envoys by PM Sharif received an immediate stern response from India who asked Pakistan to keep the dispute’s bilateral identity instead of making it global. India’s Minister of State for External Affairs M J Akbar criticized Pakistan’s bid to…
NEW DELHI: Even as the NIA is examining the option of filing a chargesheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar in the Pathankot terror attack case, the US has handed over proof+ confirming that the strike emanated from Pakistan. The US has informed the NIA that IP addresses of Facebook accounts of JeM handlers who masterminded the January attack and IP address of the website of the outfit’s financial arm, Al Rahmat Trust, are located in…
ISLAMABAD: An Indian diplomat has been living in Pakistan without a valid visa for the last six months, sources close to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Sunday. Both the FO and interior ministry are responsible for letting an Indian national live in the federal capital without visa. The diplomat was serving in the Indian High Commission in Islamabad and had his visa expired some six months ago. Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakria expressed his…
The author, a PhD candidate at Beijing Foreign Studies University, is a visiting scholar with the Center for China-US Cooperation at the University of Denver. US universities are famous for their freedom and openness, values best symbolized by the absence of walls on their campuses and thanks to which they have attracted the world’s largest number of international students. Lured by the promises of quality education and unique cultural and academic experience, students from China…
Shanxi provincial governor Li Xiaopeng is tipped to be the transport minister amid a personnel reshuffle after the Beidaihe retreat, according to two sources. A Beijing-based source told the Post that Li, the elder son of former premier Li Peng, had been named to succeed Yang Chuantong as transport minister, and that Li had told his subordinates in Shanxi that he was leaving for Beijing to work “in a ministry”. Another source confirmed on Sunday…
Xinjiang Communist Party chief Zhang Chunxian is tipped to be replaced soon following Beijing’s announcement on Sunday of a reshuffle of party chiefs. Tibet’s party boss Chen Quanguo, 61, is expected to become Xinjiang’s party boss, while Zhang, 63, will be reassigned to a semi-retired role similar to that of his predecessor in Xinjiang, Wang Lequan, sources said. In a first round of reshuffles unveiled since a gathering of top incumbent and retired leaders in…
New peace talks between Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and Myanmar’s myriad guerrilla armies beginning Wednesday are designed to end decades of bloodshed and set the country on a new path. The outcome could be significant, helping to determine what happens for decades to come in a country where China, the U.S. and India are vying for influence. United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to attend, and China’s President Xi Jinping signaled his support…
Tehran – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called for closer cooperation between Tehran and Islamabad in all areas and stressed the need to quickly implement the agreements previously signed between the two neighbouring countries. Speaking at a Sunday meeting with new Pakistani Ambassador to Tehran Asif Ali Khan Durrani, President Rouhani said rapid implementation of the deals is necessary for closer economic cooperation between the two countries. “Iran and Pakistan with their common interests and objectives…