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Iran invites Pakistan to participate in Chabahar, connect with Gawadar
Alleys Pak’ concern over India’s role in Iranian port
In its efforts to maintain balance in friendly ties with India and Pakistan, Iran has, on Monday, invited Islamabad to participate in Chabahar sea-port and development of its link with Gawadar port and sought to alley Pakistan’s concern over Indian involvement in the Iranian port.
According to Dawn, Iranian Foreign Minister Dr Javad Zarif, who is on a three-day visit to Pakistan and held meetings with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and his counterpart Khwaja Asif, invited Pakistan to this effect. He is accompanied with a large trade delegation from Iran.
While delivering a lecture at Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) Zarif said, “We offered to participate in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). We have also offered Pakistan and China to participate in Chahbahar.” The lecture was held to commemorate 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Dawn observed, “Pakistan had always been concerned about Indian involvement in Chahbahar port. These concerns got amplified after Iran last month signed a lease agreement with India, which would give operational control of the port to the latter”.
Meanwhile, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), the official news agency said that Prime Minister has said that the two countries should work together and make their utmost efforts for enhancing the bilateral trade to $5bn by 2021.He reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to enhance mutually beneficial economic cooperation and expressed desire to resolve issues in implementation of Iran-Pakistan pipeline project.
Abbasi said that Pakistan was working towards realising its vision of a peaceful and inter-connected region for shared progress and prosperity. “We believe that a peaceful and stable Afghanistan is vital for economic progress of the region and Pakistan and Iran as the two neighboring countries can make important contribution for achieving this objective,” he remarked.
Dawn reports that PM Abbasi thanked the Iranian leadership for their “steadfast support to the principled struggle of Kashmiris”. This was in obvious reference with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei’s statement in June last year when he clubbed the situation in Bahrain, Kashmir and Yemen saying that the Muslim world must “express their disdain against the oppressors”.
The Iranian foreign minister appreciated the increasing high-level interaction between the two countries and Islamabad’s efforts for strengthening border management.
Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif said that Tehran’s relations with New Delhi are not against Islamabad. He emphasized that both Gwadar and Chahbahar were important projects for development of deprived Eastern and South-eastern Iran and South Western Pakistan and said that both needed to be linked through sea and land routes for effecting their complementarities.
Zarif clearly said, “We are taking measures to do that and there is an open invitation to Pakistan to participate in that.” He further clarified that Chahbahar port project was not meant to “encircle Pakistan … strangulate anybody”. He twice said Iran would not allow anybody to hurt Pakistan from its territory much like Pakistan would not allow its soil to be used against Iran.
Equating Iran’s relations with India to Pakistan’s ties with Saudi Arabia Iran’s foreign minister said, “Our relations with India, just like Pakistan’s relations with Saudi Arabia, are not against Pakistan as we understand Pakistan’s relations with Saudi Arabia are not against Iran.” Observers believe that Iranian official expressed his country’s concern over Pakistan ties with Saudi Arabia in a crafty and skilful manner.
Dr Zarif also described his vision for better ties with Pakistan including the realisation of long delayed Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline, establishment of banking ties, signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and making Gawadar and Chahbahar ports complementary.
The gas pipeline was originally proposed to originate from Iran and supply gas to Pakistan and India under Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) project. India had expressed concern over the security of the pipeline passing through Pakistan following US pressure to desist from realizing the dream project.
Iran had called the project as “peace pipeline” and assured the safe delivery of the gas at India-Pakistan border connecting Sind-Rajasthan provinces. Later, Pakistan has also not built the required pipeline in its territory. However, Iran has completed the laying of the pipeline till its border with Pakistan.
Former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had threatened that Washington would consider the implementation of IPI gas pipeline project as if Tehran’s alleged nuclear program was being promoted by the partner countries.
In April 2017, the State Bank of Pakistan had signed a Banking and Payment Arrangement (BPA) with Iran’s central bank, Bank Markazi Jomhouri Islami Iran (BMJII) for providing a trade settlement mechanism to promote bilateral trade. But due to lack of interest or obvious pressure this arrangement could not be implemented.
Dawn further reports that similarly, there is a consensus that IP gas project is beneficial for Pakistan’s economy, but still it is frozen on the Pakistani end due to external and internal factors.
Meanwhile the statement issued by the foreign office after meeting between the two foreign ministers said: “The two sides agreed to continue engagement for enhancing economic cooperation, including bilateral trade, investments and commercial interaction to promote shared prosperity … addressing tariff and non-tariff barriers” in addition to concluding FTA on priority.
“The Foreign Ministers underlined that as two brotherly neighboring countries Iran and Pakistan would deepen connectivity between the two sister ports of Gawadar and Chahbahar to benefit from their complementarities,” the statement added.
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Suicide bombing near Turkey Parliament building in Ankara, 2 cops injured
Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has slammed the attack in Ankara and stated that terrorism is a crime against humanity.
Turkey’s interior minister Ali Yerlikaya on Sunday asserted that two terrorists carried out a bomb attack in front of the ministry buildings in Ankara. He added that one of them died in the explosion and the other was “neutralised” by authorities there.
Earlier, Turkish media reported that an explosion was heard near the parliament and ministerial buildings, and broadcasters showed footage of debris scattered on a street near the Interior Ministry. A footage from Reuters showed soldiers, ambulances, fire trucks and an armoured vehicle gathered near the centre of Turkey’s capital, where the police have blocked multiple key roads.
Taking to social media X, formerly Twitter, Ali Yerlikaya, the interior minister, said that two police officers were slightly injured in the incident at 9:30 a.m. He added that two terrorists came with a light commercial vehicle in front of the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of their Ministry of Internal Affairs and carried out a bomb attack.
The interior minister further mentioned that one of the terrorists blew himself up and the other was neutralised, which usually means was killed. He noted that their struggle will continue until the last terrorist is neutralised.
Reports said that Ankara’s chief prosecutor initiated an investigation into what it also called a terrorist attack. Authorities did not identify any specific militant group, as yet.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has slammed the attack in Ankara and stated that terrorism is a crime against humanity. The leader of the Republican People’s Party mentioned that no matter from whom and where it came from, they will fight it together as a country and will never give treacherous ambitions a chance.
The concerned authorities in Ankara have cautioned the citizens over suspicious packages and bags that are being detonated in a controlled manner. Ankara Security Directorate asked citizens not to panic.
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Balochistan blast: Pakistan alleges India’s involvement in suicide attack, toll rises to 60
Sarfaraz Bugti told media that civil, military and all other institution will jointly strike against the elements involved in the Mastung suicide bombing.
Pakistan interior minister Sarfaraz Bugti in a shocking claim alleged India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) intelligence agency for the suicide blast in Balochistan. The blast that took place on Friday claimed the lives of nearly 60 people, leaving 60 others injured. The Indian government, on the other hand, is yet to make an official statement on Sarfaraz Bugti’s allegations.
The suicide bomb attack targeted a procession which gathered to celebrate Prophet Muhammad’s birthday near the Madina Masjid at a place called Mastung. The blast tore through the mosque in the southern province of Balochistan after the bomber denoted his explosive near a police vehicle where the people gathered for the procession.
Sarfaraz Bugti told media at Quetta that civil, military and all other institution will jointly strike against the elements involved in the Mastung suicide bombing. Without providing much details or evidence, the Pakistan minister claimed that RAW is involved in the suicide attack.
Wasim Baig, the spokesman for Balochistan’s health department, asserted that seven more people had died in hospital since Friday, which had caused the rise in the death toll. He added that more patients remained in critical condition.
In addition, a second attack on Friday at a mosque in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had killed nearly five people. Police on Saturday lodged a report to initiate an investigation, mentioning that they had sent DNA from the suicide bomb attacker to be analysed.
So far, no group has claimed responsibility for either attack. A surge in terror attacks in Pakistan’s western provinces has cast a shadow on preparations and public campaigning in the run-up to January’s general elections, but until now the attacks had mostly targeted security forces.
The Pakistani Taliban (TTP), which is responsible for some of the bloodiest attacks in Pakistan since the group’s formation in 2007, denied responsibility for Friday’s blasts. On Saturday, a statement from the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) said that an FIR with murder charges and terrorism offences has been registered against an unidentified attacker.
The caretaker government of Balochistan announced three days of mourning in the wake of the attack.
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Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, Mahmood Qureshi held guilty in cipher case
The PTI leaders’ trial has been requested by the FIA, and it is expected that they would be sentenced in accordance with the law.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi were found guilty on Saturday by Pakistan’s top investigating agency in the cypher case, a case involving the alleged exposure of state secrets.
The charge sheet against Khan, the Tehreek-e-Insaf party chairman, and Qureshi, who are both presently being held in custody on judicial remand, was submitted by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to a special court set up under the Official Secrets Act, according to the Pakistan Observer website.
Imran Khan, 70, was detained last month following the filing of a complaint against him for allegedly breaking the Official Secrets Act by revealing a covert diplomatic cable (cypher) issued by the nation’s embassy in Washington last year in March.
The PTI leaders’ trial has been requested by the FIA, and it is expected that they would be sentenced in accordance with the law.
The vice chairman of PTI is 75-year-old Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Asad Umar, the former general secretary of the PTI, is not on the FIA’s list of suspects, but former principal secretary Azam Khan has been portrayed as a key witness in the FIA’s case against Imran Khan, according to GeoTV, a well-known news outlet. The challan also contains Azam Khan’s statement recorded under sections 161 and 164.
The speeches by Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Imran Khan from March 27 are also included in the FIA’s attachment.
The Pakistan Observer further noted that the FIA had provided the court with a list of 28 witnesses in addition to the charge sheet. According to the report, the list of witnesses includes names such as current foreign secretary Asad Majid, previous foreign secretary Sohail Mahmood, and additional foreign secretary Faisal Niaz Tirmizi.
Imran Khan had been imprisoned on remand three times earlier on September 26. Along with Qureshi, his judicial remand was initially extended until September 13 and then again until September 26.
The former PM was transferred from Attock prison to the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on the same day, one day after the Islamabad High Court instructed authorities to do so.
