ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif informed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday of Pakistan’s active diplomatic campaign to arrange indirect peace talks between Washington and Tehran, according to a detailed official account of a telephone conversation that lasted more than an hour.
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Pakistan to host Saudi, Turkish and Egyptian foreign ministers for talks on easing tensions in US-Iran conflict
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will host the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt this weekend for two days of discussions focused on de-escalating the widening regional conflict sparked by the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, the Foreign Office said on Saturday.
Pakistan extends banking relief for food, drug exports to Iran as Gulf tensions disrupt sea routes
ISLAMABAD: The government has waived mandatory banking instruments for land-route exports of rice, other food items and pharmaceuticals to Iran, a three-month exemption aimed at shielding traders from growing uncertainty in maritime shipping caused by the Gulf crisis.
Pakistan to convene national leadership summit on fuel crisis as provinces reject subsidy burden
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is organising a high-level national dialogue early next week to hammer out an “all-inclusive” strategy on austerity and energy conservation, after the country’s four provinces signalled they are unwilling to shoulder a collective Rs200 billion share of the fuel-subsidy bill amid surging international oil prices.
Karachi transhipment volumes jump as Middle East conflict prompts Gulf reroutes
KARACHI: Long queues of container ships have begun forming at Pakistan’s Karachi ports as global shipping lines divert vessels from the Strait of Hormuz amid heightened risks from the ongoing Middle East conflict, with government facilitation measures accelerating the shift.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa demands NFC formula revamp or interim grants after walkout over merged districts share
ISLAMABAD: The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has formally asked federal authorities to revise the National Finance Commission resource-distribution formula or, failing that, to provide discretionary grants to all provinces until a new consensus is reached.
IMF staff agree on $1.2bln Pakistan disbursement after reviews, backing fuel policy amid Middle East crisis
ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistani authorities for the release of about $1.2 billion, clearing the way for the third review under the country’s Extended Fund Facility and the second under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, the fund said on Saturday.
IHC schedules March 31 hearing on Imran Khan’s appeal in £190 mln corruption conviction
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court on Friday scheduled a March 31 hearing on petitions filed by former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, seeking to suspend their prison sentences in a major corruption case involving £190 million.
Federal, provincial governments agree on targeted fuel relief via digital vouchers
ISLAMABAD: The federal government and the four provinces agreed on Friday to roll out immediately a mobile application-based quota system for subsidized fuel sales to motorcycles and three-wheelers, aiming to channel relief to low-income households while plugging leaks that have drained public resources.
The Middle East War Has an Off-Ramp. It Won’t Stay Open Long
The United States and Iran are, by all credible accounts, about to sit down face to face for the first time since this war began. Germany’s foreign minister, Johann Wadephul said a direct meeting is expected “very soon” in Pakistan. Hours earlier, President Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed that Pakistan had delivered Washington’s 15-point peace plan to Tehran. These are not rumors; they are the first concrete signs that diplomacy may still have a chance to end a conflict that has already killed thousands, closed the Strait of Hormuz – the lifeline of global economy and pushed the Middle East to the brink of a wider conflagration.