The Indian Panorama

Tag: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari

  • Nawaz Sharif, Bilawal Bhutto begin parleys to keep Imran Khan away from power as Pakistan poll results drag on

    Nawaz Sharif, Bilawal Bhutto begin parleys to keep Imran Khan away from power as Pakistan poll results drag on

    ISLAMABAD (TIP): Even as final results of the Pakistan general elections are awaited, PTI founder Imran Khan and PML(N) supremo Nawaz Sharif have claimed win and delivered victory speeches.

    Now, since PML(N) has failed to get majority in the polls but has emerged as the “single largest party”, it is in talks with PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutoo Zardari, Dawn reported.

    On Friday night, former president Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal met with former prime minister and PML(N) President Shehbaz Sharif in Lahore and exchanged views on government formation, Radio Pakistan reported.

    Both parties have agreed to work together to achieve political and economic stability in the country, it added.
    (Source: IANS)

  • Pakistan polls : Candidates backed by Imran’s party make gains

    Independent candidates backed by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) sprung a surprise in the general election, upstaging three-time premier Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Even as the counting of votes and declaration of winners were marked by chaos and delays, Nawaz suffered a shock defeat to PTI-supported Shahzada Khan from the Mansehra seat. He, however, defeated another independent candidate, Yasmin Rashid, to clinch the Lahore seat.

    Members of the PTI contested as independents after they were not allowed to use the party symbol (cricket bat) in the February 8 polls, which were held amid a controversial countrywide mobile phone shutdown. The provisional results show that cricketer-turned-politician Imran, the founding chairman of the PTI, has made his presence felt despite being barred from contesting the elections due to his conviction and sentencing in multiple cases. Imran, who was ousted as PM in 2022, continues to be a popular leader. His arrest in May last year had sparked violence in many parts of the country; protesters had even targeted military installations, including the army headquarters in Rawalpindi.

    The PTI’s success is a setback to the Pakistani military, which had thrown its weight behind the Sharifs and gone all out to keep Imran out of the electoral contest. Confident of forming the government at the Centre, Imran’s party has ruled out forging an alliance with its main rivals — the PML-N and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party. Meanwhile, PML-N leader Ishaq Dar has claimed that some victorious independent candidates have contacted his party. An intriguing power tussle has begun in the beleaguered country, which is hoping for a stable and strong government that would pull it out of a prolonged economic crisis.
    (Tribune, India )

  • China, Pakistan resolve to extend CPEC into Afghanistan

    China, Pakistan resolve to extend CPEC into Afghanistan

    Islamabad (TIP): In yet another effort to build trust with the Taliban government, China and Pakistan agreed to include Afghanistan as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
    Sources here pointed out that China had issued a joint statement with the earlier regime of Hamid Karzai and this latest reiteration comes soon after the Taliban government inked a MoU with a Chinese firm to prospect for oil in the Amu Darya basin in northern Afghanistan. It is estimated that Afghanistan has mineral resources estimated at $1 trillion. Seven Indian companies headed by SAIL had been allocated a huge iron ore mine in Bamyan district by the previous regime but the project now appears to have been mothballed.
    India is also building a communication route into Afghanistan from Iran’s Chabahar port. It has also built a road connecting Afghanistan’s Garland Highway with a town on the border with Iran. Another enduring road or rail link from that town of Zahedan to Chabahar will make it the shortest route from the sea into non-Pashtun areas.
    The latest announcement, however, did not involve the Taliban side because it is under economic sanctions. With Taliban Interim Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was also part of the deliberations, the decision was presented as one taken between Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in Islamabad on Saturday, a day after the duo returned from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting in Goa. In 2016, the joint statement had welcomed Afghanistan’s participation in the BRI and China agreed to support Kabul’s “integration into regional cooperation by taking advantage of its location as a natural continental bridge and the center of Asia”. The latest joint statement signed by China and Pakistan agreed to enhance development cooperation in Afghanistan, “including through extension of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)”. Last December, China began implementing zero tariff on 98 per cent of products from Afghanistan.
    The decision to extend the BRI into Afghanistan followed several meetings between Pakistan and China. The CPEC, however, has so far not lived up to its original intentions. IT has suffered delays and cost overruns due to the Covid pandemic, Pakistan’s bankruptcy, the regime turnover in Afghanistan and attacks on some of the projects.
    India too is attempting trust building with the Taliban regime, having provided huge amounts of humanitarian assistance. A ‘technical team’ now means its Embassy in Kabul which is attempting to maintain or complete projects financed by India. Recently, Afghan Foreign Ministry officials have been joining MEA’s training programmes for diplomats from developing countries. However, unlike China, India still recognises the previous regime’s envoy in Delhi. (TNS)

  • Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari leaves for India to attend SCO meeting in Goa

    Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari leaves for India to attend SCO meeting in Goa

    ISLAMABAD (TIP): Pakistan’s foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari left for India on May 4 to attend a key multilateral meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation scheduled to take place in Goa on May 4 and 5.
    Bhutto Zardari, who would be the first foreign minister to visit India since 2011, is leading the Pakistan delegation to the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the Beijing-based Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
    The Foreign Office (FO) has said that the invitation to the Pakistan Foreign Minister to attend the SCO-CFM was extended by India’s Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar, as the current chair of the SCO.
    Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the spokesperson for FO, said that Bilawal had departed for Goa from Karachi.
    “FM @BBhuttoZardari departs from #Karachi to participate in the #SCO Council of Foreign Ministers,” the spokesperson tweeted with a picture of his departure.
    Upon Pakistan’s request, Bhutto Zardari was granted special permission by the Indian civil aviation authority to use the Indian airspace, Duniya TV reported.
    “On my way to Goa, India. Will be leading the Pakistan delegation at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization CFM. My decision to attend this meeting illustrates Pakistan’s strong commitment to the charter of the SCO,” Bhutto Zardari tweeted before his departure.
    “During my visit, which is focused exclusively on the SCO, I look forward to constructive discussions with my counterparts from friendly countries,” he said.
    “The Foreign Minister of Pakistan Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will also meet with his counterparts of friendly countries on the sidelines of the CFM,” the FO said recently.
    Pakistan has said that the Pakistani foreign minister would not hold any meeting with his Indian counterpart.
    The visit is highly symbolic as it is the first by any Pakistani Foreign Minister since Hina Rabbani Khar travelled to India in July 2011 for peace talks.
    The FO also said that in addition to deliberating upon important regional and international issues and signing some of the institutional documents, the CFM would finalise the agenda and decisions to be adopted by the 17th SCO Council of Heads of State Meeting scheduled to take place in New Delhi on July 3 and 4.
    The CFM will also witness the signing of MoUs with five countries namely Bahrain, Kuwait Maldives, Myanmar and UAE to become Dialogue Partners of the SCO. Besides Pakistan, SCO member states include China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and India.
    Since becoming a member in 2017, Pakistan has been actively and constructively contributing to all SCO activities to realise its multi-sectoral aims and objectives in a mutually beneficial manner, the FO said.
    The ties between India and Pakistan came under severe strain after India’s warplanes pounded a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training camp in Balakot in Pakistan in February 2019 in response to the Pulwama terror attack.
    The relations further deteriorated after India announced the withdrawal of special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and the bifurcation of the state into two union territories in 2019. (PTI)

  • Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang to visit Pakistan after attending SCO meet in India

    Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang to visit Pakistan after attending SCO meet in India

    BEIJING (TIP): China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang will travel to Pakistan on May 5 on a two-day visit after attending the meeting of the SCO Foreign Ministers hosted by India in Goa, it was announced here on Thursday.
    Qin is attending the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) Foreign Ministers meeting being held on May 4 and 5 at Panaji in Goa where his Pakistan counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari too is taking part.
    Besides being the Foreign Minister, Qin is also the State Councillor, a higher rank associated with the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC). SCO bloc consists of China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India holds the presidency of the grouping for this year.
    Significantly the Chinese Foreign Ministry while announcing the visit of Qin to Myanmar and India on May 2 did not include his visit to Islamabad though Pakistan media reported about it.
    Instead, the ministry announced his visit to Pakistan separately on Thursday during which he is due to take part in China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ meeting.
    The trilateral is being held less than a month after the Neighbouring Countries of Afghanistan Plus Afghanistan Foreign Ministers meeting of China, Russia, Pakistan and Iran in Samarkand, in which Qin presided.
    Announcing Qin’s visit to Pakistan, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said that this will be his first visit to Pakistan after taking charge and an important part of the recent close and frequent interactions between the high levels of China and Pakistan. The reference apparently was the just concluded maiden visit of Pakistan’s new Army Chief Asim Munir, here during which he held a series of meetings with top Chinese Generals and top diplomat Wang Yi who is the Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee.
    During Gen.Munir’s visit, China’s new Premier Li Qiang also held his first phone call with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and promised continued financial help for Pakistan which is facing a serious political and economic crisis. “In Pakistan Qin will meet with the leader of Pakistan and co-chair the fourth round of China-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue with Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari”, the foreign ministry statement which included a Q&A posted on the website on Friday said.
    “The two sides will have in-person and in-depth communication on bilateral relations and the international and regional situation,” it said. “China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic cooperative partners and ironclad friends. The friendship is time honoured”, it further said recalling Sharif’s successful visit to China last November and Li’s April 27 phone call with him. The foreign ministry also hoped that the ties between the two nations would further deepen with the visit of the Chinese foreign minister.
    “China hopes that this visit will follow through on the important common understandings between the leaders of the two countries, further, deepen strategic communication and practical cooperation, promote the building of an ever-closer China-Pakistan community with a shared future in the new era, and contribute positive energy to the region and the wider world,” it said.
    About why the fifth China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue in less than a month of Samarkand meeting, it said, although the people of Afghanistan have tided over the most difficult time, they still face severe challenges at the moment and are in dire need of more support and help from the rest of the world.
    The international community need to step up contact and dialogue with the Afghan interim government, support its effort of reconstruction and development, and encourage it to build an inclusive government, exercise moderate governance, develop friendly relations with its neighbours and firmly fight terrorism, it said.
    The Foreign Ministers’ Meeting among the Neighbouring Countries of Afghanistan and the China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue are both important platforms for exchanges and cooperation on issues related to Afghanistan and conducive to more consensus among regional countries on the Afghan issue, it said.
    “China hopes to exchange views with Afghanistan and Pakistan on the situation in Afghanistan and tri-party cooperation at the Dialogue, so as to build up consensus, consolidate mutual trust, and jointly contribute to peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region,” it said. (PTI)

  • With Pak FM in attendance, Jaishankar talks tough on terrorism at SCO meeting

    With Pak FM in attendance, Jaishankar talks tough on terrorism at SCO meeting

    External affairs minister S Jaishankar with his Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
    Goa (TIP)- External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday, May 4, talked tough on cross-border terrorism and stressed the need to seize and block the channel of finances for terror activities. Addressing the opening segment of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers, Jaishankar highlighted the multitude of challenges faced by the world, including disruptions in global supply chains, due to the Covid pandemic and geopolitical upheavals.
    “While the world was engaged in facing Covid and its consequences, the menace of terrorism continues unabated. Taking our eyes off this menace would be detrimental to our security interests. We firmly believe that there can be no justification for terrorism and it must be stopped in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism,” Jaishankar said.
    “The channel of activities for terrorist activities must be seized and blocked without distinction. Members need not be reminded that combating terrorism is one of the original mandates of the SCO.” the minister added.
    Jaishankar noted that the unfolding situation in Afghanistan following the Taliban’s return to power “remains at the centre of our attention,” adding that the efforts should be directed towards the welfare of the Afghan people.
    “Our immediate priorities include providing humanitarian assistance, ensuring a truly inclusive and representative government, combating terrorism and drug trafficking, and preserving rights of women, children and minorities.”
    Earlier, Jaishankar greeted Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari with a “Namastey” ahead of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting of the Shangai Cooperation Organisation. Visuals showed the Jaishankar greeting Zardari in Indian tradition with a “Namastey”, avoiding a handshake.
    “I am happy to arrive in Goa for participating in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. I am leading the Pakistan delegation at SCO and hope that the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) will be successful,” Zardari said in a video on Thursday shared by Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson. India-China border stable, both sides should push for its further cooling, easing: Chinese FM Qin to Jaishankar
    Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang reiterated that the situation at the India-China border is generally stable and both sides should consolidate the present achievements and strictly abide by the relevant agreements while pushing for further cooling and easing of the conditions for sustainable peace and tranquillity at the frontier.
    In his talks with External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar at Benaulim in Goa on the sidelines of the SCO Foreign Ministers meeting on Thursday, May 4, Qin restated China’s oft-repeated recent stance that the current situation on the China-India border is generally stable, in an apparent reference to the ongoing military standoff in Eastern Ladakh which brought the relations to standstill.
    Qin said the two sides should continue to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, consolidate the existing achievements, strictly abide by relevant agreements, push for further cooling and easing of the border situation and maintain sustainable peace and tranquillity in the border areas, a press release on Qin-Jaishankar talks issued here on Friday said.
    In a tweet after the talks, Jaishankar said the focus remained on resolving outstanding issues and ensuring peace and tranquillity in the border areas. “A detailed discussion with State Councillor and FM Qin Gang of China on our bilateral relationship. Focus remains on resolving outstanding issues and ensuring peace and tranquillity in the border areas,” he said.