Thursday, 6 January, 2022 I 2 Jamadi-al-Sani, 1443 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 189 I 12 Pages I Lahore Edition
Military spokesMan rubbishes ruMours of deal with nawaz sharif RAWALPINDI
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Staff RepoRt
rUSHING aside speculations suggesting the military was looking to cut a deal with former premier Nawaz Sharif to facilitate his return before the next general elections which are scheduled to take place in 2023, DirectorGeneral of the Inter-Services Public relations Maj-General Iftikhar babar said there was no trouble between the civil-military relationship. After spending a year in prison, Sharif, now 72, secured a one-month bail in November 2019 to travel to london on the pretext of medical treatment but has since refused to return. Addressing a presser here, Maj-Gen babar Iftikhar termed the deal rumours as ‘baseless chatter’, asking speculators to furnish evidence “if there is any”.
MQM holds ‘surprise dialogue’ with PML-N on ‘mini-budget’ KARACHI Staff CoRReSpondent
In a surprise move, Muttahida Qoumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM) – an ally of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) – on Wednesday joined hands with the major opposition party – Pakistan Muslim league-Nawaz (PMl-N) to raise concerns on Mini-budget tabled by the federal government. MQM has a long history of making surprise political shifts and leaving allies in a lurch. In the past, the MQM has been blamed by previous governments of PPP and PMl-N for betraying allies in difficult situations. MQM convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui told media here that his party would share reservations expressed by the PMl-N over Finance (Supplementary) bill 2021 and State bank of Pakistan (SbP) Amendment bill 2021 with the federal government. The two politicians were speaking to the media after a delegation-level meeting held between the two parties – perhaps the first such meeting after
General Elections of 2018. The government has tabled both the bills to meet the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) conditions for the clearance of Pakistan’s sixth review of the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility by the financial institution, in turn paving way for the disbursement of a tranche of around $1 billion. both bills have been panned by the opposition, terming the finance supplementary bill a “mini-budget”, claiming it would increase people’s economic difficulties. The SbP bill, meanwhile, has been equated to compromising on the country’s economic sovereignty. Siddiqui said they had held discussions on multiple issues, including the two bills. “We are together in parliament and we have agreements and disagreements on various issues,” he said, adding that as far as the “mini-budget” was concerned, the MQM had held detailed talks with the PMl-N. He said the MQM — which is a crucial ally of the ruling PTI — planned to discuss with the
government such clauses in the bill that it believed would directly affect and burden people, and after talks with the PMl-N delegation, they were likely to add some more points to this agenda. “We have listened to them [the PMl-N] in detail and reconsidered certain aspects. And we might have to add one to two more points [to the agenda],” Siddiqui said. “We have recognised some new aspects after talks with them [the PMl-N delegation],” he added. With regards to the “impression” of Pakistan’s economy being “held hostage”, Siddiqui said his party would have discussions on these reservations with the government as well. However, he added, Pakistan had reached this stage because previous governments had been passing on the economic burden to their successors, which had led to the “shrinking of financial space” in Pakistan.
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Pakistan, GCC finalise Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue 2022-2026 ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt
Pakistan and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Wednesday finalised the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue (2022-2026) to help deepen institutional cooperation in various fields including bilateral trade and investment. The joint action plan was finalised during a detailed meeting between Minister for Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi along and GCC Secretary-General Dr Nayef Falah M Al-Hajraf here. The development comes in line with the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Strategic Dialogue between the two sides. The MoU provides an institutional approach to deepen cooperation in various fields, including political; security; trade and investment; agricultural and food security, transportation; energy; environment; health; culture and education. Welcoming the finalisation of the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue, both officials underscored that the action plan would impart a strong impetus towards “optimally realising the tremendous potential for increased cooperation between Pakistan and the GCC states”. The two sides also reviewed Pakistan-GCC cooperation in diverse fields and explored new avenues
for an enhanced mutually-beneficial partnership. During delegation-level talks, they also exchanged views on the regional developments, in particular the prevailing humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the deteriorating human rights situation in Indian-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Noting the progress on the ongoing efforts to conclude the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Pakistan and the GCC, the two sides expressed determination to conclude the negotiations on priority. “Qureshi expressed gratitude to the GCC and its member states for strong expression of support for the people of Afghanistan in the 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, held in Islamabad last month,” the statement read. The minister also urged the world community to upscale its efforts to reach out to the Afghan people on an urgent basis to help address the humanitarian crisis and stabilise the economic situation. It is pertinent to mention here that this is the second visit of the GCC secretary-general to Pakistan in the last three weeks. He earlier visited Islamabad in December 2021 to attend the 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (OIC-CFM) on the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.
“If someone talks of a deal [between the military and a political party], then you must ask them who is offering it,” he argued. “In my understanding, and I am very clear on that, this is baseless speculation.” Despite being summoned by the courts, which declared Sharif a proclaimed offender in separate corruption trials, his party insists Sharif will only return after the completion of his medical treatment — the nature of which remains a mystery to date. In August, britain’s Home Office refused to extend Sharif’s stay in the country on medical grounds in a decision he has appealed via immigration tribunal. Court documents showed Sharif was allowed to leave for medical treatment only after agreeing to a series of conditions preventing him from seeking exile in the United Kingdom. Sharif’s passport expired in February last
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FENCING PAK, AFGHAN bOrDEr WIll CONTINUE AS PlANNED; DG-ISPr SAyS
year after the government refused to renew it in an attempt to speed up his extradition from the United Kingdom. The expired document rendered Sharif unable to travel anywhere on the Pakistan passport. However, in December, the media reported a “secret deal” between the establishment and Sharif to bring him back home, igniting speculation on the mainstream and social media. Gen Iftikhar, however, urged the media to “keep the establishment out of it”. During the press conference, he also spoke of a “campaign” against the state and its institutions aimed at creating a gulf between the public and the institutions, and to “damage people’s trust”. “The military is aware of these efforts and their various linkages,” he said, pointing at the rumours.
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