Mariam Ellahi

ISTANBUL: Pakistan&rsquo;s high-level security delegation began departing for Istanbul Airport on Friday after discussions with the Afghan Taliban government remained deadlocked, security sources told Pakistan TV Digital.&nbsp;Pakistan&rsquo;s National Security Adviser Lieutenant General Asim Malik, who led the delegation, has also left as the round concluded without agreement, the sources confirmed.&nbsp;Earlier in the day in Islamabad, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan had submitted &ldquo;evidence-based, justified and logical&rdquo; demands to the mediators &ldquo;with the singular aim to put an end to cross-border terrorism.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;The mediators fully endorse Pakistan&rsquo;s stance on the basis of the evidence provided by our side as well as the tenets of international law and principles,&rdquo; Andrabi said, adding that the mediators are presenting Pakistan&rsquo;s demands to the Afghan Taliban delegation &ldquo;point by point.&rdquo;&nbsp;Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistan appreciates the mediation efforts of T&uuml;rkiye and Qatar, but responsibility lies with Kabul to fulfill its counterterrorism commitments.&nbsp;&ldquo;Onus lies on Afghanistan to fulfill its long standing international, regional and bilateral pledges regarding control of terrorism, in which so far they have failed,&rdquo; Tarar said.&nbsp;He stressed that Pakistan&rsquo;s core concern is the presence of armed groups operating from Afghan territory and attacking Pakistani security forces and civilians.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan does not harbor any ill-will against the Afghan people,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;However, [Pakistan] shall never support the Afghan Taliban regime&rsquo;s measures that are detrimental to the interest of the Afghan people as well as neighboring countries.&rdquo;&nbsp;Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, speaking in an interview with GEO News, confirmed the stalemate and said the negotiation process is now uncertain.&nbsp;&ldquo;There is complete deadlock and the agreement has entered an indefinite phase. There is no hope of a third or fourth round,&rdquo; Asif said. He thanked Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye &ldquo;for sincerely making efforts.&rdquo;&nbsp;Asif cautioned that Pakistan would respond if attacks continue.&nbsp;&ldquo;If the situation flares up from the Afghanistan side, we will respond accordingly,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Until there is no ceasefire broken from their side, the ceasefire persists, but if they break it, we will respond.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said Pakistan&rsquo;s principal demand is the prevention of terrorist attacks inside Pakistan, including on schools and civilian targets.&nbsp;&ldquo;They have indicated they know the terrorists come from their side but they say they cannot do anything. So they should not stand between us and the terrorists, let us handle it. We have all the resources and information to control them,&rdquo; Asif said.&nbsp;With negotiations stalled, Tarar reiterated that Pakistan will continue diplomatic engagement, but not at the expense of national security.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan shall continue to exercise all options necessary to safeguard the security of its people and its sovereignty,&rdquo; he said.

Foreign Affairs

Pakistan Information Minister Attaullah Tarar says Afghanistan must fulfill anti-terror pledges, Islamabad holds no ill-will but will take necessary security measures.

Pakistan NSA leaves as Afghan Taliban talks stall

ISTANBUL: The mediators involved in the talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan have endorsed Pakistan&rsquo;s stance based on the provided evidence and will be discussing Islamabad&rsquo;s demands with the Afghan Taliban, sources said on Friday. &nbsp; The Pakistan delegation handed over its evidence-based, justified, and logical demands to the mediators with the singular aim of putting an end to cross-border terrorism, the sources said. The mediators fully endorsed Pakistan&rsquo;s stance on the basis of the provided evidence as well as tenets of international law and principles, they added.&nbsp; The mediators are discussing Pakistan&rsquo;s demands point by point with the Afghan Taliban delegation.&nbsp;Any other information circulating on social media, especially on Afghan accounts, is either pure speculation or deliberate disinformation, the sources added.&nbsp; What is the conflict?The conflict centers on Pakistan&rsquo;s demand that Afghanistan prevent the use of its territory by terrorist groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) to carry out attacks against Pakistan.&nbsp; The situation has strained relations between the two neighboring countries, with recent border skirmishes resulting in casualties on both sides.&nbsp; Several rounds of talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan have taken place. Previous talksThe first round of talks was held in Doha on Oct. 18-19, where an initial ceasefire agreement was reached with mediation from T&uuml;rkiye and Qatar. The second round took place in Istanbul from Oct. 25 to 30 to strengthen and extend the ceasefire.&nbsp; A principal-level meeting began on Thursday in Istanbul to finalize further implementation details. Recent exchange of fire A brief exchange of fire along the Chaman-Spin Boldak border crossing coincided with the ongoing talks, with Pakistan&rsquo;s information ministry, in a post of X, rejecting Afghan claims that Pakistani forces opened fire first. Afghanistan&rsquo;s interim government, however, offered a different account. Afghan Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, claimed the firing started from the Pakistan side. Police in Chaman confirmed to Pakistan TV Digital that Pakistani border units returned fire after the initial shots but reported no casualties on either side.&nbsp; The exchange was brief and did not disrupt movement in nearby civilian areas, a police official said.

Afghanistan

Sources say Pakistan’s stance is evidence-based and meets tenets of international law and principles; mediators are discussing Pakistan’s demands with the Afghan Taliban delegation.

Istanbul talks: mediators endorse Pakistan’s stance, to discuss with Afghan Taliban

RAWALPINDI: Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that India is planning another &ldquo;false flag&rdquo; operation, emphasizing that this time the operation would be in the &ldquo;deep sea.&rdquo; The head of the military&rsquo;s media wing was speaking with journalists in Rawalpindi on Monday ahead of the Coordination Meeting of Arab-Islamic Foreign Ministers in Istanbul. During the discussions, the spokesperson revealed that India is planning another false-flag operation in the deep sea, cautioning that Pakistan&rsquo;s response would be &ldquo;greater than before.&rdquo; &ldquo;If India wants to do something on sea, land, or air, they can do it. Pakistan will do whatever it takes to take care of it. We are very good at taking care [of things]. And when we take care [of things], the world will see,&rdquo; he remarked. He said the international community must recognize India&rsquo;s attempts to disturb regional peace through provocations and propaganda. On Trump&rsquo;s remarksResponding to a question about US President Donald Trump&rsquo;s recent remarks on nuclear weapons testing, he said that the strategy of any country is fluid, emphasizing that Pakistan will continue to carry out tests and trials as required for national security. &ldquo;The strategy of any country is fluid and always kept under abeyance, and we are not bound to make such moves public,&rdquo; he said. Counterterrorism operations figuresRegarding the ongoing operations against terrorists, the DG ISPR said that 62,113 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) have been conducted so far this year. This has resulted in the killing of 1,667 terrorists, including 128 identified Afghan nationals, he added. During these operations, 1,073 Pakistanis embraced martyrdom, including 584 army personnel, 133 law enforcement officers, and 356 civilians. The DG ISPR reiterated that Pakistan&rsquo;s counterterrorism actions are intelligence-based and aimed at eliminating terrorism in all its forms. Terror-crime nexus and narcotics fundingLt. Gen. Chaudhry warned of a growing &ldquo;terror-crime-political nexus&rdquo; that continues to obstruct counterterrorism efforts under the National Action Plan (NAP) -- a governmental strategy launched after the Army Public School attack in 2014 to combat terrorism across the country. He said that certain political elements and facilitators hinder operations against narcotics and terror-financing networks. The spokesperson disclosed that security forces destroyed over 12,000 acres of poppy fields in the northwestern district of Khyber, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and around 40 acres in southwestern Balochistan, adding that the profit per acre ranges between Rs1.8 million to Rs2.5 million ($6,000&ndash;$9,000). He explained that profits from these crops are used to finance terrorism, smuggling, and other cross-border crimes. At the same time, local populations are often co-opted into these activities in return for a share of the proceeds. He further revealed that &ldquo;khawarij&rdquo; (terrorists) collect &ldquo;usher&rdquo; &mdash; a form of tax &mdash; from locals on this illicit trade. &ldquo;When our law enforcement agencies intercept narcotics smuggling or attack these networks, they come under attack from terrorists and their facilitators,&rdquo; he said. Terror-criminal nexus in Khyber and Tirah districtsHighlighting the security situation in Khyber District and the Tirah Valley, the DG ISPR said there were 508 terrorist incidents reported in the area during 2025, resulting in 192 casualties among army, Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel, and civilians. He said that political stakeholders and criminal networks have &ldquo;financial stakes in this illegal trade.&rdquo; Whenever operations are launched, &ldquo;they start campaigns against the security forces under the pretext of protecting civilian areas.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;When we check their logistical sustenance, they attack our convoys and check-posts. Our soldiers are laying down their lives to protect the motherland,&rdquo; he added. Afghan Taliban killed in Pakistan-Afghanistan standoffDiscussing the recent border clashes between Islamabad and Kabul, the DG ISPR said that intelligence estimates confirm 206 Afghan Taliban border forces and 112 militants were killed during Pakistan&rsquo;s operations. He said that Pakistan shared real-time evidence with the Afghan regime during the Doha and Istanbul talks held recently. He added that Islamabad shared Afghan identity cards and records of cross-border infiltration attempts. &ldquo;Our position is clear. Afghan soil must not be used against Pakistan,&rdquo; he stressed. &ldquo;Afghanistan needs a representative government. The people of Afghanistan are not terrorists,&rdquo; he said. The DG ISPR said that Islamabad&rsquo;s stance was well-received internationally, adding that &ldquo;Afghanistan&rsquo;s terrorism is now well internationalized, and the country has become an epicenter of terrorism.&rdquo; No negotiations with terroristsThe DG ISPR categorically ruled out any dialogue with terrorist outfits, saying: &ldquo;We will never talk to terrorists.&rdquo; He said the Afghan Taliban and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are &ldquo;closely linked,&rdquo; adding that the TTP itself claims to be a branch of the Afghan Taliban. He accused the Afghan authorities of providing human shields to terrorists and relocating them into civilian neighborhoods, which he termed &ldquo;criminal.&rdquo; &ldquo;If they are Pakistani, then hand them over to us. Why are Bashir Zeb (leader of the Baloch Nationalist Army), Noor Wali Mehsud, and Qari Amjad being protected? This must finish now,&rdquo; he warned.&nbsp;He clarified that Pakistan&rsquo;s dispute is not with the people of Afghanistan but with a non-representative regime patronizing terrorism and the narcotics trade. He also appreciated the constructive roles of Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye in promoting peace and dialogue. He said Pakistan remains open to verifiable and results-oriented mechanisms but will act decisively if terrorism persists. &ldquo;Our security is not to be guaranteed by Kabul. It is in our own hands. No appeasement policy with terrorists,&rdquo; he concluded. Gaza and regional peaceRegarding the Gaza International Stabilization Force, the DG ISPR said the decision lies with the Pakistan government and parliament, reiterating that national security and the protection of citizens remain the state&rsquo;s top priority.

Security

DG ISPR warns India planning deep-sea false-flag operation; Pakistan vows stronger response; reports counterterror successes; poppy cultivation funding militancy; rejects talks with terrorists; cites cross-border Taliban casualties and regional concerns


India planning false-flag operation in deep sea: spox Pakistan Army

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is hoping for a &ldquo;positive outcome&rdquo; in the next round of talks with the Afghan Taliban set for November 6, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said Friday, while calling on Kabul to honor its security commitments and prevent cross-border terrorism.&nbsp;Briefing reporters in Islamabad, Andrabi confirmed the conclusion of four-day discussions in Istanbul between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban, talks that were initially planned to last two days. He said Pakistan extended the negotiations &ldquo;in an effort to reach an amicable agreement.&rdquo;&nbsp;Responding to a Pakistan TV Digital question on the difference in tone between his remarks and those of Pakistan&rsquo;s defense minister, Andrabi said, &ldquo;It is our professional hazard to be optimistic.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;I would call it guarded optimism,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We have been engaged with the Taliban for four years.&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s difficult to be optimistic, but one must remain hopeful.&rdquo;&nbsp;A joint statement issued by T&uuml;rkiye and Qatar on Thursday noted that Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to a ceasefire mechanism along with a monitoring and verification framework intended to maintain peace and impose penalties for violations.&nbsp;Andrabi stressed that Pakistan had engaged &ldquo;positively&rdquo; without compromising its stance that Afghan soil must not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.&nbsp;He said Islamabad &ldquo;expects the Afghan Taliban regime to honor its commitments to the international community&rdquo; and take &ldquo;concrete and verifiable actions&rdquo; against terrorist groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), referred to by Pakistani officials as &ldquo;Fitna al-Khwarij,&rdquo; and militants linked to India, described as &ldquo;Fitna Al-Hindustan.&rdquo;&nbsp;He said Pakistan had repeatedly provided Kabul with credible intelligence on the presence of these groups inside Afghanistan, yet cross-border attacks had increased in recent months.&nbsp;The spokesperson referred to &ldquo;unprovoked aggression&rdquo; along the border in October, warning that Pakistan would respond &ldquo;resolutely&rdquo; if such provocations continued.&nbsp;Despite tensions, Andrabi said Pakistan remains committed to a stable relationship with its western neighbor, adding that Islamabad has supported Afghanistan through transit trade concessions, elevated diplomatic ties to ambassador level, and agreed to expand the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) into Afghanistan.&nbsp;Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, he noted, has visited Kabul three times this year, including to sign the Joint Feasibility Study for the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan railway project.&nbsp;&ldquo;The Government and armed forces of Pakistan stand ready to take all possible measures to protect Pakistan&rsquo;s sovereignty and ensure the safety and security of its people,&rdquo; Andrabi said, adding that Pakistan would continue to engage in mediation efforts.&nbsp;He thanked Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye for their &ldquo;constructive role.&rdquo;&nbsp;On GazaThe spokesperson said consultations on an international stabilization force for Gaza are ongoing among regional partners. Pakistan, he said, will continue working with Arab and Islamic countries to secure &ldquo;lasting peace&rdquo; and the Palestinians&rsquo; &ldquo;right to self-determination,&rdquo; while condemning renewed Israeli strikes as a &ldquo;flagrant&rdquo; violation of international law.&nbsp;On US sanctions waiver for India&nbsp;Regarding the US decision to allow India to operate Iran&rsquo;s Chabahar Port under a six-month sanctions waiver, Andrabi said Pakistan has &ldquo;taken note&rdquo; and &ldquo;welcomes any decision that leads to economic development in our brotherly country Iran,&rdquo; but cautioned that India must not &ldquo;abuse this opening to promote terrorism or subversion through adjacent borders.&rdquo;&nbsp;On US&ndash;India defense frameworkAndrabi described the recent US&ndash;India defense understanding as still under review, saying Islamabad is &ldquo;evaluating [it], particularly with reference to its impact on peace, security, and stability in South Asia,&rdquo; and would comment further at a later stage.&nbsp;Pakistan&ndash;EU migration dialogueThe spokesperson also discussed the third Pakistan&ndash;EU Migration and Mobility Dialogue held in Islamabad this week, in which both sides reviewed progress under the EU Readmission Agreement and Talent Partnership roadmap.&nbsp;He said both sides appreciated the &ldquo;growing level of cooperation&rdquo; and agreed to hold the next round in Brussels.

During a Foreign Office press briefing in Islamabad, Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi says Pakistan expects meaningful progress in upcoming talks with the Afghan Taliban, urging Kabul to fulfill counterterrorism commitments and prevent cross-border attacks.

Pakistan expresses ‘guarded optimism’ ahead of Nov. 6 Taliban talks

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will carry out military strikes inside Afghanistan to target militant hideouts if ongoing talks in Istanbul fail to produce written guarantees preventing cross‑border attacks, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told Pakistan TV Digital in a wide‑ranging interview on Thursday.&nbsp;&ldquo;If we do not receive any arrangement or any agreement or any assurance from the other side that there&rsquo;ll be no incursions into our territory sponsored by Kabul, then obviously the only option we are left with is that we&rsquo;ll cross into their territory and bomb the hideouts of [the Tehreek‑e‑Taliban Pakistan],&rdquo; the minister said.&nbsp;Asif said four days of negotiations in Istanbul ended without a conclusion because the Afghan delegation offered only &ldquo;verbal guarantees but refused to commit in writing.&rdquo; He described the Afghan stance as &ldquo;stubbornness&rdquo; and said Pakistan could not accept assurances that were not formalized.&nbsp;&ldquo;We did not reach anywhere on this particular demand,&rdquo; he said, adding that the earlier preliminary accord reached in Doha, which took 11 hours to draft, left implementation mechanisms to be decided in later talks. T&uuml;rkiye and Qatar acted as mediators in the process, and Pakistan has sought their backing and monitoring for any new arrangement.&nbsp;After the Istanbul talks nearly collapsed this week, Turkish mediators persuaded the Pakistani delegation to give the process another chance.&nbsp;&ldquo;My optimism will be very, very guarded,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I won&rsquo;t pin unnecessary hopes on what is going on in Istanbul.&rdquo;&nbsp;Kabul sheltering TTPReiterating Islamabad&rsquo;s long-standing concern, Asif says the TTP is &ldquo;based mainly in Afghanistan&rdquo; and receives support from elements within the Kabul regime. &ldquo;They deny it publicly, but admit it privately,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;Pakistan, he added, has repeatedly reported attacks on soldiers and checkposts that it says originate from Afghan soil.&nbsp;&lsquo;We will not be threatened&rsquo;&nbsp;Responding to reports in Taliban‑linked and Afghan media of possible attacks on Islamabad, the defense minister said he would &ldquo;not speculate&rdquo; but made clear Pakistan would not be intimidated. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t budge or get pressurized by their threats. We are ready to face anything,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;&ldquo;They&rsquo;ll pay a very heavy price for anything they are doing now or they intend to do in the future.&rdquo;&nbsp;Trade and smuggling concernsAsif highlighted the long‑term humanitarian burden Pakistan has borne, saying the country has hosted &ldquo;close to four million Afghan refugees&rdquo; for the past four to five decades. He said Afghanistan has shown &ldquo;absolutely no regard or respect for what Pakistan has done for Afghanistan over the decades.&rdquo;&nbsp;The minister also raised concerns about the misuse of transit‑trade facilities.&nbsp;&ldquo;This sort of facility is being misused for decades by Afghans and perhaps in collusion with some Pakistani businessmen,&rdquo; he said, adding trucks and containers bound for Kabul are often offloaded on Pakistani soil and diverted into local markets.&nbsp;On the economic impact of a breakdown in ties, Asif said Pakistan could &ldquo;survive&rdquo; without transit trade, but warned the loss would be more painful for land‑locked Afghanistan.&nbsp;He reiterated his support for enhanced regional connectivity, linking Central Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran, saying such ties could &ldquo;change the economic map of this particular region&rdquo; if Afghanistan embraces intra‑regional trade.&nbsp;Tri-service drills in IndiaTurning to wider regional tensions, Asif said Pakistan was monitoring Indian tri‑service exercises in the Sir Creek area near the Arabian Sea. While he called military drills &ldquo;routine,&rdquo; he warned that the current peace with India remains &ldquo;very tense&rdquo; and fragile.&nbsp;&ldquo;If there is some incursion or some provocation from the Indian side, it will be responded in kind and responded well,&rdquo; he said.

In a wide-ranging interview with Pakistan TV Digital, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif discusses Istanbul talks, trade with Afghanistan, and tri-service drills in India.

Pakistan warns of strikes unless Kabul provides written anti-TTP assurances

ISLAMABAD: Women parliamentarians are emerging as the driving force inside Pakistan&rsquo;s National Assembly, recording higher attendance and stronger participation than their male counterparts, according to a report by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).&nbsp;FAFEN reported that during the National Assembly&rsquo;s 19th session held from September 1 to 5, 2025, nearly 49% of the 71 women MNAs attended every sitting, compared to 29% of male members. The monitoring body also noted that women lawmakers demonstrated greater procedural discipline by consistently seeking formal leave when absent and maintaining presence during key proceedings.&nbsp;This trend aligns with FAFEN&rsquo;s Women Parliamentarians Performance Report 2024-25, released earlier this year, which found women, who make up only 17% of parliament&rsquo;s total strength, contributed nearly half of the total parliamentary agenda, including legislation, resolutions, questions, and committee work. In the National Assembly alone, women introduced 55% of all agenda items, marking a historic high since 2015-16.&nbsp;Speaking to Pakistan TV Digital, MNA Alia Kamran of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) said women legislators have been consistently outperforming in attendance.&nbsp;&ldquo;Women&rsquo;s attendance has long surpassed that of men,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp;Kamran explained that while male lawmakers often split time between Islamabad and their constituencies, many women, particularly those on reserved seats, are expected to remain present and actively engaged in parliamentary work.&nbsp;&ldquo;Women are contributing their full share to lawmaking. Real parliamentary work is legislation, not fund distribution,&rdquo; she added.&nbsp;Former provincial minister Sharmila Farooqui said the growing presence and performance of women is &ldquo;reshaping what leadership means in Pakistani politics.&rdquo;&nbsp;She noted that women are bringing dedication, preparation, and empathy to the legislative process. &ldquo;Women are showing that thoughtful, well-prepared participation can drive real progress,&rdquo; she said, adding that their consistency is inspiring younger women and signaling to political parties that women are essential decision-makers.&nbsp;Senator Seher Kamran highlighted that women&rsquo;s strong participation challenges traditional leadership structures.&nbsp;&ldquo;Women are demonstrating that effective leadership is not tied to gender, but to commitment and insight,&rdquo; she said, noting that inclusive decision-making is improving the quality of parliamentary debate.&nbsp;&nbsp;<p style='margin: 0.75rem 0px 0px; font-family: "Atlassian Sans", ui-sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Ubuntu, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; text-overflow: ellipsis; overflow-wrap: break-word; font-size: 0.875rem; line-height: 1.714; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: -0.005em; color: rgb(41, 42, 46); font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;'>

Pakistan Parliamentary Secretary for Federal Education and Professional Training Farah Naz Akbar speaks during a National Assembly session in Islamabad on February 14, 2025. (Photo courtesy: Facebook/NationalAssemblyOfPakistan/File)

Politics

In a report published by FAFEN, women parliamentarians show higher attendance and stronger legislative contributions than men, driving over half of the National Assembly’s agenda and reshaping leadership norms toward a more inclusive and effective parliament

Pakistani women lawmakers lead attendance, drive stronger parliamentary performance

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will &ldquo;push deep into their territory in retaliation&rdquo; if evidence shows attacks are being staged from Afghan soil, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told Pakistan TV Digital late Wednesday, a day after talks in Istanbul with Afghan delegates ended without an agreement. &ldquo;We will hunt them down. Very simple. If we have to cross the border, we will do that,&rdquo; Asif said, warning that Islamabad was prepared to follow up incursions with both air strikes and ground operations. &ldquo;Whether we have to carry out air strikes or use ground forces, as before, we&rsquo;ve done air strikes, and we&rsquo;ll do them again.&rdquo; &lsquo;Always be a response&rsquo;&nbsp;Asif stressed that any Pakistani action would be conditional. &ldquo;If in the coming days they don&rsquo;t send new formations and cross-border terrorism doesn&rsquo;t occur, then we will not do anything,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It will always be a response, not an initiative; it will be a reaction to something committed by the Afghans.&rdquo; His remarks come amid a surge in militant attacks inside Pakistan that prompted the two warring sides to meet in Doha on October 19, leading to a 48-hour ceasefire after days of heavy cross-border clashes. Talks ongoingDelegations from Islamabad and Kabul later also met in Istanbul from October 25 to 29, where Pakistan sought a &ldquo;concrete and verifiable monitoring mechanism&rdquo; to prevent Afghan soil from being used to stage attacks on Pakistani forces and civilians. Officials said the Istanbul round, mediated by Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye, failed to produce a binding enforcement arrangement after Afghan representatives declined to accept that it would take verifiable measures against groups Islamabad blames for the violence. Negotiators exchanged near-final drafts, but according to Pakistani sources, the Afghan side repeatedly deferred to Kabul and would not sign off on mechanisms Pakistan described as necessary to guarantee the ceasefire. According to well-placed sources, Pakistan on Thursday agreed to extend the Istanbul dialogue process at T&uuml;rkiye&#39;s request. Sources said that the decision to resume the dialogue process was based on giving peace another chance. Talks are to begin at 2pm Pakistan standard time.&nbsp;Banned groups responsible for attacksIslamabad points to factions linked to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and other local networks as responsible for recent assaults on security posts and convoys.&nbsp; Pakistan security officials say precision strikes and targeted operations have degraded some militant leadership, but they argue that cross-border sanctuaries remain the core problem. Asif framed Pakistan&rsquo;s posture as one of last resort: Willing to keep pressing for diplomacy and to exercise restraint, but ready to use force again if attacks from across the frontier resume.

Pakistan on Thursday agreed to extend the Istanbul dialogue process at Türkiye's request; decision to resume dialogue process was based on giving peace another chance; talks are to begin at 2pm Pakistan standard time.

Pakistan will retaliate if Afghan-based militants continue attacks: defense minister

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani delegation in Istanbul has presented its final position to the Afghan Taliban, emphasizing that continued patronage of terrorists is unacceptable, security sources said on Sunday. &ldquo;The ongoing support and shelter for terrorists by the Taliban is not acceptable,&rdquo; a senior Pakistani security official said. &ldquo;Concrete and verifiable steps will have to be taken by the Taliban regime to eliminate cross-border terrorism from and inside Afghanistan.&rdquo; Security sources said the demands presented by Pakistan were clear, evidence-based, and formulated to address the core issue directly. They added that Pakistan conveyed there would be no compromise on its central security concerns. According to the sources, the Pakistani side provided intelligence showing the presence and operations of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) inside Afghanistan, including safe havens and leadership protection. &ldquo;The Taliban were urged to take decisive action against these groups and end the provision of safe havens,&rdquo; a security source stated. However, the sources said the Afghan Taliban&rsquo;s arguments were &ldquo;illogical and contrary to observable ground realities,&rdquo; raising questions about their approach. &ldquo;It seems that the Taliban are following someone else&rsquo;s agenda,&rdquo; a security official said. &ldquo;This agenda is not in the interest of Afghanistan, Pakistan, or the broader region.&rdquo; Security sources also indicated that the Taliban delegation&rsquo;s &ldquo;stubbornness, lack of seriousness, and non-cooperation&rdquo; had become clear to all parties involved, including the host country. The host government is continuing to make efforts to ensure the Afghan side understands the evidence and engages responsibly. &ldquo;Further progress depends on the Taliban adopting a positive and constructive attitude,&rdquo; the sources noted. The current talks in Istanbul follow a meeting held in Doha last week, where both sides agreed to a ceasefire after several days of cross-border clashes. According to intelligence sources, the Istanbul discussions lasted about nine hours and sought to move toward a verifiable mechanism to prevent militant movement, reaffirm mutual respect for territorial sovereignty, and address related matters involving trade, refugee repatriation, and the separation of bilateral issues from internal political pressures. The talks are taking place amid a recent surge in militant incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including attacks in Central Kurram and Dera Ismail Khan, in which at least 28 Pakistani security personnel, including senior officers, were martyred. In response, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif announced that Pakistan would send a delegation to Kabul, citing what he described as &ldquo;unbearable&rdquo; security conditions. The Istanbul round forms part of a wider effort led by Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye to preserve the ceasefire and reduce tensions along the Pakistan&ndash;Afghanistan frontier. The process follows a temporary 48-hour truce declared on October 15 and extended during the Doha talks. Security sources stressed that the responsibility for meaningful progress now lies with the Afghan Taliban. &ldquo;What happens next will determine the stability of the region,&rdquo; a senior Pakistani official said.

Security sources say Taliban’s arguments in Istanbul talks are illogical, contrary to ground realities, and suggest Kabul may be pursuing an agenda not aligned with regional stability. Further progress depends on Taliban’s positive engagement, officials add.

Istanbul talks: Pakistan demands concrete Taliban action to stop cross-border terrorism

ISLAMABAD: The second round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban has not yet concluded, with deliberations on Pakistan&rsquo;s proposal still underway in Istanbul, intelligence sources told Pakistan TV Digital late Saturday.&nbsp;According to the sources, the discussions spanned approximately nine hours.&nbsp;The latest engagement follows the Doha round held last week, where both sides agreed to a ceasefire after days of cross-border clashes. The Istanbul discussions are aimed at moving toward a verifiable framework to prevent further escalation and ensure stability along the Pakistan&ndash;Afghanistan border.&nbsp;Three-point agenda under reviewSources said the talks in Istanbul focused on a three-point agenda: establishing a joint monitoring and oversight mechanism to curb cross-border militant movement; ensuring respect for national sovereignty under existing laws and international obligations; and addressing trade matters, refugee repatriation, and the separation of bilateral issues from internal political pressures.&nbsp;Possibility of longer-term understandingOfficials confirmed that both sides also discussed the prospect of a longer-term political understanding.&nbsp;Pakistan&rsquo;s Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi had earlier described the Doha engagement as a &ldquo;positive marker.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;There has been no major full-scale terrorist attack emanating from Afghan soil in the last two to three days,&rdquo; he said on Friday. &ldquo;We would like the trend to continue in Istanbul and post-Istanbul.&rdquo;&nbsp;On the Afghan side, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid stated on X that Deputy Interior Minister Haji Najib is leading Kabul&rsquo;s delegation, noting that &ldquo;the remaining issues will be discussed at this meeting.&rdquo;&nbsp;Islamabad&rsquo;s core objectiveAndrabi reiterated that Pakistan&rsquo;s central aim is to halt attacks originating from Afghan territory, adding that the ceasefire &ldquo;by and large still stands.&rdquo;&nbsp;Officials in Islamabad said the decision to re-engage in dialogue was made at Kabul&rsquo;s request and through mutual understanding to reduce tensions, emphasizing that sustained engagement is important for regional stability.&nbsp;Background to the talksThe latest engagement follows a surge in militant incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including attacks in Central Kurram and Dera Ismail Khan, in which at least 28 Pakistani security personnel, including senior officers, were martyred. In response to the deteriorating situation, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif announced that Islamabad would dispatch a delegation to Kabul, citing what he described as &ldquo;unbearable&rdquo; security conditions. Shortly afterward, explosions were reported in Kabul, which Taliban officials linked to Pakistan, a claim Islamabad did not immediately address. On October 11, heavy clashes then broke out at several points along the 2,604-kilometre border. The Afghan side&rsquo;s 201st Khalid bin Walid Army Corps said its actions came in response to Pakistan&rsquo;s earlier strikes, while Pakistan also engaged multiple Afghan positions and temporarily closed the Spin Boldak crossing. A 48-hour temporary truce was put in place on October 15 and was subsequently extended through the Doha talks held last week with the facilitation of Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye. According to Qatar, both sides agreed to maintain an immediate ceasefire and continue follow-up engagements to support its implementation.

With discussions spanning nine hours, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban have yet to conclude talks in Istanbul, where deliberations on Pakistan’s proposal continue following last week’s Doha ceasefire

Istanbul talks ‘not concluded’ as deliberation on Pakistan proposal ongoing

ISLAMABAD: The second round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban has formally begun in Istanbul, T&uuml;rkiye, official sources confirmed on Saturday. The latest engagement follows the first round of discussions in Doha, where both sides agreed to a ceasefire after days of cross-border clashes. According to sources who spoke with Pakistan TV Digital, the Istanbul discussions are centered on a three-point agenda: establishing a joint monitoring and oversight mechanism to curb cross-border militant movements; ensuring respect for national sovereignty under existing laws and international obligations; and addressing issues related to trade flows, refugee repatriation, and the separation of bilateral matters from domestic politics. Exploring long-term political understandingOfficials also noted that both sides are exploring the possibility of reaching a longer-term political understanding. Pakistan&rsquo;s Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi speaking at a weekly briefing on Friday, called the Doha engagement a &ldquo;positive marker.&rdquo; &ldquo;There has been no major full-scale terrorist attack emanating from Afghan soil in the last two to three days,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We would like the trend to continue in Istanbul and post-Istanbul.&rdquo; On the Afghan side, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid earlier confirmed on X that Deputy Interior Minister Haji Najib is leading Kabul&rsquo;s delegation, noting that &ldquo;the remaining issues will be discussed at this meeting.&rdquo; Islamabad&rsquo;s primary expectationAndrabi reiterated that Pakistan&rsquo;s central objective is to stop attacks originating from Afghan territory, adding that the ceasefire &ldquo;by and large still stands.&rdquo; Pakistan has faced a renewed surge in militancy in its western border regions since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Clashes escalated earlier this month when Afghan forces targeted Pakistani posts while Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was on an official visit to India. Officials in Islamabad say the decision to re-enter dialogue was made at Kabul&rsquo;s request and through mutual understanding to pursue de-escalation. Pakistan maintains that continued engagement is vital for regional peace and stability. Prelude to Istanbul talksThe talks come after a series of deadly militant attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including incidents in Central Kurram and Dera Ismail Khan that claimed the lives of at least 28 Pakistani security personnel, among them senior officers. Following the attacks, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said Pakistan would send a delegation to Afghanistan due to &ldquo;unbearable&rdquo; security concerns. Hours later, explosions were reported in Kabul, which the Taliban blamed on Islamabad. Pakistan did not immediately comment. Subsequently, Pakistan conducted aerial strikes in Paktika&rsquo;s Birmal district, which the military described as targeting militant hideouts. The next day, on October 11, clashes erupted along multiple points of the 2,604-kilometer border. Afghanistan&#39;s 201st Khalid bin Walid Army Corps claimed the attacks were in response to Pakistan&rsquo;s earlier strikes. Pakistan countered by targeting several Afghan bases and also temporarily closed the Spin Boldak crossing. A temporary 48-hour ceasefire was reached on October 15 and later extended until the Doha round of talks, which took place last week with Qatar and T&uuml;rkiye mediating. Qatar&rsquo;s Foreign Ministry stated that both sides agreed to an immediate ceasefire and committed to further follow-up meetings to ensure implementation and stability.

Focus on establishing a verifiable monitoring mechanism, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban resume talks in Istanbul after a Doha-brokered ceasefire, following deadly cross-border clashes and strikes on militant hideouts along the Pak-Afghan frontier

Pakistan, Afghan Taliban in second round of talks in Istanbul: sources

HANGZHOU: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz ended his two-day visit to China on Thursday in the tech hub of Hangzhou, identifying &quot;challenges that we must overcome together&quot; after meeting President Xi Jinping and announcing an Airbus deal. Merz&#39;s first official visit to China came as Berlin and Beijing seek to build on decades-old economic ties to weather global uncertainty sparked by US President Donald Trump&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-announces-hike-in-us-global-tariff-rate-from-10-to-15" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">tariff blitz</a>&nbsp;and erratic foreign policies. China, the world&#39;s number two economy, overtook the United States last year to become Germany&#39;s biggest trade partner. At the same time, Berlin regards the Asian country as a systemic rival to the West. The German leader was accompanied in China by a large delegation of business leaders, including executives of auto giants Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes. Merz visited a Mercedes plant in Beijing on Thursday morning, where he was shown a demonstration of self-driving vehicles. He then travelled to Hangzhou, where he visited the sites of Germany&#39;s Siemens Energy and Chinese&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/japan-introduces-ai-robot-monk-to-the-public" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">humanoid robot</a>-maker Unitree. The eastern city is home to several other major Chinese tech companies like AI unicorn&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/inside-chinas-buzzing-ai-scene-year-after-deepseek-shock" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">DeepSeek</a>&nbsp;and e-commerce giant Alibaba. European business leaders, who broadly complain China is flooding the EU market with cheap goods, have urged Merz to keep a cavernous trade imbalance at the top of his agenda. Germany&#39;s trade deficit with China hit a record $105 billion last year. &quot;We have good cooperation in China. However, there are also some challenges that we must overcome together,&quot; Merz said Thursday, singling out &quot;issues relating to competition&quot; and &quot;high capacity in China&quot;. Merz said consultations between his government and Beijing &ndash; interrupted by political developments in Berlin and the pandemic &ndash; would take place &quot;at the beginning of next year at the latest, possibly even this year&quot;, with China as host. &#39;New levels&#39; Following talks with Xi and top Chinese leaders in the capital on Wednesday, Merz said that China had agreed to purchase up to 120 Airbus aircraft, adding that it &quot;demonstrates how worthwhile such trips can be&quot;. Other contracts were in the pipeline, Merz added. The two leaders stressed their commitment to developing closer strategic relations, with Xi telling Merz he was willing to take relations to &quot;new levels&quot;. Merz said he had also touched on the sensitive topic of Taiwan, the self-ruled island China claims as its territory and which it has not ruled out the use of force to annex. Any &quot;reunification&quot; must be done peacefully, Merz said. He also discussed the Ukraine war with Xi, who, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, said diplomacy was &quot;key to the issue&quot;. Merz said he urged Beijing to use its influence over Moscow, such as choking off the supply of items with potential military uses. &quot;I hope that in my talks I was able to foster a little understanding for the fact that the leadership of this country should also contribute to ending the war in Ukraine,&quot; Merz told reporters on Thursday before departing for Berlin. Merz was the latest in a string of Western leaders to court Beijing recently. He follows Britain&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/britains-starmer-hails-good-progress-after-meeting-chinas-xi" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Keir Starmer</a>, France&#39;s Emmanuel Macron and Canada&#39;s Mark Carney, as they recoil from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-announces-hike-in-us-global-tariff-rate-from-10-to-15" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">mercurial policies</a>&nbsp;of Trump, who is also expected to visit from March 31.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz gives a statement at Siemens Energy plant in Hangzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province on February 26, 2026. (AFP)

Europe

Asia

Merz's first official visit to China comes as Berlin and Beijing seek to build on decades-old economic ties to weather global uncertainty sparked by US President Donald Trump's tariff blitz and erratic foreign policies.

Merz says Germany, China must overcome trade gaps 'together'

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan&rsquo;s Federal Minister for Interior and Narcotics Control, Mohsin Naqvi, announced that Pakistan, Italy, Spain, and Greece have agreed on a coordinated strategy to fight illegal migration, human smuggling, and drug trafficking, including a joint policy framework and a rapid-response mechanism. Naqvi, in a post on X on Thursday, wrote that he had a productive meeting in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-security-agencies-seize-over-135-million-in-nationwide-antismuggling-operations" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Rome</a>&nbsp;with his counterparts from Italy, Spain, and Greece at the 4-nation&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-navy-ship-seizes-drugs-worth-nearly-1-bn-in-arabian-sea" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">conference</a>&nbsp;on curbing illegal migration. <div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2026935215914975708&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=359767f66ae58c6eb6812d51c17a3cb8284785ef&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 652px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>&ldquo;Pakistan, Italy, Spain &amp; Greece agreed on a coordinated strategy against&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-customs-seizes-266000-worth-of-smuggled-goods-near-afghan-border" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">illegal migration</a>, human smuggling and narcotics, including a joint policy framework and rapid-response mechanism.&rdquo; &ldquo;European partners appreciated Pakistan&rsquo;s strong actions, noting a 47% reduction in illegal migration, and agreed on enhanced EU-supported capacity building,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;Consensus also reached on promoting legal pathways to effectively counter illegal migration, repatriation of criminals to face the law, and holding the next meeting in Pakistan later this year,&rdquo; he said.

Pakistani interior minister says ‘European partners appreciated Pakistan’s strong actions, noting a 47% reduction in illegal migration, and agreed on enhanced EU-supported capacity building.’

Pakistani, European ministers agree on coordinated strategy to combat illegal migration

PARIS: The United Nations announced Thursday the approval of the first carbon credits under a global market aimed at reducing emissions, a mechanism that has faced scrutiny over greenwashing concerns. The UN-run market, established under the Paris climate accord, allows companies and countries to offset their excess emissions by financing projects that cut greenhouse gases in other nations. Critics fear that if set up poorly, such schemes can undermine the world&#39;s efforts to curb global warming by allowing countries or companies to greenwash &mdash; or overstate &mdash; their emissions reductions. The first credits issued under the new carbon market involve a project in Myanmar that distributes efficient wood-burning cook stoves that reduce harmful household air pollution and ease pressure on local forests, the UN&#39;s climate agency said. Implemented in partnership with a South Korean company, the project will generate credits that will count towards the climate targets of South Korea and Myanmar. The UN climate agency said the credited emissions reductions are 40%&nbsp;lower than under a previous scheme as more conservative calculations are applied under the new Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM). &quot;Our focus is on building confidence in this market from the outset, and this first issuance shows that the system is working as intended,&quot; Jacqui Ruesga, vice chair of the UN body supervising the PACM, said in a statement. More than two billion people around the world cook using open fires or inefficient stoves fueled by kerosene, coal or biomass such as wood, crop waste or dung, according to the World Health Organization. The resulting air pollution kills millions of people each year. The stoves in the Myanmar project burn woody biomass more efficiently, meaning it needs less fuel and spews far less smoke inside the home. But at current rates, only 78% of the population is expected to have access to clean cooking by 2030, the WHO said. &quot;Clean cooking protects health, saves forests, cuts emissions and helps empower women and girls, who are typically hardest hit by household air pollution,&quot; UN climate chief Simon Stiell said. &quot;The opportunities presented by this UN carbon market across all regions are vast, particularly now that strong environmental safeguards, robust standards, and a clear system for redress are in place to ensure integrity, inclusiveness and efficiency,&quot; he said. The 2015 Paris Agreement, which commits the world to limiting warming to well below 2C and ideally at 1.5C, also envisaged that countries could take part in cross-border trade of carbon reductions. New rules were agreed at the UN&#39;s COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan in 2024 for the carbon market mechanism. At the time, Greenpeace said the agreement left loopholes that would allow fossil fuel companies to continue polluting. But other environmentalists said that, while not perfect, it provided some clarity that was absent from global efforts to regulate carbon credits.

Smoke Stacks. (Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Color Photographs.)

Climate

The UN-run market, established under the Paris climate accord, allows companies and countries to offset their excess emissions by financing projects that cut greenhouse gases in other nations.

UN approves first carbon credits under Paris Agreement

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will outline its stance on Israel&rsquo;s recent move to annex parts of the occupied West Bank at an upcoming ministerial meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), according to Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi on Thursday. Speaking at a weekly press briefing, Andrabi said that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will represent Pakistan at the OIC&#39;s Open-Ended Extraordinary Ministerial Session, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 26-28. The meeting &ldquo;has been convened to consider the illegal decision by the Israeli occupation authorities aimed at expanding settlements, pursuing annexation, and attempting to impose Israel&#39;s sovereignty over the occupied West Bank,&rdquo; the spokesperson said. Dar will present Pakistan&rsquo;s case during the session. <div class="fr-embed"><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D1374272581405477%26set%3Da.251429287023151%26type%3D3&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="748" style="border:none;overflow:hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div> In a Facebook post, the Foreign Office said Dar will &ldquo;hold sideline meetings with counterparts from OIC&rdquo; member states. Andrabi said Israel&rsquo;s measures in the occupied West Bank have drawn condemnation from the OIC and other Muslim states, as well as &ldquo;European and other world countries,&rdquo; including Brazil, France, Denmark, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. &ldquo;In this statement, we described these changes as wide-ranging and amounting to reclassifying Palestinian land as so-called Israel state land, accelerating illegal settlement activity, and further entrenching Israeli administration,&rdquo; he said. Restating Pakistan&rsquo;s long-standing position on Israel&rsquo;s occupation of Palestinian lands, Andrabi said the country issued &ldquo;a joint statement&rdquo; with &ldquo;eight other countries&rdquo; condemning a statement by the US ambassador to Israel suggesting it would be acceptable for Israel to exercise control over territories belonging to Arab states. He said Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, along with the OIC Secretariat and the League of Arab States, &ldquo;strongly condemned&rdquo; the remarks. The US envoy&rsquo;s comment was &ldquo;dangerous, inflammatory, and clear violation of international law and the UN Charter,&rdquo; Andrabi said. He added that it threatened regional security and stability. Separately, Andrabi addressed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif&rsquo;s recent state visit to Qatar at the invitation of the emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. PM Sharif met the Qatari emir and discussed enhancing cooperation in several areas, including economic ties. Both sides agreed on resolving international disputes peacefully through &ldquo;dialogue&rdquo; and &ldquo;diplomacy.&rdquo; Sheikh Tamim will &ldquo;visit Pakistan later this year,&rdquo; he added. During the visit, PM Sharif also met Qatar&rsquo;s defense minister, Sheikh Saud Al Thani, who expressed interest in expanding defense cooperation between the two countries and &ldquo;appreciated the professionalism and expertise of Pakistan&#39;s armed forces.&rdquo;

Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi speaking at a weekly press briefing in Islamabad, on February 26, 2026. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs/X)

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will represent Pakistan at the Open-Ended Extraordinary Ministerial Session of the OIC.

Pakistan to raise concerns over Israel actions in West Bank at OIC Ministerial: Foreign Office

ISLAMABAD: The Bangladesh government will pilot the distribution of 500,000 Krishak Smart Cards to farmers in 15 upazilas (sub-districts) within 180 days as part of a 2023-28 development program.&nbsp; If successful, the initiative will expand nationwide,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-signals-push-to-revitalize-saarc" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bangladeshi</a> media reported on Thursday. The program aims to register 22.7 million&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/govt-aims-to-launch-family-card-scheme-before-eid-bangladeshi-relief-minister" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">farmers</a> nationwide by 2028.&nbsp;Digital card system&nbsp;A meeting chaired by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/bangladesh-vows-to-reform-policies-attract-foreign-investment-in-jute-sector" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Prime Minister Tarique Rahman</a> in Dhaka on Monday directed authorities to roll out the digital card system as part of a technology-driven support framework for farmers. Abul Kalam Azad, coordinator of the PARTNER programme, said the Food and Agriculture Organization is collecting data to prepare the beneficiary list.&nbsp; Once the FAO submits the data and the feasibility study is complete, the Department of Agricultural Extension will finalize the beneficiary list and select the upazilas.&nbsp;Financial, logistical incentives&nbsp;The card will initially register 500,000 farmers, including landless peasants, small and medium farmers, lessees, and landowners.&nbsp; Cardholders will be able to access financial and logistical incentives, agricultural advisories, weather information and other services. If the pilot proves successful, nationwide registration will follow.&nbsp; The PARTNER project, launched in 2023, has a total budget of $1.343 billion, funded by the World Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and the Bangladesh government.

Bangladesh

The program aims to register 22.7 million farmers across the country by 2028; a meeting chaired by PM Rahman in Dhaka directed authorities to roll out the digital card system for farmers. Cardholders will be able to access financial and logistical incentives, agricultural advisories, weather information and other services.

Bangladesh to distribute 500,000 farmer cards in 180 days

<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: source-sans-pro, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 600; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: capitalize; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; display: inline !important; float: none;" id="isPasted">GENEVA: Iran and the United States began indirect talks in Switzerland on Thursday, a last-ditch bid to avert war following the biggest American military build-up in the Middle East in decades. The Oman-mediated discussions follow repeated threats from Donald Trump to strike Iran, with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-presses-missile-issue-as-new-iran-talks-to-open-in-geneva" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">US president</a>&nbsp;last Thursday giving Tehran 15 days to reach a deal. The US and Iranian delegations arrived at the venue at the Omani ambassador&#39;s residence amid tight security, following a protest by Iranian exiles at their talks last week who threw objects at the Iranian motorcade. Oman&#39;s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi later confirmed that discussions had begun, saying the two sides had expressed &quot;unprecedented openness to new and creative ideas and solutions&quot;. Iran&#39;s president insisted ahead of the talks that the Islamic republic was not &quot;at all&quot; seeking a nuclear weapon. &quot;Our Supreme Leader has already stated that we will not have nuclear weapons at all,&quot; President Masoud Pezeshkian said, in a reference to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. United Nations nuclear chief Rafael Grossi would likely also attend the discussions in Geneva, Iran&#39;s foreign ministry spokesman said. While Iran has insisted the talks focus solely on its nuclear program, the US wants Tehran&#39;s missile program and its &#39;support&#39; for groups in the region curtailed. As part of the dramatic US build-up, the USS Gerald R Ford, the world&#39;s largest aircraft carrier, sent to the Mediterranean this week, left a naval base in Crete on Thursday, an AFP photographer said. The developments follow massive protests in Iran. &#39;Sinister nuclear ambitions&#39;&nbsp;In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump accused Iran of &quot;pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions&quot;, though Tehran has always insisted its program is for civilian purposes. Trump also claimed Tehran had &quot;already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they&#39;re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America&quot;. The Iranian foreign ministry called these claims &quot;big lies&quot;. The maximum range of Iran&#39;s missiles is 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) according to what Tehran has publicly disclosed. However, the US Congressional Research Service estimates they top out at about 3,000 kilometers -- less than a third of the distance to the continental United States. Trump&#39;s State of the Union accusations in Congress were delivered in the same forum in which then-president George W Bush laid out the case for the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Ahead of Thursday&#39;s talks, Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Iran must also negotiate on its missile program, calling Tehran&#39;s refusal to discuss ballistic weapons &quot;a big, big problem.&quot; He followed up by saying, &quot;The president wants diplomatic solutions&quot;. But US Vice President JD Vance told Iran to take Trump&#39;s threats &quot;seriously,&quot; saying the US president had a &quot;right&quot; to use military action. &quot;You can&#39;t let the craziest and worst regime in the world have nuclear weapons,&quot; Vance told &quot;America&#39;s Newsroom&quot; on Fox News. &#39;A historic opportunity&#39;&nbsp;Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is leading the Iranian delegation at the talks, had called them &quot;a historic opportunity,&quot; adding that a deal was &quot;within reach.&quot; The US will be represented by envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is married to Trump&#39;s daughter Ivanka. The two countries held talks earlier this month in Oman, then gathered for a second round in Geneva last week. A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran last June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. In Jan., Tehran launched a mass crackdown on nationwide protests. Protests have since resumed around Iranian universities.

Middle East

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterates that Tehran is not seeking nuclear weapons in line with the policy set by the country’s Supreme Leader; on Feb. 19, Trump said Iran had 15 days to make a deal.

Iran-US talks begin in push to avert war

ISLAMABAD: The US has levied a preliminary countervailing duty (CVD) of 126% on specific Indian solar products, citing unfair subsidies, according to an Indian media report.&nbsp;This move is expected to disrupt the growing momentum of solar exports from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/global-ai-summit-in-india-still-without-final-statement" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">India&nbsp;</a>to the US and raise concerns about increasing domestic competition and regulatory uncertainty. On Feb. 24, the US Department of Commerce announced its preliminary affirmative determination in investigations into imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/potholes-killed-over-9400-from-2020-to-2024-in-india" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">India</a>.&nbsp; The investigation also includes parallel anti-dumping probes into solar cells from these countries.&nbsp;&nbsp;Final determination&nbsp;A final determination in the countervailing duty investigations is scheduled for July 6. The new duties come at a time when the US already imposed a 10% across-the-board tariff under the Trump administration, further complicating trade relations. Despite the steep tariff, many leading Indian solar manufacturers have downplayed the immediate impact.&nbsp;&nbsp;Impact on market dynamics&nbsp;However, analysts warn that the duties could disrupt trade flows, put downward pressure on domestic prices, and affect overall profitability.&nbsp; Rating agency Icra highlighted that increased regulatory uncertainty could dampen export volumes, which stood at 3 GW in 2025.&nbsp;&nbsp;Solar stocks&nbsp;Crisil Intelligence added that Indian modules could become at least 30% more expensive than US-made ones, potentially impacting market dynamics. Following the announcement, solar stocks in India dropped sharply, with Waaree Energies falling 10.47%, Premier Energies 6.27%, and Vikram Solar 5.45%, the Indian media report said.

India

On Feb. 24, the US Department of Commerce announced its preliminary affirmative determination in investigations into imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells from India; final determination in countervailing duty investigations is scheduled for July 6.

US imposes 126% duty on Indian solar exports, raising trade concerns

HAVANA: Cuba said Wednesday it thwarted an attempted armed infiltration from the United States, after its coast guard opened fire on a Florida-registered speedboat near the island&rsquo;s northern coast, killing four people and wounding six. In a statement, Cuba&rsquo;s Interior Ministry said the vessel was intercepted about one nautical mile from Cayo Falcones island. As Cuban authorities approached, &ldquo;shots were fired from the illegal speedboat,&rdquo; injuring the commander of the Cuban patrol craft. &ldquo;As a result of the clash, at the time of this report, on the foreign side, four aggressors were killed and six others were wounded,&rdquo; the ministry said, adding that the injured were evacuated and provided medical assistance. The ministry said assault rifles, handguns, Molotov cocktails and other military-style equipment were recovered from the vessel, registered in Florida under the number FL7726SH. The 10 occupants were identified as Cubans living in the United States. Those arrested after the exchange of gunfire claimed they &ldquo;intended to carry out an infiltration for the purposes of terrorism,&rdquo; according to Cuban authorities. In a subsequent statement, the ministry released the names of seven of the individuals and said most had prior records in Cuba for &ldquo;criminal and violent activity.&rdquo; &nbsp;A man allegedly sent from the United States to participate in the operation was arrested on Cuban soil and confessed, it added. The incident marks a fresh source of tension between Havana and Washington. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States was seeking its own account of events and would &ldquo;respond accordingly.&rdquo; &ldquo;We&rsquo;re not going to base our conclusions on what they&rsquo;ve (Cuba) told us, and I&rsquo;m very, very confident that we will know the full story of what happened here,&rdquo; Rubio told reporters during a visit to St. Kitts and Nevis. &ldquo;As we gather more information, then we&rsquo;ll be prepared to respond accordingly.&rdquo; Florida&rsquo;s attorney general ordered an investigation into the killings. The state lies just 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Cuba across the Florida Straits and has long been a focal point for Cuban migration. Cuban authorities frequently report incursions by speedboats from the United States into their territorial waters. Such incidents are often linked to people-smuggling or drug trafficking and have at times involved chases and armed confrontations with border guards. The shootings come amid broader strains between the two countries. President Donald Trump in January imposed a sweeping oil blockade on Cuba following the US ouster of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, a key ally of Havana. Before Maduro&rsquo;s removal on Jan. 3, Cuba relied on Venezuela for roughly half of its fuel needs. Facing pressure from Caribbean leaders concerned that severe fuel shortages could destabilize the island&rsquo;s economy, Washington later said it would allow limited shipments of Venezuelan oil for &ldquo;commercial and humanitarian use,&rdquo; provided they went through private entities rather than the Cuban government or military-controlled businesses. Cuba&rsquo;s economy, already weakened by decades of US trade restrictions dating back to the 1959 revolution led by Fidel Castro, has been pushed to the brink in recent months. Chronic shortages of food and medicine and daily blackouts have fueled an exodus of Cubans, many heading to southern Florida. Mexico this week dispatched two military vessels carrying nearly 2,200 tons of aid to the island, its second shipment in under a month, while Canada announced Can$8 million ($5.8 million) in additional assistance on Wednesday.

Cuban coast guard ships docked at the port of Havana on February 25, 2026.(AFP)

Americas

Cuba says it killed four and wounded six people aboard a Florida-registered speedboat, describing it as armed and planning a terrorist infiltration after an exchange of gunfire near its northern coast, escalating tensions with the United States.

Cuba kills four on US-registered speedboat trying to 'infiltrate'

KYIV: US President Donald Trump spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of a fresh round of talks Thursday aimed at ending Russia&#39;s invasion, both sides said on Wednesday. A White House official gave AFP no further details about the call, which came a day before Ukrainian and US envoys were to meet, and ahead of new trilateral talks with Russia expected in early March. But Zelensky wrote on social media that he had spoken with Trump, and that his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were on the call. &quot;Our teams work intensively and I thanked them for all their work and for their active involvement in the negotiations and the efforts to end the war,&quot; he added. According to Ukrainian presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn, the conversation &quot;lasted about 30 minutes.&quot; Ukraine&#39;s lead negotiator Rustem Umerov will meet Witkoff and Kushner in Geneva on Thursday, Kyiv announced. Russian state news agency Tass later said that the Kremlin&#39;s economic affairs envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, also plans to be in the city. &quot;Dmitriev plans to arrive in Geneva on Thursday to pursue negotiations with the Americans on economic issues,&quot; it cited an unnamed source as saying. The meetings are the latest round of negotiations spearheaded by Trump that so far have failed to make meaningful progress on ending Europe&#39;s deadliest conflict since World War II. Washington is pushing to bring an end to the war triggered by Russia&#39;s full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago, which has left hundreds of thousands of dead and destroyed swathes of territory, particularly in eastern and southern Ukraine. Preparatory talks&nbsp;Zelensky said his call with Trump &quot;discussed the issues that our representatives will address tomorrow in Geneva during the bilateral meeting, as well as preparations for the next meeting of the full negotiating teams in a trilateral format at the very beginning of March.&quot; &quot;We expect this meeting to create an opportunity to move talks to the leaders&#39; level. President Trump supports this sequence of steps. This is the only way to resolve all the complex and sensitive issues and finally end the war,&quot; he added. The Ukrainian leader has already said that a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, should take place to resolve the most difficult issues in the talks. The talks, based on an American plan unveiled at the end of last year, are deadlocked primarily on the fate of the Donbas, the industrial region in eastern Ukraine that has been the epicenter of the fighting. Russia is pushing for full control of Ukraine&#39;s eastern Donetsk region, and has threatened to take it by force if Kyiv does not cave at the negotiating table. But Ukraine has rejected the demand and signaled it would not sign a deal without security guarantees that deter Russia from invading again.

Ukraine's lead negotiator Rustem Umerov will meet Witkoff and Kushner in Geneva on Thursday; Russian state news agency says Kremlin's economic affairs envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, also plans to be in the city.

Trump, Zelensky speak before Ukraine-US talks in Geneva

GENEVA: The United States and Iran are set to hold indirect talks in Switzerland on Thursday, aiming to strike a deal to avert a fresh conflict and end weeks of threats. The new round of negotiations in Geneva comes after the US carried out a massive military build-up in the region and President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if a deal is not reached. In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump accused Iran of &quot;pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions.&quot; He also claimed Tehran had &quot;already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they&#39;re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America.&quot; The Iranian foreign ministry called these claims &quot;big lies.&quot; The maximum range of Iran&#39;s missiles is 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) according to what Tehran has publicly disclosed. However, the US Congressional Research Service estimates they top out at about 3,000 kilometers &mdash; less than a third of the distance to the continental United States. The dispute between the countries mostly revolves around Iran&#39;s nuclear program, which the West believes is aimed at building an atomic bomb but Tehran insists is peaceful. However, the US has also been pushing to discuss Iran&#39;s ballistic missile program, as well as Tehran&#39;s support for armed groups hostile towards Israel. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Iran must also negotiate on its missile program, calling Tehran&#39;s refusal to discuss ballistic weapons &quot;a big, big problem&quot; on the eve of the talks. He followed up by saying, &quot;the president wants diplomatic solutions.&quot; Iran has taken anything beyond the nuclear issue off the negotiating table and has demanded that the US sanctions crippling its economy be part of any agreement. &#39;Neither war nor peace&#39;&nbsp;Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Wednesday he had a &quot;favorable outlook for the negotiations&quot; that could finally &quot;move beyond this &#39;neither war nor peace&#39; situation.&quot; Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is leading the Iranian delegation at the talks, has called them &quot;a historic opportunity,&quot; adding that a deal was &quot;within reach.&quot; The US will be represented by envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is married to Trump&#39;s daughter Ivanka. The two countries held talks earlier this month in Oman, which is mediating the negotiations, then gathered for a second round in Geneva last week. A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran last June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. In January, fresh tensions between the US and Iran emerged after Tehran engaged in a crackdown on widespread protests that have posed one of the greatest challenges to the Islamic republic since its inception. Trump has threatened several times to intervene to &quot;help&quot; the Iranian people. Emile Hokayem, a senior fellow for Middle East security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said, &quot;The region seems to expect a war at this point.&quot; In January, there was &quot;a big push by a number of Middle Eastern states to convince the US not to&quot; strike Iran. &quot;But there&#39;s a lot of apprehension at this point, because the expectation is that this time, a war would be &quot;bigger&quot; than the one in June.

The new round of negotiations in Geneva comes after the US carried out a massive military build-up in the region; President Trump has threatened to strike Iran if a deal is not reached, accuses Iran of 'pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions.'

Articles by Mariam Ellahi