Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday spoke with his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar, appreciating Islamabad&rsquo;s constructive role in regional diplomacy while requesting it to continue using its &ldquo;good offices&rdquo; to help &ldquo;facilitate de-escalation&rdquo; in the current situation, the country&rsquo;s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported. In an official statement, the Foreign Office stated that Iranian foreign minister &ldquo;expressed serious concern&rdquo; over &ldquo;recent developments in the region,&rdquo; including ceasefire violations in Lebanon by Israel and &ldquo;the orders by the Israeli government regarding potential attack in parts of Beirut.&rdquo; Araghchi appreciated Pakistan&rsquo;s &ldquo;constructive role&rdquo; in regional diplomacy. He also requested Pakistan to &ldquo;continue using its good offices&rdquo; to help &ldquo;facilitate de-escalation in the current situation&rdquo; and support &ldquo;efforts to maintain the ceasefire.&rdquo; Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar &ldquo;conveyed Pakistan&rsquo;s serious concern and emphasized the importance of ensuring that the ceasefire is sustained in order to prevent any breakdown of existing understandings,&rdquo; the Foreign Office stated. Both leaders agreed to remain in close contact.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar welcomes Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on arrival at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (MOFA)

Foreign Affairs

The Iranian foreign minister also “expressed serious concern” over “recent developments in the region,” including ceasefire violations in Lebanon by Israel.

Iran requests Pakistan to help facilitate de-escalation, maintain ceasefire in the region

Web Desk/AFP

Americas

Middle East

The US military shot down four drones launched from Iran and struck a control center in the port city of Bandar Abbas; Iranian forces fire at four ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz; Israel's military issues evacuation warning for residents of the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon.







Middle East roundup, May 28: US strikes Iran, drawing retaliatory attack on American base

HONG KONG:&nbsp;Oil prices bounced higher on Thursday while Asian stocks mostly fell, as new US strikes on Iran marked the latest test of a shaky ceasefire in the Middle East war. The price jumps erased much of Wednesday&#39;s declines on the hopes of an imminent deal to end the conflict that has all but halted shipping through the crucial <a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/asia-stocks-oil-prices-mixed-on-usiran-deal-uncertainty" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strait of Hormuz</a> for months. An American official said the military had shot down four Iranian drones and struck a control center in the southern city of Bandar Abbas. The official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, described the latest actions as &quot;measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire&quot;. Tehran&#39;s state media said Iranian forces had fired at four ships in the strait, while Kuwait said its air defenses were responding to missile and drone attacks. The developments came despite an Iranian official saying renewed hostilities with the United States were unlikely, and a threat from US President Donald Trump to &quot;finish the job&quot; if a peace deal was not reached.&nbsp;Mixed signals&nbsp;The mixed signals underscored the fragile state of talks aimed at ending the Middle East war, which has profoundly shaken <a href="https://pakistantv.com/article/oil-falls-asian-stocks-climb-on-hopes-of-usiran-hormuz-deal" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">global energy markets</a>. Brent North Sea crude, the main international benchmark, rose by 1.8% in Thursday morning trade to $95.95 a barrel, while the main US contract, WTI, increased by 1.7% to $90.17. Stock markets across Asia were mostly down, with Hong Kong&#39;s Hang Seng index dipping more than 1.5%. Seoul was down nearly one percent, while Shanghai ticked 0.3% lower. Taipei&#39;s main index gained more than one percent, while Tokyo was flat at the midday break. The declines came after a strong day for global stocks on Wednesday, as investors, bullish on artificial intelligence, looked past the conflicting headlines on Iran. In Asia, South Korean chipmaker SK hynix hit a $1 trillion market capitalization, placing it alongside regional tech heavyweights Samsung Electronics and TSMC, as well as US chipmaker Micron. The tech surge has coincided with a persistent spike in energy prices, which has threatened several major Asian economies that rely on oil shipments from the Middle East. Economists warn that central banks may have to raise interest rates if inflation worsens as a result of the war, increasing borrowing costs and potentially weighing on economic growth. On Wednesday, &quot;every headline pulled the market in a different direction, leaving traders with the same conclusion they have been wrestling with for weeks&quot;, said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management. &quot;The Strait may eventually reopen fully, but until there is something more concrete than draft frameworks and political theatre, every barrel remains hostage to headline volatility, even if sub-$100,&quot; he said. <h2 style="line-height: 2;">Key figures at around 0230 GMT&nbsp;</h2>Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.8% at $95.95 a barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.7% at $90.17 a barrel Tokyo - Nikkei 225: FLAT at 64,980.63 points Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5% at&nbsp;24,943.99 Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3% at&nbsp;4,082.86 Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1614 from $1.1629 on Wednesday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3405 from $1.3434 Dollar/yen: UP at 159.54 from 159.53 yen Euro/pound: UP at 86.64 from 86.59 pence New York - DOW: UP 0.4% at 50,644.28 (close) London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1% at 10,505.01 (close)

Business

The mixed signals underscored the fragile state of talks aimed at ending the Middle East war, which has profoundly shaken global energy markets.

Oil prices bounce higher after new US strikes on Iran   

MAKKAH: Despite the Middle East war and a US government travel advisory, there was never any doubt in Fadel&#39;s mind that he would attend this year&#39;s hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. &quot;Even if the war were still ongoing, I would not have backed out,&quot; the 49-year-old US national, who asked that only his first name be used, told AFP. &quot;We are undoubtedly in the safest place in the world,&quot; he added, referring to a passage from the Quran. This <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/hajj-pilgrim-numbers-surpass-2025-arrivals-despite-middle-east-war" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">sentiment</a> is common among many Muslims from Western nations who have come to Saudi Arabia for the upcoming hajj despite the war in the Middle East. This year&#39;s rites, drawing Muslim worshippers from across the world, follow the tensions in the region after the United States and Israel attacked Iran in late February. An uneasy ceasefire has largely held since April.&nbsp;On Saturday, both sides indicated that an agreement could come soon. The American embassy in Riyadh last month advised US citizens not to participate in the hajj.&nbsp;US advisory&nbsp;&quot;Due to the ongoing security situation and intermittent travel disruptions, we advise reconsidering participation in Hajj this year,&quot; a statement released by the embassy read. On Friday, US media reported the White House was weighing the launch of new military strikes on Iran, with any new fighting likely to have a direct impact on the hajj, according to experts. &quot;If the conflict breaks out again, there is a strong possibility of real disruptions to pilgrim travel,&quot; said Umer Karim, an expert on Saudi Arabia at the University of Birmingham in Britain. &quot;They could find themselves stranded, which could create additional logistical and hosting challenges.&quot;&nbsp;No &lsquo;second thoughts&rsquo;But for many, the chance to perform the sacrosanct Muslim rite has taken precedence over the fears of instability caused by the war. Sayed, a 47-year-old Australian who will attend the hajj for the seventh time, said there were no &quot;second thoughts about coming here&quot;, even as his own government issued an advisory urging citizens to reconsider travel to the region. &quot;When you make the intention to come, you come with a reason and a purpose. And that&#39;s why you&#39;re here and put your faith in God that everything will be fine,&quot; he told AFP while standing outside Makkah&rsquo;s Grand Mosque dressed in white garments.&nbsp;Diversity of Islamic community&nbsp;As more than a million pilgrims poured into the holy city ahead of the hajj, the breadth and diversity of the global Islamic community was on vivid display, with many carrying paraphernalia such as bags and umbrellas showing their country of origin. &quot;This is an opportunity that comes once in a life and I decided not to miss it,&quot; said Ibrahim Diab, a 63-year-old German national, despite the &quot;shaky situation in the Gulf&quot;.

As more than a million pilgrims poured into the holy city ahead of the hajj, the breadth and diversity of the global Islamic community was on vivid display, with many carrying paraphernalia such as bags and umbrellas showing their country of origin.

Pilgrims from the West flock to hajj despite Mideast war

BEIJING: President Donald Trump said he had made &quot;fantastic trade deals&quot; with China&#39;s Xi Jinping, as the pair met on Friday at final talks of a superpower summit that according to the US leader has also reaped a Chinese offer to help open the Strait of Hormuz. Trump had arrived in Beijing seeking to seal deals in sectors including agriculture, aviation and artificial intelligence, as well as to contain differences between the two sides in a number of tense geostrategic areas -- not least the Middle East war. Trump&#39;s overtures to Xi, whom he described as a &quot;great leader&quot; and &quot;friend&quot;, have so far been met with more muted tones by the Chinese leader. But the US leader said &quot;a lot of good&quot; has come out of the visit. &quot;We&#39;ve made some fantastic trade deals, great for both countries,&quot; he said after a walk with Xi among the rosebushes in the gardens of Zhongnanhai, a central leadership compound next to Beijing&#39;s Forbidden City. &quot;We&#39;ve settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn&#39;t have been able to solve,&quot; he added, without providing details. Xi said it was a &quot;milestone visit&quot;, and that the two sides had to date established &quot;a new bilateral relationship, which is a relationship of constructive strategic stability&quot;. He promised to send Trump seeds for the White House Rose Garden. &#39;Help on Hormuz&#39;&nbsp;In an interview with Fox News after the first day of the summit wrapped, Trump said Xi had agreed to several US wish list points. On the topic of the war in Iran, the US president said Xi had effectively assured his counterpart that China was not preparing to militarily aid Tehran, which has essentially closed the Strait of Hormuz. &quot;He said he&#39;s not going to give military equipment... he said that strongly,&quot; Trump told Fox. &quot;He&#39;d like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said &#39;if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help,&#39;&quot; Trump added. Asked whether the two leaders had discussed Iran, the Chinese foreign ministry on Friday released a statement calling for &quot;a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire&quot;. &quot;Shipping lanes should be reopened as soon as possible in response to the calls of the international community,&quot; it added. Boeing, oil, soybeans&nbsp;Trump did not spell out on Friday the trade agreements that he said had been sealed with China. However, in the Fox interview, Trump said one big business deal struck involved Xi agreeing to purchase &quot;200 big&quot; Boeing jets. Shares of the US aviation giant fell after Trump&#39;s comments, in a sign the market had expected a more robust purchase from China. The US president also said Beijing had also voiced interest in buying US oil and soybeans. And Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that Trump and Xi were talking about setting up &quot;guardrails&quot; for the use of artificial intelligence. Bessent said the world&#39;s &quot;two AI superpowers are going to start talking&quot;, though US export controls on the advanced technology to China remain a sore point in relations.

China

'We've made some fantastic trade deals, great for both countries,' he said after a walk with Xi among the rosebushes in the gardens of Zhongnanhai, a central leadership compound next to Beijing's Forbidden City.

Trump says made 'fantastic trade deals' with Xi

Iran has presented its response to the latest US proposal aimed at ending the war through Pakistani mediators; Trump expects to "apply pressure" on Xi over Iran; Iran army says countries siding with the US will "face difficulties" in Hormuz.




Day 72: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Says he expects Iran’s response to Washington’s latest peace proposal “tonight,” as Pakistani-mediated diplomacy remains active and both sides weigh terms aimed at extending the ceasefire and advancing broader negotiations.

Day 71: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

US President Donald Trump says he is expecting Iran’s response to Washington’s latest proposal on a deal to end the Middle East war by “tonight.”; Trump warns Iran against using drones to target US warships; an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon kills four people, including two women; Russia rejects a US-backed UNSC resolution, calling it a provocative effort to isolate Tehran.

Day 70: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Says operations are being paused “for a short period of time” to see whether the deal can be finalized and signed; Iranian counterpart says Tehran remains open to talks but will not yield to pressure; Pakistan’s prime minister hopes for a "lasting agreement" to end the Iran war, thanks US president for pausing Project Freedom.

Day 68: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Says that, at the request of Pakistan and other countries, the US will pause Project Freedom “for a short period of time to see whether or not the agreement can be finalized and signed";  Rubio says US has completed its offensive operations against Iran, adds "won't shoot unless fired upon."







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