ISLAMABAD: India missed Pakistan’s first official offer of providing consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav following the verdict by the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) on July 17.
Pakistan on Friday had offered India to avail a meeting with its national who was in Islamabad’s custody since March 2016 and was currently on death row over charges of terrorism and espionage — an allegation denied by New Delhi.
According to Indian media reports, India, in its reply to Pakistani foreign office, has asked for “unimpeded” consular access to Jhadav, free from “intimidation and reprisal” as Pakistan wants the presence of an official from its side during the meeting.
The spokesperson of Indian high commission in Islamabad told Arab News that “we are in contact with Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan on this issue, nothing more to add.”
Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had earlier said in New Delhi, “We have received a proposal from Pakistan. We are evaluating the proposal in the light of ICJ judgment. We will maintain communication with Pakistan in this matter through diplomatic channels.”
“We cannot discuss the modalities. We will assess and evaluate the conditions laid down keeping in mind the ICJ ruling and then respond accordingly. Whatever response is to be sent will be given by us timely through diplomatic channels,” Kumar said.
Pakistan’s former High Commissioner to India, Abdu Basit, told Arab News that it’s a high-profile case so “modalities of consular access have to be decided prior to the meeting. It looks difficult that the meeting can take place today [on Friday].”
He said that whenever India granted consular access to any Pakistani prisoner, “Pakistani officer used to meet its nationals in the presence of Indian officials. Pakistan would like to have its official in the meeting but India will ask for private access.”
Talking about the frequency of consular access, he said that “it all depends on where the case is reviewed as the ICJ has left it on the discretion of Pakistani government so it may be multiple times not one time only.”
He also negated the impression that Pakistan rejected all Indian requests of consular access before the ICJ decision. “India had sent seventeen times note verbale for consular access to Jadhav and in January 2017, Pakistan agreed to provide it on the condition of provision of information required about certain individuals revealed by Jadhav in his confessional statement but India refused,” he said.
Ahmer Bilal Soofi, an Islamabad based expert on International law told Arab News, “Pakistan is complying with the judgment of the ICJ as a responsible state by fulfilling the directions of the court which include giving consular access.” On the possible review of the case he added that “the review could be done by the appellant court or the high court in exercise of writ petition or it could also be a special bench.” On Jadhav’s representation in review court he said, “the lawyer should be a Pakistani national because under the Pakistan Bar Council’s rules no foreign lawyer can appear before the Pakistani court.”
Earlier, the ICJ in its July 17 verdict that followed proceedings lasting about two years, asked Pakistan to provide consular access to Jadhav under the Vienna Convention. Although the ICJ had rejected Indian request of acquittal, release and his return.
The UN’s top court did not accept India’s contention that Jadhav was entitled to ‘restitutio in integrum’ (restoration to original position) and turned down its request to annul the decision of a military court. Instead, it ruled that Pakistan, by means of its own choosing, could undergo an effective review and reconsideration of the sentence awarded to Jadhav.
In the following week, Pakistani foreign office had announced by issuing a statement that Pakistan would grant consular access to Jadhav according to the country’s laws, for which the modalities were being worked out.
The statement added that pursuant to the ICJ judgment, Jadhav had been informed of his rights under Article 36, Paragraph 1(b) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
Jadhav was arrested on March 3, 2016, in a counter-intelligence operation in Balochistan. He was awarded death sentence on April 10, 2017 by a Field General Court Martial in Pakistan. India approached the ICJ in May 2017 against Pakistan for denying consular access to Jadhav.
India demands ‘unimpeded consular access’ for alleged spy in Pakistani custody
India demands ‘unimpeded consular access’ for alleged spy in Pakistani custody
- Pakistan offered consular access upon directions of the ICJ, but with conditions
- Jhadav, arrested by Pakistani authorities in restive Balochistan province, is accused of terrorism and espionage
Pakistan says Hong Kong conglomerate discussing $1 billion investment in maritime sector
- Pakistan maritime affairs minister holds meeting with Hutchison Ports officials
- Proposal includes upfront $200 million in foreign direct investment for Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: A Hong Kong-based multinational conglomerate has expressed interest in investing $1 billion in Pakistan’s maritime sector to improve the South Asian nation’s port infrastructure, the maritime ministry said on Thursday.
Hutchison Ports, a subsidiary of CK Hutchison Holdings, is a leading global port operator and logistics company, operating in 52 ports across 26 countries in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Australia. It provides container terminal operations, cargo handling, logistics, port management, transportation, and distribution services.
Pakistan’s seaports in Karachi, located along the Arabian Sea, are essential for global trade and provide job opportunities for thousands of citizens. The country has been actively working on restructuring and enhancing its port infrastructure.
On Thursday, Maritime Affairs Minister Qaiser Ahmed Shaikh held a meeting with a high-level delegation from Hutchison Ports, led by the company’s Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, Andy Tsoi, to discuss the $1 billion investment plan, the maritime affairs ministry said.
“This groundbreaking proposal includes an upfront $200 million Foreign Direct Investment,” the ministry said, adding that the investment would focus on modernizing the Karachi International Container Terminal and South Asia Pakistan Terminals Limited “with advanced automation technologies, enhancing operational efficiency and adopting eco-friendly solutions.”
The plan includes introducing “electrified and remote-control equipment” to reduce carbon emissions and establishing a state-of-the-art warehousing depot for Pakistan’s growing trade sector as well as funding to improve roads around the south wharf to ensure “smooth container traffic flow and boost supply chain efficiency.”
The development comes amid Pakistan’s efforts to boost trade and seek international partnerships to expand maritime activities.
In August 2024, state media reported that Danish shipping firm Maersk was in discussions with local authorities to invest $2 billion in Pakistan’s port and transport infrastructure over the next two years.
In October last year, the maritime minister signed an agreement with Denmark’s Minister Morten Bodskov to restructure Pakistan’s maritime sector and provide technical training at its ports.
Paris court sentences Pakistani who targeted Charlie Hebdo to 30 years jail
- When he carried out attack, 29-year-old Zaheer Mahmood wrongly believed satirical newspaper was still based in the building
- Newspaper had moved in the wake of an earlier attack, which killed 12 people including eight of the paper’s editorial staff
PARIS: A Paris court on Thursday sentenced a Pakistani man to 30 years in jail for attempting to murder two people outside the former offices of Charlie Hebdo in 2020 with a meat cleaver.
When he carried out the attack, 29-year-old Zaheer Mahmood wrongly believed the satirical newspaper was still based in the building, which was targeted by Islamists a decade ago for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
The newspaper had in fact moved in the wake of the attack, which killed 12 people including eight of the paper’s editorial staff.
The killings in 2015 shocked France and triggered a fierce debate about freedom of expression and religion.
Originally from rural Pakistan, Mahmood arrived in France illegally in the summer of 2019.
The court had earlier heard how Mahmood was influenced by radical Pakistani preacher Khadim Hussain Rizvi, who had called for the beheading of blasphemers to “avenge the Prophet.”
Mahmood was convicted of attempted murder and terrorist conspiracy, and handed a ban from ever setting foot on French soil again.
Pakistan says three militants killed trying to infiltrating its border with Afghanistan
- Islamabad frequently accuses Afghanistan of sheltering, supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks
- Afghan officials deny state complicity, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces have killed six militants attempting to enter the country through its border with Afghanistan in the southwestern Balochistan province, the Pakistan military said on Thursday.
Islamabad frequently accuses neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks. The Taliban government in Kabul says it does not allow Afghan soil to be used by militants, insisting that Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
In the latest incident, the Pakistan army said security forces had picked up on the movement of a group of militants who were attempting to infiltrate the Pakistan-Afghanistan border on the night between Jan 22. and 23 in Balochistan’s Zhob District. Six militants were killed, it said, and a large quantity of weapons, ammunition and explosives was recovered.
“Pakistan has consistently been asking Interim Afghan Government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border,” the army said. “Interim Afghan Government is expected to fulfill its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by Khwarij for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan.”
The Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have frequently targeted Pakistani forces in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The group also has some presence in Balochistan, the site of a low-level insurgency for decades by separatists fighting for the province’s independence.
On Jan. 19, Pakistani security forces killed five militants as they tried to infiltrate Pakistan’s border in Zhob district.
No talks with India on resumption of trade, Pakistan foreign office says
- In 2019, Indian PM Modi withdrew Indian-administered Kashmir’s autonomy to tighten grip over the territory
- Move provoked outrage in Pakistan and the downgrading of diplomatic ties and suspension of bilateral trade
KARACHI: The Pakistani Foreign Office said on Thursday Islamabad and New Delhi were not holding talks to resume trade, suspended in 2019 when India revoked the special status of the part of Kashmir that it controls and split the region into two federally administered territories.
The disputed Himalayan region is claimed in full, though ruled in part by both India and Pakistan since their independence from Britain in 1947, with the nuclear-armed neighbors having fought two of their three wars over the territory.
In 2019, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi withdrew Indian-administered Kashmir’s autonomy in order to tighten his grip over the territory, provoking outrage in Pakistan and the downgrading of diplomatic ties and suspension of bilateral trade.
Speaking to reporters at the Indian embassy in Washington this week, Indian Foreign Minister Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said no talks on trade resumption had been held between his country and Pakistan.
“Pakistan decided to suspend bilateral trade in response to India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019 relating to ... Kashmir,” Shafqat Ali Khan, the spokesperson for Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Arab News when asked to respond to the Indian minister’s comments.
“High level engagement between Pakistan and India remains suspended at the moment. In that backdrop, both sides are not holding talks on resumption of trade.”
Khan said the volume of bilateral trade between Pakistan and India stood at $1.907 billion in the financial year 2018-19. He said India had in 2019 withdrawn the Most-Favored Nation status granted to Pakistan and imposed 200 percent duty on all Pakistani items, “posing a serious setback to Pakistan’s exports.”
Speaking on Wednesday, Jaishankar said it was Pakistan that had suspended trade.
“Their [Pakistan] government took a decision in 2019 not to conduct trade with India, that was from their side,” Jaishankar said.
“Our concern regarding this issue from the beginning was that we should get MFN status. We used to give MFN status to Pakistan, they didn’t give [it] to us.”
For decades, the armies of India and Pakistan have faced off over the the Line of Control (LoC), a UN-monitored ceasefire line agreed in 1972, that divides the areas each administers.
The foes fought a 1999 battle along the LoC that some analysts described as an undeclared war. Their forces exchanged regular gunfire over the LoC until a truce in late 2003, which has largely held since.
PM launches World Bank’s $20 billion Country Partnership Framework for Pakistan
- 10-year-plan will focus on development issues like impact of climate change and boosting private-sector growth
- Last year, Pakistan secured $7 billion IMF loan deal though Sharif has vowed to reduce dependence on foreign loans
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday launched the World Bank’s Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Pakistan, a plan to focus $20 billion in loans to the cash-strapped nation over the coming decade on development issues like the impact of climate change and boosting private-sector growth.
Pakistan in 2023 nearly defaulted on the payment of foreign debts when the International Monetary Fund rescued it by agreeing to a $3 billion bailout to Pakistan. Last year, Islamabad secured a new $7 billion loan deal from the IMF. Since then, the country’s economy has started improving with weekly inflation coming down from 27 percent in 2023 to 1.8 percent earlier this month. Sharif has vowed to reduce dependence on foreign loans in the coming years.
The World Bank’s lending for Pakistan will start in 2026 and focus on six outcomes: improving education quality, tackling child stunting, boosting climate resilience, enhancing energy efficiency, fostering inclusive development and increasing private investment.
“Together, this partnership fosters a unified and focused vision for your county around six outcomes with clear, tangible and ambitious 10-year targets,” Martin Raiser, the World Bank vice president for South Asia, said in an address at the launch ceremony of the loan program.
“We hope that the CPF will serve as an anchor for this engagement to keep us on the right track. Partnerships will equally be critical. More resources will be needed to have the impact at the scale that we wish to achieve and this will require close collaboration with all the development partners.”
Speaking at the ceremony, PM Sharif said the CPF was a “vision to transform Pakistan’s economy, building climate resilient projects, alleviating poverty and unemployment and promoting digitization, agriculture and IT led initiatives.”
Separately, Raiser met Ahad Cheema, Pakistani minister for economic affairs, to discuss in detail the framework’s next steps and its implementation.
“The two leaders also discussed the need to address key challenges in project implementation, such as land acquisition, project start-up delays, and ensuring compliance with social safeguards,” Cheema’s office said in a statement.
“Cheema stressed that effective coordination between the World Bank and other development partners, as well as streamlined approval processes, would be essential to overcoming these hurdles.”
Cheema also called on the World Bank to enhance Pakistan’s allocation of concessional resources, especially in support of climate change mitigation and foreign debt management.
