KARACHI: The United Arab Emirates plans to issue five-year visas to 100,000 Pakistanis this year, according to an official statement released by authorities in Pakistan’s Sindh province on Wednesday, following a visit by Governor Kamran Khan Tessori to the UAE consulate in Karachi.
The governor’s office and UAE authorities in Pakistan said this week all visa-related issues between the two countries had been resolved, and Pakistani nationals could now apply for five-year visas to the Emirates.
The development came amid widespread reports in recent months of a decline in visa approvals for Pakistanis, allegedly due to violations of local laws and customs, as well as political sloganeering while abroad.
Tessori visited the UAE consulate in Karachi on the invitation of UAE Ambassador Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi following a meeting between the two officials in Karachi on Monday.
“The governor of Sindh, Kamran Khan Tessori, was warmly welcomed by the UAE ambassador and consul general during his visit to the UAE consulate,” the Governor House said in a statement.
“The governor toured the visa center at the consulate, where the ambassador briefed him on the facility,” it added. “Ambassador Hamad Obaid Al-Zaabi said 100,000 Pakistanis would be granted five-year visas. The consul general added that applicants would be treated with great respect at the visa center and receive full cooperation.”
Earlier this week on Tuesday, the UAE consulate in Karachi issued a statement on the meeting between Tessori and Al-Zaabi.
“We love Pakistanis very much,” the statement quoted Consul General Bakheet Ateeq Al-Rumaithi as saying. “Every person can apply for a UAE visa … Pakistani citizens can also apply for a UAE visa for work, medical treatment and other needs.”
The UAE is home to more than a million Pakistani expatriates, making it the second-largest overseas Pakistani community globally and a major contributor to remittance inflows to Pakistan.
Policymakers in Pakistan also view the UAE as an ideal export market due to its proximity, which reduces transportation and freight costs and facilitates smoother trade.
UAE to grant 100,000 Pakistanis five-year visas this year – Sindh governor’s office
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UAE to grant 100,000 Pakistanis five-year visas this year – Sindh governor’s office
- Official statement quotes the UAE envoy mentioning the number of these visas his country plans to issue
- UAE consulate confirmed this week Pakistani citizens can apply for work, medical and other types of visas
Pakistan military says it will not let India set precedent for cross-border strikes
- Military spokesperson says Pakistan has ‘every right to protect its honor, integrity and sovereignty’
- He says India has been equipping people against Pakistan while running ‘terrorist’ training camps
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military said on Friday it would not allow India to “set a new norm” where it could carry out cross-border strikes at will, vowing to defend the country’s sovereignty and respond at a time and place of its choosing.
The two South Asian nuclear rivals have been on the brink of a full-scale war since India carried out strikes on multiple locations in Pakistan on Wednesday, in response to a deadly April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that left 26 tourists dead. New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the attack, a charge Pakistan has denied.
In the days since, Pakistan has claimed to have downed five Indian fighter jets and over 75 drones, while India said it had retaliated against Pakistani air and drone assaults by destroying an air defense system in Lahore.
Global powers have urged both sides to exercise restraint, but tensions remain high.
“They want to set a new norm that at their convenience, whenever they feel like it, they will go cross-border, cross-international, and hit wherever they like,” Pakistan military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said in a briefing to foreign media.
“What do you think of Pakistan — that we will allow all this to happen after clearly saying we have every right to protect the honor, integrity and sovereignty of our people?”
He added that Pakistan would respond “at the time, place and method of our choosing.”
During the briefing, Chaudhry displayed images of children killed in Indian strikes and asked journalists to keep them in mind.
“Please remember these pictures when you talk about what’s happening on the ground and when you ask us what Pakistan is going to do,” he said.
Accusing India of sponsoring “terrorism,” Chaudhry alleged that Indian agencies were operating training camps inside their country and directing armed groups to increase attacks on Pakistani soil.
“They have networks of people whom they train and equip with weapons,” he said. “Instructions have been issued to terrorist groups to ramp up activities against Pakistan.”
India and Pakistan have fought multiple wars, but this is the most serious escalation since both countries became declared nuclear powers in May 1998.
The disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, which both sides claim in full but control in part, has long been a flashpoint and the cause of repeated military skirmishes.
PM Sharif announces IMF approval of $1 billion disbursement to Pakistan under $7 billion deal
- The prime minister expresses satisfaction India’s ‘efforts to sabotage’ the loan program had failed
- He says Pakistan’s economic situation is improving and it is moving toward financial progress
KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a $1 billion disbursement for Pakistan under a loan program secured by the government last year, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in an official statement late Friday.
The announcement followed an IMF Executive Board meeting to finalize staff-level agreements related to the $1 billion payout, as well as Pakistan’s new $1.3 billion arrangement under a climate resilience facility approved in March.
The meeting took place at a time when Pakistan is working to revive investment amid a gradually stabilizing macroeconomic environment, following a prolonged downturn that compelled it to seek external financing from allies and global lenders.
“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed satisfaction over the IMF’s approval of the $1 billion tranche for Pakistan and the failure of India’s underhanded tactics against the country,” his office said in a statement issued after the board’s decision.
Media reports said recently India had attempted to pressure the IMF to block the disbursement, citing heightened military tensions between the two neighbors following a deadly April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that left 26 tourists dead.
New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the assault, an allegation Pakistani officials repeatedly denied.
Sharif said international financial institutions had “responsibly rejected” India’s narrative and reaffirmed their trust in Pakistan’s economic strategy.
“Indian efforts to sabotage the IMF program have failed,” he said, adding the disbursement would help stabilize the economy and steer it toward long-term recovery.
He praised Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and other members of the government’s economic team for their role in securing the funds.
Pakistan has been working to broaden its tax base, improve energy sector efficiency, and unlock private sector growth as part of its reform commitments under the $7 billion IMF loan program.
“By the grace of God, the country’s economic situation is improving, and Pakistan is moving toward progress,” Sharif said. “The government remains committed to tax reforms, energy sector improvements and private sector development.”
He reiterated that Pakistan would stay the course on economic stabilization, effective performance and long-term planning.
The IMF funding approval comes at a critical time for Pakistan, as it seeks to reassure global investors and shore up foreign exchange reserves amid geopolitical instability and upcoming budget negotiations.
Pakistan accuses India of targeting civilians along Kashmir border amid intensifying hostilities
- Army spokesperson says Pakistan has limited its response to Indian military posts across the LoC
- He denies Indian claims Pakistan launched large-scale drone and missile attacks across the border
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military on Friday accused India of deliberately targeting civilians along the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border in the disputed Kashmir region, as tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors escalated sharply this week.
Fighting between the South Asian rivals intensified after India carried out strikes on multiple locations in Pakistan on Wednesday, in response to a deadly April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that left 26 tourists dead. New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the attack, a charge Pakistan has denied.
In the days since, Pakistan has claimed to have downed five Indian fighter jets and over 75 drones, while India said it had retaliated against Pakistani air and drone assaults by destroying an air defense system in Lahore.
The cross-border violence also had a devastating impact on civilians living along the LoC, with both sides trading heavy fire over the past two days.
“Pakistan has been receiving the Indian artillery shelling,” the military’s spokesperson, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, told Türkiye’s TRT World in an interview.
“Unfortunately, they are targeting, deliberately targeting, the civilians,” he continued. “Pakistan is now firing on the posts from where the [Indian] artillery and the military are firing. We are concentrating and putting our fire only on military targets.”
Chaudhry said Pakistan’s response was defensive and restrained, limited to small arms fire against Indian military positions.
He also denied New Delhi’s claims that Pakistan had launched large-scale drone or missile attacks across the international border, calling them “fabrications” designed to fuel a “media frenzy.”
“Since last night, they [India] have created a media blitz that Pakistan has launched drones, aircraft and a massive attack across the international border,” he said, adding: “In 21st century warfare, everything has an electronic signature. If there have been attacks with missiles from the Pakistani side, there has to be an electronic signature.”
Chaudhry further accused India of “gagging” international and domestic media as well as controlling digital platforms, saying it was using its new organizations to spread disinformation hour after hour.
The LoC has long been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan, both of which claim the disputed Kashmir region in full but control only parts of it. The latest hostilities mark one of the most serious flare-ups in decades.
Pakistani stocks surge sharply on IMF optimism, hopes of easing India-Pakistan standoff
- The benchmark KSE-100 index rose 3,647.82 points, or 3.52 percent, to close at 107,541.45
- India-Pakistan tensions triggered about 12 percent market decline between April 23 and May 8
KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) rebounded sharply on Friday, climbing over 3,500 points, as investor sentiment improved ahead of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board meeting and what some analysts described as easing tensions between Pakistan and India.
The benchmark KSE-100 index recovered 3,647.82 points, or 3.52 percent, closing at 107,541.45, after a historic plunge of 6,482 points on Thursday, the largest single-day drop in the index’s history, triggered by fears of an escalating conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
"The recovery was on account of optimism on IMF Executive Board meeting scheduled to consider Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, where market expects smooth approval," Topline Market Review said after the end of trading. "Overall decline in cross border hostilities also provided stimulus to investor sentiment."
The EFF, a $7 billion loan program secured by Pakistan in September last year, is aimed at stabilizing the country's economy through structural reforms and fiscal consolidation.
While Pakistan’s authorities say macroeconomic indicators have improved in recent months, they view the IMF support as critical for sustaining gains and transitioning toward growth.
Some analysts also linked the improved investor confidence to what they described as a gradually easing geopolitical situation between India and Pakistan.
"Stocks staged sharp recovery as investor eye de-escalation in Pakistan-India tensions after US appeal for end to violence," Ahsan Mehanti, the Chief Executive Officer of Arif Habib Commodities, told Arab News.
Raza Jafri, the head of Intermarket Securities, said any de-escalation could extend the positive stock market trend.
"Institutional value buying, especially in blue-chip high dividend yielding stocks, saw the KSE100 rebound today," he added.
Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked this week after New Delhi launched missile strikes on multiple locations in Pakistan, blaming Islamabad for a deadly April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 tourists. Pakistan has denied involvement.
The crisis triggered a 12 percent decline in the Pakistani market from April 23 to May 8.
The geopolitical unrest posed a major challenge for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s efforts to stabilize the economy, which depends on a number of factors including increased foreign investment, exports and revenue generation.
Pakistan’s remittances hit record $31.2 billion in current fiscal year, led by Saudi inflows
- PM Sharif praises overseas Pakistanis for supporting the country’s economic recovery
- Central bank projects remittances to reach $38 billion by end of current fiscal year
KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday lauded the contribution of overseas Pakistanis as workers’ remittances surged to a record $31.2 billion during the first ten months of the current fiscal year, with Saudi Arabia emerging as the top source of inflows.
According to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), remittances rose by 30.9 percent during July-April FY25 compared to $23.9 billion received in the same period last year.
In April alone, Pakistan received $3.2 billion, showing a 13.1 percent year-on-year increase. The inflows were mainly sourced from Saudi Arabia ($725.4 million), United Arab Emirates ($657.6 million), United Kingdom ($535.3 million) and the United States ($302.4 million).
“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed satisfaction over a 31 percent increase in remittances during the first 10 months of fiscal year 2025 compared to the previous year,” a statement issued by his office said.
“Remittances reaching a record level is a reflection of the confidence of overseas Pakistanis in government policies,” it quoted him as saying.
Remittances form a vital pillar of Pakistan’s external sector, helping stabilize the current account, fueling domestic consumption and easing the country’s reliance on external borrowing.
Earlier this year, in March, the SBP recorded an all-time monthly high of $4.1 billion in remittance inflows, driven by seasonal factors and improved formal channel usage.
Pakistan has focused on boosting exports and remittances in recent years as part of broader efforts to strengthen its external sector and address economic vulnerabilities.
The central bank has also revised its FY25 remittance projection upward from $36 billion to $38 billion, citing current trends.
