CPEC: Upgradation of ML-1 to be executed in phases

Islamabad: Federal Minister for Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal this week announced that the upgradation of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)’s Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway project will be executed in phases. Chairing a meeting concerning on CPEC, he maintained that both Pakistan and China had agreed to expedite the commencement of the ML-1 project. Ahsan […]

Read More

Greece’s first helicopter airline takes off, with flights to the islands for less than $300

Newswire Athens: Island-hopping in Greece this summer just got a little easier. Hoper, the first helicopter airline in Greece offering scheduled flights, is now selling tickets to 11 destinations, including harder-to-reach spots such as Antiparos, Folegandros, Ios, Kea, Patmos, Sifnos and Spetses. All connect to either Athens, Santorini or Mykonos, which serve as the carrier’s […]

Read More

Bulgaria resort tops list of Europe’s best value family summer holiday

Bulgaria’s Sunny Beach has narrowly beaten Turkey’s Marmaris in a study assessing Europe’s best value family summer holiday resort. Post Office Travel Money, which conducted the research, urged people booking family breaks to do “holiday homework” to avoid “busting the budget while abroad”. The report took into account the cost of common tourist expenses in […]

Read More

Ambassador Marilina Armellin praises Pakistan’s measures to combat human trafficking

Celina Ali Islamabad: Italy’s Ambassador to Pakistan Marilina Armellin has praised Pakistan’s measures to combat human trafficking. Pakistan and Italy recently reached an agreement to finalize a formal deal aimed at jointly combating human trafficking and illegal migration. This significant development occurred during a meeting between Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Mohsin Naqvi, and Ambassador Marilina Armellin. […]

Read More

High Commissioner Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri announces establishment of Urdu language school in Canberra

Canberra: Pakistani High Commissioner to Australia Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri this week announced establishment of an Urdu language school in Canberra. “Great news for Pakistani Diaspora in Canberra. For the first time URDU language school has been established & incorporated in ACT. This will not only help Pakistani families here but will also add to ACT’s […]

Read More

Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmed wins Pakistanis hearts in France

Celina Ali Islamabad: Pakistani Ambassador to France Asim Iftikhar Ahmed has won Pakistanis’ hearts in France with his helpful nature. The envoy, who has been appointed as the Additional Permanent Representative to the United Nations, had been available for all possible assistance to the large Pakistani population living in France all his ongoing term. A […]

Read More

Kazakhstan SCO chairmanship promoted Shanghai Spirit: Speakers

Abdullah Jan Islamabad: Centre for SCO Studies, Institute of Peace and Diplomatic Studies, the Riphah Institute of Public Policy (RIPP), in collaboration with the Embassy of Kazakhstan this week hosted a roundtable on ‘Post Astana Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit 2024: Achievements and way forward.’ The roundtable provided an in-depth analysis of the outcomes of the […]

Read More

Finance Minister, High Commissioner Jane Marriot co-chair Steering Committee for UK-funded REMIT programme

Celina Ali Islamabad: Federal Minister for Finance & Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb chaired the first steering committee of the FCDO- funded Revenue Mobilisation, Investment and Trade (REMIT) programme this week. British High Commissioner, Jane Marriot co-chaired the meeting. The meeting was attended by Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Dr. Jehanzeb Khan and senior government […]

Read More

Romina Khurshid lauds UK support for Pakistan’s climate action

Celina Ali Islamabad: Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Romina, Khurshid Alam this week lauded the UK’s support for Pakistan’s climate action as the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination and government of United Kingdom have agreed to enhance collaboration to address climate change and environmental issues in Pakistan. […]

Read More

France recalls contaminated Olympic water bottles

Parsi: French authorities have recalled Olympics-branded water bottles for children containing excessive levels of endocrine disruptor Bisphenol A. The reusable bottles made by the Vilac company have “levels of Bisphenol A not in line with regulations” on products designed for contact with foods, government website Rappel Conso (Consumer Recall) said. The white-coloured flasks with beige, […]

Read More

China warns Japan not to act as NATO ‘vanguard’

Liu Caiyu Beijing: China this week urged Japan to play a constructive role in maintaining and promoting peace, stability, development, and not act as a “vanguard” of NATO’s Asia-Pacific expansion, following Japan’s new defense white paper, which delivers its strongest words yet on Taiwan island. Observers said that such narratives smearing China expose Japan’s real […]

Read More

Ambassador Jakob Linulf celebrates 75 years of Pakistan-Denmark diplomatic relations

Celina Ali Islamabad: Denmark’s Ambassador to Pakistan Jakob Linulf this week celebrated the 75 years of Pakistan-Denmark diplomatic relations. “Thrilled to celebrate a monumental milestone: 75 years of ????-???? diplomatic relations! In 1949, Danish representative in Tehran, Axel Caspar Frederik Sporon-Fridler, was accredited to Karachi,” he posted on X. Denmark-Pakistan relations are friendly. Pakistan and […]

Read More

Bilawal Bhutto urges focus on population control for sustainable development

Liaquat Ali Islamabad: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari this week called upon the government and society to address the issue of rapid population growth for sustainable development and a prosperous future for all. He emphasised that reducing Pakistan’s population growth rate could significantly improve the quality of life for its citizens. In […]

Read More

Khyber Pakthunkhwa Governor visits Chinese embassy, CPEC discussed

Newswire Islamabad: Khyber Pakthunkhwa (KP) Governor, Faisal Karim Kundi this week visited the embassy of People’s Republic of China at Islamabad where he was warmly welcomed by the Chinese ambassador Jiang Ziadong. The Governor while praising the role of China in progress and development of Pakistan said that extension of the z Hina-Pakistan Economic Corridor […]

Read More

Pakistan to send 1000 graduates of agriculture studies to China for higher education, training

Newswire Islamabad: Pakistan will send 1000 graduates of agriculture studies to China for higher education and training. The decision took place at a meeting of Minister Counsellor of Chinese Embassy in Pakistan XU Hangtian with Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training Rana Tanveer Hussain in Islamabad this week. The meeting finalized the process for […]

Read More

CPEC has interlinked Pakistan-China future: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor

Newswire Islamabad: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi this week emphasized that the futures of Pakistan and China are deeply interconnected through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). While addressing an international conference titled “Enhancing Community with a Shared Future for Mankind,” Governor Kundi underscored that CPEC is not merely an economic link between Pakistan and […]

Read More

Bilawal Bhutto working for peaceful Pakistan: Umar Rehman Malik

Abdullah Jan Islamabad: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Umar Rehman Malik said this week that PPP chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was working for a peaceful Pakistan. “In his comprehensive media talk in Peshawar Bilawal Bhutto Zardari highlighted the PPP’s commitment to positive politics. He criticized the rise of abusive and divisive politics, stressing the need […]

Read More

New British PM’s kids greeted by former young residents at Downing Street

London: The children of Britain’s former finance minister, Jeremy Hunt, left welcome notes for Keir Starmer’s children at his Downing Street residence, a gesture that the country’s new prime minister said was “really sweet and thoughtful”. Starmer, who won a landslide election victory last week, has yet to move into his new home because he […]

Read More

Bulgaria loses almost €1bn due to Schengen accession delays this year

Krassen Nikolov Sofia: Bulgaria has lost €0.7 billion this year alone – including €423 million in direct losses and €225 million in lost benefits – as a result of not being fully admitted to the Schengen area, said caretaker Economy Minister Petko Nikolov. Bulgaria, along with Romania became Schengen Area members at the end of […]

Read More

High Commissioner Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri holds productive meeting with PNG premier

Canberra: Pakistani High Commissioner to Australia Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri this week had a very productive meeting with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea James Marape. “Honoured to have a very productive meeting with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Honourable James Marape,” the envoy posted on X. He added: “(We) agreed to enhance […]

Read More

Kazakhstan’s surprise tax increase shakes up global uranium market

Astana: Kazakhstan has introduced a new Mineral Extraction Tax (MET) for uranium, with rates significantly increasing from 2026 onwards. The new tax structure is expected to discourage uranium production growth in Kazakhstan, the world’s largest uranium producer. Analysts predict that the reduced supply incentive, coupled with increasing uncertainty, could drive uranium prices higher. Uranium mining […]

Read More

US Ambassador Donald Blome congratulates 120 Pakistani Fulbright scholars

Celina Ali Islamabad: US Ambassador Donald Blome this week congratulated 120 Pakistani students and scholars on Thursday for receiving prestigious Fulbright scholarships to pursue Master’s and PhD programs in the United States. The group also includes participants in the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program. The Fulbright Program, the US government’s flagship academic exchange initiative, […]

Read More

‘The customer is not always right’: Japan fights growing scourge of customer harassment

Newswire Tokyo: Japan, known for its exacting service standards, is now taking a stronger stance against a growing scourge of customer harassment to protect its legions of service workers from abuse. On July 9, Takashimaya became the first major department store to announce measures against such harassment – kasuhara in Japanese. It warned that it […]

Read More

China’s marine protection offers valuable experience, wisdom for global ocean governance

Global Times “Today, I brought a small item for my friends from the press,” Guo Fang, vice minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said as she displayed a scarf at a press conference where a white paper titled Marine Eco-Environmental Protection in China was issued. She explained that the scarf was actually made […]

Read More

As 6G race begins, West is still caught up with China’s 5G: Global Times editorial

Global Times In recent days, two significant events have taken place in the global communication technology field. First, China has built the world’s first field test network for 6G communication and intelligent integration, significantly enhancing the performance of the communication system. Second, Germany plans to remove Huawei, ZTE and other Chinese communication companies’ technology and […]

Read More

Pakistanis invited to invest in Indonesia

Liaquat Ali Peshawar: Indonesian diplomats this week invited Khyber Pakhtunkhwa businessmen to make investments in their country and offered multiple facilities along with a five-year tax holiday. Rahmat Hindiarta Kusuma, chargé d’affaires, and Axelsyah R Miraza, economic attaché and M Syofiyan Sur of the embassy of Republic of Indonesia made the offer during a visit […]

Read More