Celina Ali Islamabad: Acclaimed Portuguese journalist and author, Teresa Nicolau, arrived this week in Pakistan at the invitation of the Portuguese Embassy, to participate in events and activities in Islamabad and in Lahore, where she participated in the 2025 LLF-Lahore Literary Festival. Teresa Nicolau, a distinguished journalist and author known for her compelling storytelling and […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Ambassador and Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Pakistan Dr Riina Kionka this week said the EU was committed to supporting initiatives that enhance human capital and empower women in Pakistan. “I am excited to lay the foundation for a modern TVET centre that will prepare women for the […]
Read MoreEU-Pakistan dosti celebrated at EuroVillage 2025 Celina Ali Islamabad: Thousands of participants gathered at the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) this week to enjoy the vibrant “EuroVillage” festival, organised by the Delegation of the European Union in collaboration with the EU Member States. The event provided a unique opportunity for the residents of Islamabad […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: His Highness Prince Rahim Aga Khan, the 50th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, met with His Excellency Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, President of Portugal, at the Palácio de Belém this week. This was His Highness’s first official meeting with the President following his accession as Imam. During their discussion, the President extended […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Gujrat: Portuguese Ambassador to Pakistan, Mr Frederico Silva this week visited the Hafiz Hayat Campus of the University of Gujrat (UoG) where he was warmly received by Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zahoorul Haq, senior academics, and administration officials. Mian Imran Masood, former education minister of Punjab and vice chancellor of the University of […]
Read MoreNewswire Brussels: The European Union’s member states need to increase defence spending to keep pace with the threats facing the continent, its foreign policy chief warned this week. Kaja Kallas, who served as prime minister of Estonia until July 2024, said “every euro spent on school, healthcare and welfare [was] vulnerable” if the bloc didn’t […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon : Portugal’s green political party, Livre, has proposed to grant Portuguese nationality to stateless people who have been residing in Portugal for at least three years, provided they have sufficient knowledge of the Portuguese language and don’t pose a risk to national security. The bill proposed by Livre was discussed in the Parliament […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: The European Union’s mission in Islamabad this week reminded Pakistan that trade benefits it received under the GSP+ scheme depended on progress the country made on addressing a list of issues, including human rights, saying “tangible” efforts remained essential. The statement came after a week-long visit to Pakistan by Ambassador Olof Skoog, […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: The Pakistan Academy of Letters this week hosted the launch of the Urdu translation of Portuguese author José Luís Peixoto’s novel Nenhum Olhar (Blank Gaze), with the participation of Ambassador of Portugal Frederico Silva. The acclaimed novel, now beautifully rendered in Urdu as Viran Nazar by the renowned Pakistani author Muhammad Atif […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Authorities in Pakistan said this week they will begin surveillance of travelers between the ages of 15 and 40 on their way to Europe. This is to try and curb increasing incidents of migrant smuggling. Two Pakistani officials said they will begin questioning all passengers aged between 15 and 40 towards around […]
Read MoreEU funds trip Celina Ali Islamabad: The European Union is hosting a 23-member Pakistani parliamentary delegation led by Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani to visit the Parliaments and Parliamentary Budget Offices (PBOs) of Austria and Ireland. The European Union Delegation to Pakistan earlier hosted a pre-departure reception ahead of the visit, starting at the weekend. […]
Read MoreMark Segal Paris: The government of France has called for a significant implementation delay and major amendments to some of the key European sustainability reporting and environmental due diligence regulations introduced over the past few years, in a bid to help reduce bureaucratic burdens and simplify compliance obligations for companies, and for small and medium-sized […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: Data provided by the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security in Portugal show that foreign workers’ contributions to Portugal’s social security system are already sufficient to fund 17% of national pensions and retirements. In 2023 the Portuguese social security system disbursed 15.8 billion euros in benefits, with immigrants to the country injecting […]
Read MoreNewswire Brussels: Pakistan’s Chargé d’affaires in Belgium Faraz Zaidi met Chair of Foreign Affairs Committee, European Parliament, David McAllister here this week and discussed relations between Pakistan and European Union and avenues for deepening cooperation. They also shared views on matters of regional and global importance. In a post on X, Faraz Zaidi said, “A […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Pakistan’s Alternate Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, met UN Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari this week. They exchanged views on a number of issues on the Security Council’s agenda including the Middle East, Afghanistan and UN’s role therein, according to a press release of the Pakistani Mission. Last week, […]
Read MoreNewswire Saint-Denis De La Reunion: The authorities in France’s La Reunion this week launched a probe to identify fraudsters who scammed a woman out of €830,000 (S$1.17 million) by making her believe she had an online relationship with actor Brad Pitt. The police are trying to locate the accounts that received the transfers from the […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: In 2025, an increasing demand is expected for Portugal’s Golden Visa Program from North America as well as the United Kingdom. The demand from the Asian market is expected to remain consistent throughout 2025. In 2025, authorities in Portugal are aiming to streamline the processing of applications to meet the surge in demand […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: A flight operated by state-run Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) took off for Paris from Islamabad this week as the carrier resumed direct flights to Europe following the lifting of a European Union ban. The EU blocked PIA in 2020 after one of its Airbus A-320s crashed in the southern Pakistani city of […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: VFS Global this week vowed to help Portugal resolve its visa backlog. The company’s announcement came following delays in processing work visa applications in particular for Brazilians in Portugal. The processing of work visa applications for Brazilians in Portugal sometimes exceeds 200 days. The outsourcing and technology company for governments and diplomatic missions, […]
Read MoreNewswire Brussels: The first-ever bilateral framework agreement between the EU and its member states and Japan, the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA), entered into force this week. This milestone agreement will guide future engagement between the parties and ensure closer political and economic cooperation on an array of bilateral, regional and multilateral issues. Thanks to the […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: The Minister of State and for Territorial Cohesion, Manuel Castro Almeida, said this week that the government is attempting to streamline the entry of some workers from other countries. He noted that the labour shortages with which Portugal is dealing remain an unresolved problem. In a bid to deal with the labour shortages, […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: The European Union (EU) office this week issued a “scam alert” to warn Pakistanis about “criminal organisations” spreading misleading information about visa and consular appointments via fake entries of embassies and telephone numbers. Taking to X, the Delegation of the European Union to Pakistan stated that its “diplomatic missions in Islamabad have […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: Tourism Schools in Portugal will train immigrants who want to work in the sector, in a program that starts in January. Those selected will receive a monthly scholarship of €522.50 and travel assistance. The training program for immigrants who want to work in the tourism sector – which the Government announced as one […]
Read MoreNewswire Sofia: It’s been a rocky road to Schengen membership for both eastern European countries. As of 1 January 2025, Romania and Bulgaria will officially become full-time members of the Schengen Area, which allows free movement between member states for 450 million citizens. The two countries have been members of the European Union (EU) since […]
Read MoreNewswire Sofia: Bulgaria and Greece have agreed on the details on how to completely abolish border controls between them, according to a communique by the Bulgarian interior ministry published on Wednesday (11 December). The two countries declared their readiness to lift border controls on 1 January 2025, at a meeting between their police services at […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Pakistanis lodged 28,000 applications for international protection in the European Union Plus countries between October 2023 and October this year, the EU’s Agency for Asylum (EUAA) said in a Pakistan-specific report. The monthly figures have followed a downward trend since reaching a peak in October last year, when Pakistanis lodged around 3,400 […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: The Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, António Leitão Amaro this week, unfolded plans to accelerate the process of issuing work visas to immigrants. Portugal is currently dealing with labour shortages in several sectors amid ongoing visa delays. Portugal aims to grant work visas to immigrants in less than a […]
Read MoreNewswire Brussels: European interior ministers met in Brussels this week, where they voted to allow Bulgaria and Romania fully into the Schengen area, dropping borders between the two countries and the rest of Europe. The decision will be valid as of January 1, 2025. “It is a historic moment to finally welcome Bulgaria and Romania,” […]
Read MoreAthens: Five migrants died this week when a migrant boat sank off Crete, Greece’s coastguard said, leaving 40 people reportedly missing while 39 survivors were rescued. The boat sank 12 nautical miles southwest of the island, according to ERTNEWS, which reported the 40 missing. A huge rescue operation involving vessels and aircraft was underway in […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Pakistan and the European Union this week agreed to continue cooperation on emerging challenges of food, energy security, and climate change, underlining sustained engagement, particularly in areas such as trade, migration, human rights, political, economic and development cooperation with a focus on the Global Gateway strategy. The bilateral relations and cooperation were […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: Portugal has experienced its hottest-ever November, the country’s meteorological agency said this week, the average air temperature 2.69C higher than the average for 1981-2010. The average temperature for November was 15.14C, the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) said. “November has been the hottest month recorded” since the institute began collecting such […]
Read MoreNewswire Athens: The smart traffic cameras aim to curb violations, reduce accidents, and boost overall road safety in Greece. Greece has announced the rollout of an ambitious nationwide smart traffic camera system, in a bid to further enhance road safety and reduce traffic violations in a country notorious for its dangerous drivers and roads. The […]
Read MoreCelina Ali Islamabad: Aviation Minister Khawaja Asif this week announced that the European Commission and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have lifted the ban on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) for flights to Europe. In 2020, after a PIA plane crash in Karachi killed nearly 100, followed by a fake pilot licence scandal, the EASA banned […]
Read MoreNewswire Rome: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni received Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Rome this week. The two leaders discussed several challenges facing the European Union. ‘Old friendship, new chapter, big plans,’ Orbán wrote in a post on X following the meeting. During their discussions, Meloni congratulated Orbán on Hungary’s successful EU Presidency, highlighting […]
Read MoreParis: French President Emmanuel Macron said this week he will stay on “until the end” of his five-year term, until May 2027, after a no-confidence vote in parliament toppled the government. Speaking to the nation in a televised address on Thursday, Macron said he would name a new prime minister in the “coming days”. “The […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: Portugal has won the award for “Best Golf Destination in the World” at the World Golf Awards 2024 in Funchal, and has also scooped the prize for “Best Golf Destination in Europe” for the third year running. The announcement came this afternoon, with Turismo de Portugal attributing the country’s success “to the integrated […]
Read MoreNewswire Brussels: In a show of solidarity following Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Union offered the prospect of eventual membership to Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, signaling to the Kremlin that these countries are not within its sphere of influence. When United States President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House in January, […]
Read MoreFrancesco Fontemaggi Paris: France this week showed off to the world the gleaming restored interior of Notre Dame cathedral, just over a week before the 850-year-old mediaeval edifice reopens following painstaking restoration after the devastating 2019 fire. President Emmanuel Macron conducted an inspection of the restoration, broadcast live on television, saying workers had done the […]
Read MoreNewswire Sofia: Bulgaria is confidently moving towards its goal in tourism for 2024 – to attract 13 million visitors by the end of the year and achieve 14 billion in tourism revenue, which will set a new standard for success in the sector, the Tourism Ministry said. National Statistical Institute (NSI) data confirm that 2024 […]
Read MoreNewswire Lisbon: In an effort to contribute more to social integration and public benefit, authorities in Portugal have unfolded plans to launch the new Solidarity Golden Visa. Although it has yet to be approved when it will enter into force, this program would grant residency to wealthy internationals, provided they make an investment of at […]
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