Nawaz Sharif

Nawaz Sharif reaches out to Delhi after Jaishankar's trip to Islamabad

India and Pakistan should "bury" the past and look at the future to live like good neighbours, former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Thursday, in remarks seen as an attempt to reach out to New Delhi following Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar's trip to Islamabad this week. In an interaction with a group of Indian journalists, the three-time prime minister and president of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N) described Jaishankar's visit as a "good opening" and said both sides should now engage and move forward. Hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surprise trip to Lahore in December 2015, Sharif said he was not happy with the "long-pause" in the ties between the two countries and hoped that both sides should look ahead with a positive approach. "We can't change our neighbours, neither can Pakistan nor can India. We should live like good neighbours," the 74 year-old leader said. When asked whether a bridge builder between the two countries was required, he said .

India, Pakistan should bury past, look ahead, says ex-PM Nawaz Sharif

India and Pakistan should "bury" the past and look ahead to live like good neighbours, former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Thursday, describing the Indian foreign minister's trip to Islamabad this week to attend a conclave of the SCO bloc as an "opening". In an interaction with a group of Indian journalists, the three-time former prime minister and president of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N) said he was not happy with the "long pause" in the ties and hoped that both sides would look ahead with a positive approach. Jaishankar travelled to Islamabad on Tuesday for a nearly 24-hour trip to attend the conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), becoming the first Indian foreign minister to visit Pakistan in the last nine years amid continuing strain in ties. "This is how things should go ahead. We would have liked PM Modi to come but it was good that the Indian foreign minister came. I have said before that we must pick up the threads of our ...

Pakistan secures new $7 billion loan from IMF offering breather for govt

The new 37-month deal, which will be Pakistan's 25th since independence, comes as the country faces loan repayments of about $24 billion this fiscal year, which started July 1

Pak courts acquit Imran Khan in 3 high-profile cases, including cipher case

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party founder Imran Khan was on Monday acquitted in three high-profile cases, including the cipher case, in a major relief to the beleaguered former prime minister who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for making public a secret diplomatic communication. The 71-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician has been in jail since August last year after being convicted in some of the nearly 200 cases slapped on him since his ouster in April 2022. On Monday, a two-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb acquitted Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case. However, the duo are not expected to be released from prison due to Khan's sentence in the Iddat case (illegal marriage) while Qureshi was arrested in a case linked to the May 9 violence. Qureshi is on physical remand till June 5. Khan and Qureshi were sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment in the cip

Objective view emerging in Pak: MEA on Sharif's comments on Lahore pact

Days after former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif admitted that Islamabad had violated the Lahore pact, India on Thursday said an objective view is emerging on the issue in the neighbouring country. Sharif on Tuesday said Islamabad had "violated" an agreement with India signed by him and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1999, in an apparent reference to the Kargil misadventure by General Pervez Musharraf. "You are aware of our position on the issue. I need not have to reiterate that. We note that there is an objective view emerging in Pakistan as well on this matter," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. He was replying to a question on the matter at his weekly media briefing. After a historic summit in Lahore, then Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee and Sharif signed the Lahore Declaration on February 21, 1999. The agreement that talked about a vision of peace and stability between the two neighbouring countries signalled a breakthrough.

What is the 1999 Lahore Declaration that Nawaz Sharif says Pak violated?

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif admitted that Islamabad had violated an agreement with India, co-signed by him and ex-PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1999

Pak violated Lahore Agreement; Kargil war our fault: Nawaz Sharif

With Kargil War, we violated the Lahore Declaration, says ex-Pak PM Nawaz

Pakistan violated the Lahore Declaration that was signed between former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the then Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee on February 21, 1999

Ex-Pak PM Nawaz Sharif set to be re-elected as PML-N president after 6 yrs

Three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is set to be re-elected as the President of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party here on Tuesday, six years after losing the post following a Supreme Court ruling in the Panama Papers case. The Dawn newspaper reported that the General Council meeting is set to take place at a local hotel. It is likely that the 74-year-old veteran politician, who returned to Pakistan in October last year after a four-year self-imposed exile in the UK, will be elected unopposed even though as many as 11 party members have received the nomination papers for the top post, the report said. The PML-N had earlier announced convening the general council meeting on May 11 but it was postponed to coincide with the celebration of 26 years of Pakistan becoming a nuclear power, the report said. PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah, while addressing a press conference, hinted that the elder Sharif would be elected without a contest. Responding to a

Pak to pay $2.58 mn to families of 5 Chinese killed in suicide bombing

Pakistan has decided to pay USD 2.58 million to the families of five Chinese nationals killed in March when a suicide bomber targeted their vehicle in the troubled northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, according to a media report on Friday. The five Chinese and their Pakistani driver were killed when a suicide attacker rammed his explosive-laden car into a vehicle in the Bisham area of the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on March 26 when they were being driven to a construction site of Dasu Hydroelectric power station in Kohistan district of the same province. The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of Pakistan's Cabinet on Thursday decided to pay USD 2.58 million to the families of Chinese workers slain in the attack, the Dawn newspaper said. The approval of compensation for five Chinese workers of China Gezhouba Group (contractor) was approved at the rate of USD 5,16,000 per head, as a goodwill gesture, the report said. The amount would be transferred immediately to

Pakistan's former PM Imran Khan, other leaders acquitted in vandalism cases

In a relief to beleaguered Imran Khan, a district and sessions court in Pakistan on Monday acquitted the jailed former prime minister and other leaders of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party in two vandalism cases. The court's verdict in the two cases related to the vandalism during the March 2022 long march came during the hearing of acquittal pleas filed by the 71-year-old PTI founder and other politicians, Geo News reported. Other leaders of the party who were acquitted included Zartaj Gul, Ali Nawaz Awan, Faisal Javed, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Qasim Suri, Raja Khurram Nawaz, Shireen Mazari, Saifullah Niazi, Asad Umar and Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmad. The cases against Khan and other politicians were registered in the Kohsar and Karachi Company police stations for violation of Section 144 imposed by authorities following the arrest of the former prime minister in an alleged corruption case. Speaking with journalists here, Khan's lawyer Naeem Panjotha said the cases

Pakistan's newly appointed Dy Prime Minister Dar to visit China next week

Pakistan's newly-appointed Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar will embark on a three-day official visit to China on May 13, during which he will meet top Chinese leaders and comprehensively review bilateral relations, including the upgradation of the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. Dar, who is also the foreign minister, will co-chair the 5th Pakistan-China Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Saturday. "The two sides will comprehensively review Pakistan-China bilateral relations including economic and trade cooperation; high-level exchanges and visits; upgradation of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and future connectivity initiatives," the statement said. The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan's Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is opposed by India as it is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). Dar and Wang will

Pak PM Sharif discusses new loan programme with IMF chief Georgieva

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has met IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva and discussed a new loan programme for the cash-strapped country to put the economy back on track. In a meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Special Meeting in Riyadh, the premier thanked Georgieva, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director, for her support to Pakistan in securing the USD 3 billion standby arrangement (SBA) from IMF last year that was now nearing its completion. Pakistan secured the USD 3 billion IMF programme in June last year, which helped it avert a sovereign default. Pakistan is seeking a new long-term Extended Fund Facility (EFF) after the current SBA expires this month. Both sides also discussed Pakistan entering into another IMF program to ensure that the gains made in the past year were consolidated and its economic growth trajectory remained positive, according to a statement issued by the PM Office on Sunday. Sharif reiterated his government'

Pakistan PM Sharif removes 25 senior tax officers for corruption: Report

In a major crackdown to rid Pakistan's top tax collection body of corrupt and inefficient officials, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif removed 25 senior officers from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). Sharif took action against the senior officers based on inputs from three intelligence agencies about their lack of financial integrity and competence, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. On the advice from the Prime Minister's Office, the FBR on Friday issued the notifications for the removal of 13 officers with immediate effect. Another 12 officers who were either already having no positions or were working on deputation in other ministries were recalled. Among those who have been ousted included the top-tier members of the board, chief commissioners and a former FBR chairman, who was already without a position for the past two years. Their replacements will be from among those who have been declared competent and righteous by the three intelligence agencies, according to governmen

Ex-Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif set to lead PML-N amidst internal strife

Pakistan's three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is all set to retake the helm of the ruling PML-N next month to guide the party amid internal strife, seven years after he relinquished the post after being disqualified by the apex court. Nawaz, 74, will be elected president of the ruling party on May 11 in a meeting of the party leadership, a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader told PTI. In 2017, the Supreme Court of Pakistan disqualified Nawaz as premier and party president for his alleged corruption in cases related to the Panama Papers revelations about his illegal wealth stashed abroad. He relinquished his position within the party following his disqualification, which also led to his departure from the prime minister's office. PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah told a press conference that a decision to make Nawaz the president of the party again was taken at a party meeting on Friday. A resolution was passed at the party meeting today to make the el

Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif to 'undergo health checkup' in China

Three-time former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif will embark on Monday on a five-day personal visit to China, where he will undergo a medical checkup, according to a media report. This will be 74-year-old Sharif's first international visit after he returned to Pakistan in October last year following a four-year self-imposed exile in the UK. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo will be accompanied by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on his "personal visit", Geo News reported on Monday. Sharif's visit is personal and during the trip, he will undergo a medical checkup, the report said, quoting party sources. The former prime minister would also hold meetings related to the development works of the Punjab province and will also meet the owners of Chinese companies, sources said. The PML-N leader was allowed by a high court in November 2019 to go abroad on health grounds after his medical reports revealed that he needed urgent treatment. He returned to Pakistan from London in Oct

Ex-Pak Prez Alvi advises Pakistanis to start from scratch to change destiny

The people of Pakistan must "reset, alt-del and restart" to change their destiny, former president Arif Alvi has said, asserting that the "poor but hardworking" nation, polarised by political differences, deserves better. Alvi, Pakistan's president from 2018 to March 2024, took to social media platform X on Thursday to criticise the cash-strapped country's current state of affairs. "The argument by some that it has happened before and others have also done the same is no justification to continue on this path, as it is retrogressive thinking with no way forward," the 74-year-old leader said. "To change our destiny is to Re-Think, Reset, Alt-Del, Clean the slate, Re-Start," he said. "Who will do it? Who can do it? Is it even possible? I think it is, as we have the potential, and this poor but hardworking nation certainly deserves better," the dentist-turned-politician said. Bashing the deterioration of Pakistan's economy, politics and judiciary, he said that there is severe stress

Pak PM Shehbaz orders fool-proof security arrangements for Chinese workers

He directed the interior ministry to increase collaboration with the provinces to further improve the provincial anti-terrorism departments

Zardaris supersede Sharifs with most legislators from same family in Pak

The Zardaris have overtaken the Sharifs to hold the record for having the most number of lawmakers from a family in Pakistani politics after President Asif Ali Zardari and slain former premier Benazir Bhutto's youngest daughter Aseefa was elected unopposed as a member of Parliament. Aseefa, who is set to become the First Lady, had filed a nomination for the National Assembly seat NA-207 from the Shaheed Benazirabad (formerly Nawabshah) area of Sindh province for the bye-election scheduled for next month. According to a notification issued by the Returning Office of the area, Aseefa was elected unopposed after three candidates who had filed papers against her withdrew their names from the contest. The three candidates were Abdul Rasool Brohi, Amanullah and Mairaj Ahmed. It left her with no challenger and she was declared a winner in her maiden electoral contest Friday. The seat was vacated by her father, Asif Ali Zardari after he was elected as the president. With her victory, the

Cash-strapped Pakistan needs to get India onboard on trade matters

The problem is that Pakistan needs India far more than India needs Pakistan. The Indian economy is stable and India remains deeply reluctant to open its markets to other developing countries