CPEC extend to Afghanistan says China

Beijing welcomes Afghanistan’s active participation in the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure plan proposed by China, and is willing to push for extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corri­dor (CPEC) to Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday as he made a surprise visit to Kabul.

Wang met acting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to discuss political and economic ties, including starting work in the mining sector and Afghanistan’s possible role in China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, according to a statement from an Afghan foreign ministry spokesman.

Read more: Ukraine pleads for help as Joe Biden heads to summit

China was willing to promote the extension of CPEC to Afghanistan, making the latter a bridge for regional connectivity, Wang said on Thursday .

He also said China hoped Afghanistan would fulfil its commitment of not allowing any external forces to use its territory as a tool to oppose neighbours, or harm the security of other nations.

Wang visited Kabul on Thursday, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s foreign ministry said, the highest-level visit by a Chinese official since the Taliban took power last year and a day after many in the global community were angered by the group’s closure of girls’ high schools.

China is among just a handful of countries, including Pakistan and Qatar, that has sent a minister to Afghanistan since the Taliban took over the country in August.

Foreign governments, including Beijing, have held back on formally recognising the Taliban administration, with many saying the Taliban need to prove their commitment to human rights, counter-terrorism and inclusive governance.

The visit came after widespread global condemnation of the Taliban administration a day earlier, when it unexpectedly ordered girls home from high school, an abrupt U-turn on policy after having said earlier in the week school would be open to all students.

China will host a meeting of regional foreign ministers later this month, and the statement said Muttaqi would also participate in the meeting.

Read more: Russia to expel US diplomats in tit-for-tat move

Earlier in September, Pakistan also discussed Taliban-led Afghanistan joining the multibillion-dollar CPEC infrastructure project.

“Regional connectivity is an important element of our discussion with Afghan leadership and our way forward for our economic interaction with Afghanistan,” said Mansoor Ahmad Khan, Pakistan’s envoy to Kabul, in an interview with Reuters at the time.

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No-Confidence Motion, Joint opposition convenes parliamentary members meeting

The joint opposition parties have convened a parliamentary members meeting to be held today (Friday) for consultation on no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran.

According to sources, the meeting will be held in Parliament House at 10:00am during which a strategy will be chalked out for today’s National Assembly session.

Sources further informed that consultations would also be held on expected protests by the joint opposition parties against the government and the Speaker National Assembly during the assembly session.

Read more: PPP assures MQM-P of ‘accepting demands’ to seek support for no-trust move

Earlier on Thursday, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari called on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shahbaz Sharif and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday night in Islamabad for consultation on no-trust motion.

According to sources, the joint opposition stalwarts held consultation on no-trust motion to be tabled against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly today.

Sources said that the joint opposition leaders during their meeting decided that Fateha would be offered for the departed soul of PTI MAN Khyal Zaman at the start of the National Assembly proceedings as it is the tradition that Fateha is offered on the death of any member at the beginning of the assembly session.

After the Fateha Khwani, the opposition will table no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan. Sources said that opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif would present no-confidence motion against PM Imran on behalf of the joint opposition.

Read more: Early elections are a possibility: Sheikh Rashid

The meeting also decided that the leaders of joint opposition parties would be responsible to bring 161 out of 162 opposition members for the assembly session while Ali Wazir, a member of the opposition, is in jail.

Sources said that no production order was issued for Ali Wazir to attend the National Assembly session. It was also decided in the meeting that the opposition will request National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser to issue a production order for Ali Wazir to attend the assembly session.

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CPEC extend to Afghanistan says China

Beijing welcomes Afghanistan’s active participation in the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure plan proposed by China, and is willing to push for extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corri­dor (CPEC) to Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday as he made a surprise visit to Kabul.

Wang met acting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to discuss political and economic ties, including starting work in the mining sector and Afghanistan’s possible role in China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, according to a statement from an Afghan foreign ministry spokesman.

Read more: Ukraine pleads for help as Joe Biden heads to summit

China was willing to promote the extension of CPEC to Afghanistan, making the latter a bridge for regional connectivity, Wang said on Thursday .

He also said China hoped Afghanistan would fulfil its commitment of not allowing any external forces to use its territory as a tool to oppose neighbours, or harm the security of other nations.

Wang visited Kabul on Thursday, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s foreign ministry said, the highest-level visit by a Chinese official since the Taliban took power last year and a day after many in the global community were angered by the group’s closure of girls’ high schools.

China is among just a handful of countries, including Pakistan and Qatar, that has sent a minister to Afghanistan since the Taliban took over the country in August.

Foreign governments, including Beijing, have held back on formally recognising the Taliban administration, with many saying the Taliban need to prove their commitment to human rights, counter-terrorism and inclusive governance.

The visit came after widespread global condemnation of the Taliban administration a day earlier, when it unexpectedly ordered girls home from high school, an abrupt U-turn on policy after having said earlier in the week school would be open to all students.

China will host a meeting of regional foreign ministers later this month, and the statement said Muttaqi would also participate in the meeting.

Read more: Russia to expel US diplomats in tit-for-tat move

Earlier in September, Pakistan also discussed Taliban-led Afghanistan joining the multibillion-dollar CPEC infrastructure project.

“Regional connectivity is an important element of our discussion with Afghan leadership and our way forward for our economic interaction with Afghanistan,” said Mansoor Ahmad Khan, Pakistan’s envoy to Kabul, in an interview with Reuters at the time.

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No-Confidence Motion, Joint opposition convenes parliamentary members meeting

The joint opposition parties have convened a parliamentary members meeting to be held today (Friday) for consultation on no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran.

According to sources, the meeting will be held in Parliament House at 10:00am during which a strategy will be chalked out for today’s National Assembly session.

Sources further informed that consultations would also be held on expected protests by the joint opposition parties against the government and the Speaker National Assembly during the assembly session.

Read more: PPP assures MQM-P of ‘accepting demands’ to seek support for no-trust move

Earlier on Thursday, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari called on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shahbaz Sharif and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday night in Islamabad for consultation on no-trust motion.

According to sources, the joint opposition stalwarts held consultation on no-trust motion to be tabled against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly today.

Sources said that the joint opposition leaders during their meeting decided that Fateha would be offered for the departed soul of PTI MAN Khyal Zaman at the start of the National Assembly proceedings as it is the tradition that Fateha is offered on the death of any member at the beginning of the assembly session.

After the Fateha Khwani, the opposition will table no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan. Sources said that opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif would present no-confidence motion against PM Imran on behalf of the joint opposition.

Read more: Early elections are a possibility: Sheikh Rashid

The meeting also decided that the leaders of joint opposition parties would be responsible to bring 161 out of 162 opposition members for the assembly session while Ali Wazir, a member of the opposition, is in jail.

Sources said that no production order was issued for Ali Wazir to attend the National Assembly session. It was also decided in the meeting that the opposition will request National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser to issue a production order for Ali Wazir to attend the assembly session.

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KSE-100 index gains over 300 points on high yields

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday gained over 300 points as a surge in yields of T-bills on Tuesday’s auction helped the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) raise Rs693 billion against the target of Rs800 billion.

Meanwhile, reports that Pakistan failed to reach conclusion with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during the seventh review regarding the next loan tranche dented investors' sentiments and capped some of the gains at the bourse.

Moreover, the market players avoided assuming fresh positions due to constant rupee depreciation and ongoing political turmoil.

At the close, the KSE-100 index gained 318.76 points, or 0.74%, to settle at 43,522.55 points.

A report from Arif Habib Limited noted that a volatile session was observed today due to an uptick in the auction result of Market Treasury Bills (T-Bills).

“The cut-off yields on 3-12 months T-bills stood higher compared to the longer-tenure papers like 3-10 years Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs),” the brokerage house noted.

It further noted that the market opened in the green zone but battled between the bulls and bears throughout the day.

Meanwhile, the mainboard activity remained dull. On the flip-side, activity continued to remain side-ways as the market witnessed hefty volumes in the third-tier stocks. In the last trading hour, value buying was witnessed which led the index to close in the green zone.

Sectors contributing to the performance included cement (+73.7 points), technology (+53.1 points), commercial banks (+36.2 points), and fertiliser (+33.5 points).

Shares of 334 companies were traded during the session. At the close of trading, 178 scrips closed in the green, 132 in the red, and 24 remained unchanged.

Overall trading volumes rose to 149.78 million shares compared with Tuesday’s tally of 138.28 million. The value of shares traded during the day was Rs5.6 billion.

Treet Corporation was the volume leader with 20.76 million shares traded, gaining Rs0.83 to close at Rs30.90. It was followed by TRG Pakistan with 10.20 million shares traded, gaining Rs3.98 to close at Rs76.38, and Telecard Limited with 9.40 million shares traded, gaining Rs0.29 to close at Rs10.39.

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Four soldiers martyred in gun battle with terrorists in North Waziristan: ISPR

Four soldiers were martyred in North Waziristan's Hassan Khel area during an exchange of fire with terrorists who attempted to infiltrate into Pakistan from Afghanistan in the night between March 23 and March 24, the military's media affairs wing said on Thursday.

According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a group of terrorists tried to infiltrate into Pakistan at midnight, but their attempt was foiled due to the "alertness and timely response of army troops".

The terrorists, however, retaliated by opening fire, the statement said, adding that the soldiers "reciprocated in a befitting manner".

"The terrorists, having failed, fled ... and as per intelligence reports, suffered heavy casualties," the statement read, adding that four soldiers embraced martyrdom after fighting "gallantly" during the gun battle.

The martyred soldiers have been identified as 34-year-old Lance Havaldar Wajahat Alam, who was a resident of Gilgit-Baltistan's Ghizer area, 25-year-old Sepoy Sajjid lnayat, a resident of Sheikhupura, 32-year-old Sepoy Maqbool Hayat, a resident of Ghizer, and 22-year-old Sepoy Sajjid Ali, who was a resident of Skardu.

"The Pakistan Army is determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve," the ISPR statement said.

Earlier this month, security forces had killed another four militants during two intelligence-based operations North Waziristan.

 

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Four soldiers martyred in gun battle with terrorists in North Waziristan: ISPR

Four soldiers were martyred in North Waziristan's Hassan Khel area during an exchange of fire with terrorists who attempted to infiltrate into Pakistan from Afghanistan in the night between March 23 and March 24, the military's media affairs wing said on Thursday.

According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a group of terrorists tried to infiltrate into Pakistan at midnight, but their attempt was foiled due to the "alertness and timely response of army troops".

The terrorists, however, retaliated by opening fire, the statement said, adding that the soldiers "reciprocated in a befitting manner".

"The terrorists, having failed, fled ... and as per intelligence reports, suffered heavy casualties," the statement read, adding that four soldiers embraced martyrdom after fighting "gallantly" during the gun battle.

The martyred soldiers have been identified as 34-year-old Lance Havaldar Wajahat Alam, who was a resident of Gilgit-Baltistan's Ghizer area, 25-year-old Sepoy Sajjid lnayat, a resident of Sheikhupura, 32-year-old Sepoy Maqbool Hayat, a resident of Ghizer, and 22-year-old Sepoy Sajjid Ali, who was a resident of Skardu.

"The Pakistan Army is determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve," the ISPR statement said.

Earlier this month, security forces had killed another four militants during two intelligence-based operations North Waziristan.

 

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