Category: 2. World

How Pakistan won over the US leadership after years of isolation

It was telling of the sensitivity around Pakistan’s diplomacy with the United States that reports emerged this week about India lodging a protest after President Donald Trump chose recently to host a lunch meeting with Pakistan’s military chief.

After years of isolation, Pakistan’s leadership has succeeded in winning over the US administration at the very top level. The White House lunch in June with Pakistan’s Field Marshal Asim Munir saw one of the most powerful men in Pakistan’s hybrid regime become the first Pakistani military leader – who has not imposed martial law – have a one-on-one meeting with the US President.

This marked a massive upgrade in diplomatic relations compared to the experience of the Biden years. As president, Joe Biden did not even call Imran Khan, Pakistan’s Prime Minister from 2018 to 2022. A mid-level State Department official told Pakistani officials in 2021 that the Biden administration has downgraded the bilateral relationship with Pakistan. Even with the change of government in Pakistan, the relationship did not substantially improve. Biden wrote a letter to new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in 2024 and had a brief photo-op meeting with Sharif at a United Nations General Assembly reception, with no other public contact.

After Trump’s inauguration in January this year, things began to change in a good way for Pakistan. During a joint address to Congress, Trump thanked Pakistan for helping to arrest the mastermind of the Abbey Gate bombing, in which 13 American soldiers were killed during the final days of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. Trump also claimed a crucial role in ensuring a ceasefire between Pakistan and India in May (a point disputed by India).

Asim Munir during a 2023 meeting in Tehran (Iranian Presidency/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Munir’s meeting with Trump came as the culmination of Pakistan’s efforts to restore ties with the United States. Two main factors appeared central in helping Islamabad to win over Trump.

First was Pakistan’s embrace of crypto and adoption of digital currencies in line with Trump’s agenda.

In March, Pakistan formed a Crypto Council and also appointed a Minister for Crypto. In April, Pakistan’s Crypto Council signed an agreement with World Liberty Financial, a company in which Trump’s family holds a 60% stake, according to reports. In May, Bilal bin Saqib, Pakistan’s Crypto Minister said during a Crypto event in Las Vegas that he wanted to recognise Trump for being the president who saved crypto. Saqib later held a meeting at the White House with US officials in June.

Second, Pakistan also nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the India-Pakistan conflict in May. A Trump spokesperson told reporters that Munir was invited by Trump to the White House because of Pakistan’s nomination. Trump has long coveted a Nobel Prize, won by his predecessor Barack Obama, and the Pakistani leadership smartly capitalised on this desire to get in Trump’s good books.

Continued support from Trump will require Pakistan to make concessions.

As with much of Pakistan’s diplomacy, arch-rival India looms large in considerations. Trump has already shown indications that he favours Pakistan’s version of how the May conflict unfolded between India and Pakistan. Trump has repeatedly claimed that he brokered the ceasefire and is ready to mediate on Kashmir. India consistently denies this claim, saying the ceasefire was brokered bilaterally between India and Pakistan, and that Trump had no role in it. India has a longstanding opposition to third-party mediation over the Kashmir conflict.

Pakistan also claims to have shot down five Indian jets during the May conflict. India initially denied the claim, later admitting the loss of aircraft without specifying numbers. Trump has echoed Pakistan’s version and said that five fighter jets were shot down, repeating the claim again as recently as last week. This has offered Pakistan an unexpected supporter against India, despite the fact that India is a key Indo-Pacific partner of the United States.

But continued support from Trump will require Pakistan to make concessions. Notably, this will involve critical minerals, which has been at the centre of US-China rivalry. The United States is particularly interested in Pakistan’s reserves of antimony, a mineral used in flame retardants and batteries, among others. Both countries are in talks to draw up a mineral deal. That risks earning Beijing’s ire.

Pakistan will also have to tread a delicate path with Trump on Middle East policy, particularly over US talks with Iran to end its nuclear program. Pakistan has its own strategic interest in not opposing neighbouring Iran, although the two have themselves recently traded blows.

While Pakistan has managed to woo Trump for now, the next White House meal might not be easy to schedule.

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July 25, 2025
Dar to meet Rubio for key talks today

ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister (DPM/FM) Ishaq Dar is slated to meet US Secretary of State, Senator Marco Rubio on Friday (today) in Washington DC to cover a wide range of bilateral and regional issues, including Pakistan-India tension, de-escalation, Pakistan-India ceasefire agreement, and regional development.

“Discussions will emphasise the importance of diplomacy and Pakistan-India dialogue in South Asia,” Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan stated this during a weekly media briefing on Thursday.

When asked about American officials’ statements to host Pakistan-India FMs over luncheon on Friday, he, however, showed ignorance about such a meeting.

Rubio tells PM: US seeks Pakistan’s help for ME peace

To another question, Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan said that Pakistan maintains that the path to lasting peace in South Asia lies in meaningful dialogue.

“It is for India to decide whether it wishes to engage constructively. We believe India should be thankful to the US for its role in de-escalating recent tensions, which led to a ceasefire. The causes leading to the ceasefire are well known. Any misadventure by India will receive a firm and proportionate response,” he asserted.

The spokesperson emphasised that Pakistan remains ready to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Responding to queries, the FO spokesperson dismissed the reports that the visit of the President of Iran was slated for July 26, however, dates are currently being finalised by the foreign ministries of both countries.

“Bilateral relations, trade, economy, people-to-people contacts, and much-stalled Pak-Iran gas pipeline project, will feature prominently in the agenda during Iran’s President visit to Pakistan,” he remarked.

Pakistan remains committed to supporting the people of Gaza. Unfortunately, Israeli restrictions have hindered humanitarian access. Pakistan continues to urge all parties to come to the negotiating table and adopt peaceful means to resolve the conflict.

Regarding the renewal and registration of Proof of Registration (PoR) cards for Afghan refugees, he highlighted a decision is awaited from the Ministry of Interior. Shafqat Ali Khan said that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s recent visit to Afghanistan was of considerable importance. He said the presence of terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan remains a major obstacle and impediment to regional peace.

The spokesperson has also brushed aside the speculation about the recognition of the Taliban government in Kabul, terming it premature.

He added that Pakistan-Afghanistan Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) is an early harvest initiative and is expected to progress further in the near future. Pakistan remains committed to enhancing economic and trade ties with Afghanistan.

Pakistan supports a peaceful resolution of the Iran nuclear issue through negotiations. Stability in the region depends on dialogue and mutual understanding.

The FO spokesperson announced that Pakistan is actively pursuing full membership of BRICS and is serious about contributing to the grouping’s goals and vision.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025

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July 25, 2025
Israel and the U.S. Pull Back From Cease-Fire Talks With Hamas – The New York Times
1. Israel and the U.S. Pull Back From Cease-Fire Talks With Hamas The New York Times
2. US, Israel recall teams from Gaza ceasefire talks after Hamas proposal Al Jazeera
3. Hamas confirms it has responded to latest Gaza truce proposal Dawn
4. Hamas says it submitted reply to Gaza truce proposal amid mediators’ fury at group The Times of Israel
5. Hamas Hopes to Convert Gaza’s Humanitarian Crisis Into Israeli Concessions in Negotiations Haaretz
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July 24, 2025
Starmer to speak with Macron and Merz as France to recognise Palestinian state – live updates

In Gaza, humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate rapidlypublished at 07:53 British Summer Time

Image source, Reuters

One in five children in Gaza City are now malnourished according to the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency (Unrwa).

In a statement issued on Thursday, Unrwa chief Philippe Lazzarini said “most children our teams are seeing are emaciated, weak and at high risk of dying if they don’t get the treatment they urgently need”.

More than 100 international humanitarian groups have warned of mass starvation, and on Wednesday the World Health Organization (WHO) said a large proportion of the population of Gaza was “starving”.

Israel, which controls the entry of all supplies into Gaza, says there is no siege and blames Hamas for any cases of malnutrition.

The UN, however, has warned that the level of aid getting into Gaza is “a trickle” and the hunger crisis in the territory “has never been so dire”.

Israel stopped aid deliveries to Gaza in early March following a two-month ceasefire. It has since established a new aid system run by the controversial US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

According to the UN human rights office, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military while trying to get food aid over the past two months.

It says at least 766 of them have been killed in the vicinity of the GHF’s four distribution centres.

Israel has accused Hamas of instigating the chaos near the aid sites. It says its troops have only fired warning shots and that they do not intentionally shoot civilians.

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July 24, 2025
Photos: Starvation in Gaza

Editor’s note: This gallery contains disturbing images. Viewer discretion is advised.

Food markets are empty. Human waste is piling up. Illness is spreading. And people in Gaza are “collapsing on the streets from hunger and dehydration.”

That’s the stark warning issued by more than 100 international humanitarian organizations on Wednesday, in a joint statement calling on Israel to end its blockade, restore the full flow of food, clean water and medical supplies to Gaza, and agree to a ceasefire.

“Every day without a sustained flow of aid means more people dying of preventable illnesses,” said the statement, signed by Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and dozens of other NGOs. “Children starve while waiting for promises that never arrive.”

Scores of people — most of them children — have died of malnutrition since the conflict began in October 2023, the Palestinian health ministry says.

Israel has previously blamed Hamas for its decision to halt aid shipments, alleging the militant group was stealing supplies and profiting from it. Hamas has denied this allegation.

Israel has said it is allowing ample aid into the besieged Palestinian territory, but aid agencies and multiple Western nations say the amount of food reaching Gaza’s population under strict Israeli control is a fraction of what is needed.

The United Nations World Food Program has warned that famine is looming and that 70,000 children in Gaza need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.

Muhammad Zakariya Ayyoub al-Matouq, an 18-month-old child in Gaza City, is held on July 21. He faces life-threatening malnutrition as the humanitarian situation worsens due to ongoing Israeli attacks and the blockade. Having dropped from 9 to 6 kilograms (approximately 20 to 13 pounds), he struggles to survive in a tent. (Ahmed Jihad Ibrahim Al-arini/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Young Palestinians wait for a charity organization to distribute food in Gaza City on July 24. (Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Samah Matar holds her malnourished son Ameer, who has cerebral palsy, at a school where their family is taking shelter in Gaza City on July 24. (Mahmoud Issa/Reuters)

Palestinians gather for aid in Beit Lahia, Gaza, on June 17. (Reuters)

Yazan, a malnourished 2-year-old, stands in his family’s damaged home in the Al-Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City on July 23. (Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP/Getty Images)

Alaa Al-Najjar mourns her 3-month-old baby, Yehia, at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza, on July 20. Medics said Yehia died from malnutrition. (Hatem Khaled/Reuters)

Workers at a charity organization prepare food for a large crowd on July 18. (Abdalhkem Abu Riash/Anadolu/Getty Images)

A Palestinian girl suffering from malnutrition has her arm circumference measured while receiving treatment at the Patient Friends Association Hospital in Gaza City on July 22. (Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto/Getty Images)

Palestinians rush to line up at a charity kitchen in Khan Younis on July 22. (AFP/Getty Images)

Mosab Al-Debs, a 14-year-old Palestinian boy who is suffering from malnourishment, lies on a bed at the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on July 22. (Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters)

People seeking aid from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation carry bags near Rafah, Gaza on July 24. (Ramadan Abed/Reuters)

Crowds form in Gaza City as Palestinians wait to receive food distributed by a charity on July 22. The World Food Programme has warned that famine is looming and that 70,000 children in Gaza need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition. (Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Yezen Abu Ful, a 2-year-old who lives with his family in the Al-Shati refugee camp in northern Gaza, continues to lose weight. His condition, seen here on July 13, continues to worsen due to severe food shortages caused by the ongoing Israeli blockade. (Ahmed Jihad Ibrahim Al-arini/Anadolu/Getty Images)

Palestinian families and journalists gather in Gaza City on July 19 to demand an end to Israeli attacks and the entry of humanitarian aid. Demonstrators held banners reading “Gaza is starving,” “Stop the attacks” and “We appeal to the world’s conscience.” (Saeed M. M. T. Jaras/Anadolu/Getty Images)

A girl reacts as she waits to receive food from a charity kitchen in Gaza City on July 22. (Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters)

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July 24, 2025
Suffering in Gaza is indefensible, says Keir Starmer

Paul Seddon

Political reporter

Getty Images

Sir Keir Starmer has condemned the “unspeakable and indefensible” humanitarian conditions in Gaza after aid groups warned of mass starvation in the territory.

In a statement, the prime minister said the situation had been “grave for some time” but it has “reached new depths”.

“We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe,” Sir Keir said.

He said he would hold an emergency call with Germany and France on Friday to discuss how to “stop the killing and get people the food they desperately need”.

Israel, which controls the entry of all supplies into Gaza, has said there was no siege and blamed Hamas for any cases of malnutrition.

There have been almost daily reports of Palestinians being killed while waiting for food since Israel partially lifted an 11-week total blockade on aid deliveries in May, following a two-month ceasefire.

Israel, along with the US, helped to establish a controversial new aid system run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), but food and medicine shortages have worsened.

The World Health Organization has said that a quarter of Gaza’s population is facing famine-like conditions, according to its assessments.

Israel has accused Hamas of instigating conflict near aid sites, and said its troops have only fired warning shots and do not intentionally shoot civilians.

On Monday, the UK joined 27 other countries in calling on Israel to “immediately lift restrictions” on the flow of aid, adding its aid delivery model was dangerous and deprived Gazans of “human dignity”.

Sir Keir has faced recent pressure from some Labour MPs to take a stronger line on Israel, including calls for the government to change its position and recognise a Palestinian state.

The government said it would only do so as part of a long-term political solution to the conflict in the Middle East.

‘Inalienable right’

In a statement on Thursday evening, Sir Keir reiterated the “pressing need for Israel to change course”.

He went on to repeat his calls for an immediate ceasefire in the conflict, and for Hamas to “unconditionally” release all remaining hostages.

Adding that Palestinians had an “inalienable right” to statehood, he added a ceasefire would “put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution”.

President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that France would officially recognise a Palestinian state in September.

It comes after the United States joined Israel earlier on Thursday in recalling its negotiators from Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar.

Israeli and Hamas delegations have been meeting in Doha for more than two weeks, but the talks have failed to make a breakthrough.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff blamed Hamas for the lack of a deal, adding that Washington would consider “alternative options to bring the hostages home”.

The UK has been gradually stepping up action against Israel since its military escalation in Gaza earlier this year, suspending trade talks with Israel in May and imposing fresh sanctions on West Bank settlers.

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July 24, 2025
Stop unlawful deportation of Bengali Muslims, Human Rights Watch tells government

Suspected illegal Bangladeshi migrants detained in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, in April 2025.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Criticising India’s deportation of “ethnic Bengali migrants” to Bangladesh, the Human Rights Watch on Thursday (July 24, 2025) said the exercise was being done “without following due process”. Such acts done to “garner political support” reflect the “broader discriminatory policies against Muslims”, it said in a statement.

Citing various news reports of Bengali migrants being picked up from “BJP-run States” such as Assam, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh, Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch said: “India’s ruling party BJP is fuelling discrimination by arbitrarily expelling Bengali Muslims from the country, including Indian citizens.”

The statement said the government should stop unlawfully deporting people without due process, and instead ensure everyone’s access to procedural safeguards against arbitrary detention and expulsion.

The body further said that it had interviewed 18 people in June, including affected individuals who returned to India after being expelled to Bangladesh, their family members, and relatives of those who were detained and are still missing. Subsequently, the body alleged that it had written to the Ministry of Home Affairs with its findings but did not receive any response.

‘1,500 Muslims sent out’

“The Indian government has provided no official data on the number of people expelled, but Border Guard Bangladesh has reported that India expelled more than 1,500 Muslim men, women and children to Bangladesh between May 7 and June 15, including about 100 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar,” the statement read.

It further noted that the authorities of “BJP-run States” of Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha, and Rajasthan have “rounded up Muslims, mostly impoverished migrant workers”, and turned them over to Indian border guards. In some cases, the border guards allegedly “threatened and beat the detainees to force them to cross into Bangladesh” without adequately verifying their citizenship claims, the statement said.

The body further said in its statement that India’s detention and expulsion of anyone without due process violates fundamental human rights. “India is obligated under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination to ensure the protection of everyone’s rights and to prevent deprivation of citizenship on the basis of race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin,” it read.

Citing examples of Bengali Muslims from various States being “harassed” and Rohingyas being “deported”, the body said the Indian government is undercutting the country’s long history of providing refuge to the persecuted as it “tries to generate political support”.

“The Indian government is putting thousands of vulnerable people at risk in apparent pursuit of unauthorised immigrants, but their actions reflect broader discriminatory policies against Muslims,” Ms. Pearson further said.

Published – July 25, 2025 12:49 am IST

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July 24, 2025
Plane crashes in Russia’s far east, killing all 48 on board – The Washington Post
1. Plane crashes in Russia’s far east, killing all 48 on board The Washington Post
2. Russian plane crashes in Russia’s far east, nearly 50 people on board feared dead Reuters
3. Plane crash in Russia’s far east kills nearly 50 people Dawn
4. Russian passenger plane carrying 49 people crashes in Amur Region Ptv.com.pk
5. Dozens feared killed after plane crashes in Russia’s Far East, state media reports CNN
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July 24, 2025
Trade deal on US tariffs within reach, says EU, as 1 August deadline nears

Paul Kirby

Europe digital editor

Bloomberg via Getty Images

Failure to reach a deal would lead to 30% US tariffs and EU countermeasures targeting US exports

The European Union has said it believes a deal on trade tariffs with the US is “within reach”, ahead of a 1 August deadline when President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a sweeping 30% levy on EU imports.

Hopes were raised after EU diplomats suggested the US had proposed a broad 15% tariff on most European imports.

A European Commission spokesman refused to speculate on the latest talks on Thursday, but said EU negotiators were working “might and main” to deliver a deal for Europe’s consumers and companies.

White House spokesman Kush Desai said earlier that any talk about deals should be seen as “speculation” unless it was confirmed by the president.

Trump said on Wednesday that his condition for withdrawing the threatened 30% levy on EU imports was “if they agree to open up the [European] Union to American businesses”.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested good progress with the EU was being made.

The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged at 2% on Thursday, after a series of rate cuts in recent months, and ECB President Christine Lagarde said “the sooner this trade uncertainty is resolved… the less uncertainty we’ll have to deal with”.

DANIEL ROLAND/AFP

ECB President Christine Lagarde said it was time to bring an end to uncertainty in transatlantic trade

The chief executive of French luxury group LVMH, Bernard Arnault, said an accord similar to the one Japan reached with the US had to be reached amicably.

“We cannot afford to fall out with the United States and engage in a trade war with our companies’ main market,” he told Le Figaro newspaper in France.

The EU had initially hoped for a 10% baseline in US import tariffs, along the lines of a deal the US agreed with the UK, until Trump sent a letter threatening a 30% tariff.

Until now, the EU has refrained from imposing counter-tariffs on the US, even though European companies have faced an extra 10% levy on exports, on top of an average duty of 4.8% they faced before the Trump presidency.

However, if President Trump does not approve an EU accord, then member states have agreed to hit back with a list of countermeasures on US goods worth a total of €93bn (£81bn; $109bn) that would kick in days after the US tariffs.

“These countermeasures will automatically click into force on 7 August should a negotiated outcome not happen before then,” European Commission spokesman Olof Gill told reporters.

“Right now the EU is focused on finding a negotiated outcome with the US,” he said, while stressing that a “twin-tracks” approach meant that it was prepared to react without a deal.

The €93bn in countermeasures are made up of an initial list of €21bn – drawn up in retaliation for 25% US tariffs imposed last March on imports of European steel and aluminium – and a new list of €72bn.

The first tariffs, thought to target imports such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles, poultry and jeans, have been repeatedly suspended in recent months in the hope of reaching a deal.

The new €72bn in countermeasures are said to include proposed tariffs on bourbon whiskey, chemicals, cars, aircraft and aircraft parts.

Another option in the EU’s armoury, described as its nuclear option or trade “bazooka”, is to impose restrictions on America’s powerful service sector as well as intellectual property rights.

The anti-coercion instrument (ACI), to give its formal name, was drawn up two years ago to act as a powerful deterrent when a non-EU country resorted to unfair coercion to affect European trade or investment.

At the moment there is little support across the EU for this level of retaliation to be on the table, but earlier this week French Industry Minister Marc Ferracci suggested Europe should adopt a firmer approach and deploy new tools.

Warning that 30% tariffs would have dramatic consequences for French industry and place some sectors in “mortal danger”, Ferracci said various responses would need to be deployed in the event of a failure to reach a deal by 1 August.

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July 24, 2025
Frustrations Dominate Europe-China Summit – The Wall Street Journal
1. Frustrations Dominate Europe-China Summit The Wall Street Journal
2. EU chief says ties with China at ‘inflection point’ BBC
3. President Xi calls for stronger China-EU ties for global stability Ptv.com.pk
4. China’s Xi urges Europe to make ‘the right strategic choice’ amid global trade turbulence at key summit CNN
5. EU-China summit – who’s attending and what’s on the agenda? aljazeera.com
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July 24, 2025