After $6 billion funding from Saudis, Pakistan PM now looks to China

Agencies
October 26, 2018

Islamabad, Oct 26: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan will visit China next week, authorities said Thursday, as the former cricketer mounts a desperate search for funds to prop up the nation’s dire finances.

The confirmation of Khan’s first visit to China as premier comes days after Pakistan secured $6 billion dollars in funding from Saudi Arabia to help stave off a widening balance of payment crisis.

Khan said in a televised address Wednesday that he was working to nail down Saudi-style financing packages from two additional, unnamed countries to reduce the size of a potential loan from the International Monetary Fund.

The foreign affairs ministry said Khan would meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang on the November 2-5 trip which will take in Beijing and and the commercial hub of Shanghai.

“The visit will provide an opportunity for the two countries to review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations with special reference to CPEC,” foreign ministry spokesman Muhammad Faisal told AFP, referring to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

CPEC is a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure project aimed at building energy and transport links connecting the western Chinese region of Xinjiang with the Arabian Sea via Pakistan.

However, given Pakistan’s deteriorating finances, in recent months there have been concerns that portions of the ambitious agreement may have to be scaled down.

Analysts said Khan will be pushing for financial assistance from Beijing during the visit.

“Pakistan would certainly like China to play its role in supporting our balance of payments and this is going to be one major subject of discussions,” said economist Salman Shah.

“China has been providing financial support to Pakistan in difficult times and this will not be something new if they come forward this time also.” Since taking power in August, Khan has sought loans from “friendly” countries like Saudi Arabia, vowed to recover funds stolen by corrupt officials, and embarked on a series of populist austerity drives to raise cash.

Pakistan has gone to the IMF repeatedly since the late 1980s.

The last time was in 2013, when Islamabad got a $6.6 billion loan to tackle a similar crisis.

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Agencies
February 5,2020

New Delhi, Feb 5: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday expressed his suspicion over the government using force to clear the Shaheen Bagh stretch where an agitation has been ongoing for over 50 days against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

While speaking to ANI over the phone, Owaisi was asked that there are indications from the government that after February 8, Shaheen Bagh will be cleared.

In reply, he said, "Might be they will shoot them, they might turn Shaheen Bagh into Jallianwala Bagh. This might happen. BJP minister gave a statement to 'shoot a bullet'. The government must give an answer as (to) who is radicalising."

Further speaking about NPR and NRC, Owaisi said, "Government must give a clear cut answer that till 2024 NRC will not be implemented. Why are they spending Rs 3900 crore for NPR? I feel this way because I was a History student. Hitler during his reign conducted census twice and after that, he pushed the jews in a gas chamber. I don't want our country (to) go in that way."

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News Network
February 16,2020

Washington, Feb 16: India and the United States share "unshakeable" ties, said US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary (PDAS), Alice Wells, on Sunday, adding that the upcoming visit of President Donald Trump will further strengthen the relationship between the two countries.

"The U.S. and #India enjoy a close partnership that grows stronger day by day. Together, we are breaking records. For example, we welcomed a record number of Indian exchange students to the US last year and hope to receive even more this year," said Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs in a tweet attributed to Alice Wells.

"The ties between our countries are unshakeable, and we look forward to an even warmer relationship as @narendramodi hosts @POTUS later this month," it added.

Trump will pay a two-day state visit to India from February 24 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"India is at the heart of the Indo-Pacific region and plays an increasingly prominent role on the world's stage. The U.S. looks forward to partnering with #India at every step of the way, " Alice Wells further said.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Trump is expected to attend an event at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad on the lines of the ''Howdy Modi'' function that was addressed by the US President and PM Modi in Houston in September last year. Trump is slated to pay a two-day visit to India from February 24.

During the visit, Trump, who will be accompanied by First Lady Melania, will attend official engagements in New Delhi and Ahmedabad, and interact with a wide cross-section of the Indian society, the MEA said in a statement.

The announcement of Trump's first official visit to India was earlier made by the White House on Monday, which, in its statement, said that the US President and Modi had agreed during a recent phone conversation that the trip will "further strengthen the United States-India strategic partnership and highlight the strong and enduring bonds between the American and Indian people".

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News Network
January 30,2020

New York, Jan 30: Three Indian citizens were arrested by border patrol agents here for entering the US illegally.

US Border Patrol agents stopped a vehicle near Massena in New York state along the county's northern border on January 24. During the vehicle checking, the agents found that two of the passengers were Indian citizens who entered the US illegally and not at a designated port of entry.

Both the passengers were transported to the Border Patrol Station for processing and charged.

The vehicle driver, also an Indian citizen who originally entered illegally into the US in 2012 and was ordered removed from the country in absentia last December, was charged with alien smuggling, a felony, which carries a penalty of a fine and up to five years of imprisonment for each violation.

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