Pakistani Chopper violates Indian Airspace 

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan`s ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns.

The rail megaproject linking the coastal metropolis of Karachi to the northwestern city of Peshawar is China`s biggest Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project in Pakistan, but Islamabad has balked at the cost and financing terms.

Resistance has stiffened under the new government of populist Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has voiced alarm about rising debt levels and says the country must wean itself off foreign loans.

"We are seeing how to develop a model so the government of Pakistan wouldn`t have all the risk," Khusro Bakhtyar, minister in Pakistan`s planning ministry, told reporters recently.

The cooling of enthusiasm for China`s investments mirrors the unease of incoming governments in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives, where new administrations have come to power wary of Chinese deals struck by their predecessors.

Pakistan`s new government had wanted to review all BRI contracts. Officials say there are concerns the deals were badly negotiated, too expensive or overly favoured China.

But to Islamabad`s frustration, Beijing is only willing to review projects that have not yet begun, three senior government officials have told Reuters.

China`s Foreign Ministry said, in a statement in response to questions faxed by Reuters, that both sides were committed to pressing forward with BRI projects, "to ensure those projects that are already built operate as normal, and those which are being built proceed smoothly".

Pakistani officials say they remain committed to Chinese investment but want to push harder on price and affordability, while re-orientating the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) - for which Beijing has pledged about $60 billion in infrastructure funds - to focus on projects that deliver social development in line with Khan`s election platform.

China`s Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, told Reuters that Beijing was open to changes proposed by the new government and "we will definitely follow their agenda" to work out a roadmap for BRI projects based on "mutual consultation".

"It constitutes a process of discussion with each other about this kind of model, about this kind of roadmap for the future," Yao said.

Beijing would only proceed with projects that Pakistan wanted, he added. "This is Pakistan`s economy, this is their society," Yao said.

Islamabad`s efforts to recalibrate CPEC are made trickier by its dependence on Chinese loans to prop up its vulnerable economy.

Growing fissures in relations with Pakistan`s historic ally the United States have also weakened the country`s negotiating hand, as has a current account crisis likely to lead to a bailout by the International Monetary Fund, which may demand spending cuts.

We have reservations, but no other country is investing in Pakistan. What can we do?" one Pakistani minister told Reuters.&nbsp;

Crumbling railways&nbsp;

The ML-1 rail line is the spine of country`s dilapidated rail network, which has in recent years been edging towards collapse as passenger numbers plunge, train lines close and the vital freight business nosedives.

Khan`s government has vowed to make the 1,872 km (1,163 mile) line a priority CPEC project, saying it will help the poor travel across the vast South Asian nation.

But Islamabad is exploring funding options for CPEC projects that depart from the traditional BRI lending model - whereby host nations take on Chinese debt to finance construction of infrastructure - and has invited Saudi Arabia and other countries to invest.

One option for ML-1, according to Pakistani officials, is the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, which would see investors or companies finance and build the project and recoup their investment from cashflows generated mainly by the rail freight business, before returning it to Pakistan in a few decades time.

Yao, the Chinese envoy, said Beijing was open to BOT and would "encourage" its companies to invest.

Rail mega-projects under China`s BRI umbrella have run into problems elsewhere in Asia. A line linking Thailand and Laos has been beset by delays over financing, while Malaysia`s new Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad outright cancelled the Chinese-funded $20 billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL).

Beijing is happy to offer loans, but reticent to invest in the Pakistan venture as such projects are seldom profitable, according to Andrew Small, author of a book on China-Pakistan relations.

"The problem is that the Chinese don`t think they can make money on this project and are not keen on BOT," said Small.

Off-Books Debt

During President Xi Jinping`s visit to Pakistan in 2015, the ML-1 line was placed among a list of "early harvest" CPEC projects that would be prioritised, along with power plants urgently needed to end crippling electricity shortages.

But while many other projects from that list have now been completed the rail scheme has been stuck.

Pakistani officials say they became wary of how early BRI contracts were awarded to Chinese firms, and are pushing for a public tender for ML-1.

Partly to help with price discovery, Pakistan asked the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance a chunk of the rail project through tendering. The ADB began discussions on a $1.5-2 billion loan, but China insisted the project was "too strategic", and Islamabad kicked out the ADB under pressure from Beijing in early 2017, according to Pakistani and ADB officials.

"If it`s such a strategic project then it should be a viable project for them to finance on very concessional terms or invest in?" said one senior Pakistani official familiar with the project, referring to the BOT model.

China`s foreign ministry said Beijing was engaged in "friendly consultations" with Pakistan on the rail project. Chinese companies participated in BRI projects in an open and transparent way, "pooling benefits and sharing risks", it said.&nbsp;

Analysts say Pakistan will struggle to attract non-Chinese investors into the project, which may force it to choose between piling on Chinese debt or walking away from the project.

In 2017, Pakistan turned down Chinese funding for a $14 billion mega-dam project in the Himalayas due to cost concerns and worries Beijing could end up owning a vital national asset if Pakistan could not repay loans, as occurred with a Sri Lankan port.

Khan`s government chafes at several Chinese intercity mass transport projects in Punjab, the voter heartland of the previous government, which now need hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies every year.&nbsp;

They also fume about the risk of accumulating off-books sovereign debt through power contracts, where annual profits of above 20 percent, in dollar terms, were guaranteed by the previous administration.

With the ML-1 line, there are also those who harbour doubts closer to home, including the previous government`s finance minister, Miftah Ismail, who said his ministry had always had concerns about its viability.

"When people say it`s a project of national importance, that usually means it makes no sense financially," he said.

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan`s ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns.

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan`s ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns. The rail megaproject linking the coastal metropolis of Karachi to the northwestern city of Peshawar is China`s biggest Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project in Pakistan, but Islamabad has balked at the cost and financing terms. Resistance has stiffened under the new government of populist Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has voiced alarm about rising debt levels and says the country must wean itself off foreign loans. "We are seeing how to develop a model so the government of Pakistan wouldn`t have all the risk," Khusro Bakhtyar, minister in Pakistan`s planning ministry, told reporters recently. The cooling of enthusiasm for China`s investments mirrors the unease of incoming governments in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives, where new administrations have come to power wary of Chinese deals struck by their predecessors. Pakistan`s new government had wanted to review all BRI contracts. Officials say there are concerns the deals were badly negotiated, too expensive or overly favoured China. But to Islamabad`s frustration, Beijing is only willing to review projects that have not yet begun, three senior government officials have told Reuters. China`s Foreign Ministry said, in a statement in response to questions faxed by Reuters, that both sides were committed to pressing forward with BRI projects, "to ensure those projects that are already built operate as normal, and those which are being built proceed smoothly". Pakistani officials say they remain committed to Chinese investment but want to push harder on price and affordability, while re-orientating the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) - for which Beijing has pledged about $60 billion in infrastructure funds - to focus on projects that deliver social development in line with Khan`s election platform. China`s Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, told Reuters that Beijing was open to changes proposed by the new government and "we will definitely follow their agenda" to work out a roadmap for BRI projects based on "mutual consultation". "It constitutes a process of discussion with each other about this kind of model, about this kind of roadmap for the future," Yao said. Beijing would only proceed with projects that Pakistan wanted, he added. "This is Pakistan`s economy, this is their society," Yao said. Islamabad`s efforts to recalibrate CPEC are made trickier by its dependence on Chinese loans to prop up its vulnerable economy. Growing fissures in relations with Pakistan`s historic ally the United States have also weakened the country`s negotiating hand, as has a current account crisis likely to lead to a bailout by the International Monetary Fund, which may demand spending cuts. We have reservations, but no other country is investing in Pakistan. What can we do?" one Pakistani minister told Reuters. Crumbling railways The ML-1 rail line is the spine of country`s dilapidated rail network, which has in recent years been edging towards collapse as passenger numbers plunge, train lines close and the vital freight business nosedives. Khan`s government has vowed to make the 1,872 km (1,163 mile) line a priority CPEC project, saying it will help the poor travel across the vast South Asian nation. But Islamabad is exploring funding options for CPEC projects that depart from the traditional BRI lending model - whereby host nations take on Chinese debt to finance construction of infrastructure - and has invited Saudi Arabia and other countries to invest. One option for ML-1, according to Pakistani officials, is the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, which would see investors or companies finance and build the project and recoup their investment from cashflows generated mainly by the rail freight business, before returning it to Pakistan in a few decades time. Yao, the Chinese envoy, said Beijing was open to BOT and would "encourage" its companies to invest. Rail mega-projects under China`s BRI umbrella have run into problems elsewhere in Asia. A line linking Thailand and Laos has been beset by delays over financing, while Malaysia`s new Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad outright cancelled the Chinese-funded $20 billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). Beijing is happy to offer loans, but reticent to invest in the Pakistan venture as such projects are seldom profitable, according to Andrew Small, author of a book on China-Pakistan relations. "The problem is that the Chinese don`t think they can make money on this project and are not keen on BOT," said Small. Off-Books Debt During President Xi Jinping`s visit to Pakistan in 2015, the ML-1 line was placed among a list of "early harvest" CPEC projects that would be prioritised, along with power plants urgently needed to end crippling electricity shortages. But while many other projects from that list have now been completed the rail scheme has been stuck. Pakistani officials say they became wary of how early BRI contracts were awarded to Chinese firms, and are pushing for a public tender for ML-1. Partly to help with price discovery, Pakistan asked the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance a chunk of the rail project through tendering. The ADB began discussions on a $1.5-2 billion loan, but China insisted the project was "too strategic", and Islamabad kicked out the ADB under pressure from Beijing in early 2017, according to Pakistani and ADB officials. "If it`s such a strategic project then it should be a viable project for them to finance on very concessional terms or invest in?" said one senior Pakistani official familiar with the project, referring to the BOT model. China`s foreign ministry said Beijing was engaged in "friendly consultations" with Pakistan on the rail project. Chinese companies participated in BRI projects in an open and transparent way, "pooling benefits and sharing risks", it said. Analysts say Pakistan will struggle to attract non-Chinese investors into the project, which may force it to choose between piling on Chinese debt or walking away from the project. In 2017, Pakistan turned down Chinese funding for a $14 billion mega-dam project in the Himalayas due to cost concerns and worries Beijing could end up owning a vital national asset if Pakistan could not repay loans, as occurred with a Sri Lankan port. Khan`s government chafes at several Chinese intercity mass transport projects in Punjab, the voter heartland of the previous government, which now need hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies every year. They also fume about the risk of accumulating off-books sovereign debt through power contracts, where annual profits of above 20 percent, in dollar terms, were guaranteed by the previous administration. With the ML-1 line, there are also those who harbour doubts closer to home, including the previous government`s finance minister, Miftah Ismail, who said his ministry had always had concerns about its viability. "When people say it`s a project of national importance, that usually means it makes no sense financially," he said.

Fearing debt trap, Pakistan rethinks Chinese 'Silk Road' projects

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan's ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns.

The rail megaproject linking the coastal metropolis of Karachi to the northwestern city of Peshawar is China's biggest Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project in Pakistan, but Islamabad has balked at the cost and financing terms.

Resistance has stiffened under the new government of populist Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has voiced alarm about rising debt levels and says the country must wean itself off foreign loans.

"We are seeing how to develop a model so the government of Pakistan wouldn't have all the risk," Khusro Bakhtyar, minister in Pakistan's planning ministry, told reporters recently.

The cooling of enthusiasm for China's investments mirrors the unease of incoming governments in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives, where new administrations have come to power wary of Chinese deals struck by their predecessors.

Pakistan's new government had wanted to review all BRI contracts. Officials say there are concerns the deals were badly negotiated, too expensive or overly favoured China.

But to Islamabad's frustration, Beijing is only willing to review projects that have not yet begun, three senior government officials have told Reuters.

China's Foreign Ministry said, in a statement in response to questions faxed by Reuters, that both sides were committed to pressing forward with BRI projects, "to ensure those projects that are already built operate as normal, and those which are being built proceed smoothly".

Pakistani officials say they remain committed to Chinese investment but want to push harder on price and affordability, while re-orientating the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) - for which Beijing has pledged about $60 billion in infrastructure funds - to focus on projects that deliver social development in line with Khan's election platform.

China's Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, told Reuters that Beijing was open to changes proposed by the new government and "we will definitely follow their agenda" to work out a roadmap for BRI projects based on "mutual consultation".

"It constitutes a process of discussion with each other about this kind of model, about this kind of roadmap for the future," Yao said.

Beijing would only proceed with projects that Pakistan wanted, he added. "This is Pakistan's economy, this is their society," Yao said.

Islamabad's efforts to recalibrate CPEC are made trickier by its dependence on Chinese loans to prop up its vulnerable economy.

Growing fissures in relations with Pakistan's historic-ally the United States have also weakened the country's negotiating hand, as has a current account crisis likely to lead to a bailout by the International Monetary Fund, which may demand spending cuts.

"We have reservations, but no other country is investing in Pakistan. What can we do?" one Pakistani minister told Reuters.

CRUMBLING RAILWAYS

The ML-1 rail line is the spine of country's dilapidated rail network, which has in recent years been edging towards collapse as passenger numbers plunge, train lines close and the vital freight business nosedives.

Khan's government has vowed to make the 1,872 km (1,163 mile) line a priority CPEC project, saying it will help the poor travel across the vast South Asian nation.

But Islamabad is exploring funding options for CPEC projects that depart from the traditional BRI lending model - whereby host nations take on Chinese debt to finance construction of infrastructure - and has invited Saudi Arabia and other countries to invest.

One option for ML-1, according to Pakistani officials, is the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, which would see investors or companies finance and build the project and recoup their investment from cashflows generated mainly by the rail freight business, before returning it to Pakistan in a few decades time.

Yao, the Chinese envoy, said Beijing was open to BOT and would "encourage" its companies to invest.

Rail mega-projects under China's BRI umbrella have run into problems elsewhere in Asia. A line linking Thailand and Laos has been beset by delays over financing, while Malaysia's new Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad outright cancelled the Chinese-funded $20 billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL).

Beijing is happy to offer loans, but reticent to invest in the Pakistan venture as such projects are seldom profitable, according to Andrew Small, author of a book on China-Pakistan relations.

"The problem is that the Chinese don't think they can make money on this project and are not keen on BOT," said Small.

OFF-BOOKS DEBT

During President Xi Jinping's visit to Pakistan in 2015, the ML-1 line was placed among a list of "early harvest" CPEC projects that would be prioritised, along with power plants urgently needed to end crippling electricity shortages.

But while many other projects from that list have now been completed the rail scheme has been stuck.

Pakistani officials say they became wary of how early BRI contracts were awarded to Chinese firms, and are pushing for a public tender for ML-1.

Partly to help with price discovery, Pakistan asked the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance a chunk of the rail project through tendering. The ADB began discussions on a $1.5-2 billion loan, but China insisted the project was "too strategic", and Islamabad kicked out the ADB under pressure from Beijing in early 2017, according to Pakistani and ADB officials.

"If it's such a strategic project then it should be a viable project for them to finance on very concessional terms or invest in?" said one senior Pakistani official familiar with the project, referring to the BOT model.

China's foreign ministry said Beijing was engaged in "friendly consultations" with Pakistan on the rail project. Chinese companies participated in BRI projects in an open and transparent way, "pooling benefits and sharing risks", it said.

Analysts say Pakistan will struggle to attract non-Chinese investors into the project, which may force it to choose between piling on Chinese debt or walking away from the project.

In 2017, Pakistan turned down Chinese funding for a $14 billion mega-dam project in the Himalayas due to cost concerns and worries Beijing could end up owning a vital national asset if Pakistan could not repay loans, as occurred with a Sri Lankan port.

Khan's government chafes at several Chinese intercity mass transport projects in Punjab, the voter heartland of the previous government, which now need hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies every year.

They also fume about the risk of accumulating off-books sovereign debt through power contracts, where annual profits of above 20 per cent, in dollar terms, were guaranteed by the previous administration.

With the ML-1 line, there are also those who harbour doubts closer to home, including the previous government's finance minister, Miftah Ismail, who said his ministry had always had concerns about its viability.

"When people say it's a project of national importance, that usually means it makes no sense financially," he said.

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan's ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns.

After lengthy delays, an $8.2 billion revamp of a colonial-era rail line snaking from the Arabian Sea to the foothills of the Hindu Kush has become a test of Pakistan's ability to rethink signature Chinese "Silk Road" projects due to debt concerns. The rail megaproject linking the coastal metropolis of Karachi to the northwestern city of Peshawar is China's biggest Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project in Pakistan, but Islamabad has balked at the cost and financing terms. Resistance has stiffened under the new government of populist Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has voiced alarm about rising debt levels and says the country must wean itself off foreign loans. "We are seeing how to develop a model so the government of Pakistan wouldn't have all the risk," Khusro Bakhtyar, minister in Pakistan's planning ministry, told reporters recently. The cooling of enthusiasm for China's investments mirrors the unease of incoming governments in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives, where new administrations have come to power wary of Chinese deals struck by their predecessors. Pakistan's new government had wanted to review all BRI contracts. Officials say there are concerns the deals were badly negotiated, too expensive or overly favoured China. But to Islamabad's frustration, Beijing is only willing to review projects that have not yet begun, three senior government officials have told Reuters. China's Foreign Ministry said, in a statement in response to questions faxed by Reuters, that both sides were committed to pressing forward with BRI projects, "to ensure those projects that are already built operate as normal, and those which are being built proceed smoothly". Pakistani officials say they remain committed to Chinese investment but want to push harder on price and affordability, while re-orientating the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) - for which Beijing has pledged about $60 billion in infrastructure funds - to focus on projects that deliver social development in line with Khan's election platform. China's Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, told Reuters that Beijing was open to changes proposed by the new government and "we will definitely follow their agenda" to work out a roadmap for BRI projects based on "mutual consultation". "It constitutes a process of discussion with each other about this kind of model, about this kind of roadmap for the future," Yao said. Beijing would only proceed with projects that Pakistan wanted, he added. "This is Pakistan's economy, this is their society," Yao said. Islamabad's efforts to recalibrate CPEC are made trickier by its dependence on Chinese loans to prop up its vulnerable economy. Growing fissures in relations with Pakistan's historic-ally the United States have also weakened the country's negotiating hand, as has a current account crisis likely to lead to a bailout by the International Monetary Fund, which may demand spending cuts. "We have reservations, but no other country is investing in Pakistan. What can we do?" one Pakistani minister told Reuters. CRUMBLING RAILWAYS The ML-1 rail line is the spine of country's dilapidated rail network, which has in recent years been edging towards collapse as passenger numbers plunge, train lines close and the vital freight business nosedives. Khan's government has vowed to make the 1,872 km (1,163 mile) line a priority CPEC project, saying it will help the poor travel across the vast South Asian nation. But Islamabad is exploring funding options for CPEC projects that depart from the traditional BRI lending model - whereby host nations take on Chinese debt to finance construction of infrastructure - and has invited Saudi Arabia and other countries to invest. One option for ML-1, according to Pakistani officials, is the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, which would see investors or companies finance and build the project and recoup their investment from cashflows generated mainly by the rail freight business, before returning it to Pakistan in a few decades time. Yao, the Chinese envoy, said Beijing was open to BOT and would "encourage" its companies to invest. Rail mega-projects under China's BRI umbrella have run into problems elsewhere in Asia. A line linking Thailand and Laos has been beset by delays over financing, while Malaysia's new Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad outright cancelled the Chinese-funded $20 billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). Beijing is happy to offer loans, but reticent to invest in the Pakistan venture as such projects are seldom profitable, according to Andrew Small, author of a book on China-Pakistan relations. "The problem is that the Chinese don't think they can make money on this project and are not keen on BOT," said Small. OFF-BOOKS DEBT During President Xi Jinping's visit to Pakistan in 2015, the ML-1 line was placed among a list of "early harvest" CPEC projects that would be prioritised, along with power plants urgently needed to end crippling electricity shortages. But while many other projects from that list have now been completed the rail scheme has been stuck. Pakistani officials say they became wary of how early BRI contracts were awarded to Chinese firms, and are pushing for a public tender for ML-1. Partly to help with price discovery, Pakistan asked the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance a chunk of the rail project through tendering. The ADB began discussions on a $1.5-2 billion loan, but China insisted the project was "too strategic", and Islamabad kicked out the ADB under pressure from Beijing in early 2017, according to Pakistani and ADB officials. "If it's such a strategic project then it should be a viable project for them to finance on very concessional terms or invest in?" said one senior Pakistani official familiar with the project, referring to the BOT model. China's foreign ministry said Beijing was engaged in "friendly consultations" with Pakistan on the rail project. Chinese companies participated in BRI projects in an open and transparent way, "pooling benefits and sharing risks", it said. Analysts say Pakistan will struggle to attract non-Chinese investors into the project, which may force it to choose between piling on Chinese debt or walking away from the project. In 2017, Pakistan turned down Chinese funding for a $14 billion mega-dam project in the Himalayas due to cost concerns and worries Beijing could end up owning a vital national asset if Pakistan could not repay loans, as occurred with a Sri Lankan port. Khan's government chafes at several Chinese intercity mass transport projects in Punjab, the voter heartland of the previous government, which now need hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies every year. They also fume about the risk of accumulating off-books sovereign debt through power contracts, where annual profits of above 20 per cent, in dollar terms, were guaranteed by the previous administration. With the ML-1 line, there are also those who harbour doubts closer to home, including the previous government's finance minister, Miftah Ismail, who said his ministry had always had concerns about its viability. "When people say it's a project of national importance, that usually means it makes no sense financially," he said.

By Saloni Kapur

Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan called in September for a meeting between the Pakistani and Indian foreign ministers at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly. The Indian foreign ministry initially confirmed that the two ministers would meet in New York. But, the following day, India cancelled over the killing of police officers in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir and the July 2018 release of Pakistani stamps depicting Kashmiri separatist fighters.

The cancellation of the meeting highlights the tense diplomatic relationship between Pakistan and India, which has long marred the prospects for regional cooperation in the broader South Asian region. However, as I argue in my forthcoming book, Pakistan after Trump: International Society’s Role in Counterterrorism Cooperation, despite the antagonism that has characterised relations in the Pakistan-India-Afghanistan triangle, all three states have consistently turned to the institutions of international society to resolve conflicts.

This was most recently exemplified by Khan’s diplomatic outreach towards India, and indicates that there are strong institutional foundations on which policymakers could build more cooperative relationships based on a recognition of shared values and interests. This challenges the assumption that the roots of conflict in the region are too deep to be dislodged.

The institutions of regional society 
 
Pakistan and India have fought three wars over the contested province of Jammu and Kashmir. While it may seem counter-intuitive to suggest that war is an institution of international society, its established rules make it an effective way of resolving interstate conflicts, maintaining a regional balance of power, bringing about shifts in international law, demarcating the borders between states, and enhancing justice in international society. This is not to suggest that war is “good,” but that it fulfils certain functions in international relations.

The first war, in 1947-48, transferred control over part of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan. A balance of power is a precondition of a regional society of states wherein countries cooperate in the functioning of shared institutions to realise common interests. In South Asia, where India is the predominant power, the 1947-48 war gave Pakistan control over the strategically important territory of Gilgit-Baltistan, which shares borders with Afghanistan and China and through which the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor now passes. Moreover, in the face of the failure of UN resolutions adopted from 1948 to 1951 to enforce the conduct of a plebiscite in the Muslim-majority province, the war brought about a transfer of territory that signified progress towards a settlement of the issue.

Pakistan regularly issues calls for the plebiscite to be held, while a retired Indian diplomat I interviewed in November 2016 told me that the only reason for the referendum not taking place was Pakistan’s failure to withdraw its troops from the province as per the terms of the UN resolutions. This suggests that both countries acknowledge the UN-mandated plebiscite, which represents the application of international law and democracy to resolve the conflict.

Also significant are the Karachi and Simla agreements. The Karachi Agreement of 1949 brought about the demarcation of a ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir. The Simla Agreement of 1972 introduced the Line of Control, which remains the de-facto border in Jammu and Kashmir. It also declared that India and Pakistan would peacefully resolve their differences through negotiations or other means. These agreements again show efforts to use international law to sort out the Kashmir conflict.

Human rights are an emergent norm in international society. Pakistan has repeatedly drawn attention to human rights violations in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir. The rape and murder of a Muslim child in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir also triggered widespread protests in mainland India in 2018 after provincial ministers defended the suspects. This marks a shift in the public narrative on human rights in Jammu and Kashmir within India. It highlights the potential for civil society to pressure both governments into negotiating a resolution of the conflict in a way that respects the rights of local people.

On transnational terrorism, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation’s (SAARC) Convention on Suppression of Terrorism and its additional protocols represent legal efforts to forge regional counter-terrorism cooperation by SAARC’s member states, which include India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Diplomatic counter-terrorism initiatives by South Asian states have included the India-Pakistan Joint Anti-Terror Mechanism of 2006 and the SAARC Terrorist Offences Monitoring Desk of 1990.

Reason for hope

In 2016, India and Pakistan attempted to share information and collaboratively investigate a militant attack in the Indian city of Pathankot. Continued diplomatic engagement between the civilian administrations of both countries, even when attacks take place, would help to counter a longstanding pattern of terrorist attacks disrupting attempts to resume the peace process. It would also sideline the forces that benefit from the ongoing conflict.

International efforts, including the US, China and Russia, to negotiate with the Afghan Taliban are also evidence of a broad attempt to bring stability to Afghanistan. Willingness on the part of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India to participate in these diplomatic overtures underscores all three states’ efforts to engage with the institutions of diplomacy and great power management in order to stabilise the wider region.

Thus, Pakistan, India and Afghanistan have repeatedly turned to the shared rules, norms and institutions of international society to work out their problems. There is sufficient shared ground on which to build mutual understandings on contentious issues. Regional cooperation is in the interest of all three states and would weaken the actors who benefit from conflict.

India’s and Pakistan’s admission to, and Afghanistan’s observer status in, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation – an Asian security cooperation organisation led by China and Russia – are cause for hope. The rising clout of China and Russia in the international order may provide the necessary pressure for all three South Asian states to engage more constructively in regional security cooperation in the medium to long term.

(Saloni Kapur is PhD Candidate in International Relations, Lancaster University) 
&nbsp;

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

By Saloni Kapur Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan called in September for a meeting between the Pakistani and Indian foreign ministers at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

By Saloni Kapur Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan called in September for a meeting between the Pakistani and Indian foreign ministers at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly. The Indian foreign ministry initially confirmed that the two ministers would meet in New York. But, the following day, India cancelled over the killing of police officers in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir and the July 2018 release of Pakistani stamps depicting Kashmiri separatist fighters. The cancellation of the meeting highlights the tense diplomatic relationship between Pakistan and India, which has long marred the prospects for regional cooperation in the broader South Asian region. However, as I argue in my forthcoming book, Pakistan after Trump: International Society’s Role in Counterterrorism Cooperation, despite the antagonism that has characterised relations in the Pakistan-India-Afghanistan triangle, all three states have consistently turned to the institutions of international society to resolve conflicts. This was most recently exemplified by Khan’s diplomatic outreach towards India, and indicates that there are strong institutional foundations on which policymakers could build more cooperative relationships based on a recognition of shared values and interests. This challenges the assumption that the roots of conflict in the region are too deep to be dislodged. The institutions of regional society Pakistan and India have fought three wars over the contested province of Jammu and Kashmir. While it may seem counter-intuitive to suggest that war is an institution of international society, its established rules make it an effective way of resolving interstate conflicts, maintaining a regional balance of power, bringing about shifts in international law, demarcating the borders between states, and enhancing justice in international society. This is not to suggest that war is “good,” but that it fulfils certain functions in international relations. The first war, in 1947-48, transferred control over part of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan. A balance of power is a precondition of a regional society of states wherein countries cooperate in the functioning of shared institutions to realise common interests. In South Asia, where India is the predominant power, the 1947-48 war gave Pakistan control over the strategically important territory of Gilgit-Baltistan, which shares borders with Afghanistan and China and through which the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor now passes. Moreover, in the face of the failure of UN resolutions adopted from 1948 to 1951 to enforce the conduct of a plebiscite in the Muslim-majority province, the war brought about a transfer of territory that signified progress towards a settlement of the issue. Pakistan regularly issues calls for the plebiscite to be held, while a retired Indian diplomat I interviewed in November 2016 told me that the only reason for the referendum not taking place was Pakistan’s failure to withdraw its troops from the province as per the terms of the UN resolutions. This suggests that both countries acknowledge the UN-mandated plebiscite, which represents the application of international law and democracy to resolve the conflict. Also significant are the Karachi and Simla agreements. The Karachi Agreement of 1949 brought about the demarcation of a ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir. The Simla Agreement of 1972 introduced the Line of Control, which remains the de-facto border in Jammu and Kashmir. It also declared that India and Pakistan would peacefully resolve their differences through negotiations or other means. These agreements again show efforts to use international law to sort out the Kashmir conflict. Human rights are an emergent norm in international society. Pakistan has repeatedly drawn attention to human rights violations in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir. The rape and murder of a Muslim child in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir also triggered widespread protests in mainland India in 2018 after provincial ministers defended the suspects. This marks a shift in the public narrative on human rights in Jammu and Kashmir within India. It highlights the potential for civil society to pressure both governments into negotiating a resolution of the conflict in a way that respects the rights of local people. On transnational terrorism, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation’s (SAARC) Convention on Suppression of Terrorism and its additional protocols represent legal efforts to forge regional counter-terrorism cooperation by SAARC’s member states, which include India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Diplomatic counter-terrorism initiatives by South Asian states have included the India-Pakistan Joint Anti-Terror Mechanism of 2006 and the SAARC Terrorist Offences Monitoring Desk of 1990. Reason for hope In 2016, India and Pakistan attempted to share information and collaboratively investigate a militant attack in the Indian city of Pathankot. Continued diplomatic engagement between the civilian administrations of both countries, even when attacks take place, would help to counter a longstanding pattern of terrorist attacks disrupting attempts to resume the peace process. It would also sideline the forces that benefit from the ongoing conflict. International efforts, including the US, China and Russia, to negotiate with the Afghan Taliban are also evidence of a broad attempt to bring stability to Afghanistan. Willingness on the part of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India to participate in these diplomatic overtures underscores all three states’ efforts to engage with the institutions of diplomacy and great power management in order to stabilise the wider region. Thus, Pakistan, India and Afghanistan have repeatedly turned to the shared rules, norms and institutions of international society to work out their problems. There is sufficient shared ground on which to build mutual understandings on contentious issues. Regional cooperation is in the interest of all three states and would weaken the actors who benefit from conflict. India’s and Pakistan’s admission to, and Afghanistan’s observer status in, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation – an Asian security cooperation organisation led by China and Russia – are cause for hope. The rising clout of China and Russia in the international order may provide the necessary pressure for all three South Asian states to engage more constructively in regional security cooperation in the medium to long term. (Saloni Kapur is PhD Candidate in International Relations, Lancaster University) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Regional cooperation could bring stability to South Asia

Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa called on Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday the third such meeting since he assumed the prime ministerial office in August -- and discussed with him&nbsp;"security and regional stability situation", according to media reports.

Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar was also present during the meeting.&nbsp;

A statement by the Prime Minister's Office said that "security and regional stability situation" were discussed in the meeting, Dawn newspaper reported.

The interactions between the military head and newly elected premier have been frequent over the last one month.

The Army chief's maiden call on Khan took place on August 27, in which both had "expressed resolve to bring enduring peace and stability in the country while also continuing efforts for regional peace.

Khan visited the Army's General Headquarters on August 30 for a briefing on matters pertaining to national security.&nbsp;

The briefing which reportedly went on for more than seven hours covered security environment, threat spectrum and response, counterterrorism operations, the situation in Karachi and the Khushal Balochistan programme.

The Chief of Army Staff then called on the PM on September 3, ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's visit to Islamabad.

The elected prime minister, in an unprecedented move in recent times, was also invited to the annual Defence Day ceremony at the military headquarters on September 6, where the Army Chief has always been the main speaker.

In his speech at the ceremony, the Prime Minister had rejected the perception of civil-military imbalance in the country as a myth and said both sides were united to make the country great once again.

The following week on September 12, Khan visited the headquarters of the ISI where he was received by Gen Bajwa and Gen Mukhtar, and given a detailed briefing on "various strategic, intelligence and national security matters".

According to a statement by Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry, the army chief and the ISI head had given an eight-hour-long briefing to the prime minister and the cabinet members who accompanied him.

Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa called on Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday the third such meeting since he assumed the prime ministerial office in August -- and discussed with him "security and regional stability situation", according to media reports.

Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa called on Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday the third such meeting since he assumed the prime ministerial office in August -- and discussed with him "security and regional stability situation", according to media reports. Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar was also present during the meeting. A statement by the Prime Minister's Office said that "security and regional stability situation" were discussed in the meeting, Dawn newspaper reported. The interactions between the military head and newly elected premier have been frequent over the last one month. The Army chief's maiden call on Khan took place on August 27, in which both had "expressed resolve to bring enduring peace and stability in the country while also continuing efforts for regional peace. Khan visited the Army's General Headquarters on August 30 for a briefing on matters pertaining to national security. The briefing which reportedly went on for more than seven hours covered security environment, threat spectrum and response, counterterrorism operations, the situation in Karachi and the Khushal Balochistan programme. The Chief of Army Staff then called on the PM on September 3, ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's visit to Islamabad. The elected prime minister, in an unprecedented move in recent times, was also invited to the annual Defence Day ceremony at the military headquarters on September 6, where the Army Chief has always been the main speaker. In his speech at the ceremony, the Prime Minister had rejected the perception of civil-military imbalance in the country as a myth and said both sides were united to make the country great once again. The following week on September 12, Khan visited the headquarters of the ISI where he was received by Gen Bajwa and Gen Mukhtar, and given a detailed briefing on "various strategic, intelligence and national security matters". According to a statement by Federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry, the army chief and the ISI head had given an eight-hour-long briefing to the prime minister and the cabinet members who accompanied him.

Pak Army chief calls on PM Imran Khan, discusses security situation 

The chairman of Voice of Karachi, Nadeem Nusrat hit out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan while terming Islamabad government as "military stooge".

Nusrat also called Khan a weak leader and said that he can only design policies but execution and decisions are in the hands of the military.

"Pakistan has been a military state since its inception. Imran Khan can design foreign policies but the question is will he be given enough room to work and execute these policies," Nusrat told ANI.

When asked about Pakistan Foreign Minister Mehmood Shah Qureshi's statement on India's call for the conducive environment, Nusrat asserted that Pakistan is answerable for several things including the freedom given to the leaders of terrorist outfit like Lashkar-e-Taiba.

He also stated that it will be difficult for Pakistan to blame other countries until it resolves its own issues. "It is sad that Pakistan finds it problematic that India helps Afghanistan and accuses Islamabad of spying. Pakistan considers Afghanistan as its backyard and forgets that it is a sovereign state. Pakistan should be held accountable for the killing of 25,000 people in Karachi, abduction of Balochs and Sindhis. Rather than talking about the so-called human rights violation in Kashmir, Pakistan should first resolve these issues," he said.

He further advised Pakistan to work on confidence-building measures "if it wants to improve relations with the neighbouring countries".

The chairman of Voice of Karachi, Nadeem Nusrat hit out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan while terming Islamabad government as "military stooge". Nusrat also called Khan a weak leader and said that he can only design policies but execution and decisions are in the hands of the military.

The chairman of Voice of Karachi, Nadeem Nusrat hit out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan while terming Islamabad government as "military stooge". Nusrat also called Khan a weak leader and said that he can only design policies but execution and decisions are in the hands of the military. "Pakistan has been a military state since its inception. Imran Khan can design foreign policies but the question is will he be given enough room to work and execute these policies," Nusrat told ANI. When asked about Pakistan Foreign Minister Mehmood Shah Qureshi's statement on India's call for the conducive environment, Nusrat asserted that Pakistan is answerable for several things including the freedom given to the leaders of terrorist outfit like Lashkar-e-Taiba. He also stated that it will be difficult for Pakistan to blame other countries until it resolves its own issues. "It is sad that Pakistan finds it problematic that India helps Afghanistan and accuses Islamabad of spying. Pakistan considers Afghanistan as its backyard and forgets that it is a sovereign state. Pakistan should be held accountable for the killing of 25,000 people in Karachi, abduction of Balochs and Sindhis. Rather than talking about the so-called human rights violation in Kashmir, Pakistan should first resolve these issues," he said. He further advised Pakistan to work on confidence-building measures "if it wants to improve relations with the neighbouring countries".

Pakistan government a military stooge: Nadeem Nusrat

Siddhant Sibbal

Exposing Pakistan's duplicity on terror, India lashed out at Islamabad for abetting and aiding terrorist and terrorist groups.&nbsp;

Speaking at the 73rd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "Our neighbour's expertise is not restricted to spawning grounds for terrorism; it is also an expert in trying to mask malevolence with verbal duplicity."

Highlighting how Pakistan gave safe haven to the architect and ideologue of 9/11 &nbsp;Osama Bin Laden, she said, "mastermind of 26/11 Hafiz Saeed still roams the streets of Pakistan with impunity."

Pakistan was recently put on Financial Action Task Force or FATF's grey list making it difficult for the country to take loans from the international market.

New Delhi said that "Pakistan's commitment to terrorism as an instrument of official policy has not abated one bit."

It is interesting to know that India isn't the only neighbouring country to raise the issue of terror emanating from Pakistan, Afghanistan was the first country.

Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah who represented his country at the annual meeting said terror "breeding grounds and sanctuaries" need to be shut but the "response has been sparse."

Talks and terror can't go together

On the recent proposal of talks by the new Prime Minister of Pakistan, EAM said, "We accepted the proposal. But, within hours of our acceptance, news came that terrorists had killed three of our jawans. Does this indicate a desire for dialogue?"

Pakistani PM Imran Khan had proposed a meet between Indian external affairs minister and Pakistan's FM Qureshi on the sidelines of UNGA. India had initially said yes but after the killing of jawans had called off the meet.&nbsp;

This is not the first time India has faced such a situation with Pakistan.&nbsp;

Indian PM Narendra Modi had made a stopover in Lahore on 25th December 2015 but with a week a terror attack took place on Indian army base in Jammu and Kashmir. Indian PM also invited all head of SAARC countries during his swearing-in 2014.

India also slammed Pakistan for glorifying terrorist as so-called freedom fighters, saying "it refuses to see the blood of innocents."

India has been calling common definition on terrorism and had proposed Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) in 1996 but that draft has remained a draft, because "we cannot agree on a common language."

The external affairs minister appealed to UNGA "to come to an agreement, soon, on CCIT as one of the necessary measures in a long-running war"

Siddhant Sibbal Exposing Pakistan's duplicity on terror, India lashed out at Islamabad for abetting and aiding terrorist and terrorist groups. Speaking at the 73rd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "Our neighbour's expertise is not restricted to spawning grounds for terrorism; it is also an expert in trying to mask malevolence with verbal duplicity.

Siddhant Sibbal Exposing Pakistan's duplicity on terror, India lashed out at Islamabad for abetting and aiding terrorist and terrorist groups. Speaking at the 73rd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "Our neighbour's expertise is not restricted to spawning grounds for terrorism; it is also an expert in trying to mask malevolence with verbal duplicity." Highlighting how Pakistan gave safe haven to the architect and ideologue of 9/11 Osama Bin Laden, she said, "mastermind of 26/11 Hafiz Saeed still roams the streets of Pakistan with impunity." Pakistan was recently put on Financial Action Task Force or FATF's grey list making it difficult for the country to take loans from the international market. New Delhi said that "Pakistan's commitment to terrorism as an instrument of official policy has not abated one bit." It is interesting to know that India isn't the only neighbouring country to raise the issue of terror emanating from Pakistan, Afghanistan was the first country. Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah who represented his country at the annual meeting said terror "breeding grounds and sanctuaries" need to be shut but the "response has been sparse." Talks and terror can't go together On the recent proposal of talks by the new Prime Minister of Pakistan, EAM said, "We accepted the proposal. But, within hours of our acceptance, news came that terrorists had killed three of our jawans. Does this indicate a desire for dialogue?" Pakistani PM Imran Khan had proposed a meet between Indian external affairs minister and Pakistan's FM Qureshi on the sidelines of UNGA. India had initially said yes but after the killing of jawans had called off the meet. This is not the first time India has faced such a situation with Pakistan. Indian PM Narendra Modi had made a stopover in Lahore on 25th December 2015 but with a week a terror attack took place on Indian army base in Jammu and Kashmir. Indian PM also invited all head of SAARC countries during his swearing-in 2014. India also slammed Pakistan for glorifying terrorist as so-called freedom fighters, saying "it refuses to see the blood of innocents." India has been calling common definition on terrorism and had proposed Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) in 1996 but that draft has remained a draft, because "we cannot agree on a common language." The external affairs minister appealed to UNGA "to come to an agreement, soon, on CCIT as one of the necessary measures in a long-running war"

Sushma Swaraj exposes Pakistan's 'duplicity' on terror at UNGA

President Donald Trump has made it clear to Pakistan that the US expects Islamabad to take steps to end the role of "non-state actors", a senior State Department official said.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of South and Central Asia Region Alice Wells, briefing reporters on Friday on US priorities in the South and Central Asia Region, cited Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa's statement that in his country non-state actors and extremist groups have no role.

Responding to a question on India-Pakistan ties, Wells said there are issues between them that affect regional stability.

"We acknowledge that, and we continue to support any dialogue efforts between the governments that can lead to greater stability and reducing of tensions but at the same time President Trump has made it clear that we do expect and we do have high aspirations for Pakistan to take steps to end the role of non-state actors," she said.

When asked if the US will play a role in bringing New Delhi and Islamabad together for a dialogue to resolve their differences, Wells said it is for the countries to decide.

"America is always willing to play a role that's asked of us by the countries of the region. We have two strategies focused on the region, the South Asia strategy as well as the Indo-Pacific strategy. And both involve strong and close bilateral and regional partnerships," she said.

When told that Pakistan has concerns about security threat to it due to the US-India strategic alliance, Wells said, "I don't accept the premise of the question because I don't see a strong US-India strategic partnership being at the expense of or as a threat to Pakistan."

She said the US-India strategic partnership is a global one, "a great deal of the focus has been how to build out a relationship towards the East, again dealing with the necessity of ensuring that the Indo-Pacific region remains free and open."

She underscored that US and Indian efforts to provide regional stability and to enhance economic growth are a "net-plus for everyone in the region including Pakistan," adding that Washington's relationship with Islamabad stands on its own.&nbsp;

President Donald Trump has made it clear to Pakistan that the US expects Islamabad to take steps to end the role of "non-state actors", a senior State Department official said.

President Donald Trump has made it clear to Pakistan that the US expects Islamabad to take steps to end the role of "non-state actors", a senior State Department official said. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of South and Central Asia Region Alice Wells, briefing reporters on Friday on US priorities in the South and Central Asia Region, cited Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa's statement that in his country non-state actors and extremist groups have no role. Responding to a question on India-Pakistan ties, Wells said there are issues between them that affect regional stability. "We acknowledge that, and we continue to support any dialogue efforts between the governments that can lead to greater stability and reducing of tensions but at the same time President Trump has made it clear that we do expect and we do have high aspirations for Pakistan to take steps to end the role of non-state actors," she said. When asked if the US will play a role in bringing New Delhi and Islamabad together for a dialogue to resolve their differences, Wells said it is for the countries to decide. "America is always willing to play a role that's asked of us by the countries of the region. We have two strategies focused on the region, the South Asia strategy as well as the Indo-Pacific strategy. And both involve strong and close bilateral and regional partnerships," she said. When told that Pakistan has concerns about security threat to it due to the US-India strategic alliance, Wells said, "I don't accept the premise of the question because I don't see a strong US-India strategic partnership being at the expense of or as a threat to Pakistan." She said the US-India strategic partnership is a global one, "a great deal of the focus has been how to build out a relationship towards the East, again dealing with the necessity of ensuring that the Indo-Pacific region remains free and open." She underscored that US and Indian efforts to provide regional stability and to enhance economic growth are a "net-plus for everyone in the region including Pakistan," adding that Washington's relationship with Islamabad stands on its own.

US expects Pakistan to take action against 'non-state actors': Official

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday launched a frontal attack on neighbouring Pakistan calling them a nation that is not only skilled in spreading terrorism but have also gained expertise in refusing their deeds.&nbsp;

In her address to the General Debate of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly here, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described terrorism as an "existential threat" to humanity.

Describing terrorism a major challenge in the world, she said terrorists are called freedom fighters in Pakistan which, she said, is the epicentre of terrorism.

9/11 incident in New York &amp; 26/11 incident in Mumbai ruined the expectations of peace, the external affairs minister said and added ''India has been a victim of terrorism and the challenge of terrorism in India is coming from none other than our neighbouring nation.''

Pakistan's attempt to glorify terrorism will backfire, she said.

Swaraj also took a dig at developed countries in fighting climate change.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a>: EAM Sushma Swaraj in her address at <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UNGA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UNGA</a> reacts on meeting between her and Pakistan foreign minister on the sidelines of UNGA called off by India <a href="https://t.co/lobY7BKLWj">pic.twitter.com/lobY7BKLWj</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1046046543399342081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 29, 2018</a></blockquote>
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The developed countries who developed themselves by destroying nature shouldn't back out from their responsibilities now, she said and added bigger nations will have to help smaller nations.

US President Donald Trump pulled out of landmark Paris climate accord&nbsp;in July 2017.

Climate change and terrorism are one of the biggest challenges the world is facing today, she said and added the biggest victim of climate change are developing and underdeveloped states, those who don't have the capability to defend themselves, she said.

''I can assure you that India will never let you fail. The pace at which PM Modi has started work to fulfil the goals set for 2030 reflects that we will achieve the goals before time. We are very well equipped to achieve the goals,'' she said.&nbsp;

50 crore people will be given Rs. 5 lakhs per year for medical treatment under 'Ayushman Bharat', she said. &nbsp;

Under 'Jan Dhan Yojana', &nbsp;bank accounts of 32,61,00,000 people have been opened, she said and added that these people hadn't even seen the doors of banks.&nbsp;

Swaraj also extended India's full support to earthquake and tsunami hit Indonesia. &nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a>: EAM Sushma Swaraj says at <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UNGA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UNGA</a>, "our neighbouring nation is not only skilled in spreading terrorism, but have also gained expertise in refusing their deeds. The biggest example of this is that Osama Bin Laden was found in Pakistan" <a href="https://t.co/l7BlXZH1ms">pic.twitter.com/l7BlXZH1ms</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1046043873708003329?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 29, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday launched a frontal attack on neighbouring Pakistan calling them a nation that is not only skilled in spreading terrorism but have also gained expertise in refusing their deeds.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday launched a frontal attack on neighbouring Pakistan calling them a nation that is not only skilled in spreading terrorism but have also gained expertise in refusing their deeds. In her address to the General Debate of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly here, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described terrorism as an "existential threat" to humanity. Describing terrorism a major challenge in the world, she said terrorists are called freedom fighters in Pakistan which, she said, is the epicentre of terrorism. 9/11 incident in New York & 26/11 incident in Mumbai ruined the expectations of peace, the external affairs minister said and added ''India has been a victim of terrorism and the challenge of terrorism in India is coming from none other than our neighbouring nation.'' Pakistan's attempt to glorify terrorism will backfire, she said. Swaraj also took a dig at developed countries in fighting climate change. #WATCH: EAM Sushma Swaraj in her address at #UNGA reacts on meeting between her and Pakistan foreign minister on the sidelines of UNGA called off by India pic.twitter.com/lobY7BKLWj — ANI (@ANI) September 29, 2018 × The developed countries who developed themselves by destroying nature shouldn't back out from their responsibilities now, she said and added bigger nations will have to help smaller nations. US President Donald Trump pulled out of landmark Paris climate accord in July 2017. Climate change and terrorism are one of the biggest challenges the world is facing today, she said and added the biggest victim of climate change are developing and underdeveloped states, those who don't have the capability to defend themselves, she said. ''I can assure you that India will never let you fail. The pace at which PM Modi has started work to fulfil the goals set for 2030 reflects that we will achieve the goals before time. We are very well equipped to achieve the goals,'' she said. 50 crore people will be given Rs. 5 lakhs per year for medical treatment under 'Ayushman Bharat', she said. Under 'Jan Dhan Yojana', bank accounts of 32,61,00,000 people have been opened, she said and added that these people hadn't even seen the doors of banks. Swaraj also extended India's full support to earthquake and tsunami hit Indonesia. #WATCH: EAM Sushma Swaraj says at #UNGA, "our neighbouring nation is not only skilled in spreading terrorism, but have also gained expertise in refusing their deeds. The biggest example of this is that Osama Bin Laden was found in Pakistan" pic.twitter.com/l7BlXZH1ms — ANI (@ANI) September 29, 2018 ×

Pakistan attempt to 'glorify terrorism' will backfire, says Sushma Swaraj at UNGA

It is outrageous that countries such as Pakistan, Turkey and Gulf states, who have led global efforts in support of the Rohingya refugees, have turned their back on the repression of Uyghur Muslims in China, American lawmakers have said.

"We ought to especially call out the Muslim countries that are saying nothing," Congressman Brad Sherman said during a Congressional hearing Wednesday.

"Whether that be Turkey, Pakistan, the Gulf states, it is simply outrageous that they do so little to help the Rohingya and turn their back completely on Uyghurs," Sherman said.

Uyghurs - a Muslim minority group inside China - have been reportedly subject to increasing repression by Chinese authorities in Xinjiang autonomous region in the country's northwest. Human Rights Watch says China is holding at least a million Uyghurs in "re-education camps" with the crackdown against the minority group growing since 2016.

Sherman alleged that China is repressing its Uyghur population on a massive scale. "The Chinese government has, as noted in a recent UN meeting, turned Xinjiang into something resembling a massive internment camp shrouded in secrecy, a sort of no rights zone."

Testifying before a Congressional committee, Nury Turkel, chairman of the board of Uyghur Human Rights Project, said Pakistan has had a horrible history collaborating with China.

Turkel said Malaysian leader Anwar Ibrahim is the only Muslim leader to have recently expressed concern on the human rights violations of Uyghurs.

"Pakistan has been very supportive of Chinese effort to silence the Pakistani-Uyghur citizens even," Turkel alleged.

"In Gulf states, particularly the UAE, Egypt has a horrible track record of deporting Uyghur students, which has been also reported by various media outlets. Malaysia, in a previous administration, has also deported some Uyghurs," he said.

Congressman Ted Yoho alleged that the Chinese army brought Xinjiang into modern-day China in 1949 by invasion.

"Today, the [Communist] Party is seeking to eliminate Xinjiang's uniqueness using methods ripped straight from fiction. Authorities have turned the region into a high-tech-militarised police state using cutting-edge technology to subject normal people to pervasive surveillance, including AI Facial and voice recognition and forced genetic sampling," he alleged.

Sherman said there are accounts of Uyghurs being sent back by Middle East countries in violation of international obligations.

Coming out in support of Uyghurs, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher alleged that the Chinese government was also behind the "slaughter of the Muslims" down in Myanmar.

"We care about Muslim people in China. We care about them in Burma," he said.

It is outrageous that countries such as Pakistan, Turkey and Gulf states, who have led global efforts in support of the Rohingya refugees, have turned their back on the repression of Uyghur Muslims in China, American lawmakers have said.

It is outrageous that countries such as Pakistan, Turkey and Gulf states, who have led global efforts in support of the Rohingya refugees, have turned their back on the repression of Uyghur Muslims in China, American lawmakers have said. "We ought to especially call out the Muslim countries that are saying nothing," Congressman Brad Sherman said during a Congressional hearing Wednesday. "Whether that be Turkey, Pakistan, the Gulf states, it is simply outrageous that they do so little to help the Rohingya and turn their back completely on Uyghurs," Sherman said. Uyghurs - a Muslim minority group inside China - have been reportedly subject to increasing repression by Chinese authorities in Xinjiang autonomous region in the country's northwest. Human Rights Watch says China is holding at least a million Uyghurs in "re-education camps" with the crackdown against the minority group growing since 2016. Sherman alleged that China is repressing its Uyghur population on a massive scale. "The Chinese government has, as noted in a recent UN meeting, turned Xinjiang into something resembling a massive internment camp shrouded in secrecy, a sort of no rights zone." Testifying before a Congressional committee, Nury Turkel, chairman of the board of Uyghur Human Rights Project, said Pakistan has had a horrible history collaborating with China. Turkel said Malaysian leader Anwar Ibrahim is the only Muslim leader to have recently expressed concern on the human rights violations of Uyghurs. "Pakistan has been very supportive of Chinese effort to silence the Pakistani-Uyghur citizens even," Turkel alleged. "In Gulf states, particularly the UAE, Egypt has a horrible track record of deporting Uyghur students, which has been also reported by various media outlets. Malaysia, in a previous administration, has also deported some Uyghurs," he said. Congressman Ted Yoho alleged that the Chinese army brought Xinjiang into modern-day China in 1949 by invasion. "Today, the [Communist] Party is seeking to eliminate Xinjiang's uniqueness using methods ripped straight from fiction. Authorities have turned the region into a high-tech-militarised police state using cutting-edge technology to subject normal people to pervasive surveillance, including AI Facial and voice recognition and forced genetic sampling," he alleged. Sherman said there are accounts of Uyghurs being sent back by Middle East countries in violation of international obligations. Coming out in support of Uyghurs, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher alleged that the Chinese government was also behind the "slaughter of the Muslims" down in Myanmar. "We care about Muslim people in China. We care about them in Burma," he said.

Silence of Pak, Turkey on Chinese repression of Uyghur Muslims outrageous: US lawmakers

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has alleged that India's "domestic political and electoral compulsions" were behind New Delhi's reluctance to talk to Imran Khan's new government in Pakistan.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi were slated to meet on the sidelines of the ongoing UN General Assembly session in New York.

However, India called off the meeting last week, citing the brutal killings of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir, and Islamabad releasing postage stamps "glorifying" terrorist Burhan Wani.

"Why are they reluctant? Simply politics, elections...they are scared of the electorate. They have swung the pendulum to such an extreme (that), now they're finding it difficult to bring it back. And (with) the elections round the corner, they (Indian government) felt that it could boomerang," Mr Qureshi alleged in response to a question at an event organised by the Asia Society in New York.

India has maintained that there can be no talks with Pakistan unless it stops supporting terrorists and terror outfits.

On Thursday Sushma Swaraj left a meeting of the SAARC foreign ministers early. Her move was seen as a huge snub to Pakistan. The meeting was also being attended by the Pakistani foreign minister.

Responding to a query about the incident, Qureshi termed it as "Politics, nothing else...domestic politics".

Ahead of his meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday, the Pakistani foreign minister said, "Today, India is a strategic partner of the US. We have no qualms about it. But we feel that Pakistan is an ally who has always stood with the US."

Qureshi went on to say that "The Trump Administration will miss an opportunity if it does not engage with the new government of Pakistan."

Qureshi also sought US intervention in the Indo-Pak talks. "If the US wants us to help, and we want to help in our own interest because we want peace in the region, then they (America) have to tell the new strategic partner (India) to give us ease on the eastern side so that we can concentrate on areas of mutual interest," he said.

Pakistan has been consistently seeking US intervention in Indo-Pak talks. However, successive US governments have refused to entertain such a request asserting that it is for the two neighbours to decide on the pace and scope of the talks. India has also made it clear that no third party has any role in India-Pakistan relations.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has alleged that India's "domestic political and electoral compulsions" were behind New Delhi's reluctance to talk to Imran Khan's new government in Pakistan.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has alleged that India's "domestic political and electoral compulsions" were behind New Delhi's reluctance to talk to Imran Khan's new government in Pakistan. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi were slated to meet on the sidelines of the ongoing UN General Assembly session in New York. However, India called off the meeting last week, citing the brutal killings of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir, and Islamabad releasing postage stamps "glorifying" terrorist Burhan Wani. "Why are they reluctant? Simply politics, elections...they are scared of the electorate. They have swung the pendulum to such an extreme (that), now they're finding it difficult to bring it back. And (with) the elections round the corner, they (Indian government) felt that it could boomerang," Mr Qureshi alleged in response to a question at an event organised by the Asia Society in New York. India has maintained that there can be no talks with Pakistan unless it stops supporting terrorists and terror outfits. On Thursday Sushma Swaraj left a meeting of the SAARC foreign ministers early. Her move was seen as a huge snub to Pakistan. The meeting was also being attended by the Pakistani foreign minister. Responding to a query about the incident, Qureshi termed it as "Politics, nothing else...domestic politics". Ahead of his meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday, the Pakistani foreign minister said, "Today, India is a strategic partner of the US. We have no qualms about it. But we feel that Pakistan is an ally who has always stood with the US." Qureshi went on to say that "The Trump Administration will miss an opportunity if it does not engage with the new government of Pakistan." Qureshi also sought US intervention in the Indo-Pak talks. "If the US wants us to help, and we want to help in our own interest because we want peace in the region, then they (America) have to tell the new strategic partner (India) to give us ease on the eastern side so that we can concentrate on areas of mutual interest," he said. Pakistan has been consistently seeking US intervention in Indo-Pak talks. However, successive US governments have refused to entertain such a request asserting that it is for the two neighbours to decide on the pace and scope of the talks. India has also made it clear that no third party has any role in India-Pakistan relations.

India reluctant to talk because of 'domestic political compulsion': Pak

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Friday they had killed four militants who had slipped across the border from Pakistan to try to carry out an attack.

The Guards said two militants were also wounded in the clash in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, with the "rest of the terrorists fleeing to the soil of the neighbouring country".

Sistan-Baluchistan has a large, mainly Sunni Muslim ethnic Baluchi community, which straddles the border into the Baluchistan province of neighbouring Pakistan.

Sunni extremist group Jundallah (Soldiers of God) launched a bloody insurgency in the province in 2000 targeting the security forces and officials of Iran's Shiite-dominated government. &nbsp;

The campaign peaked with a spate of deadly attacks from 2007 -- including twin suicide bombings against a Shiite mosque that killed 28 people -- but abated after the group's leader was killed in mid-2010.

In 2012, Jundullah members formed a successor organisation called Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice), which has carried out a spate of attacks on the security forces.

Iran has alleged that the group has received support from the US, British and Israeli intelligence services with the complicity of Pakistan.

In a statement on their Sepah News website, the Guards said the overnight clash on the Pakistani border came after "intelligence operations by the Guards' ground forces revealed that a terrorist team linked to global arrogance planned to attack the Islamic republic's border posts on (Friday) morning."

"Global arrogance" is a term routinely used in Iranian official rhetoric to refer to the United States and its allies.

The violence in the southeast came less than a week after a deadly attack on a military parade in the mainly ethnic Arab city of Ahvaz in southwestern Iran.

Iran blamed that attack, which killed 24 people last Saturday, on "jihadist separatists" supported by a US ally in the region.

Claims of responsibility were posted by both the jihadists of the Islamic State group and by a separatist group calling itself Ahvaz National Resistance.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Friday they had killed four militants who had slipped across the border from Pakistan to try to carry out an attack. The Guards said two militants were also wounded in the clash in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, with the "rest of the terrorists fleeing to the soil of the neighbouring country".

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Friday they had killed four militants who had slipped across the border from Pakistan to try to carry out an attack. The Guards said two militants were also wounded in the clash in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, with the "rest of the terrorists fleeing to the soil of the neighbouring country". Sistan-Baluchistan has a large, mainly Sunni Muslim ethnic Baluchi community, which straddles the border into the Baluchistan province of neighbouring Pakistan. Sunni extremist group Jundallah (Soldiers of God) launched a bloody insurgency in the province in 2000 targeting the security forces and officials of Iran's Shiite-dominated government. The campaign peaked with a spate of deadly attacks from 2007 -- including twin suicide bombings against a Shiite mosque that killed 28 people -- but abated after the group's leader was killed in mid-2010. In 2012, Jundullah members formed a successor organisation called Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice), which has carried out a spate of attacks on the security forces. Iran has alleged that the group has received support from the US, British and Israeli intelligence services with the complicity of Pakistan. In a statement on their Sepah News website, the Guards said the overnight clash on the Pakistani border came after "intelligence operations by the Guards' ground forces revealed that a terrorist team linked to global arrogance planned to attack the Islamic republic's border posts on (Friday) morning." "Global arrogance" is a term routinely used in Iranian official rhetoric to refer to the United States and its allies. The violence in the southeast came less than a week after a deadly attack on a military parade in the mainly ethnic Arab city of Ahvaz in southwestern Iran. Iran blamed that attack, which killed 24 people last Saturday, on "jihadist separatists" supported by a US ally in the region. Claims of responsibility were posted by both the jihadists of the Islamic State group and by a separatist group calling itself Ahvaz National Resistance.

Iran says it killed four militants near Pakistan border

Army Chief Bipin Rawat speaks to Sudhir Chaudhary

On September 27, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will find herself in the same room as Pakistan’s new foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the SAARC foreign ministers’ annual meeting, customarily held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session. A perfunctory namaste will be all Qureshi gets.

Why is Pakistan so keen to talk to India even as it continues to mutilate the bodies of Indian jawans and unleash terrorists from the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM)? To answer that question, delve into the psychology of Pakistan – a mindset few Indian governments have read correctly. For years, Indian policymakers believed the conventional wisdom that Pakistan was run by the three As – Army, America and Allah.

America has since been replaced by China but the other two remain dominant forces in Pakistan. The army owns a third of Pakistan’s commercial real estate and several of the country’s businesses. Religious leaders too remain relevant. But there are two additional elements that hold sway in Pakistan.&nbsp;

First, the judiciary. It took centre-stage when the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Iftikhar Chaudhry ended Pervez Musharraf’s dictatorship in 2008. The courts have since played cat and mouse with the army, defying it only to retreat later. Their complicity during the rigged Pakistan general election in July 2018 revealed the limits to their defiance. There have, however, been spasmodic displays of independence. The Islamabad High Court, for example, last week released former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam from the prison they had been incarcerated in to prevent them, on the army’s orders, from contesting the general election. That paved the way for the victory of the army’s favoured candidate Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

The second new force to emerge in Pakistan is the in-house jihadi. The old Army-America-Allah triumvirate relied on outsourced jihadis. They gave the Pakistani army plausible deniability for acts of terror. That pretence is over. Pakistan’s Border Action Teams (BATs) work openly with LeT and JeM terrorists to kill, decapitate and mutilate the bodies of Indian soldiers on both the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB).

India’s Pakistan strategy has meanwhile oscillated between resolve and naïveté. The surgical strikes across the LoC, whose second anniversary falls on September 29, displayed resolve. Inviting an ISI team to visit the site of the ISI-sponsored terror attack on Pathankot betrayed extreme naïveté.

More recently, this inchoate policy saw the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) agree to a meeting between Swaraj and Qureshi on the sidelines of the UNGA session on September 29 and, 24 hours later, cancel the meeting. The flip-flop was therefore caused not by any change in circumstances but by the eruption of public outrage. A meeting between Swaraj and Qureshi would have signalled India’s indecisive attitude towards Pakistan’s continuing use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy. That would, in turn, encourage Pakistan’s renegade army to intensify terror attacks on Indian soil using its in-house jihadi factory. The outcome India needs is the opposite: to discourage the Pakistani army from carrying out terror attacks in India by imposing an unaffordable cost on it.

Between dialogue and war, there is a large space to achieve this outcome. Pakistan is desperate for a bailout from the International Monetary fund (IMF). Its economy is in a shambles. Foreign exchange reserves at $10 billion are barely enough to cover 60 days of imports. The Imran Khan government has discovered to its horror that the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) favours Chinese companies at the expense of Pakistani firms, apart from burdening the country with unsustainable high-cost debt.

Meanwhile, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has reported that, following Pakistan’s greylisting in June 2018, Islamabad’s steps to curb terror financing have been inadequate. Pakistani courts have instead allowed globally designated terrorists like Hafiz Saeed to carry on their charitable activities despite the fact that they are a known cover for terror groups.

FATF has given Pakistan up to September 2019 to clean up its act. If it does not, and on present evidence, it will not, it will be blacklisted. That would cripple Pakistan’s economy. Islamabad is banking on getting the three votes it needs to veto blacklisting by FATF. These three votes are from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the UAE. If even one of these abandons Pakistan (two, Saudi Arabia and UAE, did when it was greylisted), Pakistan could find itself in a financial black hole.

Given that India holds all the aces and Pakistan none, it is important for the Modi government to follow the policy Modi himself had enunciated: “terror and talks don’t go together.” Pakistan’s strategy is unidimensional: seek talks with India to gain international respectability while continuing to sponsor terrorism in Kashmir. For Islamabad terrorism is not a means to an end. It is an end in itself. Low-intensity, low-cost proxy war against India justifies the army’s centrality in Pakistan and the financial perks that accompany it.

Ask the inhabitants of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) if the Pakistani army cares about Kashmiris. A visit to Muzaffarabad, the benighted capital of PoK, will provide a graphic answer. For the Pakistani army, Kashmiris, in J&amp;K and PoK alike, are fodder. 
&nbsp;

(This article was originally published on DNA. Read the <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-rebooting-india-s-pak-strategy-2668336">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

On September 27, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will find herself in the same room as Pakistan’s new foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the SAARC foreign ministers’ annual meeting, customarily held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session.

On September 27, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will find herself in the same room as Pakistan’s new foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the SAARC foreign ministers’ annual meeting, customarily held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session. A perfunctory namaste will be all Qureshi gets. Why is Pakistan so keen to talk to India even as it continues to mutilate the bodies of Indian jawans and unleash terrorists from the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM)? To answer that question, delve into the psychology of Pakistan – a mindset few Indian governments have read correctly. For years, Indian policymakers believed the conventional wisdom that Pakistan was run by the three As – Army, America and Allah. America has since been replaced by China but the other two remain dominant forces in Pakistan. The army owns a third of Pakistan’s commercial real estate and several of the country’s businesses. Religious leaders too remain relevant. But there are two additional elements that hold sway in Pakistan. First, the judiciary. It took centre-stage when the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Iftikhar Chaudhry ended Pervez Musharraf’s dictatorship in 2008. The courts have since played cat and mouse with the army, defying it only to retreat later. Their complicity during the rigged Pakistan general election in July 2018 revealed the limits to their defiance. There have, however, been spasmodic displays of independence. The Islamabad High Court, for example, last week released former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam from the prison they had been incarcerated in to prevent them, on the army’s orders, from contesting the general election. That paved the way for the victory of the army’s favoured candidate Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). The second new force to emerge in Pakistan is the in-house jihadi. The old Army-America-Allah triumvirate relied on outsourced jihadis. They gave the Pakistani army plausible deniability for acts of terror. That pretence is over. Pakistan’s Border Action Teams (BATs) work openly with LeT and JeM terrorists to kill, decapitate and mutilate the bodies of Indian soldiers on both the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB). India’s Pakistan strategy has meanwhile oscillated between resolve and naïveté. The surgical strikes across the LoC, whose second anniversary falls on September 29, displayed resolve. Inviting an ISI team to visit the site of the ISI-sponsored terror attack on Pathankot betrayed extreme naïveté. More recently, this inchoate policy saw the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) agree to a meeting between Swaraj and Qureshi on the sidelines of the UNGA session on September 29 and, 24 hours later, cancel the meeting. The flip-flop was therefore caused not by any change in circumstances but by the eruption of public outrage. A meeting between Swaraj and Qureshi would have signalled India’s indecisive attitude towards Pakistan’s continuing use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy. That would, in turn, encourage Pakistan’s renegade army to intensify terror attacks on Indian soil using its in-house jihadi factory. The outcome India needs is the opposite: to discourage the Pakistani army from carrying out terror attacks in India by imposing an unaffordable cost on it. Between dialogue and war, there is a large space to achieve this outcome. Pakistan is desperate for a bailout from the International Monetary fund (IMF). Its economy is in a shambles. Foreign exchange reserves at $10 billion are barely enough to cover 60 days of imports. The Imran Khan government has discovered to its horror that the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) favours Chinese companies at the expense of Pakistani firms, apart from burdening the country with unsustainable high-cost debt. Meanwhile, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has reported that, following Pakistan’s greylisting in June 2018, Islamabad’s steps to curb terror financing have been inadequate. Pakistani courts have instead allowed globally designated terrorists like Hafiz Saeed to carry on their charitable activities despite the fact that they are a known cover for terror groups. FATF has given Pakistan up to September 2019 to clean up its act. If it does not, and on present evidence, it will not, it will be blacklisted. That would cripple Pakistan’s economy. Islamabad is banking on getting the three votes it needs to veto blacklisting by FATF. These three votes are from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the UAE. If even one of these abandons Pakistan (two, Saudi Arabia and UAE, did when it was greylisted), Pakistan could find itself in a financial black hole. Given that India holds all the aces and Pakistan none, it is important for the Modi government to follow the policy Modi himself had enunciated: “terror and talks don’t go together.” Pakistan’s strategy is unidimensional: seek talks with India to gain international respectability while continuing to sponsor terrorism in Kashmir. For Islamabad terrorism is not a means to an end. It is an end in itself. Low-intensity, low-cost proxy war against India justifies the army’s centrality in Pakistan and the financial perks that accompany it. Ask the inhabitants of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) if the Pakistani army cares about Kashmiris. A visit to Muzaffarabad, the benighted capital of PoK, will provide a graphic answer. For the Pakistani army, Kashmiris, in J&K and PoK alike, are fodder. (This article was originally published on DNA. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Pakistan seeks talks with India to earn respect while continuing to sponsor terrorism

Activists from the Christian minority in Pakistan say they are being persecuted, discriminated and forced to leave the country.

Now living in exile, these members of the Christian community participated at the ongoing 39th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva and demanded the safety of minorities in Pakistan, and emphasised on the abolition of blasphemy law.

Noyal Malik, a human rights defender and member of the Pakistan Minorities Alliance, who now lives in Italy, said: "Not only Christians, all minorities in Pakistan are facing discrimination and getting persecuted. They are feeling unsafe and are leaving the country. We have participated at the United Nations and request the Pakistan government to provide security and safety to the minorities, which are being denied to them as of now."

"The minorities in Pakistan are paying a huge price for safeguarding their own identity. They are living in fear and have no freedom. We are being offered jobs of sweepers in Pakistan," he added.

Pakistan remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for Christians, as Muslims forcibly convert Christian girls to get them married.

Christian families have, in turn, suffered numerous attacks for refusing to allow their daughters to marry Muslims.

Noyal said, "Blasphemy Law is being used by Muslims for their personal benefit. If someone is accusing other person of blasphemy, the complainant should also be put behind bars till the allegation gets confirmed. People are misusing blasphemy for their personal rivalry and forced marriages. A person files a complaint without having any witness. Take the case of Asia Bibi, who has been languishing in the jail, whereas the complainant is roaming freely".

Sharoon Lazer, President of the Pakistan Minorities Alliance, who lives in Malta, said: "Christians in Pakistan are facing discrimination and persecution. They are not getting proper rights as a Pakistani national should get. People are forced to migrate from the country. Blasphemy Law is being misused widely against the minorities and they are not getting proper jobs in the government. If someone gets a change to get a job, the person gets removed by the mullahs".

Citing the example of Atif Mian, who was recently removed by Imran Khan's government, Lazer said, "Recently, a minority Ahmadi Muslim (Atif Mian) has been removed from a recently established economic council because of opposition from hard-line Islamists. Not only Christians, but other minorities like Hindus and Ahmadis are also facing a tough time."

Pakistani Christians living in Europe and UK recently held a protest march in Geneva to make the international community aware about their persecution. A poster campaign in front of the United Nations office also highlighted their plight.

Activists from the Christian minority in Pakistan say they are being persecuted, discriminated and forced to leave the country. Now living in exile, these members of the Christian community participated at the ongoing 39th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva and demanded the safety of minorities in Pakistan, and emphasised on the abolition of blasphemy law.

Activists from the Christian minority in Pakistan say they are being persecuted, discriminated and forced to leave the country. Now living in exile, these members of the Christian community participated at the ongoing 39th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva and demanded the safety of minorities in Pakistan, and emphasised on the abolition of blasphemy law. Noyal Malik, a human rights defender and member of the Pakistan Minorities Alliance, who now lives in Italy, said: "Not only Christians, all minorities in Pakistan are facing discrimination and getting persecuted. They are feeling unsafe and are leaving the country. We have participated at the United Nations and request the Pakistan government to provide security and safety to the minorities, which are being denied to them as of now." "The minorities in Pakistan are paying a huge price for safeguarding their own identity. They are living in fear and have no freedom. We are being offered jobs of sweepers in Pakistan," he added. Pakistan remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for Christians, as Muslims forcibly convert Christian girls to get them married. Christian families have, in turn, suffered numerous attacks for refusing to allow their daughters to marry Muslims. Noyal said, "Blasphemy Law is being used by Muslims for their personal benefit. If someone is accusing other person of blasphemy, the complainant should also be put behind bars till the allegation gets confirmed. People are misusing blasphemy for their personal rivalry and forced marriages. A person files a complaint without having any witness. Take the case of Asia Bibi, who has been languishing in the jail, whereas the complainant is roaming freely". Sharoon Lazer, President of the Pakistan Minorities Alliance, who lives in Malta, said: "Christians in Pakistan are facing discrimination and persecution. They are not getting proper rights as a Pakistani national should get. People are forced to migrate from the country. Blasphemy Law is being misused widely against the minorities and they are not getting proper jobs in the government. If someone gets a change to get a job, the person gets removed by the mullahs". Citing the example of Atif Mian, who was recently removed by Imran Khan's government, Lazer said, "Recently, a minority Ahmadi Muslim (Atif Mian) has been removed from a recently established economic council because of opposition from hard-line Islamists. Not only Christians, but other minorities like Hindus and Ahmadis are also facing a tough time." Pakistani Christians living in Europe and UK recently held a protest march in Geneva to make the international community aware about their persecution. A poster campaign in front of the United Nations office also highlighted their plight.

Minorities in Pak face persecution, discrimination: Activists

India has raised objections over Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting, saying it is completely "unwarranted" for the grouping as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multilateral set up.

Pakistan raked up the Kashmir issue at the OIC Contact Group meeting held on Wednesday on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

"We always note with regret that the matter which is very internal to Indian affairs was again discussed at the OIC," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told reporters in New York when asked about Pakistan raising the issue at the OIC meeting.

He said India rejects such references to a matter which is very internal to it.

"We have said in the past that OIC has no locus standi to comment on India's internal affairs" and it is completely unwarranted for OIC as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multi-organisation set up.

When asked about Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also raising the Kashmir issue in his bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Kumar said Islamabad has been doing this for a long time.

"It is not the first time they are raising the issue in their bilateral meetings. You would note that what they come up with is their side of the story. What they share and what they say has no acceptance anywhere in the international community," he said.

He said Pakistan has realised its "falsehood" and what it has been projecting had already been rejected by the international community.

On the possibility of any exchange between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the SAARC meeting, Mr Kumar said, "we have made it very clear that it is not bilateral meeting between India and Pakistan," and added that it is "difficult to predict if there will be a handshake" between the two.

Swaraj will be attending the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) and Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) meetings on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Swaraj held bilateral meetings with her counterparts from Germany, Bolivia, Armenia, Panama, Austria, Antigua and Barbuda, Chile, Iran and with Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

"A relationship like no other! EAM @SushmaSwaraj met the @PM_Nepal K.P Sharma Oli. Positive and friendly conversation on taking our relationship to an even higher trajectory,"&nbsp;Kumar tweeted.

India has raised objections over Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting, saying it is completely "unwarranted" for the grouping as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multilateral set up.

India has raised objections over Pakistan raising the Kashmir issue at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting, saying it is completely "unwarranted" for the grouping as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multilateral set up. Pakistan raked up the Kashmir issue at the OIC Contact Group meeting held on Wednesday on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly. "We always note with regret that the matter which is very internal to Indian affairs was again discussed at the OIC," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told reporters in New York when asked about Pakistan raising the issue at the OIC meeting. He said India rejects such references to a matter which is very internal to it. "We have said in the past that OIC has no locus standi to comment on India's internal affairs" and it is completely unwarranted for OIC as well as its member countries to discuss matters related to India's internal affairs in any multi-organisation set up. When asked about Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also raising the Kashmir issue in his bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Kumar said Islamabad has been doing this for a long time. "It is not the first time they are raising the issue in their bilateral meetings. You would note that what they come up with is their side of the story. What they share and what they say has no acceptance anywhere in the international community," he said. He said Pakistan has realised its "falsehood" and what it has been projecting had already been rejected by the international community. On the possibility of any exchange between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Shah Mehmood Qureshi in the SAARC meeting, Mr Kumar said, "we have made it very clear that it is not bilateral meeting between India and Pakistan," and added that it is "difficult to predict if there will be a handshake" between the two. Swaraj will be attending the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) and Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) meetings on Thursday. On Wednesday, Swaraj held bilateral meetings with her counterparts from Germany, Bolivia, Armenia, Panama, Austria, Antigua and Barbuda, Chile, Iran and with Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. "A relationship like no other! EAM @SushmaSwaraj met the @PM_Nepal K.P Sharma Oli. Positive and friendly conversation on taking our relationship to an even higher trajectory," Kumar tweeted.

Pakistan raising Kashmir issue at international forum 'unwarranted': India

A court in Pakistan on Wednesday summoned all the witnesses next month in the murder case of Indian national Sarabjit Singh, who was killed by his fellow prisoners in 2013.

Two Pakistani death row prisoners - Amir Sarfraz alias Tamba and Mudassar - in May 2013 attacked Sarabjit, 49, in the Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore and killed him.

Lahore's additional district and sessions judge Muhammad Moin Khokhar, during the hearing of the case, expressed anger as none of the prosecuting witnesses appeared before the court to record their statement.

"Issuing notices to all the witnesses in the case for next hearing on October 5, the judge directed the prosecutor to ensure their presence (in the court)," a court official told PTI after the hearing.

He said that so far, two witnesses of the Kot Lakhpat Jail had recorded their statements.

"One of the witnesses in the previous hearing had told the court that Sarabjit Singh was brought to the Services Hospital in a critical condition. I wanted to record Singh's statement but the doctors stopped him, terming his condition very serious," the official said.

In the previous hearings, the judge had also admonished the jail authorities for not cooperating with the court.

A one-man judicial commission of Justice Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi of the Lahore High Court had initially investigated Sarabjit's murder case before the trial kicked off in the sessions court.

Naqvi recorded the statements of some 40 witnesses in the case and submitted its report to the government which is yet to make its findings public.

The one-man commission had also issued notices to Sarabjit's relatives through the foreign ministry to record their statements and produce any evidence they had regarding his death. However, Sarabjit's family did not record their statements, the officials had said.

Tamba and Mudassar, in their statements to the commission, had confessed to the crime and said they killed Sarabjit as they wanted to avenge the killing of people in Lahore and Faisalabad in bomb blasts allegedly carried out by the Indian national.

Both the alleged killers of Sarabjit were not present in the sessions court on Wednesday because of security reasons, according to their counsel Advocate Usman Waheed.

Sarabjit had been sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a string of bombings in 1990 in the country's eastern Punjab province.

His family, however, said: "He was the victim of mistaken identity and had inadvertently strayed across the border."

A court in Pakistan on Wednesday summoned all the witnesses next month in the murder case of Indian national Sarabjit Singh, who was killed by his fellow prisoners in 2013.

A court in Pakistan on Wednesday summoned all the witnesses next month in the murder case of Indian national Sarabjit Singh, who was killed by his fellow prisoners in 2013. Two Pakistani death row prisoners - Amir Sarfraz alias Tamba and Mudassar - in May 2013 attacked Sarabjit, 49, in the Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore and killed him. Lahore's additional district and sessions judge Muhammad Moin Khokhar, during the hearing of the case, expressed anger as none of the prosecuting witnesses appeared before the court to record their statement. "Issuing notices to all the witnesses in the case for next hearing on October 5, the judge directed the prosecutor to ensure their presence (in the court)," a court official told PTI after the hearing. He said that so far, two witnesses of the Kot Lakhpat Jail had recorded their statements. "One of the witnesses in the previous hearing had told the court that Sarabjit Singh was brought to the Services Hospital in a critical condition. I wanted to record Singh's statement but the doctors stopped him, terming his condition very serious," the official said. In the previous hearings, the judge had also admonished the jail authorities for not cooperating with the court. A one-man judicial commission of Justice Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi of the Lahore High Court had initially investigated Sarabjit's murder case before the trial kicked off in the sessions court. Naqvi recorded the statements of some 40 witnesses in the case and submitted its report to the government which is yet to make its findings public. The one-man commission had also issued notices to Sarabjit's relatives through the foreign ministry to record their statements and produce any evidence they had regarding his death. However, Sarabjit's family did not record their statements, the officials had said. Tamba and Mudassar, in their statements to the commission, had confessed to the crime and said they killed Sarabjit as they wanted to avenge the killing of people in Lahore and Faisalabad in bomb blasts allegedly carried out by the Indian national. Both the alleged killers of Sarabjit were not present in the sessions court on Wednesday because of security reasons, according to their counsel Advocate Usman Waheed. Sarabjit had been sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a string of bombings in 1990 in the country's eastern Punjab province. His family, however, said: "He was the victim of mistaken identity and had inadvertently strayed across the border."

Pak court summons all witnesses in Sarabjit's murder case

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday reacted to India's decision of calling off talks with Pakistan on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States. Qureshi noted that he can a say a lot over the incident but that would only add to the existing issues and hamper peace.&nbsp;

"I can say a lot but I don’t want to worsen the situation, we want peace. Only a few words can worsen the situation," Qureshi stated at the United Nations.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, Qureshi also raised the issue of India's construction on the Kishanganga during his meeting with World Bank Chief Jim Yong Kim on the sidelines of the 73rd United Nations General Assembly session at the United Nations.

Qureshi presented Pakistan's position on the Kishanganga and Ratle projects, it said.

He told the World Bank Chief that India's construction of these projects represented a violation of the Treaty, which gave Pakistan exclusive rights to western rivers, news agency PTI reported.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a>: I can say a lot but I don’t want to worsen the situation, we want peace. Only a few words can worsen the situation: Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pakistan Minister of Foreign Affairs at UN after India cancelled meeting with Pakistan at UNGA. <a href="https://t.co/wHXQHdjmOH">pic.twitter.com/wHXQHdjmOH</a>
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Qureshi said Pakistan was not interested in politicising the issue, the statement said.

According to the statement, Kim said he understood Pakistan's position on the treaty and expressed the bank's desire to play a constructive role in resolving the matter at the earliest.

India and Pakistan signed the treaty in 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory.

(With inputs from agencies)

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday reacted to India's decision of calling off talks with Pakistan on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday reacted to India's decision of calling off talks with Pakistan on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, United States. Qureshi noted that he can a say a lot over the incident but that would only add to the existing issues and hamper peace. "I can say a lot but I don’t want to worsen the situation, we want peace. Only a few words can worsen the situation," Qureshi stated at the United Nations. Meanwhile, Qureshi also raised the issue of India's construction on the Kishanganga during his meeting with World Bank Chief Jim Yong Kim on the sidelines of the 73rd United Nations General Assembly session at the United Nations. Qureshi presented Pakistan's position on the Kishanganga and Ratle projects, it said. He told the World Bank Chief that India's construction of these projects represented a violation of the Treaty, which gave Pakistan exclusive rights to western rivers, news agency PTI reported. #WATCH: I can say a lot but I don’t want to worsen the situation, we want peace. Only a few words can worsen the situation: Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pakistan Minister of Foreign Affairs at UN after India cancelled meeting with Pakistan at UNGA. pic.twitter.com/wHXQHdjmOH — ANI (@ANI) September 25, 2018 × Qureshi said Pakistan was not interested in politicising the issue, the statement said. According to the statement, Kim said he understood Pakistan's position on the treaty and expressed the bank's desire to play a constructive role in resolving the matter at the earliest. India and Pakistan signed the treaty in 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory. (With inputs from agencies)

Don't want to worsen situation: Qureshi on cancelled talks with India

A London-based think tank recently concluded that the primary hindrance for peace in Afghanistan is Pakistan.

Speaking at a seminar organised by The Democracy Forum (TDF), titled 'Afghanistan-the Challenges Ahead' on September 13, Lord Bruce, the President of the TDF said that Afghanistan's unique set of challenges reflects and reinforces the circumstances of its historical geography.

Bruce emphasised that the Durand Line is a source of tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and felt that despite continuing problems, the recent ceasefire and the US mission to Doha will instil some hope for a negotiated settlement.

Afghanistan's Ambassador Tayeb Said Jawad appreciated western countries for their help in Afghanistan and underscored that a practical strategic approach to peace in Afghanistan was vital, adding that there was a need to engage. Once the process began, Jawad opined that there would be rapid progress.

Meanwhile, Emily Winterbotham, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, stated that the recent escalation of attacks in Afghanistan suggested that there were no signs of the military campaign stopping.

She also mentioned Pakistan as a major obstacle to peace in Afghanistan due to its role in the conflicts and described Pakistan's approach in Afghanistan as unpredictable. According to her, the only positive development in Afghanistan was the consensus shifting to the need to talk between the US and the Taliban.

Christine Fair, another speaker, said that while she supports the US' decision to suspend aids to Islamabad, she also feared that Pakistan may cut off ground line of communications or use of airspace for the US, used to supply Afghanistan's national security forces. She also mentioned that Pakistan had disallowed Afghanistan port facilities, thereby hindering movement of goods through Pakistani territories.

She was also very critical about the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and said it was fomenting corruption.

Another speaker - Dr Antonio Giustozzi, a visiting professor at King's College in London felt that the peace process in Afghanistan was complicated and unlikely to come through diplomatic processes led by the US. He cautioned that not only the Taliban but the interest of other vested groups needed to be secured for the resolution of the Afghanistan problem.

Questions were raised on the role of India and Pakistan in Afghanistan, to which Winterbotham opined that Pakistan would not be happy with a peace process that would not allow it to have a strategic depth in Afghanistan.

Similarly, Fair stated that she had only contempt for those who respected the role of the Pakistan Army in geopolitical affairs, as professional armies did not wage coups or run countries behind the scenes. A heated discussion also ensued when a member of the audience accused Pakistan of being responsible for thousands of murders in the country through its support to the Haqqani and other terrorist groups.

The seminar was held at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, London.

A London-based think tank recently concluded that the primary hindrance for peace in Afghanistan is Pakistan. Speaking at a seminar organised by The Democracy Forum (TDF), titled 'Afghanistan-the Challenges Ahead' on September 13, Lord Bruce, the President of the TDF said that Afghanistan's unique set of challenges reflects and reinforces the circumstances of its historical geography.

A London-based think tank recently concluded that the primary hindrance for peace in Afghanistan is Pakistan. Speaking at a seminar organised by The Democracy Forum (TDF), titled 'Afghanistan-the Challenges Ahead' on September 13, Lord Bruce, the President of the TDF said that Afghanistan's unique set of challenges reflects and reinforces the circumstances of its historical geography. Bruce emphasised that the Durand Line is a source of tension between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and felt that despite continuing problems, the recent ceasefire and the US mission to Doha will instil some hope for a negotiated settlement. Afghanistan's Ambassador Tayeb Said Jawad appreciated western countries for their help in Afghanistan and underscored that a practical strategic approach to peace in Afghanistan was vital, adding that there was a need to engage. Once the process began, Jawad opined that there would be rapid progress. Meanwhile, Emily Winterbotham, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, stated that the recent escalation of attacks in Afghanistan suggested that there were no signs of the military campaign stopping. She also mentioned Pakistan as a major obstacle to peace in Afghanistan due to its role in the conflicts and described Pakistan's approach in Afghanistan as unpredictable. According to her, the only positive development in Afghanistan was the consensus shifting to the need to talk between the US and the Taliban. Christine Fair, another speaker, said that while she supports the US' decision to suspend aids to Islamabad, she also feared that Pakistan may cut off ground line of communications or use of airspace for the US, used to supply Afghanistan's national security forces. She also mentioned that Pakistan had disallowed Afghanistan port facilities, thereby hindering movement of goods through Pakistani territories. She was also very critical about the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and said it was fomenting corruption. Another speaker - Dr Antonio Giustozzi, a visiting professor at King's College in London felt that the peace process in Afghanistan was complicated and unlikely to come through diplomatic processes led by the US. He cautioned that not only the Taliban but the interest of other vested groups needed to be secured for the resolution of the Afghanistan problem. Questions were raised on the role of India and Pakistan in Afghanistan, to which Winterbotham opined that Pakistan would not be happy with a peace process that would not allow it to have a strategic depth in Afghanistan. Similarly, Fair stated that she had only contempt for those who respected the role of the Pakistan Army in geopolitical affairs, as professional armies did not wage coups or run countries behind the scenes. A heated discussion also ensued when a member of the audience accused Pakistan of being responsible for thousands of murders in the country through its support to the Haqqani and other terrorist groups. The seminar was held at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, London.

Pakistan, primary hindrance for peace in Afghanistan: Think tank

Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat against Pakistan in what is said to be a virtual semi-final clash on Wednesday.

The winning team will set up a date with India, who reached the finals after thumping victories against Bangladesh and Pakistan.&nbsp;

Speaking after the toss, Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza said, "We would like to bat first. Looks a good wicket to bat on. Last match we lost many wickets in the middle overs but number 6 and 7 batted so well."

"Hopefully, we get a good start. We have been struggling with the top order but hopefully, we'll do well today. Sarkar comes back into the side. We have quite a few changes. Shanto is not playing, Rubel is back into the side."

"Big loss is that Shakib is not playing as he fractured his finger, hence Mominul comes in. Fans have been supporting us right throughout the tournament," he added.

Pakistan, on the other hand, will not leave a single stone unturned to win the game against Afghanistan and lock horns with India for the third time in finals.&nbsp;

Talking about their strategy for today, Pakistani skipper Sarfraz Ahmed said, "The conditions get different later in the night. But if you have wickets in hand, you can chase whatever the target is. I have asked the batsmen to play positive cricket, hopefully we bat well today."

"They have a good batting line-up. We'll try to get them out early and chase it down later. Junaid Khan comes in for Mohammad Amir," he added.&nbsp;

Teams: 
Pakistan (Playing XI): Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed(w/c), Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan, Shaheen Afridi

Bangladesh (Playing XI): Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Mominul Haque, Imrul Kayes, Mahmudullah, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Mehidy Hasan, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman

Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat against Pakistan in what is said to be a virtual semi-final clash on Wednesday. The winning team will set up a date with India, who reached the finals after thumping victories against Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat against Pakistan in what is said to be a virtual semi-final clash on Wednesday. The winning team will set up a date with India, who reached the finals after thumping victories against Bangladesh and Pakistan. Speaking after the toss, Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza said, "We would like to bat first. Looks a good wicket to bat on. Last match we lost many wickets in the middle overs but number 6 and 7 batted so well." "Hopefully, we get a good start. We have been struggling with the top order but hopefully, we'll do well today. Sarkar comes back into the side. We have quite a few changes. Shanto is not playing, Rubel is back into the side." "Big loss is that Shakib is not playing as he fractured his finger, hence Mominul comes in. Fans have been supporting us right throughout the tournament," he added. Pakistan, on the other hand, will not leave a single stone unturned to win the game against Afghanistan and lock horns with India for the third time in finals. Talking about their strategy for today, Pakistani skipper Sarfraz Ahmed said, "The conditions get different later in the night. But if you have wickets in hand, you can chase whatever the target is. I have asked the batsmen to play positive cricket, hopefully we bat well today." "They have a good batting line-up. We'll try to get them out early and chase it down later. Junaid Khan comes in for Mohammad Amir," he added. Teams: Pakistan (Playing XI): Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed(w/c), Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan, Shaheen Afridi Bangladesh (Playing XI): Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Mominul Haque, Imrul Kayes, Mahmudullah, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Mehidy Hasan, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman

Asia Cup: Bangladesh elect to bat in virtual semi-final clash against Pakistan 

India has postponed the scheduled inspection of its two hydropower projects on the Chenab river by Pakistani experts following the fresh tension in bilateral ties and cancellation of foreign ministers' meeting in New York, according to a media report here Wednesday.

The Indian authorities postponed the inspection by Pakistani experts and said that it would not be possible due to the local-body elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Dawn news quoted a source as saying.

After the bilateral talks on the Indus Waters Treaty last month in Lahore, India rejected Pakistan's objections on the construction of the 1,000MW Pakal Dul dam and 48MW Lower Kalnai hydropower projects on the Chenab river and invited Pakistani experts to visit the sites to address their concern.

The experts were scheduled to inspect the two hydropower projects by October but India cancelled it, citing some local issues, the report quoted the source as saying.

"It seems to be a fallout of the recent tension emerging with the cancellation of the talks by India as other issues are normally affected in a larger context in such situations," the senior official, on condition of anonymity, said.

India called off the meeting between Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, citing the "brutal" killing of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir and the release of the postal stamps "glorifying" Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani.

The source said the Indian delegation had agreed to get the two projects inspected by Pakistani experts this month.

"Through a letter, India confirmed October 7 to 11 for the inspection of the projects by a three-member Pakistani team headed by the Indus Water Commissioner," he said.

India said that since the administration of the respective districts in Kashmir would be busy holding the local-body elections till October 5, the inspection would only be possible from October 7 to 11, the source said.

"But now the Indian authorities have postponed the scheduled inspection, stating it wouldn't be possible due to holding of Panchayat elections in the state by the respective district administrations. They didn't give us new dates as they just stated to coordinate with Pakistani authorities soon," he said.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's Commissioner for Indus Waters Mehr Ali Shah expressed disappointment over the postponement and said that when something is mutually agreed at the state level, it should not be delayed or deferred on petty issues.

"Postponement of our visit for inspection of India's two hydropower projects at Chenab basin is an element of surprise for us despite the fact that the delegation, which visited Lahore and held meeting with us last month, had agreed to allow us inspection of the same in the last week of the ongoing month. Later, they confirmed October 7 to 11. But they further postponed this schedule," Shah said.

"We request our counterparts to fulfil their commitment they had made during their visit to Lahore last month," he said.

The talks on the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) in Lahore last month was the first official engagement between India and Pakistan since Imran Khan became Prime Minister on August 18.

India and Pakistan signed the IWT in 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory.

The water commissioners of Pakistan and India are required to meet twice a year and arrange technical visits to projects' sites and critical river head works.

The treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers.

India has postponed the scheduled inspection of its two hydropower projects on the Chenab river by Pakistani experts following the fresh tension in bilateral ties and cancellation of foreign ministers' meeting in New York, according to a media report here Wednesday.

India has postponed the scheduled inspection of its two hydropower projects on the Chenab river by Pakistani experts following the fresh tension in bilateral ties and cancellation of foreign ministers' meeting in New York, according to a media report here Wednesday. The Indian authorities postponed the inspection by Pakistani experts and said that it would not be possible due to the local-body elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Dawn news quoted a source as saying. After the bilateral talks on the Indus Waters Treaty last month in Lahore, India rejected Pakistan's objections on the construction of the 1,000MW Pakal Dul dam and 48MW Lower Kalnai hydropower projects on the Chenab river and invited Pakistani experts to visit the sites to address their concern. The experts were scheduled to inspect the two hydropower projects by October but India cancelled it, citing some local issues, the report quoted the source as saying. "It seems to be a fallout of the recent tension emerging with the cancellation of the talks by India as other issues are normally affected in a larger context in such situations," the senior official, on condition of anonymity, said. India called off the meeting between Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, citing the "brutal" killing of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir and the release of the postal stamps "glorifying" Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani. The source said the Indian delegation had agreed to get the two projects inspected by Pakistani experts this month. "Through a letter, India confirmed October 7 to 11 for the inspection of the projects by a three-member Pakistani team headed by the Indus Water Commissioner," he said. India said that since the administration of the respective districts in Kashmir would be busy holding the local-body elections till October 5, the inspection would only be possible from October 7 to 11, the source said. "But now the Indian authorities have postponed the scheduled inspection, stating it wouldn't be possible due to holding of Panchayat elections in the state by the respective district administrations. They didn't give us new dates as they just stated to coordinate with Pakistani authorities soon," he said. Meanwhile, Pakistan's Commissioner for Indus Waters Mehr Ali Shah expressed disappointment over the postponement and said that when something is mutually agreed at the state level, it should not be delayed or deferred on petty issues. "Postponement of our visit for inspection of India's two hydropower projects at Chenab basin is an element of surprise for us despite the fact that the delegation, which visited Lahore and held meeting with us last month, had agreed to allow us inspection of the same in the last week of the ongoing month. Later, they confirmed October 7 to 11. But they further postponed this schedule," Shah said. "We request our counterparts to fulfil their commitment they had made during their visit to Lahore last month," he said. The talks on the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) in Lahore last month was the first official engagement between India and Pakistan since Imran Khan became Prime Minister on August 18. India and Pakistan signed the IWT in 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory. The water commissioners of Pakistan and India are required to meet twice a year and arrange technical visits to projects' sites and critical river head works. The treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers.

India postpones Pak experts' inspection of two hydropower projects in J&K: Report

Pakistan and Bangladesh will lock horns on Wednesday, in what will be a virtual semi-final, to decide who will meet India in the 2018 Asia Cup finals.

Both the teams have lost comprehensively to India while beating Afghanistan in the Super four stage.&nbsp;

If seen the recent forms, Bangladesh have the winning momentum on their side, having beaten the Afghans in their last game. Imrul Kayes and Mahmudullah did the job with the bat then, and Mustafizur Rahman starred with the ball.

Kayes, who was brought in only in the second half of the tournament as Bangladesh looked for replacements for the injured Tamim Iqbal, impressed in his first outing, hitting an unbeaten 72, while Mahmudullah scored a crucial 74 and, together, they lifted their team from 87/5.

Bangladesh will look to continue their performance in this crunch clash, and a lot will depend on the experienced shoulders of Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan.

Pakistan, meanwhile, have their own issues to sort. A sub-par fielding performance in their last outing ensured that India reached the target of 238 earlier than expected and with nine wickets hand.

The start has been a problem for them too, as Fakhar Zaman, one of the lynchpins of this batting line-up, has struggled to get going and has managed scores of 24, 0, 0, and 31 in the tournament so far.

Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, and Sarfraz Ahmed have performed decently. &nbsp;Haq has two half-centuries, Azam has one, and Ahmed enjoyed some batting time in the middle in his last outing, against India, with his patient 44.

It's only Shoaib Malik, who has risen to the occasion and has contributed heavily to the team's cause with 9*, 43, 51* and 78. Pakistan will bank big on their most experienced cricketer.&nbsp;

The bowling also has not looked at its best since their first group-stage match against Hong Kong.

Mohammad Amir hasn't picked up a wicket in the tournament yet while Usman Shinwari and Hasan Ali have been expensive in phases.&nbsp;

Shaheen Afridi has impressed in the two ODIs that he has played. The bowlers will have to strike against a potent Bangladesh middle order to reach the finals.&nbsp;

Probable squad

Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Shakib Al Hasan (vc), Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Ariful Haque, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nazmul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Hider, Mominul Haque, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes

Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (c &amp; wk), Fakhar Zaman, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Amir, Shadab Khan, Imam ul Haq, Shan Masood, Babar Azam, Asif Ali, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Nawaz, Fahim Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan, Usman Shinwari, Shaheen Afridi

Pakistan and Bangladesh will lock horns on Wednesday, in what will be a virtual semi-final, to decide who will meet India in the 2018 Asia Cup finals. Both the teams have lost comprehensively to India while beating Afghanistan in the Super four stage.

Pakistan and Bangladesh will lock horns on Wednesday, in what will be a virtual semi-final, to decide who will meet India in the 2018 Asia Cup finals. Both the teams have lost comprehensively to India while beating Afghanistan in the Super four stage. If seen the recent forms, Bangladesh have the winning momentum on their side, having beaten the Afghans in their last game. Imrul Kayes and Mahmudullah did the job with the bat then, and Mustafizur Rahman starred with the ball. Kayes, who was brought in only in the second half of the tournament as Bangladesh looked for replacements for the injured Tamim Iqbal, impressed in his first outing, hitting an unbeaten 72, while Mahmudullah scored a crucial 74 and, together, they lifted their team from 87/5. Bangladesh will look to continue their performance in this crunch clash, and a lot will depend on the experienced shoulders of Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan. Pakistan, meanwhile, have their own issues to sort. A sub-par fielding performance in their last outing ensured that India reached the target of 238 earlier than expected and with nine wickets hand. The start has been a problem for them too, as Fakhar Zaman, one of the lynchpins of this batting line-up, has struggled to get going and has managed scores of 24, 0, 0, and 31 in the tournament so far. Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, and Sarfraz Ahmed have performed decently. Haq has two half-centuries, Azam has one, and Ahmed enjoyed some batting time in the middle in his last outing, against India, with his patient 44. It's only Shoaib Malik, who has risen to the occasion and has contributed heavily to the team's cause with 9*, 43, 51* and 78. Pakistan will bank big on their most experienced cricketer. The bowling also has not looked at its best since their first group-stage match against Hong Kong. Mohammad Amir hasn't picked up a wicket in the tournament yet while Usman Shinwari and Hasan Ali have been expensive in phases. Shaheen Afridi has impressed in the two ODIs that he has played. The bowlers will have to strike against a potent Bangladesh middle order to reach the finals. Probable squad Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Shakib Al Hasan (vc), Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Ariful Haque, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nazmul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Hider, Mominul Haque, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (c & wk), Fakhar Zaman, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Amir, Shadab Khan, Imam ul Haq, Shan Masood, Babar Azam, Asif Ali, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Nawaz, Fahim Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan, Usman Shinwari, Shaheen Afridi

Asia Cup: Pakistan-Bangladesh lock horns to set up date with India in finals

The trade potential between India and Pakistan stands at USD 37 billion, according to a World Bank report which said that continued political tensions and lack of normal trade relations between the two nations have cast a shadow over cooperation efforts within South Asia.

The report 'A Glass Half Full: The Promise of Regional Trade in South Asia', which was released on Monday, has highlighted among key factors, the long list of product restrictions in bilateral trade. India and Pakistan continue to maintain long, sensitive lists of items on which no tariff concessions are granted.

The lack of normal bilateral trade relations between the two countries affects the formation or deepening of regional value-chains in various high-value trading sectors, Dawn newspaper reported quoting the report.

Pakistan has a list of 936 items and almost 17.9 per cent of tariff lines that apply to imports from all South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) countries.&nbsp;

India maintains a list of 25 items (0.5 per cent of tariff lines), which includes goods such as alcohol, firearms, etc.

However, it has a much longer, 64-item list, (almost 11.7 per cent of tariff lines) for Pakistan and Sri Lanka, but which effectively applies only to Pakistan, because India applies a smaller sensitive list to Sri Lanka as part of a separate India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement.

Items on the Indian sensitive list can be imported at the most-favoured-nation tariffs from any SAFTA country, including Pakistan, because India accorded Pakistan the status in 1996, soon after the accession of the two countries to the World Trade Organisation.&nbsp;

However, Pakistan has not granted India the most-favoured nation's status or non-discriminatory market access.

In addition, the preferential access granted by Pakistan on 82.1 per cent of tariff lines under SAFTA is partially blocked in the case of India because Pakistan maintains a negative list comprising 1,209 items that cannot be imported from India.&nbsp;

In practice, many of these items are exported from India to Pakistan through a third country, usually the United Arab Emirates.

The report says another barrier to bilateral trade is the proliferation of NTMs (non-tariff measures), some of which take the form of non-tariff barriers, such as port restrictions.

Pakistan allows only 138 items to be imported from India over the Attari-Wagah land route. Furthermore, cargo trucks from either side cannot move beyond their border zones, which means that goods must be trans-loaded at the border, adding to the time and cost of trading.

Another factor impeding bilateral trade in goods and services, as well as FDI, is the encumbered visa regime that India and Pakistan have created for each other, which restricts the mobility of people between the two countries.

Continued political tensions and lack of normal trade relations between India and Pakistan have cast a shadow over cooperation efforts within South Asia, contributing to the lack of progress in the regional cooperation agenda of SAARC and SAFTA, the report said.

The trade potential between India and Pakistan stands at USD 37 billion, according to a World Bank report which said that continued political tensions and lack of normal trade relations between the two nations have cast a shadow over cooperation efforts within South Asia.

The trade potential between India and Pakistan stands at USD 37 billion, according to a World Bank report which said that continued political tensions and lack of normal trade relations between the two nations have cast a shadow over cooperation efforts within South Asia. The report 'A Glass Half Full: The Promise of Regional Trade in South Asia', which was released on Monday, has highlighted among key factors, the long list of product restrictions in bilateral trade. India and Pakistan continue to maintain long, sensitive lists of items on which no tariff concessions are granted. The lack of normal bilateral trade relations between the two countries affects the formation or deepening of regional value-chains in various high-value trading sectors, Dawn newspaper reported quoting the report. Pakistan has a list of 936 items and almost 17.9 per cent of tariff lines that apply to imports from all South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) countries. India maintains a list of 25 items (0.5 per cent of tariff lines), which includes goods such as alcohol, firearms, etc. However, it has a much longer, 64-item list, (almost 11.7 per cent of tariff lines) for Pakistan and Sri Lanka, but which effectively applies only to Pakistan, because India applies a smaller sensitive list to Sri Lanka as part of a separate India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. Items on the Indian sensitive list can be imported at the most-favoured-nation tariffs from any SAFTA country, including Pakistan, because India accorded Pakistan the status in 1996, soon after the accession of the two countries to the World Trade Organisation. However, Pakistan has not granted India the most-favoured nation's status or non-discriminatory market access. In addition, the preferential access granted by Pakistan on 82.1 per cent of tariff lines under SAFTA is partially blocked in the case of India because Pakistan maintains a negative list comprising 1,209 items that cannot be imported from India. In practice, many of these items are exported from India to Pakistan through a third country, usually the United Arab Emirates. The report says another barrier to bilateral trade is the proliferation of NTMs (non-tariff measures), some of which take the form of non-tariff barriers, such as port restrictions. Pakistan allows only 138 items to be imported from India over the Attari-Wagah land route. Furthermore, cargo trucks from either side cannot move beyond their border zones, which means that goods must be trans-loaded at the border, adding to the time and cost of trading. Another factor impeding bilateral trade in goods and services, as well as FDI, is the encumbered visa regime that India and Pakistan have created for each other, which restricts the mobility of people between the two countries. Continued political tensions and lack of normal trade relations between India and Pakistan have cast a shadow over cooperation efforts within South Asia, contributing to the lack of progress in the regional cooperation agenda of SAARC and SAFTA, the report said.

Indo-Pak trade potential stands at $37 billion: World Bank

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the government is "ready to talk to everyone" over the Kashmir issue, while asserting that terrorism in the Valley is "Pakistan-sponsored".

After a meeting of the Central Zonal Council here, he told reporters, "I think the (Kashmir) matter will be resolved. We are ready to talk to everyone. As far as terrorism is concerned, all security agencies are working in coordination."

"Terrorism in Kashmir is Pakistan-sponsored," he said.

The government Friday called off a meeting between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan in New York, barely 24 hours after agreeing to the engagement, citing the brutal killings of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir and Islamabad releasing postage stamps "glorifying" Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani.

About the issues raised in the zonal council meeting, the home minister said out of 22 points, 20 have been resolved, adding in the last four years, in 12 meetings, 680 issues were discussed of which 428 were resolved.

At the meeting, progress of implementation of recommendations made at the last meeting -- on need to increase density of roads and upgrading existing roads, assistance required to combat Left Wing Extremism (LWE) and modernisation of police forces were discussed, an official release issued here said.

Singh said it has been the objective of the present government to strengthen the institution of zonal councils as well as the inter-state council to promote and maintain a good federal atmosphere of cooperation among states and the Centre.

Besides Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand Chief Ministers Yogi Adityanath and Trivedra Singh Rawat respectively, the meeting was attended by representatives from Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh as well.

The Central Zonal Council comprises Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand. The council's meeting aims at addressing common concerns of the participating states and settling cross-border concerns, if any.

Five Zonal Councils -- central, western, northern, southern and eastern -- were established under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956.&nbsp;

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the government is "ready to talk to everyone" over the Kashmir issue, while asserting that terrorism in the Valley is "Pakistan-sponsored".

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the government is "ready to talk to everyone" over the Kashmir issue, while asserting that terrorism in the Valley is "Pakistan-sponsored". After a meeting of the Central Zonal Council here, he told reporters, "I think the (Kashmir) matter will be resolved. We are ready to talk to everyone. As far as terrorism is concerned, all security agencies are working in coordination." "Terrorism in Kashmir is Pakistan-sponsored," he said. The government Friday called off a meeting between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan in New York, barely 24 hours after agreeing to the engagement, citing the brutal killings of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir and Islamabad releasing postage stamps "glorifying" Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani. About the issues raised in the zonal council meeting, the home minister said out of 22 points, 20 have been resolved, adding in the last four years, in 12 meetings, 680 issues were discussed of which 428 were resolved. At the meeting, progress of implementation of recommendations made at the last meeting -- on need to increase density of roads and upgrading existing roads, assistance required to combat Left Wing Extremism (LWE) and modernisation of police forces were discussed, an official release issued here said. Singh said it has been the objective of the present government to strengthen the institution of zonal councils as well as the inter-state council to promote and maintain a good federal atmosphere of cooperation among states and the Centre. Besides Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand Chief Ministers Yogi Adityanath and Trivedra Singh Rawat respectively, the meeting was attended by representatives from Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh as well. The Central Zonal Council comprises Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand. The council's meeting aims at addressing common concerns of the participating states and settling cross-border concerns, if any. Five Zonal Councils -- central, western, northern, southern and eastern -- were established under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956.

Government is 'ready to talk to everyone' over Kashmir issue: Rajnath Singh

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