$5-billion trade on Iran, Pakistan agenda, says envoy

 Pakistan and Iran intend to boost bilateral trade level between the two neighboring nations to five billion dollars annually, says the Pakistani envoy to Iran. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani have agreed to enhance the level of trade between Iran and Pakistan to five billion dollars annually, said Asif Ali Durrani, Pakistani Ambassador to Tehran. Asif Ali Durrani, who following his arrival in the Sistan and Baluchestan provincial capital of Zahedan said that three months after his appointment as the Pakistani envoy to Iran, he has visited Iran's south eastern province in a bid to explore new ways to further already good and friendly relations between Tehran and Islamabad. "Trade ties between Iran and Pakistan should be enhanced and the border areas could play a positive role in achieving this goal," he said. The Pakistani ambassador is expected to visit the port city of Chabahar, too. Iran and Pakistan share a common border of more than 900 kilometers.

Pakistan, China sign MoU to eradicate corruption

ISLAMABAD: Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Qamar Zaman Chaudhary has held a meeting with Governor of Xinjiang province Shohrat Zakir in Urumqi, China. During the meeting, matters of mutual interest came under discussion. Qamar Zaman Chaudhary said that NAB has chalked out a comprehensive three pronged strategy including awareness, prevention and enforcement to eradicate corruption. In his remarks, governor of Xinjiang province said that signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Pakistan and China to eradicate corruption will enable both countries to work jointly in the field of anti-corruption work.

Saudi oil minister says OPEC production cut ‘imperative’

Saudi Arabia's oil minister said it was “imperative” that The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) nations finalise an agreement over a cut in oil production aimed at boosting crude prices, Algerian media said on Sunday. Khalid al-Falih met his Algerian counterpart Noureddine Boutarfa on Saturday and called on cartel members to stick to the surprise cut deal, reached in Algiers in September. “In this period marked by unstable oil prices it is imperative to reach a consensus between OPEC nations and to agree on an effective mechanism and precise figures to activate the historic Algiers accord,” Falih was quoted as saying by Algeria's APS news agency. The September’s meeting of OPEC members produced an agreement to cut the cartel's output by 750,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to Bloomberg News. Oil rose on news of the deal, but crude prices are still more than 50 per cent lower than their mid-2014 levels. Falih said he was “optimistic” that the agreement would come into effect. The Saudi minister was quoted as saying that a “fair and balanced” output deal would allow unrest-hit Libya and Nigeria, with a return of security, to raise production, while reaching agreement with Iran on a freeze. Falih and his Algerian counterpart Boutarfa called for the date an OPEC preparatory meeting of experts ahead of the Vienna conference to be brought forward to November 21 from its scheduled date of November 25, APS reported. OPEC officials said in September that the group would aim for a combined output of 32.5-33 million bpd. On Friday, however, prices fell on news from OPEC that it had pumped oil in October at record levels of 33.64 million bpd, 236,000 barrels per day more than the previous month.

Turkey issues warning over travel to US after Trump protests

Turkey warned its citizens about travel to the United States on Saturday in response to what the foreign ministry called increasingly violent protests against President-elect Donald Trump. "Within the context of risks caused by the incidents and of social tension, our citizens who live in the US, or who are considering traveling there, should be cautious," the ministry said in a statement. Demonstrators planned to gather again on Saturday in US cities nationwide to protest against Trump, whose election they say poses a threat to their civil and human rights, a day after a protester was shot in Portland, Oregon. Last month, the US State Department updated its travel warning on Turkey, ordering family members of consulate employees in Istanbul to leave the country, citing threats against US citizens. There has been growing tension between the two NATO allies after repeated calls from Turkey to extradite US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara blames for a failed coup in July. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Wednesday he hoped for an improvement in bilateral ties after Trump's victory, and again called for Gulen's extradition.

Mehbooba Mufti wants peaceful dialogue between India and Pakistan

JAMMU: Indian-held Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has said that the emerging scenario in the state can be addressed best by following the vision of late CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. She asserted that her party’s agenda has always been dialogue and discourse and not warmongering. Addressing a meeting of the party’s district and zonal presidents of Jammu province in Jammu, she said her party has always stood for dialogue, peace and harmonious relations with Pakistan. “Wars have nowhere in the present world solved any problem, rather compounded them,” she added.  She said that the problems faced by people of border areas also underscore the need for pushing for a dialogue to resolve issues and maintain peaceful relations between Pakistan and India.

Gwadar launches CPEC trade today

Quetta - The much awaited stage for international trade under CPEC has finally arrived as first shipment of Chinese goods will be sent to international markets from Gwadar Port today. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will inaugurate the historic trade activity at a ceremony, which will be attended by civil and military officials, Balochistan CM Sanaullah Zehri, Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong and diplomats from various countries. The $46 dollars China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project is a flagship of Chinese ‘One Belt and One Road’ initiative envisaged by Chinese President Xi Jinping to connect Kashghar with the Middle East and beyond through Gwadar Port. The first convoy of Chinese containers reached Gwader via CPEC Western Route yesterday which was welcomed at various locations on the way by the residents. The trade caravan was provided a comprehensive security cover by Pakistan Army and other security agencies. “The prime minister will launch ceremony of international trade convoy by seeing off 45 containers for Middle East formally from Gwadar Port on Sunday (today),” official sources said. “This is the onset of the progress that has been awaited for years. But now this journey will continue till the times to come,” the PM House said in a statement on Saturday. During his day-long visit to Gwadar, the PM will also address the launching ceremony of the first mega pilot trade cargo, it added. It said that Gwadar was nature’s gift to Pakistan and Chinese friendship and cooperation had made it more valuable. “We are crossing new milestone into a new era of international relations.” The shipment of first trade cargo from Gwadar to the international market heralds a changed Pakistan.

Economic experts said the trade under CPEC from Gwadar Port will prove a shock therapy for the Pakistan economy and create employment opportunities. Both civil and military leadership of the country agrees that the mega project will prove a ‘game changer’ for Pakistan and the region. The multibillion project will not only boost up trade activities, but will also help Pakistan overcome the daunting challenges of energy crunch as 10,400 megawatts power will be generated through various projects. Roads infrastructure, railways lines and optic fibers are part of the CPEC, which will also rehabilitate and improve many of the existing road and railways lines. Gwadar Port and CPEC is also very important for the Chinese as it reduces the travel time for their goods and supplies, especially of oil, between China and Middle East from 45 days (on the traditional South China Sea route) to only 12 days. Gwadar Port is rich of new possibilities not only for Pakistan and China but also for the whole world with a scope of import and export activity from Central Asia to the Middle East. Besides enhancing communication network, supply, trade and cultural links, the corridor will also help promote peace, resources and harmony in the region.  Starting its journey from Kashghar, the trade cargo reached Gwadar safely from Gilgit-Baltistan after travelling throughout the country, which manifested the image of a peaceful Pakistan and offset the impression that the project could be harmed by the political difference over CPEC. Every region and the province of Pakistan will benefit from the CPEC as it’s a comprehensive project of peace and economic progress. As Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asian States will also take advantage of the project, the enhanced trade activity in relatively less-developed western region of Pakistan - comprising Balochistan and KP – would witness economic boost which would be visible within few years. The government has already allocated land for Gwadar Free Trade Zone and announced concessions for Gwadar Port and Free Trade Zone in Balochistan. Moreover, the projects of Exclusive Industrial Park Processing Zone and Mineral Economic Zone are also being executed on a priority basis. A project worth Rs25 billion is being executed for the development of Gwadar city keeping in view its importance. The federal government gave a free hand to the provincial government in that regard that designed the project considering Gwadar’s basic needs. The federal government has also provided all resources for the installation of a plant to make the sea water drinkable, besides launching an additional Rs11.5 billion project for clean drinking water to Gwadar during 2015-2016. The quality of underground water is also being improved and the existing 50-bed hospital is being upgraded to a 300-bed facility. A university and a technical and vocational training institute are also being set up in Gwadar to produce required manpower. The locals will be preferred for enrolment in these institutes. Under the CPEC, the government has prioritised energy and road infrastructure. To meet the electricity needs, a 300-megawatt power plant is being installed in Gwadar that will also be linked to national grid. A Special Security Force has been raised to provide security cover to the Chinese investors. Gwadar is also being made a safe city that will boost the investors’ confidence. The construction of a new international airport is also underway in Gwadar to facilitate the movement of investors. The federal government has given special attention to the construction of roads as travel to and from Gwadar is being squeezed.

Hillary's aides blame FBI director for loss to Trump

WASHINGTON - Top aides to Hillary Clinton are blaming the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), James Comey,  and the media for the Democratic presidential candidate's  devastating loss in November 8 national elections. Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, communications director Jennifer Palmieri and other Clinton aides sought to provide explanations during a private conference call Thursday with supporters of the Democratic nominee for a loss that to many came out of nowhere, according to a media report.  They were pressed on the call for answers and insight from supporters stung by the surprise loss. At one point on the call, Podesta noted that Comey is the guy “who we think may have cost us the election,” according to one Clinton surrogate who relayed details about the call to The Hill. Another unidentified aide also seemed to blame Comey. “We saw turnout down and didn't do nearly as well as we thought. Something happened and it happened in a pretty steady way late in the race,” the aide said, according to the the newspaper. The surrogate was cited as saying that the clear message from the call was that Comey had contributed to the declining turnout. “That last week, it was just one too many things,” Palmieri added later, referring to the post-Comey final week of the campaign. Comey on Oct. 28 shocked Washington and Democrats by telling Congress that the FBI had discovered new emails related to its investigation of Clinton’s use of a private email server as secretary of State. The FBI had decided against making criminal charges against Clinton over the summer for her handling of classified information on that server. Polls between Clinton and Republican Donald Trump had already tightened with the Comey news broke, and the race appeared to get closer over the next week.

On Nov. 6, Comey said the FBI had not found any information in the new emails that would change its original decision that Clinton should not be charged.Aides also blamed the media for the loss. “The media always covered her as the person who would be president and therefore tried to eviscerate her before the election, but covered Trump who was someone who was entertaining and sort of gave him a pass,” Podesta said. “We need to reflect and analyze that and put our voices forward.”Trump during the campaign frequently criticized the media for being too hard on him. Podesta, whose hacked emails were released by WikiLeaks over the campaign’s final stretch, said top Clinton aides will argue that the press created a “false moral equivalency” in its coverage of Clinton and Trump. Meanwhile, Navin Nayak, the head of the Clinton campaign’s opinion research division, sent an email to senior staffers Thursday, outlining “early signals” as to why the candidate lost thepresidential election, POLITICO reported on Friday. “We believe that we lost this election in the last week,” said Nayak’s email, which was published by POLITICO. “Comey’s letter in the last 11 days of the election both helped depress our turnout and also drove away some of our critical support among college-educated white voters — particularly in the suburbs.” “We also think Comey’s 2nd letter, which was intended to absolve Secretary Clinton, actually helped to bolster Trump’s turnout,” he continued.

The letter also highlighted several other challenges the Clinton team faced throughout the campaign, including a desire for change after two terms by a Democratic president and the reluctance of some Americans to vote for a female candidate. Despite those challenges, Nayak said, Clinton was on course to win until the last week, when “everything changed" and the momentum began to shift in favor of Trump. “Voters who decided in the last week broke for Trump by a larger margin (42-47). These numbers were even more exaggerated in the key battleground states,” he said.

Pakistan raps Japan's 'discriminatory' nuclear deal with India:

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan fears Japan's signing of a civilian nuclear technology deal with India could undermine regional stability, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nafees Zakaria said, while asking the international community not to discriminate against his country in favor of its archrival neighbor. Zakaria, in an interview with a Japanese News Agency urged Japan and other countries "to objectively assess the consequences of discriminatory approaches to our region." Pakistan, he said, considers that the exemption granted to India by the Vienna-based Nuclear Suppliers Group, effectively allowing the South Asian country to expand its nuclear power industry, "has negatively impacted the strategic balance in the region." "It has allowed India to gain access to foreign sources of nuclear fuel and freed up its domestic reserves which are being utilised for rapid expansion of its military nuclear program," he said, adding, "We have taken up the issue with the Japanese side."

Pakistan has sought similar treatment ever since 2008 when the NSG, a group of nuclear supplier countries that seek to prevent nuclear proliferation by controlling the export of materials, equipment and technology that could be used to manufacture nuclear weapons,  exempted India from its rule prohibiting supply technology to countries that have not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Neither Pakistan nor India, which have gone to war with each other three times since their 1947 split and have both tested nuclear weapons, have signed the NPT. Under the civilian nuclear cooperation pact inked in Tokyo, which paves the way for Japan to export nuclear materials or technology to India, the latter is required to use them for peaceful purposes only, and not for research or development of any sort of nuclear explosive device. Under the pact, India will be allowed to reprocess nuclear materials and byproducts supplied or produced, but cannot make highly enriched uranium, which potentially could be used in the production of nuclear weapons, without Japan's consent. Tokyo can halt its nuclear cooperation if New Delhi breaches its 2008 commitment to a moratorium on nuclear testing. India has already signed such nuclear deals with France, Russia and the United States, among other countries.  Zakaria said, all the NSG countries including the United States - which backs India's membership in the 48-member body but not that of Pakistan - should adopt objective, non-discriminatory criteria "which are not only promoting non-proliferation objectives but they promote strategic stability in South Asia."

India fumes over Pak win on dams’ dispute

LAHORE - India is up in arms after Pakistan got a break over two controversial dams being built in Occupied Kashmir with the World Bank accepting Islamabad’s call for an arbitration court to settle the dispute. The development is being seen as a victory for Pakistan which has been complaining of Indus Water Treaty violation by the neighbouring country for long, according to diplomatic sources as well as officials of Indus Water Commission of Pakistan. India, on the other hand, has lodged a protest over the WB move and refused to be the party in the arbitration process putting future of the water treaty at stake. New Delhi is calling for the appointment of single neutral expert on the issue. The Bank had brokered the Indus Waters Treaty in 1960 and has a certain role in the resolution of differences between the two neighbours on water sharing. Islamabad in August 2015 had raised serious objection on the designs of Ratle (850MW) and Kishanganga (330MW) hydropower projects being constructed by India at River Chenab and River Jhelum respectively, in occupied region of Jammu and Kashmir. According to Indus Water Commission of Pakistan, India was constructing the dams in violation of the treaty that ensured a fair division of river water resources between the upper riparian India and the lower riparian Pakistan. The Pakistani commission for more than a year had been repeatedly requesting India to address its concerns and stop constructing dams in violation of the Indus water treaty. “India was just offering talks to buy time and was not moving ahead with concrete steps. At the same time, it continued construction of the dams which was unacceptable to us.” Pakistani officials said.

Keeping in mind New Delhi’s track record, Islamabad approached the World Bank last month and called for the formation of court of arbitration on the projects. “It took Pakistan almost a year to prepare its case and approach the World Bank,” said an official of the water commission. “The World Bank on Thursday held a drawing of lots at its headquarters in Washington, DC to determine who will appoint three umpires to sit on the court of arbitration. And, at the same time it also proposed a neutral expert to examine the technical issues,” he said, adding it was first apparent victory of Pakistan’s stance and “we accepted the World Bank proposals”. “It is for the first time in Treaty’s history that World Bank agreed to form court of arbitration on our request. We welcome the move,” said the source. According to some other experts in country’s water sector, who spoke with The Nation on condition of anonymity, the verdict of Hague based permanent court of arbitration on Kishanganga hydropower project in 2013 allowed World Bank to directly form court of arbitration instead of appointing a neutral expert. But, India claims the World Bank cannot do it as per the Indus Water Treaty terms. “India cannot be party in international arbitration which are not in accordance with the Indus Waters Treaty,” India’s external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup was quoted in a statement by Indian media. He also stated that India will examine further options and took steps accordingly.The experts, however, questioned the reluctance of India towards resolving the issue, arguing if New Delhi is right in its stand why it was fearful of arbitration court. The World Bank, meanwhile, in a statement urged India and Pakistan to agree to mediation to settle on a mechanism for resolving the issue. India has planned generating 22,000MW from the rivers in IOK. So far, it has built Dalhasti hydropower project of 330MW, Baglihar of 450MW and now it is about to complete Kishanganga, while work on Ratle project too has been started. On Neelum River,  India has completed Uri-1 and Uri-II projects. It also built Nimmo Bazgo and Chattak projects in IOK. Pakistan had also raised concern over the design of Pakal Dul (1,000MW), Miyar (120MW) and Lower Kalnai (48MW) projects being built by India on River Chenab.