POLITICAL ISSUES
JORDAN
1. Pakistan highly values its ties with Jordan
Islamabad, Tuesday, 27 March 2012
Acting President Syed Nayyar Hussain Bukhari said that Pakistan placed its bilateral cordial relations with Jordan in high esteem, which should be further strengthened in different fields of life including judicial system.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA
2. Saudi Ambassador calls on President
Islamabad, Thursday, 8 March 2012
Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Pakistan Abdul Aziz Ibrahim Al-Ghadeer called on President Asif Ali Zardari at the Aiwan-e-Sadr. Pak-Saudi bilateral relations were discussed during the meeting.
Source; Associated Press of Pakistan

3. Saudi minister’s visit to further strengthen bilateral tie
Islamabad, Tuesday 27 March 2012
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said that the upcoming visit of Saudi Minister for Culture and Information Dr Abdul Aziz bin Mohiuddin Khoja would go a long way not only in understanding each other’s culture but would further help strengthen bilateral relations
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

TURKEY
4. President, Burhan Kayaturk discuss Pak-Turkey relations
Islamabad, Friday, 23 March 2012
Burhan Kayaturk, Co-Chairman Turkey-Pakistan Parliamentary Friendship Group in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, called on President Asif Ali Zardari at Aiwan-e-Sadr.  
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

5. Turkey, Pakistan agree to improve cooperation in trade, defense and communication
Seoul, Monday, 26 March 2012
Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and his Turkish counterpart Recap Tayyip Erdogan met on the sidelines of second Nuclear Security Summit, discussed bilateral relations, regional and international situation, and agreed to promote trade and economic relations between the two countries.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
6. UAE ambassador calls on Foreign Minister
Islamabad, Saturday, 12 March 2012
The Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates Essa Abdullah Al Basha Al Noaimi called on Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar to deliver a letter from the Foreign Minister of UAE Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The Foreign Minister and the Ambassador also discussed regional and international matters of mutual interest.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

ECONOMIC ISSUES
IRAN
7. Pakistan rejects foreign pressure on Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project
Islamabad, Thursday, 1 March 2012
Foreign Minister, rejects any foreign pressure against Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project, said it was in Pakistan’s national interest to acquire energy from wherever it was available.
Source: Business Recorder

8. Tender floated for laying Pak-Iran Gas pipe line project
Islamabad, Thursday, 15 March 2012
Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr. Asim Hussain informed the National Assembly that tender has already been floated for laying Pak-Iran Gas pipeline project.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
9. UAE’s investment creating better opportunities for market, people in Pakistan
Islamabad, Wednesday, 28 March 2012
Minister for Interior, Rehman Malik said Pakistan appreciates investment from United Arab Emirates (UAE) in all economic sectors, especially telecom which is creating better opportunities for market as well as for people.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

MULTILATERAL ISSUES
10. Trilateral summit to boost trade activities: Hina
Islamabad, Thursday, 8 March 2012
Foreign Minister, Hina Rabbani Khar has said that the Trilateral Summit of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan has provided an opportunity for substantive discussions on cooperation in energy related projects including IPI Gas Pipeline, increasing rail and road links and enhancing trade.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

11. Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Tajikistan vow to promote, strengthen regional trade
Dushanbe, Sunday, 25 March 2012
Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Tajikistan reiterated their resolve to promote and strengthen trade and economic cooperation in the region besides joining hands to fight the menace of terrorism, militancy and drug trafficking for a win-win situation.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

MISCELLANEOUS
12. Pakistan and Turkey vow to cooperate in women’s empowerment projects
United Nation, Friday, 2 March 2012
Pakistan’s Goodwill Ambassador for Women Empowerment, Fiza Batool Gillani, exchanged views on women-related issues with Turkish Deputy Minister for Family and Social Policy, Askin Asan, on the margins of the current session of the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

13. UAE launches campaign for World Expo 2020
Islamabad, Sunday, 4 March 2012
The United Arab Emirates has launched an official campaign to host the World Expo 2020 in Dubai, an event that rivals the Olympic Games in scale and prestige.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

14. Pakistan’s ambassador to UAE decorated with Sitara-e-Imtiaz
Islamabad, Monday, 26 March 2012
Pakistan’s Ambassador to UAE Jamil Ahmed Khan received high civil award, Sitara-e-Imtiaz on Pakistan Day on March 23 in recognition of his outstanding performance as ambassador to Libya and presently to UAE.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

15. Pakistan Day celebrated in Bangladesh, UAE, Egypt, Sri Lanka
Islamabad, Monday, 26 March 2012
Pakistan Day was observed with traditional fervor and enthusiasm in Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Sri Lanka.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

16. Cultural night of Pakistan celebrated in Turkey
Islamabad, Thursday, 29 March 2012
A spectacular cultural night of Pakistan under the theme ‘Rumi and Iqbal’ was celebrated in Ankara, Turkey.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

Compiled by Manjari Singh

Manjari Singh is pursuing her M Phil research in the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi Email

As part of the policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spellings and date format to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND P R Kumaraswamy