POLITICAL ISSUES
IRAN
1. Pakistani Senator supports Iran’s peaceful N-program
Islamabad, Thursday, 10 January 2013
Senator Saeed Ghani of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party supported Iran’s peaceful nuclear programme and criticized the pressure that is being put on it. He opined that some countries of the region, including and particularly ‘the Zionist regime’, are afraid of the development of Iran and hoped Iran would not bow down to western pressures.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

2. Iranian envoy meets Rehman Malik
Islamabad, Tuesday, 29 January 2013
Ambassador of Iran to Pakistan Ali Reza Haghighian called on Minister for Interior Rehman Malik and discussed matters of mutual interests and extended an invitation to Malik on behalf of Iranian Interior Minister Mustafa Nijar to visit Iran.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

3. Bokhari emphasizes boosting Pak-Iran ties for regional peace and prosperity
Islamabad, Wednesday, 30 January 2013
Chairman Senate Syed Nayyer Hussain Bokhari stressed the need for increasing people-to-people contacts through the exchange of Parliamentary, business and student delegations between Pakistan and Iran.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

LIBYA
4. Libyan Chief Justice calls on Supreme Court Chief Justice
Islamabad, Monday, 21 January 2013
A delegation headed by Chief Justice of Supreme Court of Libya Justice Kamal B.A. Dhan called on Chief Justice Supreme Court of Pakistan and discussed issues relating to judiciaries of both the countries.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan; See also: Associated Press of Pakistan

Qatar
5. Ambassador of Qatar calls on President
Islamabad, Wednesday, 30 January 2013
Ambassador of Qatar to Pakistan Abdul Rehman Al Moawada called on President Asif Ali Zardari and discussed matters relating to Pakistan-Qatar bilateral relations and mutual cooperation in various areas.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA
6. FM meets Saudi Crown Prince in Riyadh
Riyadh, Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar arrived in Saudi Arabia at the invitation of Foreign Minister Prince Saud al Faisal. Khar called on Prince Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Deputy Premier. During the meeting, the two leaders expressed satisfaction at the status of bilateral relations and discussed various issues of mutual interest.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

7. Hina Rabbani Khar apprises PM about her visit to Saudi Arabia
Islamabad, Thursday, 3 January 2013
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar called on Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Thursday and apprised him about the details of her recent visit to Saudi Arabia.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

8. Pak-Saudi joint naval exercise “Naseem al Bahr X” enters into 7th day
Islamabad, Friday, 18 January 2013
The bilateral joint naval exercise Naseem al Bahr between Pakistan Special Services Group (SSG N) and Royal Saudi Naval Special Forces entered its seventh which encompassed field craft, survival techniques, navigation, hide pit drills, ambush on convoy and raid on simulated target in Mountainous terrain.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan; See Also: Associated Press of Pakistan

9. Saudi Arabia always stood by Pakistan in difficult times: Kaira
Islamabad, Wednesday, 30 January 2013
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira Wednesday said Saudi Arabia has always helped Pakistan in difficult times and relations between the two brotherly countries are historically very close. He was speaking at a function on “Outline of Efforts of Saudi Arabia for Pakistan” at Saudi Embassy.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SYRIA
10. Pakistan urges mindset change to pull Syria out of quagmire
United Nations, Thursday, 24 January 2013
As Syria descends into deeper conflict with more bouts of violence, Masood Khan, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations  who is also president of the Security Council for this month, has called for changing of mindset to pull Syria out of the quagmire.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

TURKEY
11. Pakistan, Turkey agree to work for social welfare of vulnerable groups
Ankara, Friday, 4 January 2013
Pakistan and Turkey have agreed to form a “Social Protection & Family Policy” working group that would share experiences and best practices for social welfare of the vulnerable groups. Discussion included mentioning of rehabilitation of the terrorism-affected families and establishment of a model orphanage in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

12. Pak-Turkey to construct Fleet Tanker for Pakistan Navy
Islamabad, Thursday, 24 January 2013
Pakistan and a Turkish firm have signed a contract for construction of Fleet Tanker (Logistic Support Ship) for Pakistan Navy. Under the contract, design of the ship along with Kit of Material would be provided by Turkish firm M/s STM and the complete construction and assembly activities would be undertaken at Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works Ltd.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

13. Pakistan assures Turkey of support on Cyprus issue
Islamabad, Friday, 25 January 2013
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Masood Khan assured his Turkish counterpart of Pakistan’s full support to Turkey on the Cyprus issue.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
14. Sharifs meet UAE President
Lahore, Saturday, 5 January 2013
President of Pakistan Muslim League-N Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Chief Minister of Punjab Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif called on President UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Kalifa Bin Zayed-Al-Nahyan and discussed matters of mutual interest.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

15. Ambassador Jamil, senior UAE official discuss facilitation measures for Pak community in UAE
Islamabad, Wednesday, 23 January 2013
Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UAE Jamil Ahmed Khan said that around 1.2 million Pakistanis residing in the UAE were law abiding citizens and had contributed in the development of the UAE. The Pakistani diplomat emphasized on early finalization of the procedures for implementation of “Treaty on Transfer of Offenders’ which has been ratified by both the countries. Once the treaty is implemented, over 1400 Pakistani prisoners in UAE jails would benefit from it and shall be transferred to Pakistani jails to complete their remaining term.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

ECONOMIC ISSUES
IRAN
16. President calls for early implementation of Pak-Iran projects, especially in energy sector
Islamabad, Wednesday, 30 January 2013
President Asif Ali Zardari called for early finalization and implementation of Pakistan-Iran projects especially in the energy sector, transportation and connectivity and trade and commercial activities to promote greater bilateral cooperation on one hand and to bolster trade and economic ties at regional as well as bilateral level.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

17. Cabinet approves construction, financing for Iran-Pak gas pipeline project
Islamabad, Wednesday, 30 January 2013
The Federal Cabinet approved the agreement with Iran on the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) Work along with Financing for Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline Project (Pakistan Segment).
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

18. Iran funds gas pipeline to Pakistan
Islamabad, Friday, 31 January 2013
An Iranian deputy oil minister says Tehran would finance and help build the 700-kilometer tranche of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline on the Pakistani side. Aside from a US$250 million loan, Iran would also provide the supplies and equipment necessary for the construction of the part of the pipeline and financial aid.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

19. Pakistani Senate Chairman calls for boosting Iran-Pakistan trade ties
Islamabad, Friday, 31 January 2013
Chairman Senate Syed Nayyar Hussain Bukhari called for stronger economic ties between Iran and Pakistan in a meeting with Secretary General of World Assembly for Islamic Awakening (WAIA) Ali Akbar Velayati.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
20. UAE based company signs MoU with Board of Investment
Karachi, Tuesday, 8 January 2013
Dexterite, a UAE-based company that helps in distribution of electricity, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Board of Investment which would enable the former to explore investment in Pakistan’s distribution companies and offer assistance to distribution companies.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

MISCELLENIOUS ISSUES
EGYPT
21. Pakistani to face Egypt, UAE in the squash series next month
Islamabad, Tuesday, 22 January 2013
Pakistan’s first-ever home squash series, which was earlier scheduled to be played at the neutral venue of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January, would now be held in the last week of February.
Source: The Dawn, Karachi

JORDAN
22. Pakistan, Jordan to cooperate in Science and Technology
Islamabad, Wednesday, 16 January 2013
A delegation of senior scientists and officials from Jordan paid visit to the Higher Education Commission (HEC) at Islamabad to explore the possibilities of cooperation in the fields of science and technology, energy and higher education sector between the countries.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA
23. Pakistani beheaded in Saudi Arabia
Riyadh, Wednesday, 16 January 2013
Saudi Arabia beheaded a Pakistani man in the eastern Khubar province after he was convicted of drug trafficking, the interior ministry announced.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

Compiled by PAULAMI SANYAL

Paulami Sanyal is pursuing research at 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