Panama President Jose Raul Mulino (Agencies) Panama on Thursday formally pulled out of China’s ambitious Belt and Road infrastructure program in a move seen as part of the effort to iron out differences with the Donald Trump-led US government.The Trump government was hostile towards the South American nation, citing Beijing’s influence on the Panama Canal.President…
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has long been a central figure in global health initiatives, including funding research on emerging infectious diseases. One of its most significant programmes, PREDICT, launched in 2009, aimed to identify and monitor pathogens with pandemic potential. Through PREDICT, USAID provided grants to various organisations, including EcoHealth Alliance,…
ISLAMABAD: The first commercial flight landed at Pakistan’s new Gwadar International Airport on Monday following a months-long delay in the opening of the Beijing-funded facility in volatile Balochistan province.The airport’s opening was postponed from Aug 14 to the end of 2024 due to a security review sparked by a series of deadly attacks by separatist…
ISLAMABAD: China finds it “unacceptable” that its citizens have been targeted by terrorists in Pakistan twice in six months, Chinese ambassador Jiang Zaidong said at an event in Islamabad, striking a rare discordant note in public over seven Chinese casualties in suicide attacks since March.The strain on bilateral relations came out in the open after…
Brazil has decided to opt out of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), becoming the second country after India in Brics to not support the multi-billion-dollar project. Brazil, headed by President Lula da Silva, will not join the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and instead seek alternative ways to collaborate with Chinese investors, Celso Amorim,…
In November 2016, Gwadar port symbolized stability, peace and prosperity for Pakistan — at least according to then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.“This day is the dawn of a new era,” he told the opening ceremony crowd, which had gathered to witness a row of Chinese trucks arriving to load cargo onto the first-ever container ship to…
India’s Chabahar port pact to counter Pakistan, China: India is poised to enter into an agreement with Iran for the management of Chabahar Port for the next decade. This move, taking place amidst a busy election season, is seen as a significant geopolitical outreach to Iran with major regional implications.Reliable sources were quoted in an…
NEW DELHI: China’s No. 3 leader took a veiled swipe at the US at a regional forum as the country seeks to push back against the global influence of the world’s leading power while trying to steady the countries’ ties at the same time.“Hegemonic and bullying acts are deeply harmful,” Zhao Leji, the ruling Communist…
