Lahore: Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Saturday met Prime Minister-designate Nawaz Sharif for over three hours, exchanging views on regional situation and the war on terror. The meeting, sought by Kayani, was the first between the two since Sharif's PML-N emerged victorious in the May 11 general election and is all set to form the government.
During the meeting, which lasted over three hours, the army chief gave an overall view of the security situation prevailing in the country. The meeting was held at the Model town residence of Nawaz Sharif's brother and former Chief Minister of Pakistan's Punjab Province, Shahbaz Sharif. No other PML-N leader was present at the meeting. The leaders had lunch together and Kayani congratulated Sharif on his victory in the polls, sources said.
The two leaders agreed that all security institutions would work with the civilian government to overcome crises facing the country, Geo News quoted its sources as saying. Sharif, who has recently said that the Prime Minister would be the army chief's "boss", lauded the security establishment's role in strengthening democracy and allowing the previous civilian government to complete its five-year tenure, the channel reported.
The two leaders further agreed to work together to confront challenges facing Pakistan, including terrorism, the report said. Sharif is poised to become Prime Minister for an unprecedented third time. Sharif has already said the next army chief will be selected on the basis of seniority and said that he doesn't believe
08:09 PM, May 18, 2013
Islamabad: The PML-N and two nationalist parties have agreed to form a coalition government in Balochistan but differences remain on the issue of choosing a Chief Minister for the insurgency-hit province in southwest Pakistan. The Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PMAP), which represents the Pashtuns living in northern parts of Balochistan, emerged the single largest party in the May 11 polls by bagging 10 of the 51 directly elected seats in...
03:45 PM, May 18, 2013
Nawaz Sharif's PML-N bagged 125 of the 272 directly elected seats in Pakistan's National Assembly but fell short of a majority and is poised to form a government with support of independents and smaller parties. ...
11:47 AM, May 18, 2013
Islamabad: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who will travel to Islamabad next week to hold talks with President Asif Ali Zardari and caretaker Prime Minister Mir Hazar Khan Khoso, will also meet PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, who is set to form Pakistan's new government. Li will meet Sharif on May 23. Sharif, whose PML-N emerged the single largest party in Parliament in the May 11 general election, is expected to arrive...
08:19 PM, May 17, 2013
Lahore: Imran Khan on Wednesday promised to cooperate with Nawaz Sharif to tackle key challenges like terrorism despite "serious political differences" with the PML-N chief who is set to become Pakistan's next Prime Minister. "We have serious political differences but we decided that we will work together to solve the country's problems, including terrorism," the cricketer-turned-politician said in a video message aired at a news conference by his Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf...
10:10 PM, May 15, 2013
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, set to become Pakistan's next Prime Minister, to congratulate him on his election victory and pledge to further strengthen friendly ties with Islamabad. "Today, the President spoke by phone with Nawaz Sharif, president of Pakistan Muslim League's (Nawaz) to congratulate him on his party's success in the May 11 parliamentary election," said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney....
12:26 AM, May 15, 2013
Lahore: PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, set to become Pakistan's next Prime Minister, on Tuesday reached out to his rival Imran Khan and suggested that the two of them should play a "friendly match". Sharif visited the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf chief at Shaukat Khanum Hospital, where he is recuperating after fracturing his spine in a fall at a campaign meeting days before the May 11 general elections. Sharif inquired about Imran's health...
10:54 PM, May 14, 2013
New Delhi: There is no invitation for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Pakistan to attend the swearing-in ceremony of PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, who will be forming the next government there. "There is no specific proposal on the table, of a specific request for a specific occasion," Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs told reporters when asked if there was an invite for the Prime Minister...
09:10 PM, May 14, 2013
Islamabad: Nawaz Sharif's PML-N has emerged as the single largest party in Pakistan's landmark General Elections with 123 of the 272 Parliamentary seats but fell short of a majority and would form a government with support of independents and smaller parties. The PML-N's two closest rivals the Pakistan People's Party and Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf lagged far behind with 32 and 27 seats, respectively. Earlier, trends from the counting of...
08:50 PM, May 14, 2013
Islamabad: Nawaz Sharif's emphatic victory at the hustings in Pakistan will provide him sufficient room to shape his party's own agenda, the global rating agency Moody's said but warned the new government will inherit the effects of overall policy inertia. The rating agency also said any flare up in relations with India could impact Pakistan's credit fundamentals. "(Nawaz Sharif's) PML-N's near majority should provide it with sufficient political room to...
01:52 PM, May 14, 2013
Beijing: Pakistan may improve its ties with India and fine tune its anti-terror strategy under the new government headed by PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, Chinese analysts have said. Under Sharif, the relationship between Pakistan and India might also improve, Wang Dehua, head of the South and Central Asian Studies Institute at the Shanghai Institute for International Strategic Studies told state-run Global Times said. "In 1999, Sharif managed to invite then...
12:44 PM, May 14, 2013
Islamabad: Nawaz Sharif's PML-N has emerged the single largest party in Pakistan's landmark general elections by bagging 122 of the 272 parliamentary seats that went to the polls on May 11, the Election Commission announced on Tuesday. The PML-N's two closest rivals the Pakistan People's Party and Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf lagged far behind with 31 and 26 seats, respectively. Earlier, trends emerging from the counting of votes had shown...
12:36 PM, May 14, 2013
Washington: Nawaz Sharif's decision to invite Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is a "positive sign", the United States has said and expressed its willingness to work with the new government in Pakistan. "We have seen those comments. I don't want to analyze it too much, but to say that it is a positive step and we look forward to working with the new government as it's formed," State Department spokesperson Jen...
11:00 AM, May 14, 2013
London: British Prime Minister David Cameron has telephoned Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif to congratulate him on his party's success in general elections. Cameron, who took time out of an official US tour to telephone Sharif, agreed to work with him to strengthen bilateral relationship. "The Prime Minister spoke to Nawaz Sharif earlier today to congratulate him on his party's success in the recent Pakistani elections. They agreed...
09:36 AM, May 14, 2013
Washington: Pakistan's Ambassador to the US, Sherry Rehman, has resigned from her post. Congratulating the new parliament on its election, Ambassador Rehman has sent in her resignation to the Prime Minister, saying that it is time a new envoy come in as quickly as possible so that there is no gap in the relationship, an Embassy spokesman said. A political appointee of the previous government and a close aide of...
09:30 AM, May 14, 2013
Washington: Even as there is a sense of positivity over Indo-Pak ties after the outcome of Pakistan polls, a former Pakistani diplomat believes a regime change is unlikely to bring any substantial shift in Islamabad's approach. Former Pakistan Ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani noted this while giving an analysis of the post-election scenario in Pakistan. "We will have a kind of a hug-hug, embrace-embrace, but no substantial changed attitude...
09:21 AM, May 14, 2013
New Delhi: Government sources on Tuesday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will not be attending the swearing-in ceremony of Pakistan's Prime Minister elect Nawaz Sharif. India is likely to formally decline Sharif's invitation to Manmohan. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO), however, has said that no formal invite has been received yet for Sharif's swearing-in ceremony. Sources, however, added that that Sharif may consider India's invitation a visit to soon. Speaking...
09:21 AM, May 14, 2013
Islamabad: PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, who is set to be Pakistan's Prime Minister for a record third time, says that India and Pakistan should jointly address their fears. Meanwhile, Sharif on Monday invited Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his swearing-in ceremony. However, sources said that India is likely to formally decline Sharif's invitation to Manmohan. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has said that no formal invite has been received...
08:13 AM, May 14, 2013
Washington: Nawaz Sharif's decision to invite Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is a "positive sign", the United States said on Monday, with an official confirming that Secretary of State John Kerry called the new elected leader of Pakistan to congratulate him on his electoral success. "We have seen those comments. I don't want to analyze it too much, but to say that it is a positive step and we look forward...
01:30 AM, May 14, 2013
PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has emerged victorious in Pakistan elections. ...
11:35 PM, May 13, 2013
