A Pakistani cabinet minister says Islamabad will continue to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar under a 15-year agreement, despite the severing of diplomatic ties with Qatar by Saudi Arabia and some other countries.
Shahid Khaqan Abb
A Pakistani cabinet minister says Islamabad will continue to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar under a 15-year agreement, despite the severing of diplomatic ties with Qatar by Saudi Arabia and some other countries.
Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, the federal minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources, said Qatar and Pakistan last year signed a $1 billion agreement, under which Qatar's Liquefied Gas Company Limited will sell LNG from 2016 to year 2031 to state-run Pakistan State Oil.
He said since no sanctions have been imposed on Qatar by the United Nations, Pakistan and Qatar were bound to abide by the agreement.
Qatar has released an initial report into the alleged hack of its state-run news agency, an incident which helped spark a diplomatic crisis between the energy-rich country and Arab nations.
The Qatari Interior Ministry said late Wednesday that the website of the Qatar News Agency was initially hacked in April with "high techniques and innovative methods."
It said hackers installed a file and then published a fake news item attributed to Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, just after midnight May 24.
The ministry did not say who it suspected carried out the attack. It also thanked the FBI and the British National Commission for Combating Crime for assisting it in its investigation.
The alleged fake news item, which had Sheikh Tamim making controversial comments on Iran and Israel, immediately was picked up by Saudi and Emirati media, laying the groundwork for the crisis that began Monday (05.06.2017.)
Kuwait's emir has traveled to Qatar and met that country's leader as part of his efforts to mediate an end to a crisis that's seen Arab nations cut ties to the energy-rich country and attempt to isolate it.
Kuwait's Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah was met planeside by Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, when he arrived on Wednesday night.
The two held talks, though details of their discussions were not released. Sheikh Sabah earlier Wednesday traveled to Dubai where he met with Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who also serves as prime minister and vice president of the UAE.
Sheikh Sabah also has traveled to Saudi Arabia in his efforts.
It said hackers installed a file and then published a fake news item attributed to Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, just after midnight May 24.
The ministry did not say who it suspected carried out the attack. It also thanked the FBI and the British National Commission for Combating Crime for assisting it in its investigation.
The alleged fake news item, which had Sheikh Tamim making controversial comments on Iran and Israel, immediately was picked up by Saudi and Emirati media, laying the groundwork for the crisis that began Monday (05.06.2017.)
Kuwait's emir has traveled to Qatar and met that country's leader as part of his efforts to mediate an end to a crisis that's seen Arab nations cut ties to the energy-rich country and attempt to isolate it.
Kuwait's Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah was met planeside by Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, when he arrived on Wednesday night.
The two held talks, though details of their discussions were not released. Sheikh Sabah earlier Wednesday traveled to Dubai where he met with Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who also serves as prime minister and vice president of the UAE.
Sheikh Sabah also has traveled to Saudi Arabia in his efforts.
The Senate is accelerating the confirmation process Wednesday for President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet choices, scheduling half a dozen hearings.
Un pêcheur a perdu la vie dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi lors d'une sortie nocturne en mer avec sa femme. Une vague a fait chavirer la pirogue du couple qui s'est retrouvé en difficulté. La femme a réussi à rejoindre le bord mais pas son mari.
The presence of Toyota vehicles in conflict-struck zones around the globe, particularly in the Middle East, the African continent, and many parts of western Asia – i.e. Afghanistan, has drawn much attention to be analyzed. Such vehicles, particularly the Toyota Hilux, are inextricably associated with violence when it comes to warzone transport vessels for insurgents and other violent extremists. Understanding this relationship can be attributed to a few key principles in hardware conflict dynamics: practicality, durability, availability, and geopolitical subtleties.
The human rights situation is worsening in Belarus, with a continued climate of oppression in the country. Meanwhile, presidential 'elections' are due to take place on 26 January 2025. The democratic forces of Belarus call this vote a 'self-reappointment of Lukashenka' and urge the international community not to recognise it. The European Parliament will hold a debate on the situation and possible actions with the High Representative /Vice-President of the Commission, Kaja Kallas, during the January plenary session. Source : © European Union, 2025 - EP
During its January session, Parliament is due to debate a Commission statement on the 16th Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). This conference concluded in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on 13 December 2024, following two weeks of negotiations. A significant outcome of the conference was the commitment to support financially land restoration and drought resilience initiatives. However, it failed to establish a legally binding global framework to tackle drought. Source : © European Union, 2025 - EP
Insolvency laws are the rules governing the legal proceedings applicable to companies unable to repay debts as they fall due. The convergence of non-financial companies' insolvency laws across the Member States is high on the EU's policy agenda: the two reports requested from former Italian prime ministers Enrico Letta and Mario Draghi both emphasised the importance of the convergence of insolvency laws for the defragmentation and proper functioning of EU capital markets. This would help unlock capital and support both the EU's green and digital transitions and its competitiveness in general. In 2019, the EU adopted a directive to harmonise the preventive restructuring framework. The European Parliament and the Council are currently debating a European Commission proposal on the harmonisation of certain aspects of insolvency regimes. Theoretical and empirical economic literature has provided substantial evidence suggesting that insolvency regimes impact the conduct of business, in particular access to equity and debt, and their respective costs. The insolvency regime is an implicit component of the contract between a company and its financiers, and determines the chance of recovery of credits in the event of company failure. Converging corporate insolvency rules would also increase the predictability of returns on cross-border financing, enhancing volumes while decreasing costs. The European Parliament and the Council have expressed support for harmonising insolvency laws with a view to completing the savings and investment union and boosting the financing of the EU's economy. Source : © European Union, 2025 - EP
Migrant smuggling is a key activity for criminal networks operating in the EU, sustained by continued demand for facilitation services. Geopolitical and socioeconomic instability worldwide, as well as climate change, are expected to keep driving migratory movements. Migrant smuggling is a high-profit, low-risk business, and the criminal groups involved are increasingly sophisticated, professional and violent. Many of those who willingly pay smugglers to help them cross borders do so at great personal risk. Parliament will discuss the links between organised crime and migrant smuggling during its January plenary session. Source : © European Union, 2025 - EP
The EU's population is ageing and set to decline. The shrinking working-age population poses risks in terms of greater labour shortages, increased pressure on public budgets, worsened territorial disparities and depopulation. These can negatively impact EU competitiveness, slow down the green and digital transitions and undermine social cohesion. While managing the demographic transition is the responsibility of Member States, it has also become one of the biggest challenges the EU is facing today. The Commission is due to make a statement on addressing demographic challenges during the January plenary session. Source : © European Union, 2025 - EP
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