Impulsive PML(N) on June 8, 2012It was pathetic to watch on the TV screen the lawmakers from the PPP and PML-N physically assault and come to blows with each other in the National Assembly on June 1 as Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh delivered his budget speech. The scene stood in sharp contrast to the cooperation and partnership forged between […]
The PMs visit to UK on May 21, 2012The dust raised by unremitting domestic political crises has tended to obscure largely from the public eye certain outstanding successes the PPP-led coalition government has achieved on the external front during the last four years. To bring India around to accepting Pakistan’s proposal for the resumption of stalled peace talks without any preconditions is not […]
Agni-V: its strategic significance on May 7, 2012On April 19, India launched the latest version of its series of ballistic missiles, Agni-V. With a range of 5,000 plus kilometres, it is a three-stage solid-fuel missile featuring Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicles (MIRV), each missile being capable of carrying 2-10 separate nuclear warheads. According to knowledgeable sources, each warhead can be assigned to a […]
Pakistan and Asian integration on April 20, 2012That Pakistan has thrown in its lot with fellow Asian countries to promote regional integration through physical, economic and cultural connectivity was evident from Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani’s speech at the Annual Conference of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) held in the Chinese island province of Hainan on April 2-4, 2012. The […]
When did Zia decide to assassinate Bhutto? on April 3, 2012Thirty-three years have passed since Pakistan’s Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was assassinated by a military dictator. But history has not killed him. He and his legacy live on, giving rise to numerous stories and speculations on the circumstances in which he was framed in a false case and subjected to judicial murder. One of […]
Politics of Indo-Pak trade on November 10, 2011Despite pressing economic imperatives and strong geo-strategic compulsions, the issue of trade between Pakistan and India has always been overly politicised. The latest example of this is the undue criticism directed at Pakistan’s decision to grant Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India. The issue had been under consideration of the government of Pakistan for […]
The PPP and Balochistan on July 24, 2011“We are ready to hold talks with Baloch leaders living abroad to resolve all issues of Balochistan,” thus declared Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani while on a recent visit to Quetta. A meeting of the federal cabinet was also held in the provincial capital to demonstrate how serious and committed the federal government was […]
Restoration of commissionerate system in Sindh on July 13, 2011With the restoration of commissionerate system in Sindh, the last of the ramparts of the fort erected by former military ruler, General Musharraf, in the name of devolution of power has fallen down. Following his seizure of power in 1999, Musharraf had presented to the nation a seven-point agenda, which also included a scheme for […]
Pakistan-India dialogue on June 9, 2011Amidst a plethora of disturbing and confusing developments in the South Asian region, such as al Qaeda-related terrorist attacks in Pakistan, armed clashes on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, talk of an impending military operation against militants in North Waziristan Agency (NWA) of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan and the dangerous nuclear and ballistic […]
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto: the man and his legacy on April 3, 2011Thirty two years ago in the wee hours of this day of April, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was hanged as a result of a Supreme Court decision, which has been described as a clear act of judicial murder. General Ziaul Haq, the third military ruler of Pakistan, manipulated the court verdict out of fear for his […]