Tag: Urges

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama, on Saturday, urged Republican and Democratic lawmakers to reach a compromise on pending budget issues to avoid political gridlock and a possible federal government shutdown."For the sake of our people and our economy, we cannot allow gridlock to prevail," Obama said.
He noted that both Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate have said they believed it was important to keep the government running while they worked on a plan

LAHORE - Criticising another 5-day gas suspension to industry in Punjab, the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) said the decision would hit exports, productivity and government revenues hard. Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani should intervene and help ensure regular supply of gas to industries.
In a joint statement issued here on Saturday, LCCI President Shahzad Ali Malik, Senior Vice President Sheikh Mohammad Arshad and Vice President Sohail Azhar said that the gas

ISLAMABAD - To root out terrorism and extremism and to bring peace and prosperity in the country, every individual in the society must strictly oppose extremism in strong words, the speakers said at seminar in the federal capital on Friday.
They said every person was equally responsible to make efforts for eradication of terrorism. If the society failed to fulfil the obligation, extremists would impose their agenda with the use of forces on people, they warned at a discussion

LAHORE - To overcome the growing natural gas shortages, Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) has been coordinating efforts of importing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for large industrial consumers. A meeting was held under the chairmanship of PBIT Chief Executive Officer Saadat Muzafar here on Wednesday, which was attended by industrialist and business leaders.
International delegates of LNG companies were also present in the meeting. In the meeting, an overview of the

KUWAIT CITY - British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday said "reform - 'not repression" was the way to guarantee stability in the Arab world, in a visit to Kuwait as part of a regional tour. The day after he became the first foreign leader to visit Cairo since the fall of Hosni Mubarak, Cameron told Kuwait's national assembly that protests sweeping the region were a precious moment of opportunity.
"For decades, some have argued that stability required highly controlling

ISLAMABAD - President Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday urged British Cabinet Minister Baroness Sayeeda Warsi to use her influence for setting up opportunity zones in the conflict-hit areas and pleading Pakistan's case for enhanced and preferential trade access to the markets of European Union countries for put the country's economy back on track.
Talking to Warsi, who called on him at the President's House, Zardari said it would help addressing the issues of poverty and unemployment

LAHORE - Agricultural scientists should become acquainted with the latest innovations as the world as detailed information has becoming increasingly easy to access. This was stated by Ahmad Ali Aulakh, Minister for Agriculture Punjab while addressing agricultural scientists at Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI), Faisalabad.
The minister in his address highlighted the importance of agriculture sector in strengthening national economy and added that government is

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday advised the government to complete under-construction small dams on war footings, as it would not only help in the development of land and water resources, but would also generate employment opportunities for the poor besides distribution of state lands of the command areas amongst the poor women.
He expressed these views during a presentation given to him here at the Presidency on progress made so far in building small and medium

KARACHI - Expressing concern at the grave condition of the national economy, Pakistan Business Council (PBC) has asked the government to implement urgent steps to steer the derailed economy back on track. The PBC members said that the council is ready to fulfill its role as a catalyst to support the government in crafting a precise agenda to put economy on path towards stability and growth.
Former Commerce Minister Abdul Razzak Dawood, MCB Chief and PBC Chairman Mian Muhammad

LAHORE - The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) called upon Balochistan government to secure the release of th HRCP activist Siddique Eido who was abducted in Gwadar by men wearing official uniforms on December 21 last year.
In a letter to the Balochistan chief minister, HRCP expressed concern that despite a lapse of 50 days no progress has been made in securing Eido's release. The Commission said: "At the very least, statements of the four policemen of Pasni Police

LAHORE - An open letter from the outlawed Hizbut Tahrir (HuT), a splinter organisation of the outlawed Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, is circulating in many circles nowadays urging the Pakistan Army to establish Caliphate in the country, Pakistan Today has learnt.
"O officers of the Pakistan Army, you are leading the greatest and ablest Muslim army, you owe all material might, necessary for establishment of Khilafa. Now act quickly and throw out traitors from power," the letter

BERLIN - The United Nations secretary general called Friday for a "peaceful and orderly" transition process in Egypt, stressing that protests against President Hosni Mubarak must be conducted without violence.
"I sincerely hope that the protest today will go without violence. We have seen too much violence and bloodshed," Ban Ki-moon told reporters in Berlin following a meeting with German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle. He added: "It's time to begin a process of peaceful and

TOKYO - Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Tuesday called on Cairo to form a "democratic government" as several hundred thousand Egyptians massed in an eighth day of protest against President Hosni Mubarak.
"It is desirable that Egypt will undergo a transition to a democratic government in a peaceful manner by communicating fully with the people," Kan told reporters. Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara said he wanted the Mubarak government to listen to the Egyptian people and make

BRUSSELS - EU chief diplomat Catherine Ashton urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to immediately hold talks with the opposition Monday and respond to the aspirations of anti-government protesters.
"The legitimate grievances of the Egyptian people should be responded to. Their aspirations for a just, better future should be met with urgent, concrete and decisive answers, and with real steps," Ashton said.
"There needs to be a peaceful way forward," she told reporters.

ISLAMABAD - Parliamentarians, intellectuals and opinion makers in Pakistan and India on Sunday urged the two countries to launch a meaningful dialogue on Kashmir and all other issues without further delay, cautioning that the absence of sustained engagement on conflicting matters would prove counterproductive and dangerous.
"The absence of a formal and sustained engagement on the full range of issues confronting India and Pakistan is unhealthy, counterproductive and dangerous. We

LAHORE - Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh recently visited the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) to discuss the issues faced by foreign investors in Pakistan. The meeting was attended by the OICCI members representing all major sectors including pharmaceutical industry, financial institutions and the energy sector.
OICCI President Ameena Saiyid presented an overview of OICCI and shared the results of the OICCI Business Confidence Survey, an

KARACHI - The Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has warned the government that its Letter of Credit (LC) for oil imports would default if the government does not release Rs 40 billion immediately. The PSO management, through SOS letters, has requested the Ministry of Petroleum to immediately release Rs 40 billion for fresh import of petroleum products, as the oil marketing company has to pay at least Rs 16 billion to international suppliers.
According to sources in PSO, current