Pakistan PM seeks plan to lift trade with Baku to $2 billion before Azerbaijan president’s visit

ISLAMABAD: China is prepared to strengthen space cooperation with Pakistan, its embassy in Islamabad said on Tuesday, quoting Chinese Foreign Spokesperson Lin Jian, who highlighted a day earlier a Pakistani astronaut would soon join the Chinese space station successfully.
Pakistan’s space agency signed a cooperation agreement with China last week, paving the way for the country’s first astronaut to embark on a mission to the Chinese space station, Tiangong.
According to Pakistan’s Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), the Pakistani astronaut will be trained as a scientific payload specialist to conduct research aboard the station.
The mission will focus on scientific experiments across disciplines, including biological and medical sciences, aerospace, applied physics, fluid mechanics, space radiation, ecology, material sciences, microgravity studies and astronomy.
“China is ready to work with Pakistan to elevate our space cooperation to a new level and give a stronger boost to the socioeconomic development of the two countries through space technologies,” Lin Jian said, according to a social media post by the Chinese embassy.
Lin told reporters on Monday exploring the universe had always been humanity’s shared aspiration.
“We are glad to see the signing of a space cooperation agreement between China and Pakistan,” he said. “We hope the Pakistani astronaut’s entry into the Chinese space station will be a full success.”
He added that since the launch of China’s manned space engineering program, Beijing had followed principles of peaceful use, equality, mutual benefit and common development.
“We focus on sharing with all humanity the results of China’s development and offer opportunities of cooperation in China’s space station,” he said, noting Beijing was open to further collaboration with other countries.
Pakistan and China have deepened their space partnership in recent years, marked by joint satellite development and a planned lunar mission. In January, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding for Pakistan’s first lunar rover to be included in China’s Chang’e 8 mission in 2028.
The rover, developed by SUPARCO, will land at the lunar south pole, carrying scientific instruments designed by Pakistani, Chinese and European scientists. Pakistani scientists will operate the rover from Earth, conducting surface mapping, soil analysis and radiation studies.
Pakistan previously participated in lunar exploration in 2024, when its first lunar satellite, ICUBE-Q, developed by students at the Institute of Space Technology (IST) in collaboration with Shanghai Jiao Tong University, was deployed aboard China’s Chang’e 6 mission to capture lunar images and collect magnetic field data.

KARACHI: Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday formally kicked off talks for the first review of a $7 billion bailout program that Islamabad secured last year, the finance ministry confirmed in a statement. 

A Pakistani economic adviser told Arab News on Monday, requesting anonymity, that a nine-member mission led by Nathan Porter had landed in Pakistan to assess the country’s economic performance to determine the release of a $1.1 billion tranche over the following three weeks.

Pakistan’s macroeconomic indicators have gradually improved since it secured the IMF bailout last summer. The country’s consumer price index (CPI) inflation rate, maintaining a downward trend on Monday, hit a more than 9-year low at 1.51 percent year-on-year in February. Pakistan’s current account recorded a surplus of $729 million in November 2024, marking the fourth consecutive month since the country reported a current account surplus. The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) also reported record gains last year, with frequent bullish trends dominating the market. 

“Pictures of kick-off meeting held today, ” the finance ministry wrote as caption of two photos shared with media on WhatsApp. The pictures showed Pakistani officials, led by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, involved in discussions with an IMF delegation led by its Pakistan mission chief Nathan Porter. 

Pakistan’s finance ministry has so far not shared any details of the talks between the government and the IMF. However, local media has widely covered the delegation’s visit. 

Speaking to international news agency Reuters, Aurangzeb said Pakistan is “well-positioned” for the first review. 

“They are here. We will have two rounds of talks, first technical and then policy level,” Aurangzeb said. “I think we are well positioned,” he added. 

The IMF team usually spends around two weeks reviewing fiscal reforms and policy.

Last week, a separate IMF team visited Pakistan to discuss around $1 billion in climate financing on top of the EFF. That disbursement will take place under the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Trust, created in 2022 to provide long-term concessional cash for climate-related spending, such as adaptation and transitioning to cleaner energy.