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US President Donald Trump’s new 25 per cent tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada took effect on Tuesday, along with a doubling of duties on Chinese goods to 20pc, launching new trade conflicts with the top three US trading partners.
The tariff actions, which could upend nearly $2.2 trillion in two-way annual US trade went live at 12:01am EST (10am Pakistan time), hours after Trump declared that all three countries had failed to do enough to stem the flow of the deadly fentanyl opioid and its precursor chemicals into the US.
Canada and Mexico, which have enjoyed a virtually tariff-free trading relationship with the US for three decades, were poised to immediately retaliate against their longtime ally.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Ottawa would respond with immediate 25pc tariffs on C$30 billion ($20.7bn) worth of US imports, and another C$125bn ($86.2bn) if Trump’s tariffs were still in place in 21 days. Read more
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Naeem Sadiq
IT is the season of mindlessness. Seminars on climate change are in, while family planning services are out. Taking loans is in, while thinking with one’s own brain is out. Danish schools are in, while the 26.2 million out-of-school children in the country are out.
Pakistan has travelled too far in the wrong direction and seems in no mood to course correct.
There are at least four fundamental reforms that are needed for a turnaround. These include: addressing our burgeoning population; creating at least 25 administrative units, instead of continuing with the existing four huge and unmanageable provinces; putting an end to foreign loans; and placing every youngster from five to 16 years in a child-friendly school. Not undertaking these reforms is akin to opting for a miserable, chaotic, poverty-stricken, and insecure future. Read more
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DAWN EDITORIAL: 04 March 2025
IT is a fact that KP — which shares a long border with Afghanistan — is directly affected by cross-border terrorism, while people on both sides of the frontier share centuries-old tribal, cultural, and linguistic links. Yet where the conduct of foreign policy is concerned, while the federating units, particularly those sharing borders with neighbouring states, ought to give their input, bilateral negotiations with foreign powers should be the sole prerogative of the centre. This should be kept in mind as the PTI-led KP government seeks to open dialogue channels with the Afghan Taliban regime. While meeting the consul-general of the ‘Islamic Emirate’ on Sunday, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur reiterated that negotiations with the Afghan side through a tribal jirga would start once the terms of reference were approved by the federal government. While there can be little disagreement with Mr Gandapur’s assertion that negotiations are key to establishing lasting peace, how these parleys are conducted, and by whom, needs further attention. The KP administration has been pushing the idea of direct talks with Kabul for some time now; the chief minister had mentioned the need for ‘tribal diplomacy’ at a meeting two weeks ago, while a similar proposal was also floated last year.
Considering our frigid ties with Kabul, and the fact that dialogue is preferable to confrontation, the Afghan Taliban should be engaged. But the centre must continue to lead this effort, with significant input from KP. Foreign policy should not be allowed to become a victim of political differences. At this time, different parties are in power in all four provinces and the centre; if all provinces were to pursue independent relations with neighbouring states, it would have a negative effect on the cohesion of our foreign policy. That is why external relations should remain the preserve of the centre, with all four provinces providing their input regarding the direction of ties with neighbours. The KP government has reiterated that talks with the Afghan Taliban will remain “aligned with security and foreign policies”. The best way to maintain this alignment is for the peace initiative to be led by the foreign ministry, where professional diplomats aware of the on-ground situation are advised by elected representatives and the provincial administrations concerned. It would be inadvisable for the provinces to take solo flights on foreign policy.
Published in Dawn, March 4th, 2025
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Governing Gaza: need for consensus among Arabs
When history will be written about the Israeli genocide of Gaza and the West Bank.
Dr Moonis Ahmar
TRIBUNE: March 04, 2025
In an informal meeting held in Riyadh on February 21 under the invitation of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, participants from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Egypt and Jordan discussed the future of Gaza. The meeting also discussed the weird proposal of President Donald Trump to relocate 2.3 million Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and Jordan.
Moreover, an Arab League emergency summit is scheduled to be held in Cairo on March 4 (today) to examine how to deal with the situation in Gaza and respond to President Trump's proposal to relocate the Palestinians living in Gaza. The Riyadh meeting focused on two matters: one, reconstruction and rebuilding of Gaza; and two, who should govern the war-devastated territory which has been under the influence of Hamas since the elections of 2005. Israel and the US have made it clear that they will not accept any role of Hamas in the governance of Gaza, undermining the fact that the people of Gaza had endured the Israeli aggression for 15 months on the call of Hamas.
According to UN estimates, the reconstruction of Gaza will cost around 30 billion dollars because 90% of its infrastructure stand destroyed due to the air, ground and sea attacks by Israel. Millions of displaced Palestinians of Gaza are facing a threat to their survival because their homes have been destroyed and they are out in the open in sub-zero temperature. Israel has not fully complied with the ceasefire agreement with Hamas under which it was supposed to allow heavy machinery, mobile homes and other items, including food and fuel, to reach the beleaguered Palestinian population. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also threatening the Palestinians of Gaza with the resumption of attacks which would mean another violent cycle of war.
Can the Arab world reach a consensus on the issue of governing Gaza particularly when there is growing American pressure on Saudi Arabia and Jordan to accept President Trump's proposal to relocate Gazans to neighbouring countries? Why have Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia failed to support Palestinians of Gaza in the last 15 months? Why, at a time when millions of Gazans are facing existential threat, is the Arab world taking so much time to provide relief goods? And why is Egypt, which borders Gaza, not ready to take the risk of offending Israel by fully opening the Rafah crossing and providing relief items to the Palestinians? READ MORE
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Ending hunger: how global collaboration can save millions
The key to overcoming such challenges is deep international collaboration.
TRIBUNE:March 04, 2025
Recent statistics from the World Food Programme (WFP) 2025 Global Outlook reveal a staggering reality: approximately 343 million people are believed to be acutely food insecure across 74 countries, while up to 19 million people were estimated to be on the brink of famine in 2024. The regions of Sudan, Gaza, Haiti and Mali are most affected by acute food insecurity and, as they suffer from a dire lack of resources, it is nearly impossible to address the problem effectively.
The Global Information and Early Warning Systems (GIEWS) 2024 report identifies 45 countries as most food insecure, including 33 in Africa, 9 in Asia, 2 in Latin America and 1 in Europe. The primary drivers of this crisis are: high food prices, civil insecurity, natural disasters, war and conflicts, economic constraints, weather extremities, reduced livelihood opportunities and lack of climate resilience. In conflict zones, humanitarian aid is often obstructed, leaving millions without access to life-saving assistance. READ MORE
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