POLITICAL ISSUES
BAHARAIN
1. PM greets Bahraini counterpart on national day
Islamabad, Monday, 16 December 2011
Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani greeted Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain Shaikh Bin Salman Al Khalifa on their national day falling on December 16.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

EGYPT
2. Egyptian Envoy calls on Petroleum Minister
Islamabad, Tuesday, 27 December 2011
Pakistani Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources, Dr Asim Hussain expressed Pakistan’s gratitude to Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to Pakistan, Said Hindam for the help provided by Egypt during the floods which ravaged Pakistan in 2011.  
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

QATAR
3. PM greets Qatari counterpart on Independence Day
Islamabad, Wednesday, 18 Dec 2011
Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani greeted  Prime Minister of the State of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani on their Independence Day on December 18.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA                                                                                                                                                   
4. Saudi ambassador prays for early recovery of Firdous Ashiq Awan
Islamabad, Wednesday, 11 December 2011
Saudi Ambassador in Pakistan Abdul Aziz Al-Ghadair and his wife also called on Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan to inquire about her health.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

5. Envoy to Saudi presented Rs. 27 million cheque to PM Gilani for flood relief fund
Islamabad, Friday, 13 December 2011
Pakistani expatriates working in Saudi Arabia donated Rs. 27 million to Pakistan Prime Minister's Flood Relief Fund.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

6. Abo al Ola, Sandila discuss cooperation between Pak-Saudi Navies
Islamabad, Thursday, 19 December 2011
Eastern Fleet Commander, Royal Saudi Naval Forces, Rear Admiral Abdul Karim Hussein Abo al Ola is on an official visit to Pakistan. He discussed the possibility of cooperation between the two Navies with the Chief of Pakistan’s Naval Staff, Admiral Mohammad Asif Sandial.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

7. FM, Saudi envoy discuss bilateral relations
Islamabad, Friday, 23 December 2011                                                                                                           
Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar briefed the Saudi Ambassador Abdul Aziz bin Ibrahim bin Salih Al-Ghadeer on Friday about the situation arising out of the 26th November NATO attacks on the Pakistan security posts at Salala.                                                                                                                
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

TURKEY
8. Turkish delegation calls on Punjab Governor
Lahore, Sunday, 8 Dec 2011
A 27-member Turkish delegation called on Governor Punjab Sardar Latif Khosa to apprise the governor about the re-construction activities in quake hit districts of Pakistan.
The Governor said that the relationship between the two countries could be further strengthened through trade promotion and assured the delegation about Pakistan’s support to Turkey on the matter of its European Union membership.                                                                                                                                          Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

9. Turkish President phones President Zardari
Islamabad, Thursday, 19 Dec 2011
President Abdullah Gul of Turkey made a telephonic call to President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday afternoon. Spokesperson Farhatullah Babar described it as a courtesy call.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
10. PM greets UAE counterpart on National Day
Islamabad, Monday, 2 Dec 2011                                                                                                                  
Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani has greeted United Arab Emirates (UAE), on its 40th national day on December 2.                                                                                                                                   
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

11. UAE ambassador hosts National Day reception
Islamabad, Monday, 2 Dec 2011
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, Interior Minister Rehman Malik, Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Farooq Sattar among others attended a reception hosted by Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Pakistan Abdullah Al-Basha Al-Noaimi to celebrate the UAE’s 40th National Day.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

12. Malik for maximum facilities to overseas Pakistanis
Islamabad, Tuesday, 17 December 2011                                                                                                      
Federal Minister for Interior A Rehman Malik directed the Director General Immigration and Passports at United Arab Emirates (UAE) to enhance pay package of the employees as per directives of the Supreme Court.                                                                                                                                                                  
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

ECONOMIC ISSUES
IRAN
13. Pak-Iran Gas Project: More job for Persian speaking
Islamabad, Sunday, 1 Dec 2011                                                                                                                           
Dr Ghahraman Solamani, Iranian Cultural Counsellor and Chairman Iran-Pakistan Institute of Persian Studies, Islamabad, said that the Pak-Iran gas pipeline project is expected to improve employment opportunities for Pakistan nationals with knowledge of Persian language.                       
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA
14. Five -member PC team to visit NPCC Saudi Arabia
Islamabad, Thursday, 22 Dec 2011
A five-member delegation led by Federal Minister for Privatization Ghous Bux Mahar will visit fields of National Power Construction Company (NPCC) Saudi Arabia on December 26. After the visit of NPCC the ministry is to get the approval of the PC Board for privatization process of the company.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

15. PC team leaves for Saudi Arabia
Islamabad, Monday, 26 December 2011
A five-member delegation led by Federal Minister for Privatization Ghous Bux Mahar visited the National Power Construction Company (NPCC) power generation fields in Saudi Arabia.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

16. Saudi Arabia to provide loan of US $ 172 million
Islamabad, Thursday, 29 December 2011
Under two separate agreements, Saudi Arabia will provide US$ 172 million loan to Pakistan for construction of infrastructure and import of fertilizer.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

UAE
17. SITE delegation to visit UAE for Trade Talks
Karachi, Wednesday, 4 Dec 2011
A delegation of SITE Association of Industry (SAI) discussed the trade and investment opportunities between Pakistan and United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Karachi.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

MISCELLANEOUS
TURKEY
18. ICCI for encouraging sports activities with Turkey
Islamabad, Saturday, 21 Dec 2011                                                                                                   
To further boost bilateral relations between Pakistan and Turkey, the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) hosted leading Turkish female car race driver, Ms.Burcu Cetinkaya, who is in Islamabad to participate in the Jhal Magsi Desert Rally to be held at Jhal Magsi, Baluchistan.                                                                                                                 
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

SAUDI ARABIA
19. Saudi plane with problem lands safely in Karachi
Karachi, Sunday, 25 December 2011
A Saudi chartered plane with 72 people on board landed safely at Karachi Airport on Sunday. The spokesman of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Pervez George, said that the plane was heading from Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, to Quetta, when it experienced nose wheel problem and was diverted to Karachi.
Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

Compiled by Akanksha Narain

Akanksha Narain is an Intern at MEI@ND. Email

As part of the policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spellings and date format to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND P R Kumaraswamy