Stranded British fighter jet finaly leaves India after 35 days
After 35 days and $11,000 in parking fees, the malfunctioning British jet finally left India after being repaired.
It was forced to make an emergency landing in India on 14 June and had been stuck there ever since.
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Express Tribune
a few seconds ago
- Express Tribune
$600m tea import bill exposes neglected commercialisation
Although NTHRI has demonstrated successful green and black tea production, the absence of investors, land, and liquidity has stalled commercial progress for over four decades. photo: REUTERS Listen to article Pakistan imports over $600 million worth of tea every year, excluding an equal quantity smuggled under the garb of Afghan Transit Trade, and now ranks among the top tea importing and consuming countries. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) reported that tea consumption in Pakistan increased significantly by 35.8% from 2007 to 2016. Tea has become a major import commodity, draining the country's foreign exchange reserves each year. Tea plantation and processing have already been successfully demonstrated at the National Tea and High Value Research Institute (NTHRI) and the Unilever Tea Research Station in Shinkiari, Mansehra, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). However, commercialisation of tea under a market mechanism has remained pending since 1985 due to a lack of institutional commitment. Tea drinking began in China in the 6th century AD, spread to Japan in 1000 AD, and reached Western Europe by the 17th century. The British introduced tea cultivation in the Indo-Pak subcontinent in the mid-18th century. The Pakistan Tea Board (PTB), then based in East Pakistan, began tea plantation at Baffa in Mansehra in 1958. After the separation of East Pakistan as Bangladesh in 1971, PTB experts returned to the East. PARC took over the remaining germplasm and expanded nurseries, establishing a 50-acre tea experimentation station at Shinkiari with support from Chinese tea experts. Pakistani and Chinese tea experts tested 64 sites in Mansehra and identified around 64,000 hectares of land suitable for tea plantation. Millions of hectares of similar terrain exist in Hazara, Swat, and Dir. Commercialising tea is highly sustainable, with successful models already operating at NTHRI and in private gardens in Mansehra. Domestic tea production could save over $600 million annually, plus similar losses due to smuggling. It could also provide employment in plantation, processing, and trade. Moreover, tea cultivation could help prevent soil erosion and enhance tourism through scenic landscapes. The key obstacle to commercialisation is the lack of 100-acre contiguous land plots, water availability, technical expertise, tea processing technology, and high capital investment. Another challenge is the five-year waiting period before tea leaves are ready for processing and sale. Although NTHRI has demonstrated successful green and black tea production, the absence of investors, land, and liquidity has stalled commercial progress for over four decades. Unilever Pakistan, formerly Lever Brothers, began commercialising tea alongside NTHRI in the 1980s using various government incentives such as reduced import duties and interest-free loans from Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and Khyber Bank. However, the company proved unserious, primarily using the tax benefits without genuine efforts towards commercialisation. After selling its tea brand to Lipton, Unilever abruptly shut its research station in Mansehra, laid off staff, and ended operations. Staff protests and appeals to local administration have been ineffective. The company also planted tea on over 50 acres of farmers' land across Mansehra and Abbottabad. These farmers are now left without buyers for their tea leaves. Despite raising the issue with the DC Mansehra, local officials are helpless. This requires the Ministry of Commerce to step in and compel private companies to follow through on investment commitments. If no measures are taken, Pakistan may miss yet another opportunity to commercialise its domestic tea production. The government must bind companies to a five-year exit strategy, engage local tea companies, offer buy-back guarantees, and lease the Unilever station to support 50-plus tea growers. A local company has already approached the DC Mansehra and Commissioner Hazara with a proposal, but no response has followed. If Unilever exits by July 2025 without a plan, Pakistan's tea growers will be abandoned again. The federal government must act now and revive Pakistan's long-stalled tea sector. THE WRITER HOLDS A PHD IN FORESTRY AND IS A CLIMATE CHANGE, FORESTRY AND ENVIRONMENT EXPERT
France 24
a few seconds ago
- France 24
France and Saudi Arabia to lead UN push for two-state solution
France and Saudi Arabia will lead the charge starting Monday to revive the moribund push for a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians at a UN conference in New York. Days before the July 28-30 conference, to be co-chaired by Riyadh and Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that he would formally recognise the State of Palestine in September. Paris's decision "will breathe new life into a conference that seemed destined to irrelevance," said Richard Gowan, an analyst at the International Crisis Group. "Macron's announcement changes the game. Other participants will be scrabbling to decide if they should also declare an intent to recognize Palestine." In an interview with French weekly La Tribune Dimanche, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that other European countries will confirm "their intention to recognise the State of Palestine" during the conference, without detailing which ones. France is hoping that Britain will take this step, and more than 200 British MPs on Friday pushed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to do so, but he reiterated that recognition of a Palestinian state "must be part of a wider plan." 05:32 According to an AFP database, at least 142 of the 193 UN member states -- including France -- now recognise the Palestinian state proclaimed by the Palestinian leadership in exile in 1988. In 1947, a resolution of the UN General Assembly decided on the partition of Palestine, then under a British mandate, into two independent states -- one Jewish and the other Arab. The following year, the state of Israel was proclaimed. For several decades, the vast majority of UN member states have supported the idea of a two-state solution, Israelis and Palestinians living side-by-side peacefully and securely. But after more than 21 months of war in Gaza, the ongoing expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and Israeli officials declaring designs to annex occupied territory, it is feared a Palestinian state could be geographically impossible. The war in Gaza started following a deadly attack by Hamas on Israel, which responded with a large-scale military response that has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives. The conference is a response to the crisis, with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and several dozen ministers from around the world expected to attend. It is coming at a moment when "the prospect of a Palestinian state has never been so threatened, or so necessary," Barrot said. 02:09 Call for courage Beyond facilitating conditions for the recognition of a Palestinian state, the meeting will have three other focusses -- reform of the Palestinian Authority, disarmament of Hamas and its exclusion from Palestinian public life, and normalisation of relations with Israel by Arab states that have not yet done so. No new normalisation deals are expected to be announced at the meeting, according to a French diplomatic source. But "for the first time, Arab countries will condemn Hamas and call for its disarmament," Barrot said. The conference "offers a unique opportunity to transform international law and the international consensus into an achievable plan and to demonstrate resolve to end the occupation and conflict once and for all, for the benefit of all peoples," said Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour, calling for "courage" from participants. Israel and the United States will not take part in the meeting, while international pressure continues to mount on Israel to end nearly two years of war in Gaza. Despite "tactical pauses" in some military operations announced by Israel, the humanitarian catastrophe in the ravaged coastal territory is expected to dominate speeches by representatives of more than 100 countries as they take the podium from Monday to Wednesday.
The Guardian
a few seconds ago
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv attack injures five, Trump and Starmer to discuss ‘applying pressure' on Putin
A Russian air attack on Kyiv has injured at least five people and damaged a residential building, the head of the Ukrainian capital's military administration, Tymur Tkachenko, said on Monday via Telegram. British prime minister Keir Starmer and US president Donald Trump are expected to discuss the war in Ukraine when they meet in Scotland on Monday. Downing Street said the talks would include 'applying pressure' on Russian president Vladimir Putin to end the invasion. The two leaders have built a rapport on the world stage despite their differing political backgrounds, with Trump praising Starmer for doing a 'very good job' in office ahead of their talks on Monday, which will focus on the Middle East and trade. It comes after Trump announced a tariffs deal between the US and the European Union after meeting European commission president Ursula von der Leyen for high-stakes talks at Turnberry on Sunday. Von der Leyen called on Sunday for Volodymyr Zelenskyy to uphold independent anti-corruption bodies, with the Ukrainian president signalling legislation to that effect could be adopted within days. 'Ukraine has already achieved a lot on its European path,' von der Leyen said on X after a call with Zelenskyy. 'It must build on these solid foundations and preserve independent anti-corruption bodies, which are cornerstones of Ukraine's rule of law.' After a rare outburst of public criticism, Zelenskyy on Thursday submitted draft legislation to restore the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies – reversing course on an earlier bill aimed at stripping their autonomy. 'I thanked the European commission for the provided expertise,' Zelenskyy said on X after his Sunday call with von der Leyen. 'We share the same vision: it is important that the bill is adopted without delay, as early as next week.' Von der Leyen also promised continued support for Ukraine on its path to EU membership. Russia scaled down the festivities on Sunday honouring its navy, citing security concerns amid continuing Ukrainian drone attacks. Russian authorities cancelled the parades of warships in St Petersburg, in the Kaliningrad region on the Baltic and in the far-eastern port of Vladivostok that are usually held to mark the annual Navy Day celebrations. Asked about the reason for the cancellation in St Petersburg even as Putin arrived in his home city to visit the navy headquarters, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that 'it's linked to the overall situation, security reasons, which are above all else'. The Russian defence ministry said air defences downed 99 Ukrainian drones in several regions overnight. Later in the day, it said another 51 drones were shot down near St Petersburg. A man was killed and three other people injured by drone fragments in the region around St Petersburg, according to local authorities. On the trip to St Petersburg, Putin vowed to build more warships and intensify the navy's training, adding: 'The navy's strike power and combat capability will rise to a qualitatively new level.' French president Emmanuel Macron had a phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday and said later on X that he reaffirmed France's support for Kyiv and vowed to raise pressure on Moscow to force it to 'agree to a ceasefire that paves the way for talks leading to a solid and lasting peace, with full European involvement'.
