Category World News

Islamabad, Pakistan – As Pakistan sought to defend itself against Indian missiles and drones launched at its military bases and cities in early May, it relied on an unlikely combination of assets: Chinese missiles and air defence; Chinese and United States fighter jets; and US diplomacy.

The missiles, air defence and jets helped Pakistan thwart any devastating hits on its airbases and claim it had brought down multiple Indian fighter planes – an assertion that India has neither confirmed nor denied.

The diplomacy sealed a ceasefire that Pakistan has publicly welcomed and thanked the Donald Trump administration for.

Yet, as the US has in recent years increasingly picked India over Pakistan as its principal South Asian partner, Pakistan this week worked to reassure China that Beijing remained its most coveted ally.

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who also serves as foreign minister, visited Beijing earlier this week, meeting his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on May 20 in the first high-profile overseas visit by a Pakistani leader since the ceasefire.

According to a statement from the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two sides discussed the fallout of the brief but intense conflict with India, the ceasefire, and Islamabad’s criticism of New Delhi’s actions.

During the meeting with Wang, Dar highlighted India’s “unilateral and illegal decision” to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a six-decade water-sharing agreement. India halted the accord following the April 22 Pahalgam attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which left 26 people dead. Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan-based armed groups, an allegation Islamabad denies.

Wang, meanwhile, welcomed the ceasefire, describing it as serving the “fundamental and long-term interests of both sides [India and Pakistan]” while promoting regional peace.

Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50, held in-depth consultations with the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, today in Beijing.

Both sides exchanged views on evolving situation in South Asia, future trajectory of Pakistan-China… pic.twitter.com/mL03ljzyFr

Getting Wang on board was critical for Pakistan, say analysts.

‘Power struggle in South Asia’

With South Asia sitting on a tinderbox during the recent Pakistan-India standoff, a larger geopolitical contest loomed in the background.

Pakistan, once a key US ally, has shifted decisively into China’s orbit, relying on its northwestern neighbour heavily for economic and military support.

Meanwhile, India, long known for its non-alignment policy, has leaned closer to the US in recent years as part of a strategy to counter China’s rising influence.

Shahid Ali, an assistant professor of international relations at Lahore College for Women University, who specialises in Pakistan-China relations, said the timing and optics of Dar’s visit were significant.

“While Pakistan hoped to get China’s full diplomatic support for its conflict with India, especially regarding the suspension of the IWT, the visit also provided Dar a good opportunity to apprise China about US-led ceasefire dynamics, also reassuring them of Pakistan’s longstanding all-weather strategic partnership,” Ali told Al Jazeera.

Erum Ashraf, a UK-based scholar focused on Pakistan-China ties and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – a $62bn mega project launched a decade ago – echoed this view.

She said the meeting allowed China to better understand what promises Pakistan may have made to the US and President Trump, who helped mediate the ceasefire.

“The Chinese must be concerned how Pakistan managed to gain President Trump’s support to talk of ceasefire and to even offer to resolve the matter of Kashmir between both countries. The Chinese worry how US influence in their back yard could impact their interest in the region,” she told Al Jazeera.

CPEC remains a cornerstone

Pakistan’s former ambassador to China, Masood Khalid, called Beijing a “logical” first stop for Islamabad’s efforts to use diplomacy to push its narrative about the crisis with India in the aftermath of the ceasefire.

He noted that beyond the recent India-Pakistan military confrontation, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor remained a key pillar of bilateral cooperation.

“The foreign minister may apprise the Chinese side of the security steps which Pakistan has taken for Chinese nationals’ protection,” Khalid told Al Jazeera.

Indeed, according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang prodded both countries to work together to create an “upgraded version of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.”

CPEC, launched in 2015 under then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the elder brother of current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, has been hailed as a “game-changer” for Pakistan.

It is a key component of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a huge network of roads, bridges and ports spread across nearly 100 countries that Beijing hopes will recreate the ancient Silk Road trade routes linking Europe and Asia.

However, CPEC has faced repeated delays, especially in Balochistan, where its crown jewel, the Gwadar Port, is located.

Separatist groups in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but poorest province, have long waged an armed rebellion against the state and have repeatedly hit Chinese personnel and installations, accusing them of benefitting from the province’s vast natural resources.

According to Pakistani government figures, nearly 20,000 Chinese nationals live in the country. At least 20 have been killed since 2021 in various attacks in different parts of Pakistan.

While Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry did not mention it explicitly, the Chinese statement quoted Dar as saying his country would make every effort to “ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions in Pakistan”.

Muhammad Faisal, a South Asia security researcher at the University of Technology Sydney, said the safety of Chinese nationals remains Beijing’s “topmost concern”.

“Even as the crisis with India heightened, the presence of a large number of Chinese nationals in Pakistan, in some ways, compelled Beijing to seek swift crisis de-escalation,” he told Al Jazeera.

‘China’s high-wire act’

Between April 22, when the Pahalgam attack occurred, and May 7, when India struck targets inside Pakistani territory, a global diplomatic effort was quietly under way to de-escalate tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations.

During this period, the US initially showed little interest in direct involvement while China, initially, also was slow to get involved.

China, which has a historically tense relationship with Delhi that suffered further after their troops clashed in the Galwan Valley of Ladakh in 2020, eventually urged restraint from both sides.

However, many observers felt China’s position was seen as lacking neutrality due to its closeness with Pakistan.

Faisal said China is likely to maintain its current “high-wire act”, acknowledging Pakistan’s security concerns while continuing to call for calm on both sides.

He added that while the US was the lead mediator for the ceasefire, Beijing double-tapped Washington by calling both Islamabad and New Delhi to dial down tensions.

“A lesson Beijing learned is that its current restrained public posturing opened up diplomatic space to engage with interlocutors in both Islamabad and New Delhi, despite the fact that the latter views its role with scepticism,” he said.

Ashraf, the UK-based academic, said India did not view China as a “neutral umpire” in its disputes with Pakistan – even though New Delhi and Beijing have in recent months tried to reset their ties, pulling troops back from contested border points and ramping up diplomatic efforts to calm tensions.

“India and China have only recently achieved a breakthrough in their strained border relations, which perhaps helps to explain China’s initial ‘hands off’ behaviour with Pakistan after Pahalgam,” she said.

But ultimately, she said, China needs to “balance a tightrope”: It doesn’t want to “upset relations with India”, but it also needs to help Pakistan enough that it doesn’t “collapse in the face of India’s attacks”.

As the two nations engaged in their first direct discussions since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Russia questioned Ukrainian sovereignty and undermined its president’s authority.

On May 15, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, arrived in Istanbul for the discussions that his Russian counterpart had suggested a few days earlier. His foreign and defense ministers accompanied him.

However, neither his cabinet nor Russian President Vladimir Putin showed up. He sent a junior delegation without the authority to sign a ceasefire, led by Rodion Miroshnik, the ambassador at large.

However, Russia’s sour tones threaten the Ukrainian team’s legitimacy.

According to Maria Zakharova, a spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, the delegation is waiting for Zelenskyy to speak out, for the hallucinogens to end, and for him to finally allow those who have been barred from negotiations for three years to sit down at the table.

On May 16, the day of the talks, Russian lead negotiator Rodion Miroshnik said, “We examined Ukrainian legislation, and we believe that Zelenskyy’s authority as the legitimate leader of the country has expired.”

He made mention of Zelenskyy’s failure to hold a presidential election the previous year. In a time of national crisis, Zelenskyy can remain in office, and the Ukrainian parliament extended Zelenskyy’s term until the end of martial law. However, Zelenskyy was portrayed as illegitimate by Russian officials by the extension.

There is a chance that legally binding agreements that have been reached and signed are disregarded, according to Miroshnik.

The day after the talks, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, declared that “the most crucial and fundamental thing for us still is who exactly will sign these documents on the Ukrainian side.”

However, it’s thought that Moscow is laying the groundwork for any compromise given Russia’s position.

The Institute for the Study of War, a think tank based in Washington, wrote, “This rhetorical campaign is part of efforts to make conditions for Russia to withdraw from any upcoming peace agreements at a time of its choosing.”

What was proposed by the two sides?

Following a meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin, Ukraine suggested a ceasefire.

Russia rejected both demands, instead proposing a one-million-per-mission ceasefire proposal, followed by a written submission of the proposals in writing.

Vladimir Medinsky, a member of the negotiating team and a negotiating aide, said, “We agreed that each side would outline its vision of a possible future ceasefire and lay it out in detail.”

Russia predicts that the conflict will continue in its favor.

Russian forces launched assaults in the east of Ukraine near Pokrovsk and Toretsk during the talks, taking some territory.

Russia’s largest war barrage, 273 drones, were launched on Ukraine’s cities on Saturday night.

Additionally, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed on Monday that it had taken control of both Donetsk’s Maryino and Novoolenovka settlements.

Moscow has responded to Kyiv’s request for a ceasefire by repressing talks without conditions, as it has reportedly done on Friday.

According to sources with knowledge of the proceedings, the Russian delegation demanded that the four provinces Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, which Russia partially occupies, be given over in their entirety.

Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, asserted that all four regions that Russia invaded in 2022 were governed by Russian law.

They then addressed us with a request to join the Russian Federation after declaring themselves to be the subjects of international law following referendums. Therefore, everything is in order here from the perspective of international law, he said on Tuesday at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum.

According to Leonid Slutsky, the head of the State Duma’s committee on international affairs, it appeared that Russia was trying to impose yet another condition on a second round of discussions, which should lead to an agreement on Ukraine’s non-aligned status.

Putin included the four regions’ surrenders in a speech last June, as well as neutrality, an accord that will never join NATO and the European Union.

Zakharova confirmed that those delegations’ discussions still had Russian objectives as they resumed on Monday.

Trump: A capable negotiator?

Following a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Monday, Putin gave the timeline.

Russia and the Ukrainian side have agreed to work together on a memorandum on a potential future peace treaty that lists a number of positions, including a potential ceasefire for a predetermined amount of time, as well as settlement principles, the signing of a potential peace agreement, and so on, according to Putin, who spoke to reporters.

Putin visited Kursk for the first time since Russian forces reclaimed it following an Ukrainian counterinvasion, calling Ukrainians Neonazis for destroying World War II monuments and “idiots” who “would come second in a contest of idiots.”

Trump urged Zelenskyy to meet with Trump.

They “touched the issue of direct contact,” Peskov said, downplaying the demand.

“It is crucial that America continues to play a role in the effort to bring peace closer. In his Tuesday evening address, Zelenskyy said, “It is America that Russia fears, and American influence can save many lives if used as a means to get Putin to end the war.”

Others were skeptical that Trump’s negotiations would lead to a positive outcome for Ukraine, though.

Bridget Brink, the US’s former ambassador to Kyiv, explained on Monday why she left her position last month.

Because the Trump administration’s policy has always been to put pressure on the victim, Ukraine, rather than the aggressor, Russia, she told CBS’s Face the Nation. “I resigned from Ukraine and also from the foreign service. “Peace at any price is not peace at all,” the saying goes. It’s a form of appeasement. And, as we all know from history, appeasement only leads to more war.

Despite Ukraine’s allies’ demands for a tougher line against Russia, Europe, Canada, and Australia remain the top contenders.

On Monday, the 17th EU sanctions package became effective, limiting the movement of 189 tankers deemed to be smugglers of Russian oil and increasing the total number of tankers in force. Additionally, the EU imposed sanctions on 28 Russian judges who violated human rights and Russian arms manufacturers.

On Wednesday night, two Israeli embassy employees were fatally shot as they left a Jewish museum in Washington, DC, causing outrage from US and Israeli officials.

According to the police, Elias Rodriguez, a 30-year-old Chicago resident, has been detained in connection with the shooting. The only suspect is him.

There is no place for “hatred” in the US, according to President Donald Trump, who criticized the shooting as “horrible.” Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel, described the events in the US capital as “devastated.”

He claimed that the Israeli embassy’s two young employees have died as a result of “this hateful act of hatred, of anti-Semitism.”

Kristi Noem, the secretary of homeland security for the US, stated that the federal government would look into the attack and would prosecute its “depraved perpetrator.”

What we currently know is as follows:

What is known about the shooting, exactly?

On Wednesday night (01:00 GMT Thursday), officers responded to several calls about a shooting close to the Capital Jewish Museum.

At a press conference, Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith stated that the suspect approached a group of four people and opened fire as they left an event at the museum in Northwest Washington, DC, near an FBI field office and the US attorney general’s office.

The victims were discovered unconscious and unable to breathe by first responders. Both were declared dead despite the best efforts to save them.

After the shooting, the suspect entered the museum and was taken into custody by security personnel there, according to police.

The suspect once identified the weapon in handcuffs, and he implied that he had committed the offence, according to Smith.

What are the victims’ details known to us?

Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim were given the names of the two by the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC.

Both staff members were present. Yechiel Leiter, the Israeli ambassador to the US, stated to reporters that the young employees were “about to be engaged.”

Leiter explained that the young man purchased a ring this week in order to propose to his girlfriend in Jerusalem the following week.

What is known about Elias Rodriguez, the suspect?

Elias Rodriguez, 30, of Chicago, Illinois, has been named as the suspect.

Heidi-Zhou Castro, a journalist close to the shooting’s location, claimed the suspect had not previously been on the authorities’ radar.

He wasn’t a well-known being, he said. Prior to this occurring, there was no heightened awareness, she claimed.

What motives does the suspect have, exactly?

Police have not yet established a motive.

Since the Hamas-led attack on Israel in October 2023, Gideon Saar, Israel’s foreign minister, blamed a “toxic anti-Semitic incitement against Israel and Jews all over the world.”

Elias Rodriguez, the suspect, reportedly began chanting “Free, free Palestine” when he was taken into custody, according to Police Chief Smith.

Regardless of political ideology, Mohamad Elmasry, a professor of media studies at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, called the attacks “awful” and said they were rightly being condemned.

Elmasry told Al Jazeera, “You have the Trump administration, Israel, and some of their supporters coming out and saying that this is an act of anti-Semitism, and that may be the case, that it is just an act of naked anti-Jewish hatred,” and that is obviously unacceptable.

“But it’s also possible that Mr. Rodriguez targeted these embassy staffers with this act of vigilante violence against the State of Israel, or that he is venting his anger over the genocide in Gaza] or Israel’s apartheid policies. That is a crucial distinction because if that’s the purpose, it will require a different course of action.

What was the shooting’s response?

“These horrible DC killings, which are obviously motivated by antisemitism, must end right away”! Early on Thursday, President Trump made a tweet.

Hatred and radicalism are not acceptable in America. Condolences to the victims’ families. How disappointing that things like this can occur! God’s blessings to you all”!

Israeli authorities also vehemently denounced the incident, calling it a “despicable act of hatred.” After the shooting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared: “We are witnessing the terrible price of anti-Semitism and the wild incitement against the State of Israel.

According to Netanyahu, “I have instructed to improve security arrangements at Israeli missions around the world and to increase protection for state representatives.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the shooting as “a heinous act” in a post on X, adding that we must assume there was an anti-Semitic motivation at the time.

What will follow?

According to Police Chief Smith, law enforcement did not consider the community to be in danger right now.

FBI Director Kash Patel claimed that the shooting had been communicated to him and his team.

In the immediate, please pray for the victims and their families, he wrote on X while we are working with [the Metropolitan Police Department] to respond and learn more.

Mayor of Washington, DC, Muriel Bowser, stated to reporters that “violence or hate in our city” would not be tolerated.

In the coming days and weeks, we will stand together as a community to send a strong message that we will not tolerate anti-Semitism, according to Bowser.

Israel has launched a new military operation in Gaza to impose its complete control of the Strip, while the 11-week aid embargo is still in effect despite the country’s widespread condemnation of the shooting.

In response to Israel’s military actions in the Gaza war and the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, the UK government suspended free trade negotiations with the country on Tuesday.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy told the parliament that the UK government could not continue discussions with an Israeli government that was pursuing “egregious policies” in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

The UK, France, and Canada all issued threats to take “concrete actions” against Israel the day after it retaliated and lifted Gaza aid restrictions.

Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas confirmed on Tuesday that the bloc had voted to review its trade cooperation agreement, prompting the European Union to make another step toward reevaluating its relationship with Israel.

What is the value of the Israeli-UK trade?

In July 2022, the United Kingdom and Israel began discussions over a modernized Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which would improve their economic partnership by addressing issues that are not covered by their current trade agreements, particularly those relating to services and digital trade.

The UK ranked as Israel’s 11th largest importer in 2024, according to United Nations Comtrade, a global database of official international trade statistics. Imports totaled about $1.96 billion in that year. Machinery, electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and vehicles were the main imports from the UK, along with the UK’s main products.

In contrast, Israel was the country’s eighth-largest exporter, with exports of about $ 1.57 billion, primarily of diamonds, chemical goods, machinery, and electronics.

What are Israel’s biggest imports and exports?

In 2024, Israel’s global trade totaled $ 91.5% of imports and $ 61.7% of exports.

Among Israel’s most notable imports are:

• approximately $19 billion in electrical equipment, electronics, and mechanical appliances.
• approximately $10 billion worth of vehicles, including cars, trucks, buses, and airplanes.
• $ 8 billion in chemical products, including pharmaceuticals.
• $ 7 billion is made up of mineral products, including coal, cement, and petroleum.
• $4 billion worth of gems and jewelry, including diamonds.

Among Israel’s top exports are:

• approximately $18 billion in electrical equipment, electronics, and mechanical appliances.
• $10 billion in pharmaceuticals and related chemicals.
• $9 billion worth of gems and jewelry, including polished diamonds.
• $7 billion in optical, technical, and medical equipment.
• $5 billion in mineral products

Important players in Israel’s electronics industry are responsible for the country’s export economy, including Elbit Systems and Orbotech, which are renowned for their expertise in military electronics and advanced manufacturing, as well as Intel, which runs large-scale chip factories.

Israel is one of the largest producers of generic drugs in the world, led by multinational corporations like Teva Pharmaceuticals.

Israel is also a global leader in the diamond trade, importing tons of dollars worth of rough diamonds domestically before being exported.

Which nations purchase Israel the most?

Israel sold $61.7bn worth of goods in 2024. The United States, Ireland, and China imported the most products from Israel, respectively, with $3.2 billion and $2.8 billion. An additional $ 2 billion in products came from Israel, which is a semi-autonomous region of China that trades databases as a separate entity. Add that to China’s total, and the country becomes the second-largest importer of Israeli goods.

Diamonds, high-tech electronics, including those made of integrated circuits and electronic equipment, as well as chemical goods, were primarily imported by the United States.
• In 2024, Ireland imported about $3 billion worth of microassemblies and electronic integrated circuits, making up the majority of the market for Israeli integrated circuits. These components are frequently employed in Ireland‘s manufacturing industries for pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and technology.
• A wide range of Israeli products, including electronic components, chemical products, and optical equipment, were imported from China.

The 117 nations or territories that purchased Israeli goods in 2024 are listed in the table below. Use the search box to search for any nation.

Which nations offer Israel the highest sales?

In 2024, Israel purchased $ 91.5 billion worth of goods from all over the world. China exported $9.4 billion, followed by the United States and Germany, who exported $5.6 billion.

Electric vehicles, mobile phones, computers, and metals were the main exports from China.
• Israelis were sold by the United States&nbsp, which also sold electronics, chemicals, and diamonds. US military aid, which is largely used to buy American-made weapons, effectively boosts US exports.
• Germany exported goods, including electronics, machinery, pharmaceuticals, and automobiles.