Pakistan, Türkiye conclude joint military exercise ‘Ataturk-XIII’ to bolster defense ties

TOKYO: Vietnam approved plans on Wednesday for a multi-billion-dollar railway with China, boosting links between the two communist countries.
Around the region, China has been financing railways under its Belt and Road Initiative, which funds infrastructure projects globally, but has come under fire with a number of plans stalled or mired in controversy.
Here are some of the key instalments in Asia’s China-backed railway network:
PAKISTAN
In Pakistan, a railway linking southwestern Gwadar Port with China’s northwestern Xinjiang province has long been on the cards but has yet to materialize.
If the project moves ahead, a 2023 Chinese study estimated an eyewatering price tag of $58 billion.
INDONESIA
Indonesia launched Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway in October 2023, after years of delays. The $7 billion China-backed project links the capital Jakarta to the city of Bandung in 45 minutes — slashing the journey by about two hours.
Built by a joint venture of four Indonesian state companies and Beijing’s China Railway International Co, it was initially set to cost less than $5 billion and be completed by 2019. But construction challenges and the pandemic led to delays and surging expenses.
Indonesia’s then-president Joko Widodo nevertheless hailed its opening as a symbol of modernization.
LAOS
Laos unveiled its $6 billion Chinese-built railroad in 2021, bringing hopes of an economic boost despite backlash after thousands of farmers had to be evicted to make way for construction.
The 414-kilometer (260-mile) route connects the Chinese city of Kunming to Laotian capital Vientiane, with plans for the high-speed line to ultimately reach Singapore.
Infrastructure-poor Laos, a reclusive communist country of about 7.4 million people, previously had only four kilometers of railway tracks.
It was hoped that the railway would boost the Southeast Asian country’s ailing tourism industry, which struggled to rebound from the pandemic.
But experts also raised concerns over whether cash-strapped Laos — where public debt made up 116 percent of GDP in 2023 — would ever be able to pay back Beijing.
THAILAND
After long delays, Thailand is pressing ahead with a Chinese-backed high-speed line set to partially open in 2028. The $5.4 billion project aims to expand the connection to Kunming, running to Bangkok via Laos by 2032.
Thailand already has nearly 5,000 kilometers (3,000 miles) of railway but the sluggish, run-down network has long driven people to favor road travel — despite extremely high accident rates.
When the new railroad is fully complete, Chinese-made trains will run from Bangkok to Nong Khai, on the border with Laos, at up to 250 km/h.
Unlike Laos, Thailand signed a deal to cover project expenditures itself and has pitched it as a way to boost the economy through trade with China.
KYRGYZSTAN
Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov inaugurated construction in December of a railway linking China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, with hopes it will serve as a supply route to Europe.
“This route will ensure supply of goods from China to Kyrgyzstan and then onto Central Asia” and nearby countries “including Turkiye” and “even to the European Union,” he said.
The project, which Kyrgyz authorities estimate could cost up to $8 billion, includes construction through mountains and in areas of permafrost, where the ground never fully thaws.
VIETNAM
Vietnam this week approved an $8-billion railroad running from its largest northern port city to China. The line will operate through some of Vietnam’s key manufacturing hubs, home to Samsung, Foxconn and Pegatron factories, many of which rely on components from China.
Another yet-to-be-approved line to China would connect Hanoi to Lang Son province, traveling through more areas packed with manufacturing facilities.
MALAYSIA
Malaysia has revived construction of a nearly $17 billion railroad to carry passengers and freight between shipping ports on its east and west coasts. The China-backed, 665-kilometer project was originally launched in 2011 under ex-leader Najib Razak, but shelved due to a dispute about payments.
After blowing past several deadlines and budgets, it now looks set to be operational by 2027.
MYANMAR
In coup-hit Myanmar, talks on building a railway from Mandalay to China’s Yunnan province appear to have stalled.
And in the Philippines, plans for China to fund three railways flopped after Manila backed out of talks in 2023 as the South China Sea dispute heated up.

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday met Qatari ambassador Ali Mubarak Ali Essa Al-Khater in Islamabad and discussed the release of Pakistani prisoners from Qatari jails as well as increased cooperation in combating narcotics.
In a report presented last year before the Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights, the foreign ministry said 23,456 Pakistanis were being held in jails abroad including 12,156 in Saudi Arabia, 5,292 in the United Arab Emirates, 338 in Qatar, 519 in Iraq, 450 in Bahrain, 59 in Kuwait, 308 in Turkiye, 255 in Malaysia, 88 in Afghanistan, 100 in Iran and 400 in China.
“During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, bilateral relations, and enhancing cooperation in various fields were discussed in detail,” a statement from the interior ministry said after Naqvi met Al-Khater. “Both sides also discussed the release of Pakistani citizens imprisoned in Qatar. Both sides also agreed to increase cooperation in combating narcotics.”
“Naqvi highlighted that a conference of Gulf countries on Narcotics control is being held in Islamabad in April, and the head of Qatar’s drug control department has been invited to participate in this conference. He emphasized the importance of close cooperation with friendly countries in combating narcotics.”
Qatar is an important trade partner of Pakistan in the GCC region and a major supplier of LNG to the South Asian country. Around 300,000 Pakistanis live in Qatar, working in a variety of sectors, including construction, transportation, health, education, engineering, finance, and public service.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Doha last year and announced that Qatar would invest $3 billion across various sectors in Pakistan, including trade, investment, and culture.