Meloni warns Hormuz shipping curbs threaten global trade
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday (9 April) that restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is a vital interest f...
The Commander of Iran’s Anti-Narcotics Police Brigadier General Iraj Kakavand is in Pakistan to discuss increasing the bilateral cooperation against drug trafficking networks, particularly along their shared border.
Iran’s anti-narcotics met his Pakistani counterpart Major General Abdul Moeed and the Secretary of Narcotics Control Division at the Ministry of Interior and Narcotics Control Retired Captain Muhmmad Khurram Agha in Islamabad.
The two sides discussed issues of mutual interest and agreed to enhance intelligence cooperation to identify and fight drug trafficking networks and to strengthen border coordination according to official sources in Pakistan.
They pledged to take joint operational measures to combat cross-border drug trafficking and overcome challenges to prevent drug smuggling along the shared border, IRNA news agency reported.
According to UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), drug trafficking is a major challenge for Iran. The geographical location, particularly its porous border with Afghanistan - the world's largest illicit opium producer - and Pakistan, has turned Iran into a major transit hub for illegal drugs.
In response to the serious challenge of narcotrafficking and border control, Iran has built one of the strongest counter-narcotics enforcement capabilities in the region over the years.
The UNODC said in 2014, Iran by itself accounted for 74% of the world's opium seizures as well as 25% of the world's heroin and morphine seizures.
General Kakavand is also scheduled to visit the Anti-Narcotics Force Academy, an addiction treatment and rehabilitation center in Karachi, and the Karachi Port Trust authority.
Tehran spends millions of dollars annually on border control, including for the construction of expensive barriers along its borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan.
More than 3,700 national law enforcement officers have been killed and over 12,000 have been maimed in counter-narcotics operations over the last three decades, the UNODC said citing Iranian sources.
China and Russia vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution on Tuesday aimed at coordinating defensive efforts to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, leaving no agreed international framework for securing the vital route.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah said it had stopped firing on northern Israel and Israeli forces on Wednesday as part of a two-week ceasefire in the Middle East brokered between the United States and Iran. However, a Hezbollah lawmaker warned that the pause could collapse if Tel Aviv does not adhere to it.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Iran and the United States, along with their allies, have agreed to an immediate two-week ceasefire covering all areas, but Israel says the deal excludes Lebanon. Tel Aviv says the U.S. is committed to achieving shared goals in upcoming negotiations.
Construction has begun on a major new solar power project in Xizang, as China continues to expand its renewable energy capacity and push towards a greener future.
U.S. Vice-President J.D. Vance began a visit to Budapest on Tuesday by praising Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who faces a closely contested parliamentary election on Sunday.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Thursday (9 April) that restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is a vital interest for both Italy and the European Union, pledging coordination with international partners to ensure safe passage.
Kazakhstan says oil exports via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) remain stable after drone strikes on facilities near Novorossiysk, despite damage to key infrastructure and rising risks to a major export route.
Israel launched its heaviest strikes on Lebanon since hostilities escalated last month, killing over 100 people, even as Hezbollah halted attacks under a disputed U.S.-Iran ceasefire.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said Türkiye aims to rank among the world’s top ten exporters of defence technology within the next two years.
As global attention centres on the conflict between Iran and the U.S., violence in Lebanon is intensifying, with Israeli strikes hitting residential areas, causing mounting civilian casualties and deepening an already severe humanitarian crisis.
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