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Pakistan’s majority parties struggle to form coalition government

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Pakistan’s two major parties are set to meet on Monday to try to bridge differences over forming a minority coalition government after an inconclusive election, a top party official said, underscoring its political and economic instability.

Analysts say the nuclear-armed nation of 241 million, which has been grappling with an economic crisis amid slow growth and record inflation, along with rising militant violence, needs a stable government with the authority to take tough decisions, Reuters reported.

Monday’s talks will be the fifth such round after former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was named by his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party to lead the country again.

“Both the parties haven’t yet agreed on final points,” Ishaq Dar, a senator of Sharif’s party, who is leading it in the talks, said in a statement on Sunday posted on social media platform X.

“Negotiations are underway on various proposals” for power sharing, he added.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) party of former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has announced conditional support for the PML-N, saying it will vote for Sharif to form the government, but would not take positions in cabinet.

“I can confirm that it has been decided in principle that the political parties will form a coalition government,” Dar told domestic broadcaster Geo TV.

Sharif, 72, who was prime minister of the south Asian nation for 16 months until August, has been named as the coalition’s candidate to be the next premier by his elder brother, Nawaz Sharif, who is the PML-N chief.

Pakistan narrowly averted a sovereign default last summer with a $3-billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund, but the lender’s support ends in March, after which a new, extended programme will be needed.

Negotiating a new programme, and at speed, will be critical for the new government.

The new government could also face further political tension, with independent members of parliament, backed by jailed former premier Imran Khan, forming the largest group in the legislature.

This group is at loggerheads with the powerful military and alleges that the vote was rigged.

The caretaker government and election commission have rejected those accusations.

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Trump backs down on strikes on Iran’s power network, says US and Tehran holding talks

Iranian attacks have effectively closed the Strait, which ​carries a ⁠fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas.

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President Donald Trump backed down on targeting Iran’s power network on Monday, saying the U.S. and ​Iran have held constructive talks and that he would ‌postpone any strikes on power plants and energy infrastructure, Reuters reported.

Trump’s statement came after Iran threatened to attack Israel’s power plants and those supplying U.S. bases ​across the Gulf region if the U.S. targets Iran’s ​power network.

The dollar plunged and ​stocks surged following Trump’s post.

The United States and Iran “have had, over ​the last two days, very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” Trump wrote ​in a post on Truth Social.

“I have instructed the Department ​of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants ‌and ⁠energy infrastructure for a five-day period, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions.”

On Saturday, Trump warned that Iranian power plants would be destroyed if Tehran failed to “fully open” ​the Strait of ​Hormuz to ⁠all shipping within 48 hours. Trump set a deadline of around 7:44 p.m. EDT (2344 GMT) on ​Monday.

Iranian attacks have effectively closed the Strait, which ​carries a ⁠fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas, read the report.

More than 2,000 people have been killed in the war the U.S. and Israel ⁠launched ​on February 28, which has upended markets, ​driven up fuel costs, fuelled global inflation fears and convulsed the postwar Western ​alliance.

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Iran says coastal attack will lead to full Gulf closure and mine-laying

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An attack on Iran’s southern coast and islands will lead to ​Gulf routes being cut with the ‌laying of sea mines, the country’s Defence Council said on Monday according to state media, Reuters reported.

The ​U.S. is considering plans to occupy, opens new tab or ​blockade Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s main ⁠oil export hub, to pressure Tehran ​to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to ​all shipping, according to Axios.

“Any attempt to attack Iran’s coasts or islands will cause all access routes ​in the Gulf (…) to be mined ​with various types of sea mines, including floating ‌mines ⁠that can be released from the coast,” the statement read.

“In this case, the entire Gulf will practically be in a situation ​similar to ​the ⁠Strait of Hormuz for a long time (…) One should not forget ​the failure of more than ​100 ⁠minesweepers in the 1980s in removing a few sea mines.”

The Defence Council recalled that ⁠non-belligerent ​states can only pass through ​the Strait of Hormuz by coordinating passage with Iran.

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Iran says Hormuz open to all but ‘enemy-linked’ ships

The threat of Iranian attacks during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has kept most ships from getting through the narrow strait, the conduit for around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, threatening a global energy shock.

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The Strait of Hormuz remains open to all shipping except vessels linked to “Iran’s enemies”, Iranian media reports published on Sunday quoted Iran’s representative to the U.N. maritime agency as saying.

Ali Mousavi’s comments came from an interview published on Friday by Chinese news agency Xinhua, before U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to target ⁠Iranian power plants if the strait was not “fully open” within 48 hours.

The threat of Iranian attacks during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has kept most ships from getting through the narrow strait, the conduit for around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, threatening a global energy shock.

Mousavi, who is also Iran’s ambassador to the ⁠UK, was also quoted as saying that Tehran would continue to cooperate with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to improve maritime safety and protect seafarers in the Gulf, adding that ships ⁠not belonging to “Iran’s enemies” could pass the strait by coordinating security and safety arrangements with Tehran.

“Diplomacy remains Iran’s priority. However, a complete ⁠cessation of aggression as well as mutual trust and confidence are more important,” Mousavi said, adding that Israeli ⁠and U.S. attacks against Iran were at the “root of the current situation in the Strait of Hormuz”.

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