White House Says it Is Watching Pakistan Events ‘with Concern’

Pakistani laborers prepare a 200-feet-long flag at the park ahead of Independence Day celebrations in Karachi, Pakistan, 09 August 2023. (EPA)
Pakistani laborers prepare a 200-feet-long flag at the park ahead of Independence Day celebrations in Karachi, Pakistan, 09 August 2023. (EPA)
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White House Says it Is Watching Pakistan Events ‘with Concern’

Pakistani laborers prepare a 200-feet-long flag at the park ahead of Independence Day celebrations in Karachi, Pakistan, 09 August 2023. (EPA)
Pakistani laborers prepare a 200-feet-long flag at the park ahead of Independence Day celebrations in Karachi, Pakistan, 09 August 2023. (EPA)

The United States is watching "with concern" events in Pakistan, White House national security spokesman John Kirby told a briefing on Wednesday.

Kirby made his remarks after being asked about the situation in Pakistan, where former Prime Minister Imran Khan was recently imprisoned and there has been a spike in militant attacks.

"We're obviously concerned about any actions, particularly violent actions, that can contribute to instability in Pakistan or frankly any other country with whom we share a set of common interests when it comes to counterterrorism, so we're watching it with concern," he said.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he would advise the president to dissolve parliament late on Wednesday, setting the stage for a national election as the country grapples with political and economic crises.

"Pakistan is a partner, particularly when it comes to the counterterrorism threat in that part of the world. And we have every expectation that they will remain so," Kirby said.

The State Department said on Monday that the arrest of Khan, a critic of the United States, was an internal matter and declined to take a position on his legal troubles. 



India’s Navy Launches Submarine, Warships to Guard against China’s Presence in Indian Ocean

A view of the Indian Navy's three frontline vessels during the commissioning ceremony in Mumbai, India, 15 January 2025. (EPA)
A view of the Indian Navy's three frontline vessels during the commissioning ceremony in Mumbai, India, 15 January 2025. (EPA)
TT

India’s Navy Launches Submarine, Warships to Guard against China’s Presence in Indian Ocean

A view of the Indian Navy's three frontline vessels during the commissioning ceremony in Mumbai, India, 15 January 2025. (EPA)
A view of the Indian Navy's three frontline vessels during the commissioning ceremony in Mumbai, India, 15 January 2025. (EPA)

India's navy on Wednesday simultaneously launched a submarine, a destroyer and a frigate built at a state-run shipyard, underscoring the importance of protecting the Indian Ocean region through which 95% of the country's trade moves amid a strong Chinese presence.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said that the Atlantic Ocean’s importance has shifted to the Indian Ocean region, which is becoming a center of international power rivalry.

“India is giving the biggest importance to making its navy powerful to protect its interests,” he said.

“The commissioning of three major naval combatants marks a significant leap forward in realizing India’s vision of becoming a global leader in defense manufacturing and maritime security,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while commissioning the vessels at the state-run Mazagon dockyard in Mumbai.

The situation in the Indian Ocean region is challenging with the Chinese navy, India’s main rival, growing exponentially, said Rahul Bedi, a defense analyst.

Bedi said that the INS Vagsheer submarine, the sixth among a French license-built Kalvari (Scorpene)-class conventional diesel-electric submarines, is aimed at replacing aging Indian underwater platforms and plugging serious capability gaps in existing ones. India now has a total of 16 submarines.

The P75 Scorpene submarine project represents India’s growing expertise in submarine construction in collaboration with the Naval Group of France, Bedi said.

India’s defense ministry is expected to conclude a deal for three additional Scorpene submarines to be built in India during Modi’s likely visit to Paris next month to attend the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.

However, the first of these boats, according to the Indian navy, is only likely to be commissioned by 2031.

India commissioned its first home-built aircraft carrier in 2022 to counter regional rival China’s much more extensive and growing fleet and expand its indigenous shipbuilding capabilities.

The INS Vikrant, whose name is a Sanskrit word for “powerful” or “courageous,” is India’s second operational aircraft carrier. It joins the Soviet-era INS Vikramaditya, which India purchased from Russia in 2004 to defend the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal.