|
The Diplomatic Insight Weekly
The world changes within seconds; And it's been a week!
|
|
|
Hello Reader
Trump flew to Beijing. We went to Zimbabwe, Denmark, the UK, the US, the UN, and more... all without leaving Islamabad.
Want to know what this enigma is? Here is everything about it...
Here’s your weekly roundup of the week’s most important stories, news, and articles from The Diplomatic Insight.
1. Xi Calls for China, US to Be ‘Partners, Not Rivals’
Friendship promise over Taiwan condition!
Xi hosted Trump in Beijing, the first US presidential visit in nearly a decade, calling for partnership over confrontation. But he made clear that mishandling Taiwan could put the entire relationship "in great jeopardy."
2. Araghchi Urges BRICS to Condemn US-Israeli Aggression on Iran
Araghchi called out the elephant in the room!
Iran's appeal to BRICS to condemn US-Israeli actions signals Tehran's broader push to transform the bloc from an economic platform into a political counterweight to Western narratives.
3. British Lawmakers to Visit China in First Parliamentary Exchange Since 2019
Nine visits to Taiwan, zero to Beijing, until now!
A cross-party delegation of 12 British MPs will visit China this month, the first such exchange in seven years, following Starmer's January reset and Beijing's lifting of sanctions on six British parliamentarians.
4. D-8 Secretary-General Stresses Diplomacy, Sustainability at Eurasian Summit in Istanbul
Multilaterlaism should prevail!
Ambassador Sohail Mahmood addressed the 29th Eurasian Economic Summit in Istanbul, stressing diplomacy and sustainability as essential responses to rising geopolitical tensions, armed conflicts, and weakening multilateral systems.
5. 7th-Century Buddhist Temple Ruins Found in Kyrgyzstan
The Silk Road didn't just move silk, it moved entire civilizations.
A joint Kyrgyz-Japanese team uncovered a Buddhist temple at Ak-Beshim, the ruins of ancient Suyab, once the Silk Road's capital of the Western Turkic Khaganate.
|
7th International Young Diplomats School Program 2026
As diplomacy becomes increasingly complex and interconnected, the 7th International Young Diplomats School (IYDS), organized by the Institute of Peace and Diplomatic Studies in Islamabad, offered participants a rare firsthand experience of the diplomatic world.
The three-day program brought together students of International Relations and mid-career professionals.
Participants were hosted by the diplomatic missions of three Permanent Members of the UN Security Council — the United States, Russia, and the United Kingdom — giving the cohort a rare, direct window into how the world's most consequential powers engage with Pakistan at the ground level.
But the program didn't stop at the P3. the embassies visited spanned diverse regions of the world:
- Africa — Embassy of Zimbabwe
- Arab World — Embassy of Egypt
- ASEAN / Southeast Asia — Embassy of Thailand
- Central Asia — Embassy of Turkmenistan
- The Caucasus — Embassies of Azerbaijan
- European Union & Nordic Region: Embassy of Denmark
- Southeast Europe: Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Alongside the bilateral missions, participants also engaged with the UN offices. A session was hosted at UN Resident Office in Islamabad, where representatives of UNFPA, UNICEF, and UNDP gave the cohort a firsthand account of the UN's work inside Pakistan.
|
7th International Young Diplomats School – Day 1
On day one, the cohort visited four diplomatic missions across Islamabad, the embassies of Egypt, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark (ambassador’s residence), and Russia, engaging directly with ambassadors, chargés d’affaires, and cultural diplomats in candid.
7th International Young Diplomats School – Day 2
The cohort visited the embassies of Zimbabwe, Turkmenistan, and Thailand, where ambassadors offered candid insights into the realities of diplomacy. The day concluded at the residence of the Ambassador of Azerbaijan, where participants experienced diplomacy in practice during a national day reception.
7th International Young Diplomats School - Day 3
Day 3 offered participants exposure to both bilateral and multilateral diplomacy through visits to the United Kingdom High Commission and the United Nations Population Fund.
Pakistan, Bangladesh Sign Landmark 10-Year MoU to Combat Drug Trafficking
Pakistan and Bangladesh’s 10-year anti-narcotics MoU reflects a growing regional realization that transnational crime can no longer be addressed through isolated national responses.
European Union Delegation in Pakistan Celebrates Europe Day
The EU delegation in Islamabad celebrated Europe Day with a reception focused on the Green Global Gateway initiative, renewable energy cooperation, and the Erasmus+ program, which continues placing Pakistani students in European universities.
The signing of over 50 MoUs between Chinese and Pakistani firms demonstrates how commercial connectivity continues to anchor China–Pakistan relations even during periods of broader geopolitical uncertainty.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry rejected CBS News claims that it sheltered Iranian military aircraft at Nur Khan Airbase, saying the aircraft arrived during the ceasefire period and were linked to diplomatic logistics, not any military arrangement.
Pakistan successfully issued its first RMB-denominated Panda Bond in China's onshore capital market, raising $250 million, and attracting over five times that amount in investor demand.
At Poland's National Day reception in Islamabad, Ambassador Maciej Pisarski praised Pakistan's "Islamabad Process" for contributing to de-escalation in the US-Iran standoff, and noted that bilateral trade between Poland and Pakistan crossed $1.3 billion last year.
|
From DiploTV
In this compelling episode of "Conversation With a Diplomat", H.E. Saima Syed, Ambassador of Pakistan to Senegal, reflects on her personal journey into diplomacy, sharing the experiences, challenges, and milestones that shaped her path.
|
"The Sudanese public perceives that the UAE has moved beyond political competition to become the primary engine for a militia... Consequently, seeing a “strategic ally” like Egypt sit with the “alleged financier” places Cairo in a moral predicament."
writes Abdelazim Allahgabo
|
|
|
"Pakistan doesn’t need another policy statement outlining its geographic location... It needs corridor governance: a foreign policy that operationalizes transit, ports, energy, trade facilitation and regional dialogue."
writes Federico Verri
|
|
|
"The convergence of settler violence, military operations, economic strain, and social fragmentation places the region at a dangerous crossroads... Without concrete measures to curb violence, ensure accountability, and address humanitarian needs, the likelihood of further escalation remains high.
writes Professor Dr. Waqas Ahmed
|
|
|
"... the ADB is evolving from a project financing institution into a coordinating platform for regional economic connectivity, strengthening its role in Asia’s integration amid the formation of competing global economic blocs."
writes Viktor Abaturov
|
|
|
Want to be featured in our Op-ed section?
Send your insights, opinions, and articles!
|
Recommendation of the week:
The World
A Brief Introduction
By Richard Hass (2020)
Richard Haass, former president of the Council on Foreign Relations and a career diplomat, wrote this as a primer on how the modern world actually works, covering geopolitics, international order, trade, alliances, and the limits of American power.
|
|
|
|
Follow us on socials for timely updates
|
|
|
|
Diplomatic Insight Group head office, 2nd floor, Mehria Plaza, Block D, G-6/2, Islamabad, Islamabad Capital Territory 44000
Unsubscribe | Update your profile
|
|
|
