Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Tuesday arrived in Kuwait on a two-day official visit to meet the brotherly country’s leadership.

Upon his arrival at the airport, Kuwait’s Minister for Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy Dr Jassim Mohammed Abdullah Al-Ostad received the prime minister, PM Office said in a press release.

Pakistan Ambassador to Kuwait Malik Muhammad Farooq and other senior diplomatic officials were also present on the occasion.

Read more: Investment worth $10b on the cards

During his visit, the premier will meet Crown Prince of Kuwait Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmed Al-Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

During the visit, a new era of economic and economic cooperation between the two countries will begin. 

A number of MoUs will be signed for mutual cooperation in various sectors including manpower, information technology, minerals and mining, food security, energy and defence, it was further added.

As a traditional Kuwaiti welcoming gesture, the caretaker prime minister was also presented “Kahwa” upon his arrival.

Earlier this month, the interim federal cabinet gave the nod to seven memorandum of understanding (MoUs) with Kuwait for an investment worth $10 billion.

The MoUs would be signed by PM Kakar during the visit.

The MoUs will be inked for projects in various fields, including expansion of water reservoirs, mining facilities, protection and expansion of mangrove forests for coastal areas, investment in IT sector and food security.

The MoUs between the two countries became possible due to the efforts made by the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), according to a statement issued by the PM Office earlier.

It added that the interim premier, who chaired the meeting in the federal capital, and his cabinet members appreciated the efforts of the SIFC and the relevant ministries.

The caretaker prime minister issued directions to the federal authorities concerned to ensure cooperation with the provinces for early and fair execution of the projects.

Caretaker Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Solangi Tuesday said under Article 218(3) of the Constitution, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) would fulfill its responsibility to conduct fair, transparent and impartial elections and the government would support it.

Talking to media in the federal capital, the interim minister noted that the Constitution comprised 280 articles, adding that it not only had the article pertaining to holding of elections in 90 days but also had Article 254.

Read also: Caretaker govt has no agenda: Solangi

“Everyone in Pakistan has freedom to express opinion, complain and criticize,” he said.

The minister maintained that the PML-N also had the same liberty as of the PPP and the other parties.

He said Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar had apprised the people about his visit to the UAE on Monday night through a video message.

The head of the Afghan diplomatic mission in Pakistan was summoned on Tuesday by the Foreign Office (FO) and conveyed four demands including extradition of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, whose group carried out the recent terrorist attack in Bannu.

Two civilians lost their lives while 10 others, including three security forces personnel, were injured in a suicide attack in Bannu’s Bakka Khel area, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Monday.

The military’s media wing added that a motorcycle-borne suicide bomber, affiliated with Hafiz Gul Bahadur Group and later identified as an Afghan national, targeted a security forces convoy.

Read more: Two killed in Bannu suicide attack: ISPR

The representative of the Afghan Embassy in Pakistan was called on Tuesday into the foreign office to issue a strong protest over Sunday’s suicide attack.

This was the 16th suicide attack in Pakistan which was carried out by the Afghan national.

Although the foreign office did not issue any handout, sources told The Express Tribune that Pakistan conveyed its serious concerns to the Taliban diplomat over the repeated use of Afghan soil.

Sources revealed that the Afghan representative was conveyed the four key demands.

Those demands include full investigation into the Bannu attack and stern action against perpetrators and abettors.

Also read: One killed in Bannu blast

Pakistan also demanded immediate “verifiable actions” against all terrorist groups and their sanctuaries, according to sources.

Similarly, the Afghan Taliban representative was told to apprehend Hafiz Gul Bahadar and hand him over to Pakistan. Islamabad also reiterated its demand from the Kabul regime to prevent the use of Afghan soil for terrorism against Pakistan.

It is not clear if the Afghan Taliban pay heed to Pakistan’s latest demands as it has in the past refused to act against the TTP and its affiliates.

Tensions have been running high between the two countries for months over the issue.

Despite repeated demands, the Afghan Taliban were reluctant to neutralise the TTP. Instead, the Afghan Taliban government has still been pushing for the revival of talks between Pakistan and the TTP.

The Taliban recently asked Pakistan to suggest alternatives to tackle the problem of TTP. The reason the Afghan Taliban are hesitant to act against the TTP stems from its long association with the terrorist outfit.

Pakistani officials in recent days minced no words that the Afghan Taliban were controlling the TTP.

Since the return of the Taliban in August 2021 in Afghanistan, the number of terrorist attacks in Pakistan has gone up by 60 per cent while suicide attacks rose by 500 per cent.