Indian foreign minister stresses on border peace in talks with China's Wang
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Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Pakistan to launch real-time digital tracking of petroleum products to end smuggling, theft
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will launch this month a real-time digital tracking system to monitor the complete cycle of all petroleum products from their import to sale at fuel stations to curb smuggling and black marketing of fuel, an official said on Monday. An April 2024 Petroleum Division intelligence report revealed that around 10 million liters of Iranian fuel was being smuggled into Pakistan daily, causing losses of over Rs227 billion ($805 million) annually. On Aug. 13, Pakistan's National Assembly passed the Petroleum (Amendment) Act 2025, which would amend the decades-old Petroleum Act 1934, giving regulators the authority to introduce IT-based systems for real-time monitoring of petroleum products. The draft legislation proposes punishments for illegal supply, storage and sale of petroleum products, and aims to strengthen coordination among enforcement agencies by introducing IT-enabled digital tracking of petroleum products by covering storage, transportation and dispensing at fuel stations, storage facilities and along supply routes, with authorities empowered to act jointly or independently. After its passage by the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, and the Senate standing committee for petroleum, the draft legislation now awaits a nod from the upper house for it to become a law and pave the way for the implementation of the new tracking system. 'The [draft] law has already been passed by the National Assembly and today [Monday], it was approved by the Senate Standing Committee. Now it will be laid before the Senate within next few days for its final passage to become a law,' Imran Ghaznavi, an Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) spokesperson, told Arab News. 'Once the law is enacted, the real-time digital monitoring system of petroleum products will begin within this month as most of the system is ready,' he said, adding that OGRA had already completed tagging of fuel tankers and stations. Until now, the end-to-end petroleum delivery was regulated but not digitally monitored, with the manual collection of data causing huge losses, according to Ghaznavi. OGRA, in collaboration with industry stakeholders, has spent several months on the technical framework to ensure a smooth launch of the digital tracking system. 'The tankers have trackers, but real-time monitoring is not done [at present],' he said. 'OGRA has installed digital mapping at almost all petroleum stations which are more than 10,000 across Pakistan.' In the second phase, he shared, OGRA has decided to digitize the movement of all petroleum products, from port to depot, refinery to depot, depot to depot, and depot to fuel stations, so that it can be monitored in real time. 'The benefit of this step is that smuggled products can be detected by calculating discrepancies,' he said, explaining that if a fuel station purchased a certain amount of product but sold more than that, or if a fuel station had dormant petroleum stock yet continued selling beyond its recorded supply, then such irregularities would be identified through the new system. The new law also proposes punishments such as confiscation of equipment and vehicles, and penalties for smugglers that would create a deterrent and discourage illegal sales of petroleum products, according to the OGRA spokesman. 'Illegal imports, transports, stores, sales produce, refines or blends of any petroleum [product] shall be punishable by a fine of 1 million rupees ($3,525),' says the draft legislation seen by Arab News, adding that whoever repeats the offense shall be liable to pay a fine of 5 million rupees ($17,627). The law says any facility used for storage and selling of petroleum products to general public, without a license from relevant authority, shall be liable to sealing. 'All machinery, equipment, materials, storage tanks, receptacles and petroleum products being employed or sold therein shall be liable to confiscation by the Deputy Commissioner or any officer authorized by him and the owner thereof shall pay fine of ten million rupees ($35,255),' it read. OGRA has signed a contract with the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) to develop a complete digital system to monitor the entire supply chain by tracking lorries and trucks from port to retail fuel stations, according to Ghaznavi. All refineries and 95 percent Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) already have Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in place, which would be integrated into the new digital tracking system immediately. 'The remaining five percent will also be added soon. That means that nearly 95 to 98 percent of petroleum products will be tracked,' he added.
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
China's top diplomat Wang arrives in India
NEW DELHI: China's top diplomat landed in neighboring India on Monday, seeking to bolster long-fraught relations in the face of intense pressure and tariffs from the United States. Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with his counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and is also expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his three-day visit to New Delhi. Modi, according to Indian media, might also visit China this month. India's foreign ministry said in a social media post that 'important engagements of the India-China Special Representatives and on bilateral relations' were scheduled over the next two days. The world's two most populous nations are intense rivals competing for influence across South Asia, and fought a deadly border clash in 2020. But caught in global trade and geopolitical turbulence triggered by US President Donald Trump's tariff war, the countries have moved to mend ties. Restarting border trade across their icy and high-altitude Himalayan border is expected to feature high on Wang's agenda. Its resumption would be significant for its symbolism, and follows agreements to return direct flights and issue tourist visas. India is also part of the Quad security alliance with the United States, Australia and Japan, which is seen as a counter to China. Warming ties between China and India come as relations between New Delhi and Washington are strained. Trump has issued an ultimatum for India to end its purchases of Russian oil — a key revenue source for Moscow's war in Ukraine — or Washington will double new import tariffs from 25 percent to 50 percent. Modi said Monday he spoke to 'my friend' Vladimir Putin, with the Russian president 'sharing insights' on his Alaska summit with Trump last week. 'India has consistently called for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict and supports all efforts in this regard,' the Indian premier wrote on social media. Indian hopes that the Alaska meeting would ease US tariff pressure were tempered earlier Monday by US trade adviser Peter Navarro. 'If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the US, it needs to start acting like one,' he wrote in a sharply-worded column in the Financial Times. 'India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil, converting embargoed crude into high-value exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs,' he wrote. 'The proceeds flow to India's politically connected energy titans, and in turn, into Vladimir Putin's war chest,' he added, in an apparent swipe at India's big refiners, which include tycoon Mukesh Ambani. Navarro said the 50 percent tariff — due to begin on August 27 — will 'hit India where it hurts.'
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Israel revokes visas for some Australian diplomats
Israel's foreign minister said on Monday he had revoked the visas of Australian diplomats to the Palestinian Authority, following a decision by Canberra to recognise a Palestinian state and cancel an Israeli lawmaker's visa. The Australian government said it had cancelled the visa of a lawmaker from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition who has advocated against Palestinian statehood and called for Israel to annex the occupied West Bank. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Australia's ambassador to Israel had been informed that the visas of representatives to the Palestinian Authority had been revoked. Like many countries, Australia maintains an embassy to Israel in Tel Aviv and a representative office to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank city of Ramallah. 'I also instructed the Israeli Embassy in Canberra to carefully examine any official Australian visa application for entry to Israel,' Saar wrote on X, describing Australia's refusal to grant visas to some Israelis as 'unjustifiable.' Australia's government did not immediately comment. The Palestinian foreign ministry issued a statement condemning Israel's decision as illegal and 'in violation of international law. Australia is set to recognise a Palestinian state next month, a move it says it hopes will contribute to international momentum towards a two-state solution, a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages held by Palestinian militants in Gaza. Invitation by Jewish organization Simcha Rothman, a parliamentarian from the Religious Zionism party led by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, had been scheduled to visit Australia this month at the invitation of a conservative Jewish organisation. Rothman said he was told his visa had been cancelled over remarks the Australian government considered controversial and inflammatory, including his assertion that Palestinian statehood would lead to the destruction of the state of Israel and his call for Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank. 'Nothing that I said personally has not been said over and over again by the vast majority of the public in Israel and the Government of Israel,' Rothman told Reuters by phone. Rothman said he had been informed that his views would cause unrest among Australian Muslims. Asked about Canberra's decision on Palestinian statehood, Rothman said that would be a 'grave mistake and a huge reward for Hamas and for terror'. Australia's Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke said in an emailed statement that the government takes a hard line on those who seek to spread division in Australia, and that anyone coming to promote a message of hate and division was not welcome. 'Under our government, Australia will be a country where everyone can be safe, and feel safe,' he said. The Home Affairs Ministry declined further comment. Rothman had been invited by the Australian Jewish Association to meet members of the Jewish community and show solidarity in the face of 'a wave of antisemitism,' AJA Chief Executive Robert Gregory said. In June, Australia and four other countries imposed sanctions on Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over accusations of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
