Israel army chief vows to keep expressing military's stance ‘without fear'
'We will continue to express our position without fear, in a pragmatic, independent, and professional manner,' Zamir said, according to a military statement, as rumors swirled about alleged disagreements between him and the cabinet over Gaza.
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Arab News
3 minutes ago
- Arab News
Pakistan army chief meets senior American political, military leadership during US visit
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir has engaged with senior American military and political leadership during his ongoing visit to the United States, the military's media wing said on Sunday, as Islamabad seeks closer defense and security ties with Washington. The development takes place as Pakistan eyes greater collaboration with the US under President Donald Trump. After years of strained relations, mainly over counter‑terrorism disagreements, both nations appear keen to rebuild military and economic ties under the new American administration. 'Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, NI (M), Chief of Army Staff (COAS), is undertaking an official visit to the United States,' the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing, said in a statement. 'During the visit, he has engaged in high-level interactions with senior political and military leadership, as well as members of the Pakistani diaspora.' In Tampa, the Pakistan army chief attended the retirement ceremony of outgoing United States Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander General Michael E. Kurilla, and the change of command ceremony that marked the assumption of command by Admiral Brad Cooper, his successor, the military's media wing said. Munir lauded General Kurilla's leadership and his contributions to strengthening bilateral military cooperation between Pakistan and the US. He extended his best wishes to Admiral Cooper, expressing confidence in continued collaboration to address shared security challenges, the ISPR added. The Pakistani army chief also met US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, where matters of mutual professional interest were discussed, the military's media wing said. 'On the sidelines, COAS interacted with Chiefs of Defense from friendly nations,' the statement added, without mentioning the names of the countries. Munir's engagements included an interaction with the Pakistani diaspora in the US, during which the army chief urged them to 'remain confident in Pakistan's bright future and to actively contribute to attracting investments.' 'The diaspora reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Pakistan's progress and development,' the ISPR said. Munir's visit to the US signifies growing closeness between Pakistan and the US. This is the Pakistan army chief's second visit to the country since June, when Trump hosted him for an unprecedented lunch at the White House. Both leaders discussed the tensions in the Middle East, particularly the then Iran-Israel military conflict. Under Trump's renewed outreach, Washington has praised Pakistan's leadership and reinstated military cooperation previously curtailed over Afghanistan-related concerns. Islamabad, in turn, seeks to balance its longstanding partnership with China, including arms supply and defense infrastructure, with growing engagement with the US. Both countries last week finalized a trade deal according to which the US will charge a 19 percent tariff on imports from Pakistan, compared to a 29 percent reciprocal tariff announced in April that had raised alarm in Islamabad. Separately, Trump highlighted a partnership with Pakistan to develop the country's oil reserves. Pakistan's powerful military, which has ruled the country directly for nearly half of its history and holds sway in political matters even when not in power, plays a central role in shaping its foreign and security policies.
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Russia and Ukraine hold fast to their demands ahead of a planned Putin-Trump summit
The threats, pressure and ultimatums have come and gone, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has maintained Moscow's uncompromising demands in the war in Ukraine, raising fears he could use a planned summit with US President Donald Trump in Alaska to coerce Kyiv into accepting an unfavorable maximalist demands reflect Putin's determination to reach the goals he set when he launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, sees a possible meeting with Trump as a chance to negotiate a broad deal that would not only cement Russia's territorial gains but also keep Ukraine from joining NATO and hosting any Western troops, allowing Moscow to gradually pull the country back into its Kremlin leader believes time is on his side as the exhausted and outgunned Ukrainian forces are struggling to stem Russian advances in many sectors of the over 1,000-kilometer (over 600-mile) front line while swarms of Russian missiles and drones batter Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also has stood firm in his positions, agreeing to a ceasefire proposed by Trump while reaffirming the country's refusal to abandon seeking NATO membership and rejecting acknowledgment of Russia's annexation of any of its regions.A look at Russian and Ukrainian visions of a peace deal and how a Putin-Trump summit could evolve:Russia's positionIn a memorandum presented at talks in Istanbul in June, Russia offered Ukraine two options for establishing a 30-day ceasefire. One demanded Ukraine withdraw its forces from Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — the four regions Moscow illegally annexed in September 2022 but never fully an alternate condition for a ceasefire, Russia made a 'package proposal' for Ukraine to halt mobilization efforts, freeze Western arms deliveries and ban any third-country forces on its soil. Moscow also suggested Ukraine end martial law and hold elections, after which the countries could sign a comprehensive peace there's a truce, Moscow wants a deal to include the 'international legal recognition' of its annexations of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and the four regions in says a peace treaty should have Ukraine declare its neutral status between Russia and the West, abandon its bid to join NATO, limit the size of its armed forces and recognize Russian as an official language on par with Ukrainian -– conditions reflecting Putin's earliest also demands Ukraine ban the 'glorification and propaganda of Nazism and neo-Nazism' and dissolve nationalist groups. Since the war began, Putin has falsely alleged that neo-Nazi groups were shaping Ukrainian politics under Zelensky, who is Jewish. They were fiercely dismissed by Kyiv and its Western Russia's view, a comprehensive peace treaty should see both countries lift all sanctions and restrictions, abandon any claims to compensation for wartime damage, resume trade and communications, and reestablish diplomatic Thursday whether Moscow has signaled any willingness to compromise to make a meeting with Trump possible, Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov responded that there haven't been any shifts in the Russian positionThe memorandum that Ukraine presented to Moscow in Istanbul emphasized the need for a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to set stage for peace reaffirmed Ukraine's consistent rejection of Russian demands for neutral status as an attack on its sovereignty, declaring it is free to choose its alliances and adding that its NATO membership will depend on consensus with the emphasized Kyiv's rejection of any restrictions on the size and other parameters of its armed forces, as well as curbs on the presence of foreign troops on its memorandum also opposed recognizing any Russian territorial gains, while describing the current line of contact as a starting point in document noted the need for international security guarantees to ensure the implementation of peace agreements and prevent further peace proposal also demanded the return of all deported and illegally displaced children and a total prisoner held the door open to gradual lifting of some of the sanctions against Russia if it abides by the positionsTrump has often spoken admiringly of Putin and even echoed his talking points on the war. He had a harsh confrontation with Zelensky in the Oval Office on Feb. 28, but later warmed his tone. As Putin resisted a ceasefire and continued his aerial bombardments, Trump showed exasperation with the Kremlin leader, threatening Moscow with new Trump expressed disappointment with Putin, his agreement to meet him without Zelensky at the table raised worries in Ukraine and its European allies, who fear it could allow the Russian to get Trump on his side and strong-arm Ukraine into said without giving details that 'there'll be some swapping of territories, to the betterment of both' Russia and Ukraine as part of any peace deal that he will discuss with Putin when they meet repeatedly warned Ukraine will face tougher conditions for peace if it doesn't accept Moscow's demands as Russian troops forge into other regions to build what he described as a 'buffer zone.' Some observers suggested Russia could trade those recent gains for the territories of the four annexed by Moscow still under Ukrainian control.'That is potentially a situation that gives Putin a tremendous amount of leeway as long as he can use that leverage to force the Ukrainians into a deal that they may not like and to sideline the Europeans effectively,' Sam Greene of King's College London said. 'The question is, will Trump sign up to that and will he actually have the leverage to force the Ukrainians and the Europeans to accept it?'Putin could accept a temporary truce to win Trump's sympathy as he seeks to achieve broader goals, Greene said.'He could accept a ceasefire so long as it's one that leaves him in control, in which there's no real deterrence against renewed aggression somewhere down the line,' he said. 'He understands that his only route to getting there runs via Trump.'In a possible indication he thinks a ceasefire or peace deal could be close, Putin called the leaders of China, India, South Africa and several ex-Soviet nations in an apparent effort to inform these allies about prospective Stanovaya of the Carnegie Russia and Eurasia Center argued Putin wouldn't budge on his goals.'However these conditions are worded, they amount to the same demand: Ukraine stops resisting, the West halts arms supplies, and Kyiv accepts Russia's terms, which effectively amount to a de facto capitulation,' she posted on X. 'The Russian side can frame this in a dozen different ways, creating the impression that Moscow is open to concessions and serious negotiation. It has been doing so for some time, but the core position remains unchanged: Russia wants Kyiv to surrender.'She predicted Putin might agree to meet Zelensky but noted the Kremlin leader would only accept such a meeting 'if there is a prearranged agenda and predetermined outcomes, which remains difficult to imagine.''The likely scenario is that this peace effort will fail once again,' she said. 'This would be a negative outcome for Ukraine, but it would not deliver Ukraine to Putin on a plate either, at least not in the way he wants it. The conflict, alternating between open warfare and periods of simmering tension, appears likely to persist for the foreseeable future.'
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Thousands protest in Tel Aviv against Israeli govt move to expand Gaza war
Thousands took to the streets in Tel Aviv on Saturday to call for an end to the war in Gaza, a day after the Israeli government vowed to expand the conflict and capture Gaza City. Demonstrators waved signs and held up pictures of hostages still being held in the Palestinian territory as they called on the government to secure their release. For the latest updates on the Israel-Palestine conflict, visit our dedicated page. AFP journalists at the rally estimated the number of attendees to be in the tens of thousands, while a group representing the families of hostages said as many as 100,000 people participated. Authorities did not provide an official estimate for the size of the crowd, though it dwarfed other recent anti-war rallies. 'We will end with a direct message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: if you invade parts of Gaza and the hostages are murdered, we will pursue you in the town squares, in election campaigns and at every time and place,' Shahar Mor Zahiro, the relative of a slain hostage, told AFP. On Friday, Netanyahu's security cabinet greenlighted plans for a major operation to seize Gaza City, triggering a wave of domestic and international criticism. Foreign powers, including some of Israel's allies, have been pushing for a negotiated ceasefire to secure the hostages' return and help alleviate a humanitarian crisis in the Strip. Despite the backlash and rumors of dissent from Israeli military top brass, Netanyahu has remained defiant over the decision. In a post on social media late Friday, Netanyahu said 'we are not going to occupy Gaza -- we are going to free Gaza from Hamas.' The premier has faced regular protests over the course of 22 months of war, with many rallies calling for the government to strike a deal after past truces saw hostages exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody. Out of 251 hostages captured during Hamas's 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the military says are dead. 'A new crime' The Palestinian Authority (PA) on Saturday lambasted Israel's plan to expand its operations in Gaza. According to a statement carried by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, PA president Mahmoud Abbas said the plan 'constitutes a new crime,' and stressed 'the urgent need to take action to stop it immediately.' He also emphasized 'the importance of enabling the State of Palestine to assume its full responsibilities in the Gaza Strip.' In the same meeting that approved the Gaza City plan, the security cabinet adopted a set of principles for ending the war in Gaza that included establishing a new 'administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority.' The PA, conceived as a first step towards a Palestinian state, exercises limited administration over parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, but does not have a presence in Gaza. A statement issued Saturday by the foreign ministers of Italy, Australia, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom again criticized the decision to occupy Gaza City. 'This will exacerbate the catastrophic humanitarian situation, endanger the lives of hostages, and increase the risk of a mass exodus of civilians,' they said. Russia also condemned the Israeli plan to take control of Gaza City in a statement Saturday. Implementing such plans 'risks worsening the already dramatic situation in the Palestinian enclave, which shows all the signs of a humanitarian disaster,' said a foreign ministry statement. Gaza's civil defense agency said at least 37 people were killed by Israeli fire across the territory on Saturday, including 30 civilians who were waiting to collect aid. Israel's offensive has killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, figures the United Nations says are reliable. Hamas's 2023 attack on Israel -- which triggered the war -- resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
