DAWN Editorials - 5th August 2025

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No sporting spirit
IT was high time Pakistan made itself heard. India’s continuous mixing of sports — cricket in particular — with politics came to a head during the World Championship of Legends, which concluded on Sunday. Having refused to play a group game during the tournament for retired players, India also declined to take the pitch for the semi-final against Pakistan on the pretext of strained ties. By announcing the ban on Pakistan’s participation in future WCL matches, the Mohsin Naqvi-led Pakistan Cricket Board has taken the right step. The PCB’s dissent is rooted in the fact that points were shared between India and Pakistan for the called-off group game, despite the former country having forfeited the clash. The PCB stated that the press releases announcing the cancellation of the games were tainted with “hypocrisy and bias”. The WCL had said that the India-Pakistan semi-final had been called off keeping in mind the “public sentiment”. The PCB indicated that it had been done only to appease India and that the WCL had succumbed to a “specific nationalistic narrative”. Despite their skirmishes in May, Pakistan has been open to playing against India according to the arrangements of the International Cricket Council. The PCB has advocated the separation of sports and politics and the Pakistan Champions team also had no qualms over taking on India. After all, the two nations have been squaring off in other sports. Last month, Pakistan beat India on their way to winning the Asian Under-16 Volleyball Championship.

Cricket, however, brings out India’s negative side; their players apparently stated they ‘were not comfortable’ playing against Pakistan. They only made it as far as the semi-final thanks to the wrongfully awarded point against Pakistan. The PCB’s firm line over the WCL comes after Mr Naqvi, as chief of the Asian Cricket Council, convinced the Indian hosts to hold the Asia Cup in the UAE. One hopes the tournament goes ahead without drama, although India’s cricket board has faced backlash for agreeing to hold it. Earlier, cricket helped Pakistan and India build bridges. But with India continuously burning those bridges, the PCB is right to take a firm stand.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2025

On the right track
WITH the multibillion dollar ML-I project — a key part of the CPEC initiative aimed at upgrading the railway line between Karachi and Peshawar — making no headway, the government seems to have renewed its attempts to rehabilitate the decaying rail structure from its own pocket. According to a Pakistan Railways official, the department plans to invest Rs12bn on rehabilitating its tracks as well as improving signalling and communication systems during FY26. Additionally, the authorities intend to spend Rs10bn on the repair and maintenance of the rolling stock. During the last couple of years, the government has repaired and replaced the tracks in Sukkur Division, where most derailments and accidents have taken place in recent times. Last year, it spent Rs22bn from the federal development programme on railway infrastructure repair and replacement to revive the long-neglected rail sector. Besides federal funds, PR authorities are also using a part of their revenues for infrastructure.

This is a welcome development; the dilapidated railway infrastructure, especially the decrepit tracks, has been responsible for dozens of fatal train accidents and hundreds of derailments. The investment is showing in the declining number of accidents and derailments. However, the federal funds being allocated for railway work are a mere fraction of what needs to be invested to provide safe and comfortable travel facilities to millions of low-income passengers, particularly for longer destinations. The operational improvements and enhanced freight activity, due to better infrastructure, have also resulted in increased railway revenues, which are said to have climbed from Rs45bn in 2018-19 to Rs93bn in the last fiscal. That said, the railways’ sustainable turnaround will depend on the complete modernisation of the infrastructure as envisaged under the ML-I plan and privatisation. The department needs to be bifurcated into separate entities and companies — each responsible for providing different services — while encouraging private investment in freight and passenger train operations. The one-off expenditure spikes and initiatives such as the Business Express train service recently inaugurated by the prime minister, or temporary boosts in freight traffic, can accomplish only so much. Much work remains if PR is to shed its reputation for poor safety standards, inefficient services and financial haemorrhaging. The sooner it is done the better.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2025


Pezeshkian’s visit
THE focus of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s visit to Pakistan, which wrapped up on Sunday, was trade and security, and the challenge before Tehran and Islamabad remains translating the many deals and MoUs signed during the talks into concrete agreements.

This is mainly so because of the poor relations between the US and Iran, particularly the former’s sanctions that threaten any state wishing to expand ties with Tehran. The visit is significant as it comes after the June Iran-Israel war, in which the US also participated, and at a time when geopolitical alliances are shifting rapidly.

Dr Pezeshkian and his delegation met the top civilian and military leaders of the country. Among the matters discussed was the bloodbath in Gaza; the Iranian leader also appreciated Pakistan’s support during the Israeli aggression.


Dr Pezeshkian expressed his desire to raise bilateral trade to $10bn, while the need to jointly combat terrorism, especially along the border in Balochistan, was also discussed. The Iranians further sought to join Pakistan and China in expanding regional trade as part of the Silk Road initiative. At least 12 MoUs and deals were signed covering various sectors. Of course, the elephant in the room is US sanctions; unless both sides address this irritant, it will be difficult to achieve the economic goals both Pakistan and Iran desire.

Perhaps the biggest casualty of foreign sanctions has been the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline; Tehran has completed the project at its end, while Pakistan is wary of finalising the scheme lest it attract Washington’s wrath.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif promised an “early resolution” to the pipeline issue when he was in Iran in May, but the issue did not come up during the Iranian leader’s visit, at least not publicly. It appears that Pakistan is willing to import petroleum from the US in order to satisfy the Trump administration, and is not willing to import Iranian gas for fear of annoying the US. Unless the pipeline imbroglio is settled amicably, without fear of foreign pressure, Pakistan may have to fight an ugly arbitration battle, which will harm ties with Iran.

Along with trade, militant groups reportedly active on both sides of the border must be neutralised so that they are unable to damage ties. In 2024, due to the malign activities of armed non-state actors, both capitals traded missile fire; thankfully, the issue was resolved before things could escalate.

But it serves as a reminder of how militant groups can create highly volatile situations. Pakistan indeed must walk a tightrope between Washington and Tehran. But while we must maintain good ties with the US, it is essential to have cordial relations with a neighbour with whom we share a long border, and a long history.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2025