US - Pakistan relationship

[ghazi52]

TP-Link, a router brand made in China that is a best-seller on Amazon, became the subject of some US political anxiety last year after a spate of cyberattacks.

Any new router made outside the US will now need to be approved by the FCC before it can be imported, marketed, or sold in the country.

In order to get that approval, companies manufacturing routers outside the US must apply for conditional approval in a process that will require the disclosure of the firm's foreign investors or influence, as well as a plan to bring the manufacturing of the routers to the US.

Certain routers may be exempted from the list if they are deemed acceptable by the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security, the FCC said. Neither agency has yet added any specific routers to its list of equipment exceptions.

The FCC's move follows a decision on Friday by government agencies working on national security that internet routers made overseas "posed unacceptable risks" to the US.

Those risks include potentially far-reaching impacts to the American supply chain, and the possibility of a cybersecurity attack that could disrupt infrastructure or cause harm to people, according to a summary of the decision.

The FCC noted that malicious access to routers was involved in three cyberattacks - referred to as Volt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon - aimed at US infrastructure between 2024 and 2025.

 

[ghazi52]

US government investigations into those attacks blamed actors within, or working on behalf of, the Chinese government.

The vast majority of Internet routers are assembled or manufactured outside of the US, often in Taiwan or China.

The FCC ban applies even if a router is designed in the US, but built abroad.

Popular brands of router in the US include Netgear, a US company, which manufactures all of its products abroad.

One exception to the general absence of US-made routers is the newer Starlink WiFi router. Starlink is part of Elon Musk's company SpaceX.

The company says the Starlink routers are made in Texas.

 

[ghazi52]

Trump strikes positive tone on Iran negotiations, but lacks clarity on specifics
​

Bernd Debusmann Jr
BBC Reporting from the White House

Donald Trump struck an optimistic tone in the Oval Office just now, doubling down on negotiations and publicly suggesting that this conflict will end through negotiations.

From a purely military standpoint, Trump clearly believes the US has already prevailed, saying the war "has been won" and blaming any ongoing questions about that on the media.

For the first time, we heard Trump directly confirm that Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are taking part in negotiations.

Who they are negotiating with, however, remains unclear, as does the substance of the negotiations or any clarity on how far along they are.

Trump has also not, so far, publicly specified what exactly he wants from the Iranians as far as concessions, other than a firm commitment - which he says the US has - that Iran will abandon its nuclear weapons programme.

Other US war aims - such as an end to Iran's support for proxy organisations in the Middle East or an end to its ballistic programme - garnered little mention.

Importantly, Trump also made no mention of Israel, or how a negotiated settlement would support their own military and geopolitical objectives in the region.

 

[ghazi52]

President Trump on Iran: We're in negotiations right now

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[ghazi52]

Key takeaways from Trump's update on Iran war

Trump said his administration was "talking to the right people" in Iran, and "they want to make a deal so badly". He also said Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are involved in the discussions.

The president said the Iranian regime have agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon - a claim he has made before. He also said strikes on Tehran have led to "regime change".

He hinted at a "very significant prize" gifted to the US by Iranian negotiators, adding it was related to oil and gas, and the Strait of Hormuz. No further detail was given.

Asked how hopeful he was that a peace deal with Iran would work, Trump responded: "This war has been won". Though as our White House reporter noted, there was little mention of how the war could actually end.

 

[Distant_Observer]

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[ghazi52]

The more Trump says Iran is desperate for a deal, the less inclined Iran is to agree
​

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent in Doha

When one side, the US, says there are ongoing negotiations and the other side, Iran, says "no there are not", then who to believe?

Here in Qatar, a country that has a close defence and security alliance with the US, and also until a month ago, a good working relationship with Iran, government officials have stressed they are not part of any ongoing search for a US-Iran deal.

Qatar hosts the largest US base in the region at Al-Udeid, just outside the capital Doha, but publicly argued against attacking Iran in the run-up to this war.

“We talk to the Americans every day,” says Qatar Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid al-Ansari. “But our priorities are right now to protect and defend our territory”.

There are active diplomatic channels running between Washington and countries in the wider region – Turkey, Pakistan and Egypt – which in turn can pass on messages to Iran.

That is not the same as negotiations. The continued existence of the Islamic Republic regime has emboldened its members and its demands.

It now expects to retain more control over the vital Strait of Hormuz than it did before. But the more the White House tells the world that Iran is desperate for a deal, the less inclined Iran is to make one.

 

[Distant_Observer]

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[ghazi52]

Iran rejects US 15-point peace plan, state media report​

Paulin Kola

Reuters

A lot of damage has been caused across Iran

Iran has rejected US President Donald Trump's 15-point plan to end the war, according to state-run Press TV.

It cited an unknown "senior political-security official" laying out five of Tehran's own conditions to bring the conflict to an end, including paying reparations for damage.

They bear no resemblance to Trump's proposals, published by Israel's Channel 12 network after US officials had confirmed their existence. They include Iran committing not to build nuclear weapons and to reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.

 

[ghazi52]

What does Trump's plan contain?​

According to Israel's Channel 12, Iran must fulfil a number of demands for the war to end.

They mostly centre on the main rationale US officials have given for starting the war: to stop the country building nuclear weapons - an allegation that has not been supported and which Iran has always rejected - and to eliminate the threat of its missile programme.

The proposals request that Iran must "commit never to pursue nuclear weapons", pledge to dismantle nuclear facilities and to hand over the enriched amounts of uranium it possesses to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, which is to monitor the issue going forward.

According to the proposals, Iran would agree that its missile programme be limited in range and quantity.

Additionally, Iran would stop funding regional proxies - Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza and the Houthis in Yemen.

Iran would also be required to reopen the Strait of Hormuz so it could function as a "free maritime corridor". Closure of the strait - through which a fifth of the world's oil and gas supplies pass - has sent prices spiking and led to fears of recession in the world economy.

All international sanctions would be lifted on Iran, the plan says.

Full sanctions were reimposed last November after Iran suspended inspections of its nuclear facilities in the wake of Israeli and US bombing of several of its nuclear sites and military bases.

 

[ghazi52]

What are Iran's counter-proposals?​

According to Press TV, Iran has listed five conditions to end the war.

They include a complete halt to "aggression and assassinations by the enemy".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his officials have often said they intend to "cut the head of the octopus". Several top Iranian officials have been killed since the first day of the war when a massive Israeli air strike on Tehran killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Other Iranian conditions include "concrete mechanisms to ensure that the war is not reimposed on the Islamic Republic", though it is unclear what guarantees could be provided and which countries would take part - or monitor their observation.

On the economic front, Iran is also demanding the payment of war damages and reparations, as well as the right to remain solely in charge of the Strait of Hormuz.

Crucially, Tehran wants Israel to end attacks on Iranian allies in the region.

Israel has intensified its campaign against the Hezbollah, announcing on Tuesday that its military would remain in a widened buffer zone inside the country until attacks on northern Israel ceased.

The unnamed official is cited by Press TV as saying these conditions are in addition to demands previously presented by Tehran during negotiations in Geneva, which took place in February, shortly before the war began.

 

[ghazi52]

Is the end of the war in sight?​

Any eventual talks are likely to be led by Trump's peace envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner - the president's son-in-law.

The reported US peace proposals look similar to the model followed by the envoys to end more than two years of fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

If that procedure is to be replicated, a ceasefire would have to be declared to enable negotiators to fine-tune elements of the US-proposed draft.

Israel's Channel 12 said the country's leaders may not be too happy to pause their attacks on Iran at this stage - Netanyahu had similar reservations about a ceasefire during the Gaza negotiations.

Israel's Economy Minister Nir Barkat told the BBC it was unlikely Iran would agree to Trump's terms.

"I believe at the end of this round, we will accomplish the goals, with or without a deal," Barkat said.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c895xljyzewo

 

[ghazi52]

Trump to hit Iran harder if Tehran does not accept defeat, White House says​

Karoline Leavitt says Trump does not bluff and is prepared to unleash hell, warns Iran should not miscalculate again

REUTERS

 

[Fatman17]

‘Very important neutral party’: Pakistan can play greater diplomatic role, says US lawmaker

Pakistan can play more and more of a role in international affairs as a mediator, Congressman Tom Suozzi says.

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Very important neutral party

 

[Fatman17]

https://share.google/w55K13aoeJ45CLFvT

Pakistan gets a seat at the table