Pakistan-India tensions force tourists to give up exploring Neelum Valley

Tensions between Pakistan and India have forced many tourists to give up their trip to the famous Neelum Valley in the Pakistan-administered part of Kashmir.

Neelum Valley is vulnerable to military operations as it is located less than three kilometers away from the Line of Control, which is deemed the border dividing the India-controlled and Pakistan controlled parts of Kashmir.

Many tourists had to halt their trip at the popular Dhani Waterfall as local authorities issued a ban on entering the Neelum Valley, disappointing those who had long been eager for the tourist attraction and driven for hours to get there.

"Firstly, they shouldn't have let the tourists enter Kashmir from Kohala. It wasted a lot of their time. Now they are asking them to turn from the Neelum checkpost," said Mubashir Ali, a local resident.

The security concerns have also emptied guest houses and hotels in the valley, affecting local tourism and people's livelihood a lot.

Tensions between the two South Asian neighbors have escalated following a deadly attack on tourists in the India-controlled Kashmir town of Pahalgam on April 22, in which at least 25 people were killed, according to Indian media reports.

India has accused Pakistan of involvement in the attack, an allegation Pakistan has strongly denied.

On April 23, the Indian government announced several measures against Pakistan, including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, border closure, and the expulsion of Pakistani personnel.

India's Ministry of External Affairs announced on April 24 that it would suspend all categories of visas for Pakistani nationals starting immediately, and advised Indian citizens against traveling to Pakistan.

In response, Pakistan announced countermeasures against India on April 24, including closing down the Wagah Border Post, suspending certain visa facilities for Indian nationals, declaring the Indian Defense, Naval and Air Advisors in Islamabad persona non grata, closing Pakistan's airspace for all Indian airlines, and suspending all trade activities with India.

Pakistan-India tensions force tourists to give up exploring Neelum Valley

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's official visit to China signals a policy shift towards building a more pragmatic relationship between the two countries, according to a Canadian researcher.

Carney arrived in Beijing on Wednesday to begin an official visit to China through Saturday, which marks the first trip by a Canadian Prime Minister to the country in eight years.

Robert Hanlon, director and principal investigator of Canada and the Asia Pacific Policy Project (CAPPP) at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, told the China Global Television Network (CGTN) that Carney's visit indicates Canada is recalibrating its strategic perception of China, which could cement the foundation for the country's economic diversification efforts and boost the development of bilateral cooperation.

"I think it's a clear message that he has moved Canada's strategy to a much more pragmatic, interest-based, -focused relationship with our trading partners, moving away from values-based narratives that we might have heard on previous governments. Canada has spoken about moving from what the Prime Minister's Office is calling "from reliance to resilience", and that means diversifying our economies and our trade everywhere in the world. And so China being our second largest trading partner, it makes perfect sense for our PM to head to Beijing," he said.

The scholar also noted the huge cooperation potential between the two sides in economic and trade fields, citing Canada's efforts to step up shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and the planned construction of an oil pipeline in Alberta which aims to increase export access to Asian markets. "Canada and China both share tremendous economic opportunities together and so finding ways to enhance our exports. Canada specifically looking to build out its LNG and oil, kind of export market. We know Canada is a major producer of critical minerals and China is a buyer. And so there's a lot of synergy between that kind of those kind of markets," he said.

Canadian PM's visit to China paves way for more pragmatic trade ties: scholar