US President Donald Trump announced that his administration has signed an agreement with Pakistan under which Washington will cooperate with Islamabad in developing the South Asian country's oil reserves, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
“We have just signed an agreement with Pakistan under which Pakistan and the United States will cooperate in developing the country's vast oil reserves“, Trump wrote on social media.
“We are currently in the process of selecting the oil company that will lead this partnership“, he added.
Trump's post did not provide further details about the US-Pakistan agreement. The Pakistani embassy in Washington has not yet commented on the report, Reuters reported.
Last week, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the United States and Pakistan were "very close" to a trade deal that could be concluded within days after meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday.
Under Trump, Washington has been trying to renegotiate trade agreements with many countries that he has threatened with tariffs for what he says are unfair trade practices. A number of economists dispute Trump's claims.
The U.S. State Department and Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in separate statements after Rubio's meeting with Dar last week that the two high-ranking diplomats stressed the importance of expanding trade between the two countries, as well as ties in the critical minerals and mining sectors.
The United States has imposed sanctions on Brazilian Supreme Court judge Alessandri de Morais, accusing him of ordering arbitrary pretrial detentions and suppressing freedom of expression, Reuters reported.
Morais is leading the case against former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is accused of plotting a coup. U.S. President Donald Trump has linked the new tariffs he imposed on Brazil to what he called a "witch hunt" against its right-wing ally.
The US Treasury Department's statement last night followed a statement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in June, in which he said that Washington was considering imposing sanctions on the judge.
Morais was sanctioned under the “Magnitsky“ Act, which allows the US to impose economic sanctions on foreigners it believes have engaged in corruption or human rights abuses.
“Alicandri de Morais has taken on the role of judge and jury in an illegal witch hunt against US and Brazilian citizens and companies“, US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said in a statement.
He said Morais “is responsible for a repressive campaign that included censorship, arbitrary detentions that violated human rights, and politicized persecution – including against former President Jair Bolsonaro“.
In response to the information about the sanctions imposed by the United States, Brazil's Supreme Court said it would not deviate from its role of protecting the country's constitution and laws. In a statement, the court expressed solidarity with Morais and said that the handling of crimes related to serious attacks on democracy in Brazil is the exclusive competence of the country's judiciary.
Morais recently ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle tracker and stop using social media due to allegations that the former president tried to persuade Trump to interfere in the case.
Earlier this month, Washington escalated tensions with the government of Latin America's largest economy by imposing visa restrictions on Morais, his family and other unnamed judicial officials.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva condemned the measure as "arbitrary" and "unfounded", saying that foreign interference in Brazil's judiciary "is unacceptable". He added that the US actions violate the fundamental principles between nations of respect and sovereignty.
The US measures are in response to a decision by Brazil's Supreme Court to issue search warrants and restrictive measures against Bolsonaro, who is accused of plotting a coup to overturn the results of the 2022 election, which he lost.
In a mid-July letter in which Trump announced a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods, effective August 1, he began his message by criticizing Bolsonaro's trial.
Bolsonaro himself denies leading an attempt to overthrow the government, but admits to having participated in meetings aimed at changing the outcome of the election.