In Iranian waters, a strange trade is taking place — Pakistani fishermen exchange subsidised Iranian fuel for high-value tuna, a barter system now under threat from escalating United States-Iran tensions. Shah Zamin Khan is among thousands of Pakistani tuna traders whose lucrative business has been at a near standstill since February, when the war between the US, Israel and Iran began. The recent targeting of Iranian seaports by Washington has made matters worse. Iran's southern ports of Konarak, Pasabandar and Beris, which border Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province and serve as key fish trade hubs, are among the sites targeted by US airstrikes in recent weeks. "Our businesses were already affected by the war but the recent targeting of Iranian seaports have turned the region into a no-go area for us over the past one month," Khan told Anadolu. Boat owners, according to Khan, have completely stopped sending their vessels to the Iranian ports fo...
North Korea said it tested its new strategic cruise missile on Wednesday, state media KCNA reported on Thursday, confirming what the South Korean military said the day before. The missile dubbed "Pulhwasal-3-31" is currently under development and the test-firing had no impact on the security of neighbouring countries, the state media said, adding it had "nothing" to do with the regional situation. The test was also part of the process of updating the country's weapon system, the report said, citing The Missile Administration. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it believed the firing was to test upgrades of existing missiles' capabilities. On Wednesday, the South Korean military said the North had fired multiple cruise missiles towards the sea off its west coast at around 7 a.m. (2200 GMT on Tuesday) while Seoul's defence minister, Shin Won-sik, condemned the launches as a serious threat to his country. "Strategic" typically refers to nuclear-capable weapons. Read North Korea says tests underwater nuclear drone, criticises US-led joint drills North Korea carried out its first test of a cruise missile with possible nuclear strike capabilities in September 2021. On Thursday, South Korea said it was starting mass production of medium-altitude reconnaissance drones with the goal of deploying them in 2027 to improve surveillance capabilities and contribute to defence exports. North Korea's cruise missiles usually generate less interest than ballistic missiles because they are not explicitly banned by any U.N. Nations Security Council resolutions. But analysts have said intermediate-range, land-attack cruise missiles were no less a threat than ballistic missiles and are a serious capability for North Korea. Cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles that can be armed with either conventional or nuclear bombs are seen as particularly destabilising in the event of conflict as it can be unclear which kind of warhead they are carrying.
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