• PM to attend military parade in Beijing alongside President Xi.
• Premier scheduled to interact with Chinese businessmen.
• PM to address Pakistan-China B2B Investment Conference.
  

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will undertake a visit to China from August 30 to September 4 to attend the 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State Summit in Tianjin.

According to a statement issued by the Foreign Office, the premier will hold meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang to discuss various aspects of bilateral cooperation.

He will also attend a military parade in Beijing, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the World’s Anti-Fascist War, alongside President Xi and other world leaders.

The prime minister is further scheduled to interact with leading Chinese businessmen and executives to enhance trade, investment, and economic ties, and address the Pakistan-China B2B Investment Conference in Beijing.

The Foreign Office said the visit is part of high-level exchanges aimed at deepening the “All Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership,” advancing the second phase of CPEC, and maintaining regular communication on key regional and global issues.

The three-day important 25th meeting of SCO Heads of States is planned for 31 August, September 1 and 2.

This year’s summit will be the largest since the SCO was founded in 2001, a Chinese foreign ministry official said last week, calling the bloc an “important force in building a new type of international relations”.

Among the attendees at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, set to take place in the northern port city of Tianjin from August 31 to September 1, will be Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alongside leaders from Central Asia, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

The theme of this year’s meeting will be, “Upholding the Shanghai Spirit: SCO on the Move.” The annual event is likely to focus on key discussions on regional security, economic cooperation, trade and the SCO’s long-term strategic direction and way forward.

The security-focused bloc, which began as a group of six Eurasian nations, has expanded to 10 permanent members and 16 dialogue and observer countries in recent years. Its remit has also enlarged from security and counter-terrorism to economic and military cooperation. 

Julia Roberts came forward to defend Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt while tackling tough “MeToo” questions.

For the unversed, the 57-year-old American actress defended her new film After the Hunt at a press conference in Venice by answering tough questions about the movie’s message on “MeToo” and cancel culture.

In the forthcoming movie, Roberts plays the role of a college professor, Alma Olsson, who finds herself at a crucial stage of life as her student (Edebiri) accuses her colleague Henrik Gibson, played by Andrew Garfield, and a pal of crossing a line.

The Notting Hill star brushed aside a question about whether After the Hunt was sabotaging the feminist movement. The journalist claimed the film has “caused controversy” among the festivalgoers, as they felt it “revives old arguments” about believing women who do not confine themselves in a room after being s**ually assaulted but rather speak up.

Instead of answering the question, Roberts stated she wants the movie to help initiate difficult conversations.

With a laugh, she said, “Not to be disagreeable, because it’s not in my nature, but the thing you said that I love is it ‘revives old arguments.’ I don’t think it’s just reviving an argument of women being pitted against each other or not supporting each other. There are a lot of old arguments that get rejuvenated that creates conversation.”

The Oscar winner added, “The best part of your question is that you all came out of the theater talking about it. That’s how we wanted it to feel. You realize what you believe in strongly because we stir it all up for you. So, you’re welcome.”

Roberts went on to deny claims that the film was trying to stir controversy, emphasising that society is “losing the art of conversation in humanity right now.”

“We’re not making statements; we are portraying these people in this moment in time. I don’t know about controversy, per se, but we are challenging people to have conversation. To be excited or infuriated about it is up to you. If making this movie does anything, getting everybody to talk to each other is the most exciting thing that I think we could accomplish,” she quipped.

Before concluding, it is pertinent to mention that After the Hunt will be released on October 10, 2025.

Timothee Chalamet is THE star on the set of Dune 3 in Hungary and takes full advantage of his power, per an insider.

Being the lead star of the Dune franchise, the hunk works hard, but he also parties hard during his downtime. However, his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, is thousands of miles away in the U.S.

An insider told Radar Online that the actor is the King on set, adding, “But he’s trying to be a benevolent one and has no problem charming and joking with every woman on the set because that just comes naturally to him.”

His on-set banter serves to “lighten the mood around the scenes he’s shooting, where his character Paul has taken an extremely dark and menacing turn.”

And yet, the Wonka star’s partying is without the watchful eye of Khy founder Kylie.

“Timmy is working 18-hour days to get this thing in the can, but he’s also partying hard with his fellow young cast and crew members whenever they have a stretch of free time,” revealed the mole.

“He’s a ‘work hard, play hard’ guy through and through, and that goes double when he’s on the other side of the world from Kylie,” they added.

The insider also claimed that since the 29-year-old is the lead in the film, he’s “as important on set as a Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt.”

“As likable as Timmy is, it’s a little weird for an actor that young to have so much power,” the source remarked.

Timothee Chalamet and Kylie Jenner have been linked since April 2023 and have flaunted their relationship at the Golden Globes and more awards.