Author: Arif ArifArman

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Think20 (T20) Summit began in Mysuru on Monday with a plenary panel that brought together members of the T20 India Core Group and its International Advisory Board. The T20 is an official engagement group of the G20 and serves as an “ideas bank” for the G20 by bringing together think tanks and high-level experts to deliberate on relevant policy issues. Observer Research Foundation (ORF) is serving as the T20 Secretariat during India’s Presidency of the G20.Samir Saran, Chair, T20 India Secretariat and President, ORF opened the proceedings by drawing attention to the highlights of the T20’s interventions…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Joining China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project four years ago was a “hasty and disastrous” decision. This statement is from the Minister of Defense of Italy. An interview with Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto was published on Sunday, in which he said China’s involvement in the project was a “disastrous decision.” He also explained the reason for this and said that this decision did not increase the country’s exports. Guido Crosetto told the Corriere della Sera newspaper, “The decision to join the New Silk Road was a hasty and disastrous step.” Although China’s exports to Italy increased…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Two police personnel escorting a polio vaccination team were killed on Tuesday when armed men opened fire on them in Quetta’s Nawa Killi region, Dawn reported citing police. The attack on police personnel comes on the first day of a week-long campaign to administer the polio vaccination to approximately 2.6 million children under five years of age in Balochistan. Zarghoonabad Station House Officer (SHO) Asif Marwat has confirmed the casualties. Marwat identified the deceased as Constable Shaukat Ali and Syed Muhammad, according to Dawn. The SHO said that members of the polio team were not injured in the…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Athangmora Lhakhang, a revered sanctuary, lies in the pristine landscapes of Athang Gewog, nestled within the breathtaking beauty of Bhutan’s mountains, Bhutan Live reported. The sacred monastery carries with it a rich tapestry of legends, miracles, and historical significance, woven into the fabric of the nation’s cultural heritage. The roots of Athangmora Lhakhang are traced back to the revered Terton Pema Lingpa, a legendary figure in Bhutanese history known for his profound spiritual discoveries. The monastery shares a close association with Gangtey Goenpa, a renowned Buddhist monastery in the region. According to ancient tales, Guru Rinpoche, the Padmasambhava,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Jammu and Kashmir is set to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2023. The Jammu and Kashmir administration can proudly claim that it has achieved extraordinary success in its effort to build better roads in the Union Territory. Within the last four years, there has been a revolutionary change in the construction of roads, bridges in Jammu and Kashmir. Roads under construction in villages for years, which were abandoned after earth cutting or were tried to be made passable by laying mud and barge, but in these four years, standard blacktopping…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The cooperation between India and Japan continues to deepen over time as the two nations share historical linkages with exchanges between the two countries being traced to the 6th century when Buddhism was introduced in Japan. As both nations deal with the challenges provided by an aggressive China in the Asian region, India’s political ties to Japan have grown significantly over the past few decades. The commitment of India and Japan to a free and open Indo-Pacific, boosting economic cooperation, and encouraging people-to-people interactions is highlighted by their most recent strategic discussion. Their reinforced partnership, which marks a…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: A new dawn of development is now set in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. The abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, which had conferred ‘special status’ on Jammu & Kashmir, has led to “unprecedented development, progress, security and stability to the region. People now believe that things have changed for good in J&K after the abrogation of Article 370. Jammu and Kashmir has received a significant boost in industrial development after 2019 with the submission of 5,973 proposals from both domestic and international industrial houses, amounting to a total investment…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The defence minister of Italy has referred to his country’s choice to join a major Chinese infrastructure project Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as “wicked.” The present Italian Government is considering whether to keep participating in the scheme, CNN reported. Italy’s defence minister Guido Crosetto, in an interview with Corriere della Sera newspaper on Sunday, claimed that the BRI project, which Italy signed up for under its former government, has not done anything to boost the nation’s exports. Beijing’s international infrastructure investment programme, known as the BRI, a term established by China’s Xi Jinping in 2013, was created…

INTERNATIONAL DESK:Investment NSW, in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Consul General of India (CGI) in Sydney, Business NSW and the Australia India Business Council (AIBC) recently organised a multi-city roadshow to present the opportunities for exporters resulting from the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA). During the roadshow conducted across Sydney CBD, Parramatta, New Castle and Wollongong, industry stakeholders, government representatives and NSW businesses informed exporters how to navigate and maximise the benefits of Australia’s free trade agreement with India. The speakers at the Parramatta edition of the roadshow included Lord Mayor of Parramatta,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Victoria’s best and brightest from 2022 were recognised for excelling in one or more subjects as the state’s top-performing VCE students of 2022 at the Premier’s VCE Awards. The top performing students received their Premier’s VCE Awards during a prestigious ceremony at the Melbourne Convention Centre – in front of their families and 1000 guests. A total of 300 students received 331 awards across 88 subjects: including 294 Study Awards, 34 Top All-Round VCE High Achiever Awards and three Top International Student Awards. The Top All-Round VCE High Achiever awards recognise those students who achieved study scores of…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday expressed his gratitude to the US government for returning over 100 rare and ancient artefacts to India. “A few days ago, social media was abuzz with the news that America had returned over 100 rare and ancient artefacts to India. These artefacts are anywhere between 250 and 2500 years old. These rare and precious items belong to different regions of the country,” PM Modi said during the 103rd episode of his monthly radio broadcast – ‘Mann Ki Baat’ – on Sunday. “I would like to thank the US Government for returning these…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Indian High Commission in Singapore on Sunday said the launch of 7 satellites by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) marks another milestone in the Space partnership between the two countries. “India-Singapore space partnership marks another milestone with the launch of 7 Singaporean satellites by Indian space agency ISRO today,” the Indian High Commission in Singapore tweeted on Sunday. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Sunday launched PSLV-C56 carrying seven satellites, including the primary satellite DS-SAR and six co-passenger satellites, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota. The launch vehicle lifted off from Sriharikota at…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: US and Australia on Saturday agreed to further cooperate with India, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines and Korea to ensure the security and stability of the Indo-Pacific at the 33rd Australia-US Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN). Officials from the two countries on Saturday met in Brisbane. The US delegation was led by Secretary of Defense, Lloyd J Austin, and Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. The Australian delegation included Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Penny Wong. During the meeting, the two countries reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing interoperability with the militaries of the Pacific through…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Bhutan’s Foreign Secretary, Aum Pema Choden, on the final day of her two-day India visit, called on External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. The two held discussions on India’s support for Bhutan’s development aspirations. “Pleased to receive Foreign Secretary Aum Pema Choden of Bhutan after the India-Bhutan Development Cooperation Talks this evening. Discussed our support for Bhutan’s development aspirations,” tweeted Jaishankar. At the invitation of Kwatra, she paid an official visit to India from July 28 to 29. The Bhutan’s foreign secretary met Jaishankar after co-chairing India-Bhutan Development Cooperation Talks with her Indian counterpart Vinay Kwatra. Kwatra discussed with…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: A senior official in the Pakistan government has admitted that Pakistani smugglers are using drones to smuggle illicit drugs, mostly heroin into Indian territory. Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, the Special Assistant on Defence to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made these remarks to Hamid Mir, a journalist associated with Pakistan’s Geo News. Mir has posted a video on his Twitter handle of the interview with Khan, who is also the Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) representing Kasur city, which borders the state of Punjab in India. The Pakistani journalist tweeted on July 17, “Big disclosure by PM’s advisor…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Working towards the dream of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Jammu and Kashmir government led by the Lieutenant Governor has taken many steps both small and big to bring the valley’s people closer to the government. According to a statement, after 2019, J-K has witnessed profound ameliorative, affirmative and progressive changes in the last four years encompassing its entire governance — including development activities, public administration and security matters. “Besides this, Jammu and Kashmir have witnessed a sharp decline in unemployment, and a drastic improvement in employment”, a press release said. With sustainable and inclusive development initiatives taken by…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan on Friday attended the Maldives Independence Day reception hosted by its High Commission in Delhi. He noted that India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and Maldives’ India First policies are in sync. Taking to his official Twitter handle, Muraleedharan stated, “Happy to join The Maldives’ Independence Day reception hosted by its HC in New Delhi Conveyed my greetings to HC H.E. Ibrahim Shaheeb, government & people of India’s Neighbourhood First & Maldives’ India First policies are in sync, elevating the relationship to higher level.” On Wednesday, External Affairs Minister S…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China’s military may be planning to build a host of overseas naval bases, as it hopes to protect shipping routes and strengthen its ability to resist sanctions from the US and its allies, analysis has found. Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Bata in Equatorial Guinea and Gwadar in Pakistan are the three most likely locations for a Chinese naval base to be established in the next two to five years, according to an analysis by AidData, a US-based research institute, published on Wednesday. The report’s authors considered the amount of development financing issued by Chinese state-owned banks to port…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi has met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in New Delhi and the two countries have started coordinating their positions in an attempt to frame a consensus document for the Summit of the G20 leaders, sources have told The Indian Express. Japan’s role is crucial since it currently chairs the G7 grouping which has been the most vocal over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As the G20 chair, India is working with Japan and other G7 countries on the one side, and Russia-China on the other side to formulate the G20 leaders’ declaration in Delhi.…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In a move to enhance connectivity in the northeastern region of India, Indian Railways has allocated substantial investments for infrastructure development. Recently, the Railway Board granted approval for the Final Location Survey (FLS) of the Zubza (Nagaland)–Imphal (Manipur) new rail line project, spanning 140 km. The new Zubza–Imphal rail line project will establish direct connectivity between the states of Nagaland and Manipur. When completed, the project is expected to boost mobility of railway traffic, benefiting both passenger and freight services, an official release from Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) stated. NFR stated that the reduced time, cost, and distance…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Micron Technology Chief Sanjay Mehrotra called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday and discussed plans to bolster the semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem within India. The Micron Technology Chief met the Prime Minister in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar. He is in India to attend the three-day ‘SemiconIndia 2023’ conference, which kicked off here on Friday. The conference, its second edition, organised by India Semiconductor Mission in partnership with industry and industry associations, is aimed to make India a global hub for semiconductor design, manufacturing and technology development. SemiconIndia was held in Bengaluru last year. The theme of the Conference is ‘Catalysing…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that Japan has had a huge impact on India and in many ways, Japan is an “exemplary moderniser’ for India. Speaking at the India-Japan Forum in the presence of Yoshimasa Hayashi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Jaishankar said: “What really does Japan means to India? Japan is in many ways the exemplary moderniser… It is an example of relevance. It’s also a country for which there is a lot of goodwill in history. Today under PM Modi, we also had great modernisation. A self-reliant India.” Japan is a natural…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India and Britain could sign a free trade agreement (FTA) this year as both countries have reached consensus on the broad contours of the proposed deal aiming to boost economic growth and jobs, a top trade ministry official said. “We want to finalise the deal at the earliest,” Sunil Barthwal, India’s commerce secretary, told reporters on Friday. He said that on almost all contentious issues, negotiations were completed, and the deal could be signed “much before” the end of the year. India sees an FTA with Britain as crucial to hopes of becoming a bigger exporter, while the…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that India’s G20 Presidency has witnessed country’s focusing attention on pressing challenges faced by humanity, particularly developing nations. Jaishankar made the remarks a day after his speech in the Rajya Sabha was disrupted due to the protest of the opposition leaders. He issued a 21-minute statement on the recent developments of India’s foreign policy on Friday. “The ongoing G20 Presidency has witnessed our focusing attention on the pressing challenges faced by humanity, especially developing countries. This included Mission LiFE for empowering climate friendly lifestyles and the popularization of Millets to…