Author: Arif ArifArman

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun today said the government is working to promote ship recycling industry to international standard. “Ship recycling industry is a promising sector for Bangladesh. In this industry, Bangladesh has achieved remarkable progress in terms of environmental, occupational and health safety. We are working to promote the industry to international standard,” he said. The minister said this while speaking as the chief guest at the ‘Shipbuilding, Shipbreaking and Green Ship Recycling’ session of the “5th International Marinetech Bangladesh Expo and Dialogue-2023” at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) in the city, said a press…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: India has described as “unacceptable” China issuing stapled visas to some sportspersons from Arunachal Pradesh and asserted that it reserves the right to “suitably respond” to such actions. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said today that India has already lodged its “strong protest” with the Chinese side on the matter. Mr Bagchi said it has come to the government’s notice that stapled visas were issued to some Indian citizens who were to represent the country at an international sporting event in China. “This is unacceptable and we have lodged our strong protest with the Chinese side reiterating…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan has decided to form a high-powered committee, comprising three vice-chancellors and officers from security agencies, to investigate the Islamia University Bahawalpur (IUB) scandal. An official from the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB) was detained by Punjab Police earlier this week, in Pakistan on suspicion of drug abuse. The chief of security at the university was held the day before the arrest for reportedly having crystal meth and offensive recordings and pictures of IUB students and employees, according to a Dawn report. The HEC Chairman Mukhtar Ahmed told the National Assembly Standing…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Pakistan’s Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik said on Thursday that four Pakistani public entities signed three memorandums of understanding to raise the necessary local equity for a multibillion-dollar Saudi refinery project, as well as an engineering, procurement, and construction contract with a Chinese firm, according to Arab News. The USD 12 billion Saudi project, with a capacity of 350,000-450,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was first agreed upon during Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s 2019 visit to Islamabad. Pakistan State Oil, Oil and Gas Development Co., Pakistan Petroleum Ltd., and Government Holdings Private Ltd.…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: With an eye on growing Chinese assertiveness, foreign minister S Jaishankar and his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi in a meeting emphasised the crucial role of strong and enduring partnership between India and Japan in ensuring a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. The two leaders also underlined the importance of achieving the target of JPY 5 trillion Japanese investment in India in the period 2022-27, exploring potential areas of collaboration in critical and emerging technologies, including semiconductors and resilient supply chains. “The ministers also discussed cooperation under multilateral and plurilateral frameworks, including Quad. They agreed on the need…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday made a suo motu statement on “latest developments in India’s foreign policy” in both Houses of Parliament amid sloganeering by Opposition members demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address on the Manipur issue. Listing the overseas engagements by the President, the Vice President and the Prime Minister, Jaishankar said India’s stature has been rising globally and the country is emerging as a “credible and effective” development partner. The minister spoke about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States and the key outcomes of it. He also spoke about the PM’s…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping did discuss the need to stabilise bilateral relations at the G20 summit in Bali last November, a day after China’s foreign ministry claimed that the two leaders reached a “consensus” on the issue at the time. That the two leaders spoke about the border situation at the summit was not mentioned by Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra during his briefing to the press in Bali on 16 November 2022. At a weekly press briefing Thursday, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “During…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In its latest move in the crackdown on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), police raided and sealed the party leader Zulfi Bukhari in Islamabad, however, no arrest was made, ARY News reported on Wednesday. Sources told ARY News that at the time of the raid, Bukhari was not present at his residence. Taking to Twitter, Bukhari said that police and unidentified men raided and sealed his house in the presence of the Assistant Commissioner & Deputy Commissioner. “In an extremely low move, police, CDA & unidentified men raided and sealed my house in the presence of the Assistant Commissioner &…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday morning left here for home wrapping up her visit to Italy. A regular flight of Qatar Airways, carrying the premier and her entourage members, departed Rome Fiumicino Airport at 09:40am local time (01:40pm BST). The flight is scheduled to land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) at 02:05am after making a stopover at Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar. Hasina travelled to Rome on June 23 to attend the United Nations Food Systems Summit+2 Stocktaking Moment (UNFSS+2) at the invitation of the United Nations (UN) Secretary General António Guterres. Some 2000 participants…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Japan’s Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry Nishimura Yasutoshi today said his country would extend full cooperation to Bangladesh in its endeavor to become a high income country by 2041. The Japanese minister discussed areas of cooperation with State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahriar Alam at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka. Earlier, the Japanese minister for economy and trade took a ride on Dhaka’s metro rail. State Minister Alam accompanied him. Nishimura Yasutoshi arrived in Dhaka on July 23 on a two-day official visit. This is the first time that a Japanese minister for economy,…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Amid struggling mandarin farming, some of the farmers have switched to Avocado cultivation in the Gomdar Gewog of Bhutan as an alternative source of income. This comes as the farmers suffered a devastating blow to their mandarin orchards due to a citrus disease outbreak. Moreover, the avocado farming has already started to yield positive results for some of the farmers. Notably Gomdar Gewog in Samdrup Jongkhar, Bhutan Live reported. Mandarin was the main source of income for families in Gomdar Gewog for a long time. However, the citrus greening outbreak wreaked havoc, destroying the crops and causing huge…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The first-ever Global Food Regulators Summit (GFRS) 2023 in the national capital has paved the way for a more robust food safety and regulatory ecosystem, according to an official release. The initiative has garnered global acclaim for its potential to transform and strengthen the world’s food safety systems. The discussion and outcomes of the sessions have laid a strong foundation for collective action in tackling regulatory challenges and ensuring the well-being of consumers worldwide, the statement added. The first technical session of the summit focused on food regulatory systems in different countries, key strategies adopted by food regulators…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: According to a senior official at the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, India has agreed in principle to invest more in the Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project, a move that could pave the way for the development of the mega bilateral project. India agreed to contribute additional funds to the project’s development during the fourth meeting of the team of experts, which was held in New Delhi on Friday and Saturday. India stands to gain more from the project’s development, particularly in the areas of irrigation and flood management. “India has agreed to invest more but we are…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: In honour of Kargil Vijay Diwas, a team of mountaineers from the Indian Army’s Dagger Division achieved a remarkable feat by scaling Mount Kun in record time and performing Yoga at its summit, which stands at an impressive height of 7,077 metres. “The journey commenced on July 8, when the team was flagged off from Baramulla by Maj Gen Rajesh Sethi, SM, VSM, GOC 19 Infantry Division. Setting off from the base camp on July 11, the brave mountaineers led by Col Rajneesh Joshi achieved their long-awaited victory as they summited Mount Kun on the 18th of July…

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday arrived in Rome to attend the UN Food Systems Summit at the invitation of the UN Secretary-General. The three-day summit will open at Italy’s capital city on Monday, July 24. The premier and her entourage flew from Dhaka by a regular flight of Qatar Airways. It landed at Rome Fiumicino Airport at 1:40pm local time (05:40 pm BST). The flight earlier departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) at 05:05am. The summit titled ‘United Nations Food Systems +2 Stocktaking Moment’ (UNFSS+2) will be held at the Headquarters of Food and Agriculture Organization…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: China ordered its largest cities to step up preparations for future medical emergencies by building leisure and recreational facilities that can be used for quarantine during a pandemic, several months after the leadership abandoned its zero-tolerance approach to Covid-19. The so-called “dual emergency and normal use” facilities will be “actively” built in megacities across the country, the official Xinhua news agency cited Vice Premier He Lifeng as saying during a conference on Thursday. The facilities will be used for tourism, recreation and healthcare in normal times. During emergencies, they will serve as medical treatment and quarantine centers as…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: of views between the two countries on the Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of China’s belligerence in the region. “Vietnam serves as an important partner in India’s ‘Indo-Pacific Vision’, which aims to strengthen ties and develop partnerships towards keeping the region safe, secure and stable,” Admiral Kumar said, presiding over the ceremony at Cam Ranh. “The recent signing of the ‘joint vision statement on India-Vietnam defence partnership towards 2030’ will significantly enhance the scope and scale of existing security collaboration and ensure that no ‘single’ nation can unilaterally alter or misinterpret rules to serve its own interests in the…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Emphasising on India’s climate commitments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the country has shown leadership in climate action and achieved its non-fossil installed electric capacity target nine years in advance. In a video message to the G20 Energy Ministerial Meeting in Goa on Saturday, the Prime Minister said India now plans to achieve 50 percent non-fossil installed capacity by the year 2030. “No talk about the future, sustainability or growth and development can be complete without energy. It impacts development at all levels, from individuals to nations,” the Prime Minister said at the meeting that…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Thursday his agency has national security concerns about Chinese autonomous vehicle companies in the American market after some lawmakers called for restrictions on their operations. “Whether we are talking about hardware or software, in the same way there are concerns around telecoms or TikTok, there are concerns around transportation technologies,” Buttigieg said. Buttigieg said the United States needs to better understand “the true ownership of the different enterprises that are supplying different elements of our transportation systems.” In a July 17 letter to Buttigieg and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, a…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The relationship between Afghanistan and Pakistan is deteriorating following a major attack in Balochistan’s Zhob Cantt on July 12. The attack on a Pakistan army base, which resulted in the deaths of 12 soldiers and a civilian, was claimed by Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), a relatively new militant group. Pakistan has accused the Taliban government in Afghanistan of failing to take appropriate measures to prevent the activities of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its affiliated factions. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani armed forces have “serious concerns regarding the TTP’s safe havens and freedom of action…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: UAE Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Suhail Al Mazrouei on Saturday expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian government for hosting the G20 Energy Transitions Ministers’ meeting in Goa calling the meeting “a very important one”. “A very important meeting and first I would like to thank the government of India and his excellency for hosting all of us. UAE is coming as a guest to the G20 and we have a very important role as well this year as we are hosting COP28 and discussing very important aspects of sustainability, transition in energy,”…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the global economy with its direct and indirect implications on world production output, supply chains, and financial markets worldwide. Amidst these times, the digital economy played a crucial role in mitigating the negative effects and facilitating recovery in several nations across the globe. In India also, the digital economy grew multi-fold on the back of increased demand and supply for digital solutions. The evidence to this comes from the fact that as of 31st May 2023 out of the total 108 unicorns, 44 unicorns were born in 2021 and 21…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Army seems to be cooking political khichri in the messy Kitchen of Pakistan. It first raised Imran Khan to the Prime Minister’s post. Then a year before he could complete his term, he was thrown out through opposition’s no-confidence vote with the Army’s backing. The opposition called the ‘Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)’ was helped to form a coalition Government under Shehbaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz). The PDM has begun cracking as the elections draw near. Amid this, a new party called Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) has sprouted. The father of IPP is Imran’s former friend…

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Bhutanese sports community is becoming more and more excited as the prestigious Asian Games (AG) approach. The Bhutan Aquatics Federation’s Sangay Tenzin and Kinley Lhendup are two accomplished and experienced swimmers. According to Bhutan Live, these outstanding athletes will compete with pride for their nation in the much-awaited games, which will take place in China in September. Sangay Tenzin will showcase his skills in the 100- and 200-meter freestyle events and Kinley Lhendup will compete in the 200- and 100-meter individual medley competitions. Both swimmers will first compete in the global swimming championship, which will be held…