US, Taiwan 'Closer Than Ever', says President Tsai Ing-Wen

NEW YORK, March 31: The U.S. and Taiwan are closer than ever, Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen told supporters during a stopover in New York that so far, according to Taipei and Washington, has not triggered unusual military actions by China.

Ms Tsai arrived in New York on Wednesday on her way to Central America, and on her way back to Taipei next week will stop in Los Angeles where she is expected to meet U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, an interaction China has warned could lead to a "serious confrontation" in U.S.-China relations.

The visit comes at a time when U.S. relations with China are at what some analysts see as their worst level since Washington normalized ties with Beijing in 1979 and switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei.

Beijing says Taiwan belongs to "one China" and, as a Chinese province, has no right to state-to-state ties. Taiwan disputes this.

On what is her first U.S. stopover since 2019, Ms Tsai touted Taiwan's economic, security and diplomatic achievements in a closed-door speech on Wednesday night to overseas Taiwanese in New York, her office said in a statement on Thursday, calling the island a "beacon of democracy in Asia."

"In particular, the relationship between Taiwan and the United States is closer than ever," she said, noting "significant progress" in economic and security cooperation.

Ms Tsai said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) (2330.TW), the world's largest contract chipmaker, establishing a factory in Phoenix, Arizona, demonstrated the island's technological strength.

Though Taiwan faced "enormous challenges," it would not be isolated, Ms Tsai said. She also thanked the U.S. government for implementing security agreements with Taiwan, including nine announced arms sales by President Joe Biden's administration.
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Laura Rosenberger, chair at the Washington headquarters of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), a U.S. government-run, non-profit organization that carries out unofficial relations with Taiwan, and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy also attended the event, according to Tsai's office.

Ms Tsai was due to speak at a Hudson Institute think tank event on Thursday, according to sources, but Taiwan's de facto embassy in the U.S. has said all of her engagements in New York are closed to the press and public.

Taiwan's defence ministry, in its daily update on China's military activities, said that from Wednesday to Thursday morning it had not spotted any Chinese aircraft entering Taiwan's air defence zone or crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait, which serves as an unofficial barrier.

China's air force flies almost daily into the air defence zone, or across the median line, in which Taiwan calls "grey zone" warfare designed to test and wear out its forces.

A senior Taiwan security official said earlier that the island expects a less severe reaction from Beijing to a Tsai-McCarthy meeting than when then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei last year, something that prompted China to stage major military drills.

"She will be meeting in the United States, so the political complexity is not as high as the speaker coming to Taiwan," Taiwan National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen told Taiwan's parliament.

He added that Taiwan had been conducting dry runs on responses to a rise in tensions while the president is away, including when she is flying, and that she can be reached at any time to meet her top security officials.

The White House, which urged China on Wednesday not to use Tsai's "normal" stopover in the U.S. as a pretext to increase aggressive activity against Taiwan, also said it had seen "no tangible reaction" yet from China.

"I think we've all seen them react in a rhetorical way, but we've seen no indication that there's been any other type of reaction," White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.

A meeting with Kevin McCarthy would be the first between a Taiwanese leader and a U.S. House Speaker on U.S. soil, although it is seen as a potentially less provocative alternative to Mr McCarthy visiting Taiwan, something he has said he hopes to do.

As House speaker, Kevin McCarthy is third in the U.S. leadership succession hierarchy, and China has repeatedly warned U.S. officials not to meet Ms Tsai, seeing it as showing support for the island's desire to be recognized as a separate country.

China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Zhu Fenglian said in Beijing on Wednesday that if President Tsai met with McCarthy, China would "definitely take measures to resolutely fight back" and Xu Xueyuan, charge d'affaires at China's Washington embassy, said such a meeting "could lead to another serious confrontation in the China-U.S. relationship."

Washington, like most countries, maintains only unofficial ties with Taipei, but U.S. law requires the government to provide the island with the means to defend itself and it facilitates unofficial stopover visits.

The U.S. transit is Tsai's seventh since taking office in 2016 and comes amid concerns in the U.S. and elsewhere that Russia's invasion of Ukraine might embolden China to move against Taiwan.

Ajit Doval's 'Respect Territorial Integrity' Jibe At China At Shanghai Group Meet

NEW DELHI, March 29: In an apparent swipe at China, India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval today emphasised on the need for Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) members to respect each other's territorial integrity.

In his opening remarks at the SCO-level NSA meeting in Delhi, Doval called upon states to have mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"The charter calls upon member states to have mutual respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity of states and inviolability of state borders, non-use of force or threat of its use in international relations and seeking no unilateral military superiority in adjacent areas," Doval said.

Doval also spoke at length about the challenge terrorism poses to the region.

"Terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and its financing are amongst the most serious threats to international peace and security. Any act of terrorism, regardless of its motivation, is unjustifiable," he said.

India became a full member of SCO on June 9, 2017. There are four observer states - Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia and six dialogue partners - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Turkey.

Pakistan and China are likely to attend the SCO-NSA meeting virtually.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an intergovernmental organization established in 2001 and it comprises eight member states, namely, India, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

In 2022, India assumed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Chairship for 2023.

In Doklam Standoff, Bhutan PM's China Comment Raises Concern In India

NEW DELHI, March 28: Six years after Indian and Chinese soldiers faced off in Doklam, Bhutan's Prime Minister has said Beijing has an equal say in finding a resolution to the dispute over the high-altitude plateau which New Delhi believes has been illegally occupied by China.

"It is not up to Bhutan alone to solve the problem," said Prime Minister Lotay Tshering in an interview with the Belgian Daily La Libre. "There are three of us. There is no big or small country, there are three equal countries, each counting for a third."

The Bhutanese Prime Minister's statement on China having a stake in finding a resolution to the territorial dispute is likely to be deeply problematic for New Delhi, which is entirely opposed to China extending its footprint in Doklam since the plateau lies close to the sensitive Siliguri corridor, the narrow tract of land that separates India's Northeastern states from the rest of the country.

Now, Bhutan's Prime Minister says, "We are ready. As soon as the other two parties are ready too, we can discuss." It is an indicator that Thimphu is willing to negotiate the status of the tri-junction in Doklam between India, China and Bhutan, which lies at the heart of the dispute.

Tshering's statement is in stark contrast with what he had told The Hindu in 2019, that "no side" should do anything near the existing trijunction point between the three countries "unilaterally". For decades, that trijunction point, as reflected in international maps, lies at a spot called Batang La. China's Chumbi Valley lies to the North of Batang La, Bhutan lies to the South and East and India (Sikkim), to the West.

China wants that tri-junction to be shifted approximately 7 km south of Batang La to a peak called Mount Gipmochi. If that were to happen, the entire Doklam plateau would legally become a part of China, a move not acceptable to New Delhi.

In 2017, Indian and Chinese soldiers were involved in a tense standoff lasting more than two months when Indian soldiers entered the Doklam plateau to prevent China extending a road that it was illegally constructing in the direction of Mount Gipmochi and an adjoining hill feature called the Jhampheri ridge. The Indian Army is clear - the Chinese Army cannot be allowed to crest Jhampheri as that would give them a clear line of sight to the Siliguri corridor.

"Any attempt of China to shift the location of the tri-junction South would be unacceptable to the Indian Armed Forces. Chinese attempts at unilateral disruption of the status quo, like construction activity across parts of Western Bhutan, is a major security concern with a clear security bearing upon India," said Lieutenant General Pravin Bakshi (Retd), who was Eastern Army commander when the Doklam crisis erupted in 2017.

Since 2017, when the Chinese agreed to back off from the face-off site at Doklam, they have carved into Bhutanese territory along the Amo Chu river valley, which lies adjacent and directly to the East of Doklam. Here, they have constructed several villages and a road directly through territory that has always been a part of Bhutan, as evident in official maps of the country.

Now, however, in the clearest indication that Bhutan may have been forced to cede territory to China, Prime Minister Lotay Tshering says, "A lot of information is circulating in the media about Chinese facilities in Bhutan. We are not making a [big] deal about them because they are not in Bhutan. We have said it categorically, there is no intrusion as mentioned in the media. This is an international border and we know exactly what belongs to us."

Tshering's remark is a likely reflection of the fact that Thimpu can do little to halt China's 'salami-slicing' of Bhutanese territory, not just along its Western frontiers near Doklam but also to the North of the country in the Jakarlung and Pasamlung Valleys. The Western areas measure approximately 270 square km while disputed areas to the North measure nearly 500 square km.

"The Bhutanese PM's statement suggests that to save face, Bhutan is claiming that the territories China has stealthily occupied are not Bhutanese areas," says Dr. Brahma Chellaney, India's foremost strategic affairs expert on China. "But this could encourage further Chinese salami slicing of Bhutanese territories."

"The significance of the Bhutanese PM stating that China had a role in resolving the Doklam crisis suggests that aside from acknowledging the importance of Beijing to work with Thimphu on this matter, it also suggests Bhutan is treating Doklam, an area strategically important to India, as a separate issue from the other western areas claimed by China, potentially due to increased Chinese presence and influence," said Genevieve Donnellon-May, a geopolitical and global strategy advisor.

It is unclear if Bhutan is willing to hand over territory it has lost on its Western frontier in an effort to retain the areas to the North. Any move to legitimise Chinese control of Bhutanese territory to the West would be directly against India's security interests.

In January this year, Chinese and Bhutanese experts met in Kunming and agreed to work towards reaching an agreement on their boundary talks. Both sides have held more than 20 rounds of talks so far and are reportedly working to arrive at a 'positive consensus'. "We are not experiencing major border problems with China, but some territories have not yet been demarcated," said Prime Minister Tshering, downplaying the extent of China's intrusions. "After one or two more meetings, we will probably be able to draw a dividing line."

New Delhi will be closely watching where that line is placed on a map.

Taiwan Ex-President Visits China 'To Improve Cross-Strait Atmosphere'

TAOYUAN, March 27: Taiwan ex-president Ma Ying-jeou travelled to China on Monday, embarking on the first cross-strait visit by a current or former leader of the island in more than seven decades, a trip Taipei's ruling party called "regrettable".
Ma's 12-day trip will not involve any official meetings, his office said, with his focus on paying tribute to his ancestors and promoting youth exchanges.

"I hope to improve the cross-strait atmosphere through the enthusiastic interactions of young people, so peace can come to us faster and sooner," the 73-year-old said at the airport.

The former president's departure comes a day after Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favour of Beijing, which claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory and has vowed to retake it one day.

In a statement on Monday, President Tsai Ing-wen's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) accused Ma of "endorsing" Beijing's Taiwan policy with his visit.

"We should be more united... but it's regrettable that the KMT stands with the Chinese communists and ex-president Ma disregards public disapproval to visit China at this moment," the party said.

Taiwan and China split in 1949 after a civil war won by the Communist Party, with the defeated nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) party fleeing to the island.

Ma is a senior leader of the KMT, which currently sits in the opposition in Taiwan and advocates for warmer ties with China, but denies being pro-Beijing.

Taiwan will hold a presidential election next year, with the KMT and DPP the main contenders for the position.

Ma oversaw a dramatic improvement in cross-strait ties during his 2008-16 rule, which culminated in a summit between him and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Singapore in 2015.

Beijing has ramped up military, economic and diplomatic pressure on Taiwan under Ma's successor, Tsai, poaching nine of Taiwan's allies, leaving only 13 countries that diplomatically recognise the island.

China and Honduras began formal diplomatic relations on Sunday, with Taipei accusing Beijing of using "coercion and intimidation" to lure away its allies.

At Taipei airport on Monday, a handful of demonstrators protested against Ma's visit, saying he had "betrayed Taiwan" by travelling to China.

They were removed by police to an area outside the main airport building shortly thereafter.

China's foreign ministry offered no comment Monday on the visit, with spokesperson Mao Ning saying it was "not a diplomatic issue".

Ma was born in Hong Kong in 1950 to Chinese immigrant parents from Xiangtan in Hunan province, which he will visit in addition to the cities of Shanghai, Nanjing, Wuhan, Chongqing and Changsha, his office said last week.

Risks To Financial Stability Have Increased, Warns IMF Chief

BEIJING, March 26: International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva warned on Sunday that risks to financial stability had increased and stressed "the need for vigilance" following the recent turmoil in the banking sector.

Speaking at a forum in Beijing, the IMF managing director said she expected 2023 "to be another challenging year", with global growth slowing to below 3.0 percent due the war in Ukraine, monetary tightening and "scarring" from the pandemic.

"Uncertainties are exceptionally high," with the outlook for the global economy likely to remain weak over the medium term, she told the China Development Forum.

"It is also clear that risks to financial stability have increased," she added.

"At a time of higher debt levels, the rapid transition from a prolonged period of low interest rates to much higher rates -- necessary to fight inflation -- inevitably generates stresses and vulnerabilities, as evidenced by recent developments in the banking sector in some advanced economies."

Her comments came after the financial sector was shaken by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the enforced takeover of Swiss bank Credit Suisse by rival UBS, leading to fears of contagion.

Bank shares tumbled on Friday as fears about the health of the financial sector resurfaced, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz forced to give reassurances about Deutsche Bank after the long-troubled lender became a focus of investor concerns.

Georgieva said policymakers had acted decisively in response to financial stability risks.

"These actions have eased market stress to some extent, but uncertainty is high which underscores the need for vigilance," she said.

The IMF chief, however, pointed to China's rebound as a bright spot for the world economy.

The IMF forecasts China's economy to grow 5.2 percent this year, driven by a rebound in private consumption as the country reopens after its pandemic isolation.

"The robust rebound means China is set to account for around one third of global growth in 2023 -- giving a welcome lift to the world economy," she said.

"A 1.0 percentage point increase in GDP growth in China leads to 0.3 percentage point increase in growth in other Asian economies, on average -- a welcome boost."
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Georgieva urged China's policymakers to seek to raise productivity and rebalance the economy away from investment and towards more durable consumption-driven growth.

"Market-oriented reforms to level the playing field between the private sector and state-owned enterprises, together with investments in education, would significantly lift the economy's productive capacity," she said.

Deutsche Bank Shares Tumble

FRANKFURT, March 26: Days after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, another financial titan is showing signs that all is not well. Deutsche Bank, one of the financial world's most prominent players, witnessed a sharp and steady fall in its shares. Placing more pressure on the global financial system, the bank's stock saw a downward trajectory for the third day in a row on Friday.

After trading at a loss of nearly 15 percent, it closed at a decline of nearly 8.5 percent at the end of the day. In the last month alone, Germany's largest bank has experienced a substantial decline in its shares, with a decrease of 24 percent. This performance of Germany's largest lender has set alarm bells ringing among investors across the world.

Deutsche Bank is no stranger to financial challenges. The bank was affected by a range of issues when it attempted to compete with Wall Street investment banking giants before the 2008 recession.

What followed was a targeted attempt at revamping the structure of the bank, which entailed tough moves such as thousands of job cuts and a largely Europe-centric approach. The restructuring seemed to have worked, given that it booked its highest annual profit since 2007 in 2022.

However, the shares of the German financial giant have performed dismally over the past month and witnessed sustained selling over the past three days, until Friday. This has resulted in credit-default swaps, which are used to protect against the bank's default, reaching levels that have not been seen since 2020.

This is a cause for concern for the global economy, as Deutsche Bank is one of 30 banks that are considered financial institutions of global significance. As per international rules, such institutions are required to hold higher levels of capital reserves. Failure to do so could lead to widespread losses.

Deutsche Bank's dismal performance over the past few days can be traced back to the fall of Credit Suisse and its subsequent takeover by the UBS Group. At the same time, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) earlier in the year also did not do much to help investor morale.

Investors are growing increasingly concerned about the overall health of the global banking sector, leading to a surge in the cost of credit default swaps for Deutsche Bank's debt. These swaps serve as a form of insurance against the risk of the bank defaulting, indicating heightened levels of anxiety about the bank's ability to fulfil its financial obligations.

As questions about the health of the European banking system and the vulnerability of the global banking ecosystem grew louder, Deutsche Bank attempted to assuage investors regarding debt issues.

On March 24, it offered to redeem a separate type of subordinated bond that was originally due in 2028. To allay concerns about its financial stability, Deutsche Bank went so far as to offer to repurchase its bonds at a full 100 percent of their principal value, along with any accrued interest. This move suggested that the bank had ample financial resources at its disposal.

But the plunging shares suggest that investors are far from convinced.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has offered reassurances about Deutsche Bank explaining there is no cause for concern. “Deutsche Bank has fundamentally modernised and reorganised its business and is a very profitable bank,” Mr Scholz declared at a summit in Brussels. “There is no reason to be concerned about it,” he said when asked if the lender was the new Credit Suisse.

No Diplomatic Breakthrough On Ukraine Achieved In Putin-Xi Summit

MOSCOW, March 22: Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin emerged from two days of talks on Tuesday with warm words of friendship between China and Russia and joint criticism of the West, but no sign of a diplomatic breakthrough over Ukraine.

Xi's visit to Moscow - long touted by the Kremlin as a show of support from its most powerful friend - featured plenty of demonstrative bonhomie. The two leaders referred to each other as dear friends, promised economic cooperation and described their countries' relations as the best they have ever been.

A joint statement included familiar accusations against the West - that Washington was undermining global stability and NATO barging into the Asia-Pacific region.

On Ukraine, Putin praised Xi for a peace plan he proposed last month, and blamed Kyiv and the West for rejecting it.

"We believe that many of the provisions of the peace plan put forward by China are consonant with Russian approaches and can be taken as the basis for a peaceful settlement when they are ready for that in the West and in Kyiv. However, so far we see no such readiness from their side," Putin said.

But Xi barely mentioned the conflict at all, saying that China had an "impartial position" on it.

Responding to the meeting, the White House said China's position was not impartial, and urged Beijing to pressure Russia to withdraw from Ukraine's sovereign territory to end the war.

The summit, Putin's biggest display of diplomacy since he ordered his invasion of Ukraine a year ago, was partly upstaged in Kyiv, where Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made an unannounced visit and met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
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The latest world leader to make the gruelling overland journey to show solidarity with Ukraine, Kishida toured Bucha on the capital's outskirts, left littered with dead last year by fleeing Russian troops. He lay a wreath by a church before observing a moment of silence and bowing.

"The world was astonished to see innocent civilians in Bucha killed one year ago. I really feel great anger at the atrocity upon visiting that very place here," Kishida said.

Putin and Xi signed a "no limits" partnership agreement last year just weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine. Beijing has since declined to blame Moscow for the war and condemned Western sanctions on Russia, even as China has profited by securing discounts for oil and gas Russia no longer sells to Europe.

The West has largely dismissed Xi's peace plan for Ukraine as at best too vague to make a difference, and at worst a ploy to buy time for Putin to rebuild his forces.
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But Kyiv, perhaps hoping to keep China neutral, has been more circumspect, cautiously welcoming the plan when China unveiled it last month.

At his news conference with Kishida, Zelenskiy said Kyiv had invited China to sign on to Ukraine's own proposed peace plan but had received no reply. Zelenskiy has repeatedly called on Xi to speak to him.

Kyiv says there can be no peace talks with Russia unless it withdraws its troops. Moscow says Kyiv must accept territorial "realities" - a reference to its claim to have annexed nearly a fifth of Ukraine.

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said a ceasefire right now would freeze battle lines where they are - meaning Ukraine effectively ceding parts of its territory to the Russian invasion.

Washington has said over the past month that it is worried that Beijing could arm Russia, which China denies.

On the ground, bursts of incoming and outgoing artillery fire could be heard in the town of Chasiv Yar just west of Bakhmut, a small eastern city that has been the focus of intense fighting for months.

Between apartment blocks in Chasiv Yar, mainly elderly residents queued for water and food delivered by a team from the State Emergency Service.

Oleksii Stepanov said he had been in Bakhmut until five days ago but was evacuated when his house was destroyed by a missile.

"We were in the kitchen and the missile came through the roof. The kitchen was all that was left standing," said the 54-year-old.

Moscow has launched a massive winter offensive using hundreds of thousands of freshly called-up reservists and convicts recruited as mercenaries from jail.

Despite the bloodiest fighting of the war, which both sides describe as a meat grinder, the front line has barely moved for four months except in Bakhmut where Russian forces made gains in January and February. Kyiv decided this month not to pull its forces out of the city.

South Korea, US To Hold Largest-Ever Military Drills Amid N Korea Tensions

SEOUL, March 22: South Korean and US forces will hold their largest-ever live-fire exercises in June in a show of force to North Korea, which has ratcheted up tension with numerous missile launches, South Korea's defence ministry said on Wednesday.
The exercises are part of a series of events marking the 70th anniversary of the alliance between the two countries this year.

"We've planned various anniversary programmes focusing on realising 'peace through strength' through action based on our strategic deterrence capabilities and the solid combined defence posture amid North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats," the ministry said in a statement.

"During the live-fire exercises, the combined forces will demonstrate the alliance's formidable firepower and mobility on an unprecedented scale."

South Korea plans to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of its military in September with a display by the allies' forces of their "overwhelming deterrence and response capabilities" against the North, that will include South Korea's missile defence system, the ministry said.

In recent weeks, North Korea has been ramping up its military tests, firing an intercontinental ballistic missile last week and conducting a nuclear counterattack simulation against the U.S. and South Korea over the weekend.

The United States has about 28,500 troops in South Korea.

U.S. and South Korean forces have been carrying out various types of military training in recent weeks including air and sea drills involving American B-1B bombers, and their first large-scale amphibious landing exercises in five years.

North Korea has reacted furiously to those drills, calling them a rehearsal for its invasion.

'Neither Of Us Want A War': Chinese Envoy On India-China Border Issue

NEW DELHI, March 22: China and India will have to face the "difficulties" arising out of the border situation but none of the two countries want war or confrontation, Charge D'affaires at the Chinese embassy Ma Jia said on Wednesday.

Addressing a media briefing here, Ma described the situation along the border areas as "very complicated" and said it was not easy to reach an agreement which was the reason the two countries were holding discussions through the established Working Mechanism for Consultation and Cooperation and the senior commander-level meetings.

She said the situation with regard to the Ukraine issue had "intensified" since the consensus at the G20 Summit at Bali and it was now "more difficult to reach the accommodation".

Her remarks come against the backdrop of a joint statement issued following a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping indicating that the two sides will oppose the use of multilateral platforms to take up "irrelevant issues".

China is yet to name its Ambassador to India after Sun Weidong completed his tenure in October last year. Senior diplomat Ma has been in-charge of the mission in New Delhi.

Earlier, in her suo moto remarks, Ma has said the current situation on the border was stable and China and India were in maintaining communication through the established channels - Working Mechanism for Consultation and Cooperation and the senior commander level meetings.

"There are difficulties, I have just said that. But, we have to face it. We are also confident that China and India do not want war. Neither of us want a war. Neither of us want confrontation along the border areas," the top Chinese diplomat in India said, giving her assessment of the border situation.

She said the border issue has lived through the history of many years and it was not easy to reach an agreement.

"That is why we keep on talking about it. We have to face the problems and we have to talk. I think the intention on both sides is to improve relations. Our two leaders already have consensus on that and I think we can find a way out," Ma said.

Amid indications that Russia and China will oppose raising of the Ukraine issue on multilateral platforms, the Chinese diplomat said reaching a consensus at the G20 could be difficult if "prominent security issues" were raised at a forum established to deliberate on economic and financial matters.

"As long as you are out of the track and discussing prominent security issues on economic and financial platforms, it is very difficult to reach consensus. In G20, we have this consensus principle. Even if one country does not agree, it is not a consensus," she said.

Japan Announces $75 Billion Plan To Counter China In Indo-Pacific

NEW DELHI, March 20: Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday announced an expansive new plan for an open and free Indo-Pacific, promising billions of dollars in investment to help economies across the region in everything from industry to disaster prevention.

The plan announced in New Delhi is seen as Tokyo's bid to forge stronger partnerships with countries in South and Southeast Asia to counter China's growing assertiveness.

Prime Minister Kishida said the new free and open Indo-Pacific plan had "four pillars": maintaining peace, dealing with new global issues in cooperation with Indo-Pacific countries, achieving global connectivity through various platforms, and ensuring the safety of the open seas and skies.

To achieve this, Fumio Kishida pledged $75 billion to the Indo-Pacific by 2030 through private investments and yen loans, and the ramping up of aid through official governmental assistance and grants.

India, Japan Sign Cooperation Documents On Japanese Language, Bullet Train

NEW DELHI, March 20: India and Japan on Monday signed two documents on the renewal of a memorandum of cooperation on the Japanese language and exchange of notes on a 300 billion Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) loan for Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train.

At a special briefing by Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra on the visit of Japan's PM Fumio Kishida to India, he said, "There were two documents signed on the sidelines- Renewal of MOC (Memorandum of Cooperation) in the Japanese language, essentially focussing on higher level language learning and second agreement was Exchange of notes on JICA loan for 300 billion on Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed railway project."

Earlier in 2022, JICA signed a loan agreement with the Government of India to provide an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan of 100,000 million Japanese Yen (approx. ₹ 6,000 Crore) as Tranche 3 on the 'Project for the Construction of Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR).'

The objective of the project is to develop a high-frequency mass transportation system by constructing the High-Speed Rail between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, using Japan's Shinkansen technology (also known as the "Bullet Train"), thereby enhancing mobility in India and contributing to regional economic development.

"4th tranche of loan agreement between India, Japan signed during this visit.. (leaders took stock of) current status of implementation of the project", said Vinay Kwatra on the bullet train project.

PM of Japan, Fumio Kishida is on an official visit to India to meet with PM Narendra Modi. The relations with Japan have always occupied a very special place for India. Japan is one of the very few countries with which India has a system of annual summits.

In 2014, PM Modi made his first bilateral visit outside India, his immediate neighbourhood Japan. During that visit, the India-Japan relationship was upgraded to a special strategic global partnership.

"Guided by strong political will on both sides, the partnership has made significant progress in the last few years covering the entire gamut of mutual engagement as witnessed in the growing convergence of our political strategic and economic interests. In fact, PM Modi has referred to the India-Japan relationship as one of the most natural partnerships in the region," said Vinay Kwatra.

"India-Japan special strategic global partnership built on the shared values of democracy, freedom and respect for rule of law is crucial for fostering peace, prosperity and stability in the Indo-Pacific region," added Vinay Kwatra.

The last annual summit (14th annual summit) between PM Kishida and PM Modi took place in March of last year in New Delhi.

The Foreign Secretary also told that India and Japan have been talking about the larger vision of act East.

"India and Japan have been talking about, in the larger vision of act East for us, in a sub-segment of how India & Japan can cooperate on this issue which essentially strengthens 3-4 key aspects of regional, sub-regional and bilateral engagement which links it through as part of act East," said Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra

"So there how do you build connectivity projects which link India's north-east with the rest of the countries that fall under the act East member including Bangladesh, and Myanmar," added Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra.

He also announced 2023 as the India-Japan year of tourism, saying, "We also announce 2023 as the India-Japan year of tourism. Modi expressed his desire with Kishida to declare the next year as the year of Youth Exchanges between the two countries," said Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra.

Meanwhile, Japanese PM Fumion Kishida formally invited Prime Minister Modi to G7 Hiroshima Summit and PM Modi accepted the invitation.

Indian Consulate In San Francisco Attacked By Khalistan Supporters

NEW DELHI, March 20: Soon after Khalistan supporters pulled down the national flag at the Indian High Commission building in London, videos of a huge mob was seen attacking the Indian Consulate in US's San Francisco while loud Punjabi music blared in the background. They also spray-painted a huge graffiti saying "Free Amritpal" on the outer wall of the building.

Several videos, filmed by the attackers themselves, showed men smashing the glass on doors and windows of the consulate building with the wooden butt of the Khalistan flags they were earlier seen waving.

Three men, presumably employees of the Indian consulate, were seen removing the Khalistan flags put up in the building near the entrance when suddenly the mob broke through a barricade behind which they were earlier shouting slogans. Two men who were removing the flags then dashed inside the consulate, and a few protesters chased after them, flags in hand. Unable to get inside the building before the door was slammed shut in their faces, they could be seen violently hitting the doors and windows with the wooden sticks and rods of the flags. One of the men could be seen smashing the windows with a sword.

In Canberra, Khalistan supporters gathered outside Australian parliament to protest against the police crackdown on Amritpal Singh and his associates in Punjab.

Earlier today, a huge Tricolour was put up at the Indian High Commission building in London in response to the action by Khalistan supporters.

A photograph of the massive national flag stretched across India House in London's Aldwych has gone viral, with social media users applauding the move. Many praised the bold action by a High Commission official who is seen throwing the Khalistan flag out.

The External Affairs Ministry had summoned British deputy high commissioner Christina Scott late Sunday evening after the videos of the Indian flag being pulled down started circulating online. It demanded the arrest and prosecution of the pro-Khalistan people involved in pulling down the national flag.

The ministry also demanded an explanation for "absence of security" at the high commission premises and said the UK government's "indifference" to Indian diplomats and personnel was "unacceptable".

British officials condemned the vandalism, calling it "disgraceful" and "completely unacceptable". London Mayor Sadiq Khan tweeted, "I condemn the violent disorder and vandalism that took place at the Indian High Commission today. There is no place in our city for this kind of behaviour. An investigation has been launched by the Met into today's events".

EU Agrees 2 Billion Euros Ammunition Plan For Ukraine

BBRUSSELS, March 20: European Union foreign ministers agreed Monday on a two-billion-euro plan to raid their own arsenals and jointly purchase desperately needed artillery shells for Ukraine, diplomats said.

Meeting in Brussels, the ministers backed a multipronged initiative -- to be endorsed by EU leaders at a summit this week -- that aims to provide Ukraine with one million shells in the next 12 months as well as replenish EU stocks.

Kyiv has complained that its forces are having to ration firepower as Russia's year-long invasion has turned into a grinding war of attrition.

Ukraine has told the EU it wants 350,000 shells a month to help its troops hold back Moscow's onslaught and allow them to launch fresh counter-offensives later in the year.

"More artillery ammunition for Ukraine as fast as possible," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged in a social media post.

France's Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna insisted "we have to help Ukraine more, quicker and now."

The first part of the plan commits a further one billion euros ($1.06 billion) of shared funding to try to get EU states to tap their already stretched stocks for ammunition that can be sent quickly.

The second part would see the bloc use another one billion euros to order 155-millimetre shells for Ukraine as part of a massive joint procurement push intended to spur EU defence firms to ramp up production.

Buying weaponry together on this scale is a major new step for the EU, which has seen long-standing efforts to work more in unison on defence propelled forward by Russia's war.

Countries have been wrangling over details, like whether it should be the EU's defence agency or the member states who negotiate the orders and if they should buy only from producers in Europe.

Diplomats said the plan targets sending the first one billion euro's worth of shells to Ukraine by the end of May and signing the joint contracts by the start of September.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said the ambition was to supply one million rounds over the next year, but it was not set in stone.

"It is possible that we might not be able to reach it," he admitted.

After 12 months of eating into their stockpiles, there are questions over how much EU countries can share immediately without leaving themselves vulnerable.

The bloc has already committed a wide range of military support worth 12 billion euros to Ukraine, with 3.6 billion euros from a joint fund used to help cover the costs.

Officials say that, since the Russian invasion last February, 450 million euros from the fund have gone on supplying 350,000 shells to Ukraine.

Key to getting countries to deplete their stocks is convincing them that European industry can step up to produce more.

Ukraine's consumption of ammunition currently far outstrips the amount its Western backers are manufacturing.

Brussels said EU firms need to switch to "war economy mode" after scaling back in the years following the end of the Cold War.

The industry complains that governments haven't yet signed the long-term contracts they need to invest in more production lines.

The EU is hoping that placing a mammoth joint order for 155-mm shells will incentivise companies to ramp up their output.

But there are concerns about the supplies of key components such as explosives.

"We are used to production that is for the peacetime and this time we are in war in Europe," Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said.

"This will take time of course, there is also some lack of the materials and so forth."

It has begun reaching out to 15 firms in 11 EU countries that make the ammunition to urge them to push ahead.

Brussels has said it is looking to iron out regulatory bottlenecks, ease access to financing and even provide central EU funds to help boost capacity.

But several European diplomats say the proposals remain vague and that their capitals need more reassurances that they will have an impact.

Biggest Swiss Bank Agrees To Buy Credit Suisse, Doubles Its Offer: Report

BERN, March 19: UBS has agreed to take over its troubled Swiss rival Credit Suisse after doubling its offer to $2 billion, the Financial Times reported amid urgent talks Sunday aimed at sparing the embattled bank from a bloodbath when the markets reopen.

The two largest banks in the wealthy Alpine nation famed for its banking prominence have been in negotiations throughout the weekend, with the government, the central bank and financial regulators all involved.

The Financial Times newspaper, which was the first on Friday to report the prospect of Switzerland's biggest bank swallowing up Credit Suisse, said UBS had agreed to buy it for $2 billion, with its fellow Zurich-based lender having spurned an earlier offer of $1 billion.

The FT said shareholders would get 0.50 Swiss francs ($0.54) per share, with the deal to be done on Sunday before the markets open in Asia.

After suffering heavy falls on the stock market last week, Credit Suisse's share price closed Friday at 1.86 Swiss francs, with the bank worth just over $8.7 billion.

Credit Suisse's share price has tumbled from 12.78 Swiss francs in February 2021 due to a string of scandals that it has been unable to shake off.

UBS was being urged by the authorities to get a deal over the line before the stock exchange reopens at 0800 GMT on Monday, in a bid to reassure investors and avoid a wave of contagious panic on the markets.

The Swiss authorities felt they had no choice but to push UBS into overcoming its reluctance, due to the enormous pressure exerted by Switzerland's major economic and financial partners, fearing for their own financial centres, said Blick newspaper.

A merger of this scale -- involving swallowing up all or part of a bank arousing growing investor unease -- would normally take months.

While under Swiss rules, UBS would typically have to consult shareholders over six weeks, it could use emergency measures to skip the consultation period and a shareholder vote, the FT said, citing unnamed sources.

The 20 Minuten newspaper filmed members of the Swiss government, including President Alain Berset, heading into the finance ministry in Bern early Sunday.

The government did not respond when contacted by a news agency on Sunday.

Like UBS, Credit Suisse is one of 30 banks around the world deemed to be Global Systemically Important Banks -- of such importance to the international banking system that they are considered too big to fail.

But the market movement seemed to suggest the bank was being perceived as a weak link in the chain.

"We are now awaiting a definitive and structural solution to the problems of this bank," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told Le Parisien newspaper.

Amid fears of contagion after the collapse of two US banks, Credit Suisse's share price plunged by more than 30 percent on Wednesday to a new record low of 1.55 Swiss francs. That saw the SNB step in overnight with a $54-billion lifeline.

After recovering some ground Thursday, its shares closed down eight percent on Friday at 1.86 Swiss francs as the Zurich-based lender struggled to retain investor confidence.

In 2022, the bank suffered a net loss of $7.9 billion and expects a "substantial" pre-tax loss this year.

Sikh Protestors Pull Down Indian Flag At India's Mission in London

NEW DELHI, March 19: The foreign ministry summoned the seniormost diplomat of UK in New Delhi late this evening as the Indian flag was pulled down from the Indian High Commission in London by a section of Sikhs protesting against the police crackdown on Khalistani separatist Amritpal Singh.

In a sharply worded statement, the ministry demanded an explanation for "absence of security" at the high commission premises and said the UK government's "indifference" to Indian diplomats and personnel was "unacceptable".

A section of Sikhs started protests over the crackdown since evening. Cellphone videos posted on social media showed protesters climbing the building and taking down the Indian flag. In Australia's Brisbane, pro-Khalistan groups carried out what they called a referendum on Khalistan.

"An explanation was demanded for the complete absence of the British security that allowed these elements to enter the High Commission premises. She was reminded in this regard of the basic obligations of the UK Government under the Vienna Convention," the foreign ministry said in its statement.

The ministry also said it finds "unacceptable" the "indifference of the UK Government to the security of Indian diplomatic premises and personnel".

"It is expected that the UK Government would take immediate steps to identify, arrest and prosecute each one of those involved in today's incident, and put in place stringent measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents," the statement read.

British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis, meanwhile tweeted:

Over the weekend, nearly 80 supporters of Amritpal Singh have been arrested. Amritpal Singh is on the run. The crackdown started after they broke into a police station with swords and guns to ensure release of one of them. Six police officers were injured in the clash.

Since then, 78 supporters of Amritpal Singh were arrested, many of them after a daring car chase. His close aide Daljeet Singh Kalsi, who handles his finances, was arrested this morning from Haryana's Gurgaon.

The Punjab police tweeted details of the crackdown, saying 34 arrests were made today and the situation in the state is peaceful.

"Punjab Police is acting within the law. #AmritpalSingh is still absconding and not yet arrested. Don't believe the rumours and false news. Request all citizens to maintain peace & harmony & not panic," read another tweet.

Punjab police sources said Amritpal Singh has been maintaining close links with Pakistani intelligence agency ISI and terrorist groups based in foreign countries.

World Court Issues Arrest Warrant Against Vladimir Putin Over Children's Rights

THE HAGUE, March 17: The International Criminal Court on Friday announced it had issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin for the "unlawful deportation" of Ukrainian children.

The Hague-based ICC said it had also issued a warrant against Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia's presidential commissioner for children's rights, on similar charges.

Russia is not a member of the ICC. It was unclear how the ICC planned to enforce the warrant.

"Today, pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court issued warrants of arrest for two individuals in the context of the situation in Ukraine: Mr Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and Ms Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova," the ICC said in a statement.

Vladimir Putin "is allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of population (children) and that of unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation."

The ICC said the crimes dated from February 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine.

"There are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes," it said.

President Putin was allegedly responsible both directly by committing the acts and for "failure to exercise control properly over civilian and military subordinates who committed the acts, or allowed for their commission."

The arrest warrants are being kept secret to protect victims and witnesses, it said.

The ICC is a court of last resort for crimes that countries cannot or will not prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan launched an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine just days after Russia's invasion.

Karim Khan said earlier this month after a visit to Ukraine that the alleged abductions of children "are being investigated by my office as a priority".

"Children cannot be treated as the spoils of war," he said in a statement on March 7.

Posting a picture of himself alongside empty cots, Mr Khan said he had visited a care home for children in southern Ukraine that was "empty, a result of alleged deportation of children from Ukraine to the Russian Federation" or other occupied areas.

Khan also confirmed that the ICC was investigating attacks on "critical civilian infrastructure" in Ukraine and that he had visited the sites of several such strikes.

Along with Ukraine's prosecutor general "we underlined our collective commitment to ensure that such acts are fully investigated and those responsible for alleged international crimes held to account," he added.

The ICC prosecutor added in the statement that he had a "sense that the momentum towards justice is accelerating."

Karim Khan has previously described Ukraine as a "crime scene", and has also visited the town of Bucha where AFP journalists saw at least 20 bodies lying in a street.

Neither Russia nor Ukraine are members of the ICC, but Kyiv has accepted the court's jurisdiction and is working with Khan's office.

Russia denies allegations of war crimes by its troops. Experts have said it is unlikely it would ever hand over any suspects.

Credit Suisse To Borrow Up To $54 Billion In Bid To Calm Investor Fears

GENEVA, March 16: Credit Suisse on Thursday said it was taking "decisive action" to strengthen its liquidity by borrowing up to $54 billion from the Swiss central bank after a slump in its shares intensified fears about a broader bank deposit crisis.

The Swiss bank's problems have shifted the focus for investors and regulators from the United States to Europe, where Credit Suisse led a selloff in bank shares after its largest investor said it could not provide more financial assistance because of regulatory constraints.

Regulators in the private banking hub on Wednesday had sought to ease investor fears around Credit Suisse, which added to broader worries sparked by last week's collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, two U.S. mid-size firms.

Asian stocks had extended Wall Street's tumble on Thursday and investors bought gold, bonds and the dollar, leaving markets on edge ahead of a European Central Bank meeting later in the day. The bank's announcement in the early European morning helped trim some of those losses though trade was volatile.

In its statement early Thursday, Credit Suisse said it is exercising its option to borrow from the Swiss National Bank up to 50 billion Swiss francs ($54 billion).

Investor focus is now on any action by central banks and other regulators in Asia to restore confidence in the banking system as well as any exposure regional businesses may have to Credit Suisse.

In a joint statement on Wednesday, the Swiss financial regulator FINMA and the nation's central bank sought to ease investor fears around Credit Suisse, saying it "meets the capital and liquidity requirements imposed on systemically important banks." They said the bank could access liquidity from the central bank if needed.

Credit Suisse said it welcomed the statement of support from the Swiss National Bank and FINMA.

Credit Suisse would be the first major global bank to be given such a lifeline since the 2008 financial crisis - though central banks have extended liquidity more generally to banks during times of market stress including the coronavirus pandemic.

SVB's demise last week, followed by that of Signature Bank two days later, sent global bank stocks on a roller-coaster ride this week, with investors discounting assurances from U.S. President Joe Biden and emergency steps giving banks access to more funding.

FINMA and the Swiss central bank said there were no indications of a direct risk of contagion for Swiss institutions from U.S. banking market turmoil.

Earlier, Credit Suisse shares led a 7% fall in the European banking index, while five-year credit default swaps (CADS) for the flagship Swiss bank hit a new record high.

The investor exit for the doors prompted fears of a broader threat to the financial system, and two supervisory sources said that the European Central Bank had contacted banks on its watch to quiz them about their exposures to Credit Suisse.

The U.S. Treasury also said it is monitoring the situation around Credit Suisse and is in touch with global counterparts, a Treasury spokesperson said.

In the United States, large banks have managed their exposure to Credit Suisse in recent months and view risks emanating from the lender as manageable so far, according to three industry sources who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation.

Rapid rises in interest rates have made it harder for some businesses to pay back or service loans, increasing the chances of losses for lenders who are also worried about a recession.

Traders are now betting that the Federal Reserve, which just last week was expected to accelerate its interest-rate-hike campaign in the face of persistent inflation, may be forced to hit pause and even reverse course.

Bets on a large European Central Bank interest-rate hike at Thursday's meeting also evaporated quickly as the Credit Suisse rout fanned fears about the health of Europe's banking sector. Money market pricing suggested traders now saw less than a 20% chance of a 50 basis point rate hike at the ECB meeting.

Unease sparked by SVB's demise has also prompted depositors to seek out new homes for their cash.

Ralph Hammers, CEO of Credit Suisse rival UBS said market turmoil has steered more money its way and Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing said that the German lender has also seen incoming deposits.

US Cautions Russia After Drone Shot Down

WASHINGTON, March 16: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed Wednesday that US aircraft will fly "wherever international law allows" and warned Russia to operate with caution after one of its jets allegedly downed an American drone.

Austin made the statement shortly after speaking by phone with Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu about Tuesday's incident over the Black Sea, when two Russian fighters allegedly harassed an unmanned US surveillance drone and damaged its propeller, forcing its ditching in the waters below.

The United States labeled the incident "reckless" and "unprofessional" while Moscow denied it was to blame and instead accused Washington of conducting "hostile" flights in the region.

"The United States will continue to fly and to operate wherever international law allows," Austin told reporters just following the call with Shoigu.

"And it is incumbent upon Russia to operate its military aircraft in a safe and professional manner," he said.

US Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley said the Pentagon is still analyzing video and data from the drone to see exactly what happened.

"Was it intentional or not? -- don't know yet," he told reporters.

"We know that the intercept was intentional. We know that the aggressive behavior was intentional, we also know it was very unprofessional and very unsafe," Milley said.

"The actual contact of the fixed-wing Russian fighter with our UAV, the physical contact with those two, not sure yet."

Austin expressed appreciation for the call, after more than a year of the Ukraine war during which direct contact between top US and Russian defense officials has been exceedingly rare.

"We take any potential for escalation very seriously and that's why I believe it's important to keep the lines of communication open," he said.

'Increased' US Spying On Russia Led To Drone Incident: Moscow

MOSCWO, March 16: The Russian defence minister told the Pentagon chief on Wednesday that Washington's "increased" intelligence gathering against Russia had led to a drone incident, Moscow said.

The United States on Tuesday accused Russia of forcing down one of its Reaper surveillance drones over the Black Sea through a collision with a Russian Su-27 warplane.

Russia denies that it deliberately brought the drone down.

It was the first such incident between Moscow and Washington since President Vladimir Putin sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022.

On Wednesday, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that "increased intelligence activities against the interests of the Russian Federation" and "non-compliance with the restricted flight zone" declared by Moscow due to its campaign in Ukraine had led to the incident, the defence ministry said in a statement.

The ministry in Moscow also warned that it would react "proportionately" to any future US "provocations".

"Flights of American strategic unmanned aerial vehicles off the coast of Crimea are provocative in nature, which creates pre-conditions for an escalation of the situation in the Black Sea zone," the ministry said.

"Russia is not interested in such a development of events, but it will continue to respond proportionately to all provocations."

Separately, the Russian military's chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov spoke to Mark Milley, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, the defence ministry said in a separate statement.

Russia, China, Iran Begin Trilateral Naval Drills In Arabian Sea

MOSCOW, March 16: Russia said Wednesday it had started naval exercises with China and Iran in the Arabian Sea as it seeks to shore up ties with Beijing and Tehran.

The Russian defence ministry said in a statement that the trilateral exercises dubbed the "Marine Security Belt 2023" had begun in the vicinity of the Iranian port of Chabahar.

The naval part of the drills will take place on Thursday and Friday.

Russia will be represented by the Admiral Gorshkov frigate and a medium-sized tanker, the ministry said.

During the naval drills, the ships will perform "joint manoeuvres and will carry out artillery firing in daytime and at night," the statement said.

President Vladimir Putin has sought to ramp up political, economic and military ties with China and Iran after he sent troops to Ukraine a year ago, triggering multiple rounds of unprecedented Western sanctions.

Tons Of Uranium Missing From Libyan Site: UN Nuclear Watchdog

VIENNA, March 16: The UN nuclear agency said on Wednesday that approximately 2.5 tons of natural uranium had gone missing from a site in Libya.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi told the organisation's member states that inspectors on Tuesday found that 10 drums containing uranium ore concentrate "were not present as previously declared" at the location in Libya.

The IAEA will conduct further activities "to clarify the circumstances of the removal of the nuclear material and its current location", it said in a statement, without providing further details on the site.

Libya in 2003 abandoned a programme to develop nuclear weapons under its long-ruling former dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

The North African country has been mired in a political crisis since Kadhafi's fall in 2011, with a myriad of militias forming opposing alliances backed by foreign powers.

It remains split between a nominally interim government in the capital Tripoli in the west, and another in the east backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar.

American surveillance drone hit by Russian jet over Black Sea: US military

BRUSSELS, March 14: The United States on Tuesday condemned a Russian jet's "reckless" collision with one of its drone over the Black Sea that led to the destruction of the American aircraft.

A Russian Su-27 jet fighter collided with an American MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday, the US military's European Command said.

"Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in a crash and complete loss of the MQ-9," said US Air Force General James Hecker, commander of US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa.

"In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash."

Russian intercepts in the area are common, but this one "is noteworthy because of how unsafe and unprofessional it was, indeed reckless that it was," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told journalists.

Russia Denies It Downed US Military Drone That Crashed Into Black Sea

MOSCOW, March 14: Russia's defence ministry said on Tuesday that its fighter jets did not come into contact with a U.S. drone that crashed into the Black Sea earlier, claiming instead that the drone crashed due to "sharp maneuvering".

"The Russian fighters did not use their onboard weapons, did not come into contact with the UAV and returned safely to their home airfield," the defence ministry said.

Li Qiang, trusted ally of Xi Jinping, elected China’s new premier

BEINJING, March 11: China on Saturday named Li Qiang, a close confidant of top leader Xi Jinping, as the country’s next premier, nominally in charge of the world’s second-largest economy now facing some of its worst prospects in years.

Li was nominated by Xi and appointed to the position at Saturday morning’s session of the National People’s Congress, China’s ceremonial parliament. That came a day after Xi, 69, secured a norms-breaking third five-year term as state leader, setting him up to possibly rule for life.

Li is best known for having enforced a brutal “zero-Covid” lockdown on Shanghai last spring as party boss of the Chinese financial hub, proving his loyalty to Xi in the face of complaints from residents over their lack of access to food, medical care and basic services.

Li, 63, came to know Xi during the future president’s term as head of Li’s native Zhejiang, a relatively wealthy southeastern province now known as a technology and manufacturing powerhouse.

Prior to the pandemic, Li built up a reputation in Shanghai and Zhejiang before that as friendly to private industry, even as Xi enforced tighter political controls and anti-Covid curbs, as well as more control over e-commerce and other tech companies.

As premier, Li will be charged with reviving a sluggish economy still emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic and confronted with weak global demand for exports, lingering U.S. tariff hikes, a shrinking workforce and an aging population.

He takes on the job as authority of the premier and the State Council, China’s Cabinet, has been steadily eroding as Xi shifts more powers to bodies directly under the ruling Communist Party.

At the opening of the annual congress session on Sunday, outgoing Premier Li Keqiang announced plans for a consumer-led revival of the struggling economy, setting this year’s growth target at “around 5%.” Last year’s growth fell to 3%, the second-weakest level since at least the 1970s.

As with Xi’s appointment on Friday, there was no indication that members of the NPC had any option other than to endorse Li and other officials picked by the Communist Party to fill other posts.

Unlike Xi, who received the body’s full endorsement, Li’s tally included three opposed and eight abstentions.

The nearly 3,000 delegates deposited ballots into boxes placed around the vast auditorium in the Great Hall of the People, in a process that also produced new heads of the Supreme People’s Court and the state prosecutor’s office, and two vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission that commands the party’s military wing, the 2 million-member People’s Liberation Army.

Xi was renamed head of the commission on Friday, an appointment that has been automatic for the party leader for three decades. The premier has no direct authority over the armed forces, who take their orders explicitly from the party, and plays only a marginal role in foreign relations and domestic security.

Xi’s new term and the appointment of loyalists to top posts underscore his near-total monopoly on Chinese political power, eliminating any potential opposition to his hyper-nationalistic agenda of building China into the top political, military and economic rival to the U.S. and the chief authoritarian challenge to the Washington-led democratic world order.

Iran, Saudi Arabia To Restore Ties In China-Brokered Deal

TEHRAN, March 10: Regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed Friday to restore ties and reopen diplomatic missions in Chinese-brokered talks, they said in a joint statement, seven years after relations were severed.

The move caps a broader realignment and efforts to ease tensions in the Middle East.

Riyadh cut ties with Tehran after Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in the Islamic republic in 2016 following the Saudi execution of revered Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.

Shiite-majority Iran and Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia support rival sides in several conflict zones across the Middle East, including in Yemen where the Huthi rebels are backed by Tehran, and Riyadh leads a military coalition supporting the government.

"Following talks, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have agreed to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions within two months," Iran's state news agency IRNA said, citing the joint statement.

The official Saudi Press Agency also published the statement, which said talks took place in Beijing for five days immediately before the announcement.

Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, had travelled to Beijing on Monday for "intensive negotiations with his Saudi counterpart in China in order to finally resolve the problems between Tehran and Riyadh", IRNA said.

Iraq, a neighbour to both countries, had hosted several rounds of talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia since April 2021.

Those encounters were held at a relatively low level, involving security and intelligence officials.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian had said in July that the two countries were ready to move talks to a higher level, in the political and public spheres.

But no talks had been publicly announced since April last year.

In Friday's statement, Iran and Saudi Arabia said they "thank the Republic of Iraq and the Sultanate of Oman for hosting the talks held between the two sides in 2021 and 2022 as well as the leaders and government of the People's Republic of China for hosting and supporting the talks held in that country."

"The three countries expressed their keenness to exert all efforts towards enhancing regional and international peace and security," they said.

Other Gulf states had also scaled back their ties with Iran after the 2016 incident.

But in September, Tehran welcomed an Emirati ambassador back after a six-year absence. A month earlier, Iran said Kuwait had sent its first ambassador to Iran since 2016.

Another regional rupture took place in June 2017 when Saudi Arabia and its allies the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties with Qatar.

They claimed it supported extremists and was too close to Iran -- allegations that Doha denied.

Those ties were mended in January 2021.

On Thursday Amir-Abdollahian was in Damascus where he welcomed Arab outreach to Syria's internationally isolated government after an earthquake struck Turkey and the war-torn country last month.

He also said Tehran, which has backed Damascus during its 12 years of conflict, would join efforts to reconcile Syria and Turkey, which has long supported rebel groups opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Ties between Riyadh and Ankara have also undergone a rapprochement since the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist and government critic Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pushed hard to revive bilateral ties, a move analysts describe as largely driven by economic considerations.

China's Xi, Handed Historic 3rd Term, May Rule Well Into His Seventies

BEIJING, March 10: Xi Jinping was handed a third term as Chinese president on Friday, capping a rise that has seen him become the country's most powerful leader in generations. The appointment by China's rubber-stamp parliament comes after Xi locked in another five years as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in October.

Since then, the 69-year-old Xi has weathered widespread protests over his zero-Covid policy and the deaths of countless people after its abandonment.

Those issues have been avoided at this week's National People's Congress (NPC), a carefully choreographed event that is also set to appoint Xi ally Li Qiang as the new premier.

On Friday, delegates handed Xi a third term as China's president and re-elected him as head of the country's Central Military Commission in a unanimous vote.

Beijing's Great Hall of the People, a cavernous state building on the edge of Tiananmen Square, was adorned with crimson carpets and banners for the landmark vote, with a military band providing background music.

A digital monitor on the edge of the stage proclaimed the final tally -- all 2,952 votes had been cast in favour of awarding Xi another term in office.

The announcement was followed by fervent declarations of allegiance by delegates to the Chinese constitution in a demonstration of loyalty and unanimity.

Xi held up his right fist and placed his left hand on a red leather copy of China's constitution.

"I swear to be loyal to the constitution of the People's Republic of China, to uphold the authority of the constitution, to perform my statutory obligations, to be loyal to the motherland, to be loyal to the people," he said, promising to fulfil his duties with honesty and hard work.

In the oath -- beamed live on state television across the nation -- he vowed to "build a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious and great modern socialist country".

Xi's re-election is the culmination of a remarkable rise in which he has gone from a relatively little-known party apparatchik to the leader of a rising global power.

His coronation sets him up to become communist China's longest-serving president, and means Xi could rule well into his seventies -- if no challenger emerges.

Adrian Geiges, co-author of "Xi Jinping: The Most Powerful Man in the World", said he did not think Xi was motivated by a desire for personal enrichment, despite international media investigations having revealed his family's amassed wealth.

"That's not his interest," Geiges said.

"He really has a vision about China, he wants to see China as the most powerful country in the world."

For decades, China -- scarred by the dictatorial reign and cult of personality of founding leader Mao Zedong -- eschewed one-man rule in favour of a more consensus-based, but still autocratic, leadership.

That model imposed term limits on the largely ceremonial role of the presidency, with Xi's predecessors Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao relinquishing power after 10 years in office.

Xi has torn up that rulebook, abolishing term limits in 2018 and allowing a cult of personality to foster his all-powerful leadership.

But the beginning of his unprecedented third term comes as the world's second-largest economy faces major headwinds, from slowing growth and a troubled real estate sector to a declining birth rate.

Relations with the United States are also at a low not seen in decades, with the powers sparring over everything from human rights to trade and technology.

"We will see a China more assertive on the global stage, insisting its narrative be accepted," said Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute.

"But it is also one that will focus on domestically making it less dependent on the rest of the world, and making the Communist Party the centrepiece of governance, rather than the Chinese government," he said.

"It is not a return to the Maoist era, but one that Maoists will feel comfortable in," Tsang added.

"Not a direction of travel that is good for the rest of the world."

7 Shot Dead In German Church

HAMBURG, March 11: An "extreme danger" alarm was sounded in Germany's Hamburg and the police asked the residents to stay indoors as shots were fired upon a religious gathering in a church on Thursday.

At least seven persons were killed and eight others seriously injured in the attack on a weekly Bible study meeting at a Jehovah's Witness centre, local reports said.

Jehovah's Witnesses is a US Christian movement that preaches non-violence and practise door-to-door evangelism.

A gunman is believed to be among those killed, police said, without releasing any casualty figure.

The police used a catastrophe warning app to send out the danger alarm while nearby buildings were cordoned off.

We found a lifeless person in a community center who we believe could be a perpetrator, Hamburg Police tweeted, adding that searches are still on for the involvement of other attackers.

Russia Launches Huge Wave Of Missile Strikes Across Ukraine

KYIV, March 9: Russia launched a huge wave of missile strikes across Ukraine while people slept on Thursday, killing at least six civilians, knocking out electricity and forcing a nuclear power plant off the grid.

The first big volley of missile strikes since mid-February shattered the longest period of comparative calm since Moscow began a campaign to attack Ukraine's civil infrastructure five months ago. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said infrastructure and residential buildings in 10 regions had been hit.

"The occupiers can only terrorise civilians. That's all they can do. But it won't help them. They won't avoid responsibility for everything they have done," Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a statement.

At least five people were killed in a missile that destroyed a village house in the western Lviv region, according to emergency services. Drone footage from the area, some 700 km (440 miles) from any military battlefield, showed a flattened home surrounded by badly damaged buildings.

Another civilian was reported killed by the missiles in the central Dnipro region. Three civilians were separately reported killed by artillery in Kherson.

In the capital Kyiv, residents were awakened by explosions. A seven-hour air strike alert through the night was the longest of the Russian air campaign that began in October.

"I heard a very loud explosion, very loud. We quickly jumped out of bed and saw one car on fire. Then the other cars caught on fire as well. The glass shattered on the balconies and windows," said Liudmyla, 58, holding a toddler in her arms.

"It's very frightening. Very frightening. The child got scared and jumped out of bed," she said. "How can they do this? How is this possible? They are not humans, I don't know what to call them. They are frightening the children, their mental state will be disrupted."

Moscow says its campaign of targeting Ukraine's infrastructure far from the front is intended to reduce its ability to fight. Kyiv says the air strikes have no military purpose and aim to harm and intimidate civilians, a war crime.

Ukrainian officials said Moscow had fired six of its kinzhal hypersonic missiles, an unprecedented number, which Ukraine has no way of shooting down. Russia is believed to have only a few dozen of the missiles, which President Vladimir Putin regularly touts in speeches as a weapon for which NATO has no answer.

Ukraine said the missiles had knocked out the power supply to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, severing it from the Ukrainian grid.

The plant, which Russia has held since capturing it early in the war, is near the front line and both sides have warned in the past of a potential for disaster there caused by fighting. Moscow said the was being kept safe on diesel backup power.

"Everything is absolutely normal: the specialists at the plant are working quite professionally, the automation has started up," Renat Karchaa, an adviser to the CEO of Russian state energy firm Rosenergoatom, said on state TV channel Rossiya 24.

"There is no threat or danger of a nuclear incident. There is more than enough fuel and, if necessary, it will be supplied to the plant."

Kyiv, the Black Sea port of Odesa and the second-largest city Kharkiv were all hit as missiles targeted a wide arc of targets, stretching from Zhytomyr, Vynnytsia and Rivne in the west to Dnipro and Poltava in central Ukraine, officials said.

"Unfortunately, a missile of the Kinzhal type hit an infrastructure object," said Serhiy Popko, the head of Kyiv region's military administration.

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko reported explosions in the southwestern part of the capital. He said on Telegram that 40% of consumers in Kyiv were without heating due to electricity shutdowns.

The governor of Odesa region, Maksym Marchenko, said on Telegram that a mass missile attack had hit an energy facility in the city, cutting power. Residential areas had also been hit.

Kharkiv region Governor Oleh Synehubov said the city and region had been hit by 15 strikes, with targets including infrastructure.

On the battlefield, the week has seen an apparent shift as Ukraine has decided to stay and fight in Bakhmut, a small city that has borne the brunt of a Russian winter offensive in the bloodiest fighting of the war.

Moscow says it is strategically important as a step to securing the surrounding Donbas region, a major war aim. The West says the ruined city has little value and Russian generals are sacrificing lives to give Putin his only victory since sending hundreds of thousands of reservists into battle at the end of last year.

Ukraine had appeared likely to withdraw from Bakhmut, but has now signalled a new determination to fight on, with commanders saying they are inflicting enough damage on Russia's assault force to make a continued fight worthwhile.

"The importance of keeping Bakhmut is constantly growing," General Oleksandr Sirskiy, commander of Ukraine's ground forces, said in remarks released by the military on Thursday.

"Each day of the defense of the town allows us to gain time to prepare reserves and prepare for future offensive operations," he said. "The enemy loses the most prepared and combat-capable part of his army."

Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of Russia's Wagner private army which has led the fighting in Bakhmut, said on Wednesday his forces controlled all of the city east of the Bakhmut river that runs through it.

Around two-thirds of the city are on the west bank. Russian forces have been advancing north and south of the city, to cut off the Ukrainian garrison but have not yet succeeded in closing the circle.

Moscow, which claims to have annexed a fifth of Ukraine, says it launched its "special military operation" a year ago to combat a security threat from its neighbour's ties to the West. Kyiv and the West call it an unprovoked war of aggression to subdue and conquer an independent state.

Chinese Diplomats Must Dance With Wolves: FM

BEIJING, March 8: Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang has become the talk of the town on Chinese social media for his remarks on "Wolf Warrior diplomacy discourse trap" and that the "Chinese diplomats must dance with wolves," reported What's on Weibo.

Gang made the remarks while addressing the annual parliamentary meetings in China, known as the "Two Sessions," that are in full swing this week. They began this weekend at China's capital's Great Hall of the People and are scheduled to end on March 13.

A report published in What's on Weibo read that the annual meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC) and of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCP) is a major political event that is closely followed by domestic and international media, particularly because it lays out policy priorities for the coming year and is also the first full session since the end of the Covid pandemic and the 20th Party Congress.

Qin Gang, China's new Foreign Minister, attended the event. Qin Gang held a press conference on March 7th to answer questions about foreign policy and Sino-American relations.

In response to a question, Qin said that when he became China's Ambassador to the United States, Western media headlined that the "wolf warrior" had arrived. Qin served as ambassador from 2021 to 2023. "Now that I've returned and taken up the post of foreign minister, they no longer call me that, as if I've lost something," Qin continued.

He added that actually, so-called 'wolf warrior diplomacy' is a discourse trap, and the people who created it either don't understand China and Chinese diplomacy, or they disregard facts and have ulterior motives. "Confucius said over 2,000 years ago that kindness should be repaid by kindness, and that enmity should be repaid by justice. China's diplomacy is full of kindness and benevolence, but when wolves get in our way and attack, Chinese diplomats must 'dance with the wolves' to protect their country," he said.

Qin used the term "discourse trap" to describe how entrenched the term "wolf warrior diplomacy" has become in Western discourse associated with China's foreign policy, making it difficult to think outside the box or better understand the patterns at hand.

Around 2020, "Wolf warrior diplomacy" became a Western media buzzword for China's style of foreign diplomacy. It refers to the Chinese patriotic action blockbusters "Wolf Warrior" and its sequel "Wolf Warrior II", which became one of the highest-grossing films in mainland China and a social media sensation.

Wolf Warrior II, starring Wu Jing, tells the story of special forces soldier Leng Feng, who battles ruthless foreign mercenaries while also assisting Chinese citizens during a civil war in Africa.

'Wolf Warrior Diplomacy' is a term used in Western media to describe a new style of diplomacy that was harsher and more confrontational than the more conservative communicative approach that mainland Chinese diplomats usually took prior to 2019/2020.

Qin's remarks come a day after President Xi Jinping slammed the US in unusually direct terms, blaming American leaders for suppressing China, which hampered China's development, What's on Weibo reported.

India To Send 20,000 Metric Tonnes Of Wheat To Afghanistan Via Iran Port

NEW DELHI, March 7: India and five central Asian countries on Tuesday asserted that Afghanistan's soil must not be used for any terrorist activities and called for formation of a "truly inclusive" political structure in Kabul that respects rights of all Afghans including womeN and minorities.

At the first meeting of the India-Central Asia joint working group on Afghanistan, New Delhi also announced a fresh tranche of assistance of 20,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan and the consignments will be sent through the Chabahar Port in Iran.

The situation in the war-ravaged country came up for extensive deliberations at the first meeting of the India-Central Asia joint working group on Afghanistan that took place in Delhi.

A joint statement said the meeting emphasized the importance of formation of a "truly inclusive and representative political structure" that respects the rights of all Afghans and ensures equal rights of women, girls and members of minority groups, including access to education.

In December, India joined several other leading countries in criticising the Taliban's decision to ban university education for women in Afghanistan.

The statement said the officials at the deliberations discussed regional threats of terrorism, extremism, radicalisation and drug trafficking and also deliberated on the possibilities to coordinate efforts to counter these threats.

It said they emphasised that the "territory of Afghanistan should not be used for sheltering, training, planning or financing any terrorist acts and reaffirmed that no terrorist organizations including those designated by the UNSC resolution 1267 should be provided sanctuary or allowed to use the territory of Afghanistan".

Besides host India, the meeting was attended by special envoys or senior officials of the Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Country representatives of the UN Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and UN World Food Programme (UNWFP) also participated in the meeting.

The joint statement said the officials exchanged views on the current situation in Afghanistan, including the political, security and the humanitarian aspects.

"While emphasising the respect for sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and non-interference in its internal affairs, the sides reiterated support for a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan," it said.

It said the country representative of the UNWFP in Afghanistan briefed the participants on the India-UNWFP partnership to deliver foodgrain assistance to Afghan people and made a presentation on the current humanitarian situation, including the aid requirements for the year ahead.

India announced the supply of 20,000 metric tonnes of wheat assistance to Afghanistan in partnership with UNWFP through Chabahar Port, the joint statement said.

Months after the Taliban captured power in Kabul in August 2021, India had announced an assistance of 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghan people as they were reeling under a severe food crisis. Subsequently, the consignments were sent to Afghanistan using the land route through Pakistan. Islamabad had granted the transit facility after nearly months of discussions.

"The sides took note of the current humanitarian situation and agreed to continue to provide humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people," the statement said.

It said the country representative of the UNODC in Afghanistan highlighted the partnership of India and UNODC in fighting the menace of narcotics in Afghanistan and thanked New Delhi for "providing humanitarian aid for the Afghan drug user population." "Upon their request, India offered capacity building training courses for the relevant stakeholders/partner agencies of UNODC and the relevant officials/stakeholders of Central Asian Republics in the field of countering illegal drug trafficking," the statement said.

It said the participants thanked India for holding the first Joint Working Group Meeting on Afghanistan at senior officials level and agreed to continue consultations in this format on a regular basis.

India has not yet recognised the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and has been pitching for the formation of a truly inclusive government in Kabul besides insisting that Afghan soil must not be used for any terrorist activities against any country.

India has been pitching for providing unimpeded humanitarian aid to Afghanistan to address the unfolding humanitarian crisis in the country.

In June last year, India re-established its diplomatic presence in Kabul by deploying a "technical team" in its embassy in the Afghan capital.

India had withdrawn its officials from the embassy after the Taliban seized power in August 2021 following concerns over their security.

Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister says relationship with India top priority

NEW DELHI, March 7: Terming the relationship with India a "top priority", Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Farhan Al-Saud said that the relationship between both nations has grown exponentially, adding that there is a need for measurable progress in all sectors especially the economic and trade relationship.

Highlighting the strong relationship between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the minister said that both leaders want to see actual results, progress in relationship between the countries.

"The relationship with India is a top priority and we need to have measurable progress in all sectors especially the economic and trade relationship," the Saudi Foreign Minister said in an interview with President of Observer Research Foundation (ORF) Samir Saran at Raisina 'Ideas Pod'.

Mr Al-Saud said the relationship between India and Saudi Arabia in the last five years, has grown exponentially.

"Part of that is the very strong relationship between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Crown Prince who have a very strong working relationship. Both of them are very similar in the sense that they both are very result oriented. They don't want just a nice talk, they want to see actual results, they want to see progress and that means that we in the government have a very clear direction," he said while defining the similarities between both the leaders who believe in action.

Emphasizing on India's rising global stature, he said, "India is a fantastically dynamic country with huge potential and we've seen that especially in the last five years, the trajectory for India is fantastic. The potential that India holds is almost unmeasurable."

Acknowledging the fact that India has played an important role in the developmental journey of the Kingdom for several decades given the large Indian presence in Saudi Arabia, he said, "The connection has existed even before that, you know hundreds of years given the trade relationship. We're now building on that connection, on that relationship in a way that is not just benefiting both of us, it's really benefiting the international Community."

He also said that India's huge size offers great potential as a huge amount of India's trade to Europe passes through the Red Sea.

"We are of course India's most important energy partner as that's the case for traditional energies but we're also looking to continue that into the renewable era," he added.

Earlier, Saleh Eid Al Husseini, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to India, said that he wants to bring this relationship to the highest level. Speaking on the celebrations of the Kingdom's founding day here, the envoy said he was happy to have a strong and friendly relationship between the two countries.

Underlining the strong relationship between the Kingdom and India, Husseini said, "We are very happy to have a strong relationship with our friendly country India. Also for a long time, we have had this relationship and we have been asked to bring this relationship to the highest level that we can."

While speaking on the foundation day celebration, the envoy highlighted the Kingdom's governance and how the youth has been its focus as the next generation.

"We are very proud to have a country that started in 1727 and this year as I said reflects good governance and we hold our future, our children and all our Saudi Arabia is now focusing on youth on the next generation", said the Envoy.

"Our country is celebrating around 300 years and this reflects nations' governance, reflects equity, to have the prosperity of their people. To bring modernization and at the same time to regain the culture of the society. It's not by chance to be 300 years old unless the state is caring about its neighbours, caring about its people, seeking peace all over the world", added the envoy.

Over 5,000 School Children Poisoned In Iran: Lawmaker

TEHRAN, March 7: More than 5,000 Iranian schoolchildren have been affected by a spate of poisonings that has targeted mainly female pupils since late November, according to a lawmaker investigating the cases.

The mystery poisonings have gripped Iran, triggering a wave of anger and demands for action from the authorities.

They have also sparked international concern and Western calls for an independent investigation, particularly as the first cases were reported soon after the start of nationwide protests sparked by the death of Iranian Kurd Mahsa Amini, 22, following her arrest for allegedly breaching Iran's strict dress code for women.

Scores of schools have been hit, with pupils suffering symptoms ranging from shortness of breath to nausea and vertigo after reporting "unpleasant" odours on school premises. Some have been treated in hospital.

"Twenty-five provinces and approximately 230 schools have been affected, and more than 5,000 schoolgirls and boys poisoned," Mohammad-Hassan Asafari, a member of the parliamentary fact-finding committee, told the ISNA news agency on Monday.

"Various tests are being carried out to identify the type and cause of the poisonings. So far, no specific information has been obtained regarding the type of poison used."

Calling the poisonings an "unforgivable crime", Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gave orders Monday for the perpetrators to be tracked down "without mercy".

President Ebrahim Raisi already tasked the interior ministry last week with providing continuous updates on the investigation.

"In less than five percent of the students transferred to hospital, irritant materials were found which led to their ill-health," the ministry said in its latest update Monday.

"Fortunately, so far, no toxic or dangerous substances have been found in any of the students transferred to medical centres."

The latest case -- reported by the ISNA news agency -- involved 40 pupils, all of them female, in the restive southeastern city of Zahedan.

The White House called Monday for a "credible independent investigation" into the poisonings.

The first cases were reported in Iran's Shiite clerical capital of Qom in late November, a month after the Mahsa Amini protests that later spread to universities and schools.

On Tuesday, Tehran prosecutor Ali Salehi warned "those who spread lies and rumours" about the poisonings that "they will be dealt with decisively and legally," the judiciary's Mizan Online website reported.

Taiwan President To Meet US House Speaker In California: Report

TAIPEI, March 7: Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen will meet US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California rather than in Taipei, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, hours after Taipei warned a high-profile US visit could provoke a Chinese military response.

Tsai's government had provided McCarthy's staff with intelligence about Chinese threats, the newspaper reported, citing an unidentified senior Taiwanese official.

McCarthy had expressed an interest in visiting Taiwan, as his predecessor Nancy Pelosi had done in August.

Pelosi's trip sparked condemnation from China, which held massive military drills around the self-ruled island in response in a move Taipei said was preparation for an invasion.

Taiwan lives under constant threat of such an invasion by China, which views the democratically ruled island as part of its territory to be seized one day, by force if necessary.

The US is one of Taiwan's closest allies and biggest arms suppliers but also adopts a "One China" Policy, in which the US recognises Beijing and opposes any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side.

Taiwan's defence minister said on Monday a sharp increase in Chinese defence spending announced at the weekend was potentially aimed at the island.

"I think they are waiting for a good reason to send troops, such as high-level visits from other countries to Taiwan or too-frequent activities between our military and other countries," Chiu Kuo-cheng said.

The minister said Taiwan was "making advance preparations" for incursions deeper into waters around the island than have been the norm in recent years.

McCarthy's office has not commented on the potential visit, which the FT reported would take place in April. Tsai's office also offered no confirmation when approached by a news agency on Tuesday.

Taiwan's foreign ministry would neither confirm nor deny the planned visit.

"The ministry will announce to the public if there is any confirmed arrangement for the president's visit but we don't have any relevant information to share at the moment," spokesman Jeff Liu said on Tuesday.

Tsai last visited the United States in 2019, stopping over while making official visits to diplomatic allies in the Caribbean.

Imran Khan's Request Seeking Suspension Of Arrest Warrant Rejected

ISLAMABAD, March 6: A Pakistani court here on Monday rejected former prime minister Imran Khan's request seeking the suspension of the non-bailable warrant issued against him in the Toshakhana case.

Additional Session judge Zafar Iqbal, who had earlier in the day reserved the verdict, announced it later in the day after a brief hearing of the case.

During today's hearing, Imran Khan's lawyers Ali Bukhari, Qaiser Imam, and Gohar Ali Khan appeared before the Islamabad district and sessions court, where Ali Bukhari contended that his client had always followed court orders.

Imam argued that police could not arrest the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief if he was willing to appear in court.

At this, the judge remarked that the PTI chief could have approached the Islamabad High Court to suspend the warrant to which Imam said they wanted the sessions court to suspend it.

Ali Bukhari added that 70-year-old Imran Khan was at his Zaman Park residence in Lahore and wanted to know a "way he can appear in court".

Urging the court to suspend the warrant, Imam argued that a private complaint was registered against the PTI chief under the Election Act 2017 and that arrest warrants were usually not issued on a private complaint.

The judge had earlier in the day remarked that the PTI chief's lawyer had informed them that their client would not appear in the court and reserved the verdict for later.

On February 28, Additional Sessions Judge Zafar Iqbal issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against the cricketer-turned-politician for continuously failing to appear before the court in the Toshakhana case.

Imran Khan has been in the crosshairs for buying gifts, including an expensive Graff wristwatch he had received as the premier at a discounted price from the state depository called Toshakhana, and selling them for profit.

In his assets declarations, he is accused of concealing details of the gifts he retained from the Toshakhana - a repository where presents handed to government officials from foreign officials are kept.

Officials are legally allowed to retain gifts provided they pay a pre-assessed amount, typically a fraction of the value of the gift.

The PTI chief approached the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Sunday for post-arrest bail after an Islamabad police team arrived at his Zaman Park residence to arrest him for skipping proceedings in the Toshakhana case.

However, the police team returned empty-handed after Imran Khan evaded the arrest.

However, the Dawn newspaper in a report said the LHC registrar had raised objections to Imran Khan's plea, saying that complete documents had not been submitted along with the petitions.

Imran Khan has not attended any hearings since November last year when he was injured in an assassination attempt at his rally in the Wazirabad area of Punjab.

Imran Khan was granted interim bail by a special court in Islamabad after being shot during the assassination attempt.

He has since received extensions on his bail due to medical reasons.

Imran Khan was ousted from power in April after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China, and Afghanistan.

The PTI chief, who came to power in 2018, is the only Pakistani Prime Minister to be ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament.

US Secretary Of State Asks Russian Minister To End This War Of Aggression

NEW DELHI, March 2: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he urged his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to end the war in Ukraine during a brief, unscheduled meeting that was the first since Moscow's invasion.

"I told the foreign minister what I and so many others said last week at the United Nations and what so many G20 foreign ministers said today -- end this war of aggression, engage in meaningful diplomacy that can produce a just and lasting peace," Blinken told reporters after talks in New Delhi.

No G20 Joint Statement In Delhi Due To Differences

NEW DELHI, March 2: Foreign Minister S Jaishankar today said there were "divergences" in the meetings of the G20 and member countries could not reconcile positions on the Ukraine war, after Foreign Ministers held discussions at the start of a two-day event in Delhi under India's presidency of the grouping.

"There were issues and very frankly they were concerned with the Ukraine conflict. There were divergences. There were differences, which we could not be reconciled," Jaishankar said, explaining why there was an outcome document instead of a joint statement.

Sources say both Russia and China raised objections to the wording on the Ukraine war, thwarting a joint statement for the second time.

Last week, a meeting of G20 Finance Ministers in Bengaluru failed to agree on a common statement after Russia and China similarly sought to water down language on the Ukraine war. A "Chair's Summary" was published at the end of the discussions.

The Foreign Minister stressed that there was agreement on "the bulk of issues" involving the concerns of the global south.

"There were a large number of issues on which there was agreement, like strengthening multilateralism, promoting food and energy security, climate change, gender issues, counter terror...On the bulk of issues which concern the global south, there was a considerable meeting of minds that has been captured by outcome document," he said.

"If we had a perfect meeting of minds on all issues, it would have been a collective statement. In terms of the outcome document you will see that there was almost 90 per cent agreement. Just, on two paras we were not able to get everybody on the same page - or para," Jaishankar told the media.

The inability to converge on a joint statement contrasts sharply with the consensus reached by leaders in Bali in November. The G20 leaders' statement had said then that "most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine" and noted "other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions".

India has declined to blame Russia for the war, seeking a diplomatic solution while sharply boosting its purchases of Russian oil. To avoid its year as chair of the G20 becoming dominated by the Ukraine war, India has called for a focus on food, energy and fertilizer security - subjects that impact fewer wealthy nations.

Taiwan Claims 19 Chinese Fighter Jets Entered Air Space In 24 hours

TAIPEI, March 1: Taiwan's defence ministry said on Wednesday it had spotted 19 Chinese air force planes in its air defence zone in the past 24 hours, part of what Taipei calls regular harassment by Beijing.

Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, has complained for the past three years or so of stepped up Chinese military activities near the island as Beijing seeks to assert its sovereignty claims.

China has said its activities in the area are justified as it seeks to defend its territorial integrity and to warn the United States against "colluding" with Taiwan, despite the anger this causes in Taipei.

Taiwan's defence ministry said 19 J-10 fighters had flown into the southwestern corner of the island's air defence identification zone, or ADIZ, though closer to the Chinese coast than Taiwan's according to a map the ministry released.

Taiwan's forces monitored the situation, including sending up its own air force planes, the ministry added, using the normal phrasing for its response to such Chinese incursions.

However, the aircraft did not cross the sensitive median line of the Taiwan Strait, which previously served as an unofficial barrier between the two sides but which China's air force has been flying over on an almost daily basis since staging war games near Taiwan last August.

No shots have been fired and the Chinese aircraft have been flying in Taiwan's ADIZ, not in its territorial air space.

The ADIZ is a broader area Taiwan monitors and patrols that acts to give it more time to respond to any threats.

The democratically elected Taiwanese government has repeatedly offered talks with China, but says the island will defend itself if attacked and that only the Taiwanese people can decide their own future.