SOUTH ASIAN DIGEST

Pakistan addresses Kashmir issue with UN Security Council President

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Pakistan has raised the Kashmir issue with UN Security Council President, saying the situation in the valley and the "escalation" of tension along the Line of Control (LoC) pose a threat to international peace and security. Pakistan's envoy to the UN Maleeha Lodhi on Friday in a tweet said that she raised the issue of... More

Sri Lanka PM instructs to withdraw no-faith motion against SLFP ministers

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Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had instructed the UNP backbench parliamentarians to withdraw the No-Confidence motions submitted to the Speaker against six ministers and the deputy speaker, Department of Information Director General Sudharshana Gunawardana said Saturday. Quoting the Premier, Gunawardana said that any decision regarding a No-Confidence motion must be taken at a UNP parliamentary group... More

‘Can’t accept a project that violates India’s sovereignty’

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India on rejected reports alluding a possible cooperation with China on Beijing's mega 'One Belt One Road' (OBOR) venture, asserting that no country can accept a project that ignores its core concerns on sovereignty and territorial integrity. Ministry of external affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar also noted that India's position on OBOR/BRI was "clear and there... More

Nepal PM Oli meets Indian Congress leaders

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Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli met a delegation of Congress leaders in New Delhi on Friday (Apr 6). Oli, who is on a three-day visit to India, having arrived earlier on Friday, met Congress President Rahul Gandhi, former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and former Union Minister Anand Sharma. Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted... More

Pakistan, Russia concerned over ISIS presence in Afghanistan

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Pakistan’s defence minister Khurram Dastgir Khan Thursday met his Russian counterpart General Sergei Shoigu on the sidelines of Moscow Security Conference currently taking place in the Russian capital. Both the dignitaries noted the increasing convergence of views between Pakistan and Russia on international issues, particularly on sustainable peace in Afghanistan, establishment of energy corridors, and... More

Bhutan attends 18th mid-term ministerial meeting of NAM

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A Bhutanese delegation led by foreign secretary Sonam Tshong is attending the 18th mid-term ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in Baku, Azerbaijan from April 5-6. The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, inaugurated the meeting. According to a press release from the foreign ministry, the secretary in his address, reiterated Bhutan’s strong... More

Saudi King invites Bangladesh PM to join joint military exercise in Dammam

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Saudi King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz has invited Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to attend the concluding ceremony of the 23-country joint military exercise to be held in Dammam on April 16.Saudi Ambassador to Bangladesh Abdullah HM Al Mutairi handed over a letter of the Saudi King to the prime minister when he made... More

UNOCHA deputy chief visits Maungdaw

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A senior official from UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) currently in Myanmar for a weeklong visit is scheduled to fly to Maungdaw township in northern Rakhine State on Thursday to inspect the area, which is one of the centres of violence last year.UN Deputy Humanitarian Chief Ursula Mueller arrived on Tuesday... More

Maldives declines India’s offer to participate in Defence Expo

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Maldives has declined an invitation by India to send a ministerial-level delegation to the Defence Expo, a biennial exhibition of weapons and military hardware, which will be held in Chennai next week, official sources said. The decision by Maldives is seen as an apparent snub to New Delhi which was critical of the Abdulla Yameen... More

SUNDAY SPECIAL

How the No Confidence Motion on the Lankan PM is now reflected on...


Three days after the drama of the No Confidence Motion (NCM) against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, President Maithripala Sirisena who almost wanted his PM’s head on a platter called resignation is... More

REPORTS

Kashmir issue an unfinished agenda of Partition: Pakistan PM Abbasi


Pakistan’s top leadership on Friday expressed concern over what it described as rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir and extended political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiris’ demand for... More

India, Nepal decide to boost cooperation, speed up connectivity projects


Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepalese counterpart K P Sharma Oli Saturday (Apr 7) held extensive deliberations covering entire expanse of bilateral relationship and vowed to boost... More

Bangladeshi politics in a mess ahead of poll in December


It’s an election year in Bangladesh and one that has been marked by political turmoil, notably the jailing of former prime minister Khaleda Zia in February over the Zia... More

Political life after No Confidence Motion victory for Lankan PM


Following Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe emerging victorious from Wednesday’s No Confidence Motion (NCM) against him by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Joint Opposition, the section of government ministers... More

ECONOMY

Pakistan adds to cryptocurrency curbs


India’s central bank barred banks on Friday from having any links to virtual currency dealers, slashing the prices of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on local exchanges. Pakistan’s central bank said... More

VISTA OF VIEWS

Dams, treaties, India and water


The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) dates from 1960, long before climate change and global warming were almost daily headline news. A lot of water has flowed under many bridges... More

ISSUES

An Indian counter narrative on Maldives


The Maldives is back in the headlines. This time around, it is not about democracy deficit or rule of law. Two new topics are exciting the Indians – recent visit of the Pakistani army... More

No jobs, no vote: Indian town warns Modi ahead of 2019 polls


Rakesh Kumar has a post-graduate degree but works as a house painter in the small town of Kasba Bonli in northwestern India. The 31-year-old, the only one of eight siblings to attend university, said his... More

Pak PM discusses regional security, connectivity with Afghan President


Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani discussed the fight against militancy, the Afghan-led peace process, bilateral relations and regional connectivity as they met in Kabul on Friday. Earlier in the... More

Monsoon over the Maldives: The latest chapter of the India-China saga


The island nation of the Maldives is experiencing a politically turbulent beginning to 2018 following an uncompromising showdown between the president and the Supreme Court. As the storm brews over the tropical paradise, two... More

DEFENCE

Pakistan in talks with Russia on buying air defence systems


Pakistan’s Defence minister Khurram Dastgir Khan confirmed to Sputnik that Islamabad was in talks with Moscow on the issue of purchasing air Defence systems, adding that Pakistan was interested in such weapons. "Air Defence system... More

IAF to conduct the biggest war game near Pakistan, China borders


An all-encompassing coordinated and composite exercise named Gaganshakti is being conducted by the IAF from April 8-22. The aim of this exercise is real-time coordination, deployment, and employment of Air Power in a short... More

As Nepal’s Oli looks to bolster ties with China, Modi may be in for a...

There are seemingly as many interpretations as there are analysts in Nepal pouring over Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli’s three-day state visit to India starting April 6. One reason for such diverse views on Oli’s impending India visit is the cozy relations he has traditionally... More

COLUMN

What John Bolton’s appointment as NSA would lead Pak-US relations to?

What will the newly appointed National Security Adviser (NSA) John Bolton, the well-known hawk, would advise the US president Trumpon matters related to the US national security? This is the question that has been raised almost everywhere since the appointment—and rightly so; for, the appointment doesn’t merely mean a... More

Lest we forget

The pulsating cheering crowd in the National Stadium Karachi for the PSL Final, and subsequently for the three international T20s, underscored the return of peace to a city (and country) torn by internal strife.  Bereft of any sports spectacle and living in cold fear for life and limb of... More

Why is AL going after a weak BNP?

To be honest, almost everyone in Bangladesh thinks that almost all rich people are dishonest. Of course, not all are dishonest but they are considered extreme exceptions. Since almost all rich people are also linked to political parties, to either guard present gains or ensure future ones, the general... More

Myanmar’s new president heralds a change in direction

When Win Myint was sworn in as Myanmar’s new president last Friday, he outlined the government’s priorities for the future. While the overall policy direction did not different, his approach marks a more activist intent. “Policy won’t change, but his election promises a new era of accelerated economic and... More

How Bangladesh is at the crossroads of India-China ‘war of influence’

The rise of China in Asia has meant different things to different countries in the region and beyond. For its competitors, this rise means political and economic hegemony with ‘Chinese characteristics’; for its supporters, such as Pakistan,this rise is the primary alternative to the US and Western aid and... More

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Reviving Nepal’s independent foreign policy

The long political transition in Nepal has come to an end with the successful completion of local, provincial and federal elections. A new phase of history beckons Nepal as it has adopted federalism under the new constitution promulgated in 2015. The achievement of economic prosperity has now been prioritized... More

One-man band cannot make music

There is a new Cold War in the world. It is not between the United States and Russia; that is a diplomatic war between a presumptuous ‘sole super power’ and a chastened but proud country that has lost its pole position. It is not between the United States and... More

Avoiding ‘religious’ violence in Sri Lanka

On the night of February 22, four drunken Muslim youths traveling on a three-wheeler in Sri Lanka’s Kandy district beat up a Sinhala Buddhist truck driver because he had not allowed them to overtake his truck. The police arrested the assailants but released them on bail. Although intelligence officers had... More

Maldives vital to Indo-Pacific strategy

President Donald J Trump has been the first President since the Atlantic era ended towards the close of the 1990s to acknowledge that it is no longer the Atlantic ocean but the confluence of the Pacific and Indian oceans (the Indo-Pacific) that is at the core of global geopolitics.... More

MOST POPULAR

READER'S VIEWS

Gorkhaland, Mamata and the Chinese factor


Just a few days ago I warned two young student leaders in Darjeeling of West Bengal, against the violent movement which has started there for a separate Gorkhaland. I told them in no way... More
April 2018
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The dysfunctional megacity: why Dhaka is bursting at the sewers

After decades cleaning the sewers of Dhaka, Bangladesh’s crowded capital, Sujon Lal Routh has seen plenty of misery. But the tragedy of 2008 was... More

Shopian and the fault lines

The Jammu and Kashmir government and the Army have once again locked horns over the killing of civilians. This time, the battle was directly... More

The Betrayal of India: A close look at the 2008...

These days we rush from one media story to another, trying to keep up with the latest terrorist attack. Yesterday Paris; today London; tomorrow,... More

Shonku on big screen

Professor Shonku, the genius scientist, inventor and polyglot whose adventures have enthralled generations of young Bengali readers for six decades, will for the first... More

Preservation of Buddhist art helps Pakistan fight stereotyping

In a video address at the opening of the Pakistan Single Country Exhibition here on January 12, Prime Minister Shahid Abbasi made a fervent... More

Lahore Music Meet: Redefining Pakistan

The city of Lahore has created an indelible music festival that is not only an amazing platform for artists from any genre of music... More

Preserving the past through art in India’s Amaravati

Putting in place the building blocks to erect a new capital city from scratch is no mean feat, but that is precisely what a... More

What living in Kabul is really like

Report after report points out rising civilian casualties in Afghanistan. Insurgents overrun districts and rural areas, forcing people to flee; most of them to... More