- Joined
- Jul 12, 2014
- Messages
- 31,906
- Likes
- 147,992
FOREIGN POLICY: New, Strong and Clear Outreach
- Thread starter sorcerer
- Start date
sorcerer
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 26,919
- Likes
- 98,471
India and Morocco Sign Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters
New Delhi: An Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters was signed by Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State for Home on behalf of the Government of Republic of India and Mr Mohamed Aujjar, Minister of Justice on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco, here today.
The Agreement will strengthen bilateral cooperation with Morocco and enhance effectiveness and provide a broad legal framework for prevention, investigation and prosecution of crimes; as well as in tracing, restraint and confiscation of funds meant to finance terrorist acts.
Both Ministers reiterated their resolve to jointly counter the threats posed by organized crime and terrorism.
Source: Press Information Bureau
New Delhi: An Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters was signed by Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State for Home on behalf of the Government of Republic of India and Mr Mohamed Aujjar, Minister of Justice on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco, here today.
The Agreement will strengthen bilateral cooperation with Morocco and enhance effectiveness and provide a broad legal framework for prevention, investigation and prosecution of crimes; as well as in tracing, restraint and confiscation of funds meant to finance terrorist acts.
Both Ministers reiterated their resolve to jointly counter the threats posed by organized crime and terrorism.
Source: Press Information Bureau
sorcerer
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 26,919
- Likes
- 98,471
Ram Diplomacy
India’s cultural richness and the wide expanse of its spiritual knowledge and icons, are important pillars in Modi’s approach to diplomacy.
In May this year, during the customary banquet hosted by Indonesian President Joko Widodo for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, members of the visiting delegation were surprised to find a small box next to each dinner plate. Inside each box was a small figurine, depicting a famous character of the Ramayana.
This gesture, in many ways, is reflective of the spotlight that PM Modi has been able to cast afresh, on the legacy of Lord Rama.
The same day, President Widodo and Modi had jointly inaugurated a kite exhibition in Jakarta, which featured themes from Indian texts including the Ramayana.
Indonesia, of course, is one of the members of ASEAN, with whom India has forged close links as part of its Act East policy. At the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit in New Delhi in January this year, Modi said that the Ramayana continues to be a valuable shared legacy in the ASEAN region and the Indian subcontinent. He mentioned the Ramayana Festival with troupes from ASEAN countries, organised by India, to showcase our common cultural heritage.
In fact, the dance drama Rama Hari, based on the Ramayana, was also part of the opening ceremony of the ASEAN Summit in Manila, in the Philippines, in 2017.
The legend of Queen Suriratna, originally of Ayodhya, who travelled to Korea in the first century AD, and married the Korean King Suro, has been repeatedly referred to by the prime minister, both during his public engagements, as well as in private conversations with visiting Korean delegations.
In May 2015, during Modi’s visit to South Korea, this special relationship between Ayodhya and Korea became part of the joint statement issued on the occasion. The two sides agreed to upgrade the monument for Queen Suriratna in Ayodhya as a joint project. India also invited Korea to participate in a seminar on the subject “Shared Heritage as New Variable in the Indo-Korean Relations: Historicising the Legend of Princess from Ayodhya and its Legacy”.
The Ayodhya link with Korea has found mention in his interaction with Korean business leaders, as well as with the Indian community in Korea.
On a special invitation from Modi, the First Lady of the Republic of Korea, Kim Jung-Sook, was an honoured guest at the Diwali celebrations in Ayodhya this year. The occasion was also special, as it marked the ground-breaking ceremony for the new memorial of Queen Suriratna in Ayodhya.
Spiritual links between India and Nepal have been a constant factor in Modi’s interactions with the leadership of that country. His visit to Janakpur, the birthplace of Sita, in May 2018, marked the launch of the Nepal-India Ramayana Circuit, which connects Ayodhya and Janakpur with other sites associated with the Ramayana. Modi also announced Rs 100 crore for the development of Janakpur. At a civic reception, the prime minister remarked that India and Nepal have shared close ties for ages. “This is the place of Maa Janaki, without whom Ayodhya is incomplete,” he said in his remarks to the people of Janakpur. Indeed, the two towns were linked by a sister-city agreement between India and Nepal in 2014.
In Colombo, March 2015, in his address to the parliament of Sri Lanka, Modi reflected on the many strands of the relationship between the two countries. Dwelling on the spiritual links between India and Sri Lanka, he recalled the Ramayana trail in Sri Lanka.
During a pathbreaking visit to Central Asia in July 2015, the prime minister had presented to President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, a set of books relating to religions born in India. Among the books was a Persian translation of Valmiki’s Ramayana in Nastaliq script. Speaking at a conference in Tehran in May 2016, on the theme “India and Iran, Two Great Civilisations,” the prime minister noted that the Ramayana has seen over a dozen translations in Persian.
Modi has been a strong proponent of the importance of soft power in the rise of nations. India’s cultural richness and the wide expanse of its spiritual knowledge and icons, are important pillars in his approach to diplomacy. And, who better than Lord Rama to connect India and the world
Source:IE
India’s cultural richness and the wide expanse of its spiritual knowledge and icons, are important pillars in Modi’s approach to diplomacy.
In May this year, during the customary banquet hosted by Indonesian President Joko Widodo for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, members of the visiting delegation were surprised to find a small box next to each dinner plate. Inside each box was a small figurine, depicting a famous character of the Ramayana.
This gesture, in many ways, is reflective of the spotlight that PM Modi has been able to cast afresh, on the legacy of Lord Rama.
The same day, President Widodo and Modi had jointly inaugurated a kite exhibition in Jakarta, which featured themes from Indian texts including the Ramayana.
Indonesia, of course, is one of the members of ASEAN, with whom India has forged close links as part of its Act East policy. At the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit in New Delhi in January this year, Modi said that the Ramayana continues to be a valuable shared legacy in the ASEAN region and the Indian subcontinent. He mentioned the Ramayana Festival with troupes from ASEAN countries, organised by India, to showcase our common cultural heritage.
In fact, the dance drama Rama Hari, based on the Ramayana, was also part of the opening ceremony of the ASEAN Summit in Manila, in the Philippines, in 2017.
The legend of Queen Suriratna, originally of Ayodhya, who travelled to Korea in the first century AD, and married the Korean King Suro, has been repeatedly referred to by the prime minister, both during his public engagements, as well as in private conversations with visiting Korean delegations.
In May 2015, during Modi’s visit to South Korea, this special relationship between Ayodhya and Korea became part of the joint statement issued on the occasion. The two sides agreed to upgrade the monument for Queen Suriratna in Ayodhya as a joint project. India also invited Korea to participate in a seminar on the subject “Shared Heritage as New Variable in the Indo-Korean Relations: Historicising the Legend of Princess from Ayodhya and its Legacy”.
The Ayodhya link with Korea has found mention in his interaction with Korean business leaders, as well as with the Indian community in Korea.
On a special invitation from Modi, the First Lady of the Republic of Korea, Kim Jung-Sook, was an honoured guest at the Diwali celebrations in Ayodhya this year. The occasion was also special, as it marked the ground-breaking ceremony for the new memorial of Queen Suriratna in Ayodhya.
Spiritual links between India and Nepal have been a constant factor in Modi’s interactions with the leadership of that country. His visit to Janakpur, the birthplace of Sita, in May 2018, marked the launch of the Nepal-India Ramayana Circuit, which connects Ayodhya and Janakpur with other sites associated with the Ramayana. Modi also announced Rs 100 crore for the development of Janakpur. At a civic reception, the prime minister remarked that India and Nepal have shared close ties for ages. “This is the place of Maa Janaki, without whom Ayodhya is incomplete,” he said in his remarks to the people of Janakpur. Indeed, the two towns were linked by a sister-city agreement between India and Nepal in 2014.
In Colombo, March 2015, in his address to the parliament of Sri Lanka, Modi reflected on the many strands of the relationship between the two countries. Dwelling on the spiritual links between India and Sri Lanka, he recalled the Ramayana trail in Sri Lanka.
During a pathbreaking visit to Central Asia in July 2015, the prime minister had presented to President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, a set of books relating to religions born in India. Among the books was a Persian translation of Valmiki’s Ramayana in Nastaliq script. Speaking at a conference in Tehran in May 2016, on the theme “India and Iran, Two Great Civilisations,” the prime minister noted that the Ramayana has seen over a dozen translations in Persian.
Modi has been a strong proponent of the importance of soft power in the rise of nations. India’s cultural richness and the wide expanse of its spiritual knowledge and icons, are important pillars in his approach to diplomacy. And, who better than Lord Rama to connect India and the world
Source:IE
sorcerer
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 26,919
- Likes
- 98,471
‘Hengagement’ Is A New Buzzword In Indian Foreign Policy
Snapshot
India’s foreign policy strategies seem to be manifestations of ‘hengagement’ or playing hedgehog.
Though it’s driven by a ‘realistic necessity’, it must not be viewed as a virtue or a long-term strategy.
Talking to course participants at the National Defence College, New Delhi, a few years ago, Ashley Tellis, the cerebral strategic analyst and senior associate at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace identified the emerging US strategy towards China as one of ‘Congagement’. Comprising complementary strategies of containment and engagement, it aimed to leverage the wide asymmetry in hard power and deft diplomacy with partners and allies to rein in the coercive, revisionist and expansive Chinese juggernaut.
When combined with ‘rebalancing,’ ‘Pivot to Asia’ and introducing the ‘Indo-Pacific’ as a significant maritime space, it constituted a well-thought out strategy that sought to do more with less considering that the US was still hemmed in by Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. While some of these strategies may have been replaced with more directly confrontationist policies by the Trump administration, both in the economic and military domains, ‘Congagement’ has some steam left.
Seen in isolation, many critics of Indian foreign policy in recent years argue that the scorecard does not read too well. They have a point, but the moment one looks around the world, the only constant is extreme unpredictability and the inability of institutions and states to cope with these changes. One needs to go no further than contemporary US geostrategic inconsistencies as it recalibrates its equations with virtually every ally, partner or adversary; the uncertainties of Brexit and the growing insecurity in Europe as it reconciles to the resurgence of the Russian bear; and continued chaos in the Middle East with the re-imposition of US sanctions on Iran.
Xi Jinping’s muscular foreign policy is not reaping the kind of dividends he had expected a few years ago, and even as the People’s Republic of China tightens its grip on potential vassal and client states like Pakistan, its economy shows signs of flagging. In India’s neighbourhood, except for Bangladesh, which has displayed remarkable resilience, and Bhutan, which is balancing India and China with reasonable dexterity, there is general despondency in Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
In such a milieu, one must distance oneself from the vitiated domestic politics in India and look at contemporary Indian foreign policy through the lens of continuity and attempted change during the past few years. ‘Congagement’ is a policy that needs significant hard power to contain and engage simultaneously. It harks back to Woodrow Wilson’s maxim for the US of ‘speak softly and wield a big stick’. All rising and emerging powers would love the concept, and India is no exception notwithstanding its long-standing assertion that its approach to building power is different. In the absence of adequate hard power, India, over the years, has harked on non-alignment and strategic autonomy as templates for cementing its place as an alternative power centre in global affairs. Albeit with mixed results and widespread criticism over the years, and this writer has been part of that ‘impatient for results brigade,’ India has not done too badly and always stayed relevant in global affairs.
It is with this reflective assessment of Indian foreign policy that this non-diplomat dares to introduce a term – ‘Hengagement,’ which reflects the dilemmas and contradictions within Indian foreign policy circles. A hedgehog is not an aggressive creature, but even large predators keep a distance; and according to the Cambridge English dictionary, hedging is a strategy to ‘protect oneself against making the wrong choice’. India stepping back after last year’s high altitude face-off with China at Doklam and Prime Minister Narendra Modi heading to Wuhan to attempt to recalibrate ties with PRC; or going ahead with the S-400 deal with Russia due to urgent capability requirements as articulated by the Indian Air Force and not so much as balancing the US; or assessing the transactional nature of the current India-Russia relationship; are but manifestations of ‘hengagement’.
Concurrently, the engagement with the US continues with sincerity and hope, clouded as it must be with apprehensions of whether the relationship can endure the tyranny of distance and the disruptive uncertainty and recalibration of current US foreign policy. By all parameters, the 2+2 dialogue was an unqualified success and the current trajectory of the Indo-US defence engagement is highly encouraging in all areas. Secretary Mattis is a strong supporter of the India-US Strategic partnership, as was Secretary Ashton Carter from the previous administration. Shared values between the world’s largest and world’s oldest democracies are now tempered with a more realistic element of shared challenges and threats.
However, Modi has no choice but to keep his eye on the ball in his immediate neighborhood, particularly with no letup in the PRC’s initiatives to erode India’s influence in South Asia, and the possibility of a complete marginalisation by a Russia-China-Pakistan grouping in Afghanistan once the ISAF pulls out. The Indian Ocean with instability in the Maldives, rather than the Pacific, is causing greater headaches for him and it is likely that ‘hengagement’ with the big powers would give him sufficient geopolitical space to refocus on the neighbourhood and deal with what is likely to be an emotive, fractured and turbulent election year in 2019.
At a more conceptual level, there is a need to understand that ‘hengagement’ is not the same as non-alignment or strategic autonomy, both of which had an element of altruism and unrealistic expectations of the extent to which India could go it alone in a complex and interconnected world. It must, however, not be viewed as a virtue or a long-term strategy, but as a ‘realistic necessity’ driven by a realisation of a ‘power deficit.’
Arjun Subramaniam is a retired Air Vice Marshal from the IAF and a Visiting Professor at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University where he teaches a course on ‘War and Conflict in Contemporary South Asia.’
https://swarajyamag.com/ideas/hengagement-is-a-new-buzzword-in-indian-foreign-policy
Snapshot
India’s foreign policy strategies seem to be manifestations of ‘hengagement’ or playing hedgehog.
Though it’s driven by a ‘realistic necessity’, it must not be viewed as a virtue or a long-term strategy.
Talking to course participants at the National Defence College, New Delhi, a few years ago, Ashley Tellis, the cerebral strategic analyst and senior associate at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace identified the emerging US strategy towards China as one of ‘Congagement’. Comprising complementary strategies of containment and engagement, it aimed to leverage the wide asymmetry in hard power and deft diplomacy with partners and allies to rein in the coercive, revisionist and expansive Chinese juggernaut.
When combined with ‘rebalancing,’ ‘Pivot to Asia’ and introducing the ‘Indo-Pacific’ as a significant maritime space, it constituted a well-thought out strategy that sought to do more with less considering that the US was still hemmed in by Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. While some of these strategies may have been replaced with more directly confrontationist policies by the Trump administration, both in the economic and military domains, ‘Congagement’ has some steam left.
Seen in isolation, many critics of Indian foreign policy in recent years argue that the scorecard does not read too well. They have a point, but the moment one looks around the world, the only constant is extreme unpredictability and the inability of institutions and states to cope with these changes. One needs to go no further than contemporary US geostrategic inconsistencies as it recalibrates its equations with virtually every ally, partner or adversary; the uncertainties of Brexit and the growing insecurity in Europe as it reconciles to the resurgence of the Russian bear; and continued chaos in the Middle East with the re-imposition of US sanctions on Iran.
Xi Jinping’s muscular foreign policy is not reaping the kind of dividends he had expected a few years ago, and even as the People’s Republic of China tightens its grip on potential vassal and client states like Pakistan, its economy shows signs of flagging. In India’s neighbourhood, except for Bangladesh, which has displayed remarkable resilience, and Bhutan, which is balancing India and China with reasonable dexterity, there is general despondency in Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
In such a milieu, one must distance oneself from the vitiated domestic politics in India and look at contemporary Indian foreign policy through the lens of continuity and attempted change during the past few years. ‘Congagement’ is a policy that needs significant hard power to contain and engage simultaneously. It harks back to Woodrow Wilson’s maxim for the US of ‘speak softly and wield a big stick’. All rising and emerging powers would love the concept, and India is no exception notwithstanding its long-standing assertion that its approach to building power is different. In the absence of adequate hard power, India, over the years, has harked on non-alignment and strategic autonomy as templates for cementing its place as an alternative power centre in global affairs. Albeit with mixed results and widespread criticism over the years, and this writer has been part of that ‘impatient for results brigade,’ India has not done too badly and always stayed relevant in global affairs.
It is with this reflective assessment of Indian foreign policy that this non-diplomat dares to introduce a term – ‘Hengagement,’ which reflects the dilemmas and contradictions within Indian foreign policy circles. A hedgehog is not an aggressive creature, but even large predators keep a distance; and according to the Cambridge English dictionary, hedging is a strategy to ‘protect oneself against making the wrong choice’. India stepping back after last year’s high altitude face-off with China at Doklam and Prime Minister Narendra Modi heading to Wuhan to attempt to recalibrate ties with PRC; or going ahead with the S-400 deal with Russia due to urgent capability requirements as articulated by the Indian Air Force and not so much as balancing the US; or assessing the transactional nature of the current India-Russia relationship; are but manifestations of ‘hengagement’.
Concurrently, the engagement with the US continues with sincerity and hope, clouded as it must be with apprehensions of whether the relationship can endure the tyranny of distance and the disruptive uncertainty and recalibration of current US foreign policy. By all parameters, the 2+2 dialogue was an unqualified success and the current trajectory of the Indo-US defence engagement is highly encouraging in all areas. Secretary Mattis is a strong supporter of the India-US Strategic partnership, as was Secretary Ashton Carter from the previous administration. Shared values between the world’s largest and world’s oldest democracies are now tempered with a more realistic element of shared challenges and threats.
However, Modi has no choice but to keep his eye on the ball in his immediate neighborhood, particularly with no letup in the PRC’s initiatives to erode India’s influence in South Asia, and the possibility of a complete marginalisation by a Russia-China-Pakistan grouping in Afghanistan once the ISAF pulls out. The Indian Ocean with instability in the Maldives, rather than the Pacific, is causing greater headaches for him and it is likely that ‘hengagement’ with the big powers would give him sufficient geopolitical space to refocus on the neighbourhood and deal with what is likely to be an emotive, fractured and turbulent election year in 2019.
At a more conceptual level, there is a need to understand that ‘hengagement’ is not the same as non-alignment or strategic autonomy, both of which had an element of altruism and unrealistic expectations of the extent to which India could go it alone in a complex and interconnected world. It must, however, not be viewed as a virtue or a long-term strategy, but as a ‘realistic necessity’ driven by a realisation of a ‘power deficit.’
Arjun Subramaniam is a retired Air Vice Marshal from the IAF and a Visiting Professor at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University where he teaches a course on ‘War and Conflict in Contemporary South Asia.’
https://swarajyamag.com/ideas/hengagement-is-a-new-buzzword-in-indian-foreign-policy
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2015
- Messages
- 18,277
- Likes
- 56,182
View: Will India ever learn to speak loudly? The signs, so far, are dismal
PM Modi is a tireless traveller and de facto foreign minister, but has it changed anything for India's position in the global order?
Glacial Pace in 2018
Watching the World Go By
prohumanity
Senior Member
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2013
- Messages
- 1,290
- Likes
- 1,362
Speaking loudly is possible only when you have such a strong military with highest tech weapons that any major nation avoids confrontation with you.
Like it or not, the ugly truth remains that "might is right" even in 21st century as a superpower can at wits whims and fancy can attack, invade and destroy other nations and their economies causing untold suffering to hundreds of millions of people....And sadly..no nation can stop or deter such a rogue ,abusive superpower.
Gandhism does not work...because the others do not follow Gandhi...they follow language of super missiles, nuclear weapons, submarines, cyber weapons and financial weapons of nation destruction.
World is still a very uncivilized place...only practical solution to balance rough superpower is to have extremely destructive military capability and join the group of likeminded nations who believe in a democratic, multipolar world order and NOT in a dictatorial ,abusive superpower.
Like it or not, the ugly truth remains that "might is right" even in 21st century as a superpower can at wits whims and fancy can attack, invade and destroy other nations and their economies causing untold suffering to hundreds of millions of people....And sadly..no nation can stop or deter such a rogue ,abusive superpower.
Gandhism does not work...because the others do not follow Gandhi...they follow language of super missiles, nuclear weapons, submarines, cyber weapons and financial weapons of nation destruction.
World is still a very uncivilized place...only practical solution to balance rough superpower is to have extremely destructive military capability and join the group of likeminded nations who believe in a democratic, multipolar world order and NOT in a dictatorial ,abusive superpower.
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2016
- Messages
- 502
- Likes
- 620
PM Modi Attends Maldives President Solih's Swearing-in, Invites Him to India
PM Modi and Ibrahim Mohamed Solih discussed the importance of maintaining peace and security in the Indian Ocean and agreed to remain mindful of each other's concerns and aspirations.
Sent from my Moto Z2 Play using Tapatalk
PM Modi and Ibrahim Mohamed Solih discussed the importance of maintaining peace and security in the Indian Ocean and agreed to remain mindful of each other's concerns and aspirations.
Sent from my Moto Z2 Play using Tapatalk
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2015
- Messages
- 18,277
- Likes
- 56,182
India isn't utilizing its potential of being as loud as it can afford to be. A li'l more boldness won't hurt but will improvise image. Chinese dialogue after Doklam is evidence.
Yggdrasil
Regular Member
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2016
- Messages
- 682
- Likes
- 3,749
It would be pertinent in this thread to point to Sardar Patel's letter to Cha(m)cha Nehru written on 7th November 1950:
https://postcard.news/sardar-patel-...a-nehru-ignored-nation-paid-heavy-price-1962/
In my mind, Modi is in many ways the true inheritor of Patel's legacy - you can see shades of how he deals with China in this letter.
Any country would be utterly foolish to trust the CCP, which will backstab you at a moment's notice. The CCP does not recognise or understand things like treaties, assurances, guarantees, laws, agreements - it only understands power and brute force. It will lie, cheat, steal, betray its way into gaining even 0.1% more land or resource. China doesn't really have a constitution or rule of law, the land is ruled by pure thuggery where the CCP's writ is the whole of the law.
I don't think Modi trusts 11 Jinping, in spite of the latter's outreach for "dialogue". But we have to bear in mind that we are 25% the size of their economy, so it will take a while to be more "bold".
indiatester
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2013
- Messages
- 5,847
- Likes
- 20,243
https://sniwire.com/neighbours/bangladesh-hopes-india-will-back-un-vote/
ROHINGYA RESOLUTION
India Abstains From UN Vote On Human Rights Abuse In Myanmar
Parul Chandra New Delhi 17 November 2018
Balancing its strategic interests in the region, India has yet again abstained from voting on a UN General Assembly resolution on the ‘Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar’ focusing on the plight of Rohingya Muslims when it was taken up for approval by a committee for adoption on Friday.
The resolution, among other things, takes note of the “the continued serious violations and abuses of human rights of Rohingya Muslims” and expresses concern over the “targeted violence against Rohingya Muslims and others in Rakhine State”.
India was among the 26 countries that abstained while 142 voted in its favour and 10 against it. The vote against the resolution by China, Cambodia, Laos and Russia came as no surprise as they had done so for a similar resolution in 2017 too. Likewise, India’s abstention was expected as it had chosen to do so last year as well.
While the resolution’s adoption by the Third Committee of the UNGA had been a foregone conclusion as it had 99 co-sponsors, Bangladesh which has been dealing with a massive influx of Rohingya refugees from its eastern neighbour Myanmar had been hopeful that India too would back it.
However, India has its reasons for the abstention in both years and indeed this should be seen as a positive and productive position, said sources. India has always voted against country-specific resolutions at the UN. So the decision to abstain instead of voting against the resolution should actually be seen as support for Bangladesh as it’s a shift from India’s traditional position, sources added.
This year’s resolution had been moved by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the European Union (EU). The ‘nay’ vote by China and Russia was expected as these two countries have been blocking UN Security Council resolutions seeking to impose sanctions on Myanmar for the human rights situation there.
Bangladesh which has been grappling with the humanitarian crisis triggered by the tide of Rohingya refugees that now number 1.1 million on its territory voted in favour of the resolution. However, even though the resolution found overwhelming support, Dhaka had little reason to cheer on Friday as its attempt a day earlier to begin the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar was thwarted by the refusal of those identified to return in the first batch.
At present, Bangladeshis sheltering the Rohingya who have fled Myanmar’s Rakhine in camps in Cox’s Bazar on the south eastern coast of Bangladesh. A total of 2,260 Rohingya Muslims and 65 Rohingya Hindus had been identified by the Bangladeshi authorities for repatriation in the first batch.
More work is required in order to persuade the Rohingya to return, said sources. They cited the decision of ASEAN countries to send a task force to Myanmar to assist in the repatriation with its suggestions on how the process can be eased.
India believes that the repatriation has to be “speedy and sustainable” and shouldn’t be a prolonged operation. This is learnt to have been conveyed once again by the Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh Harsh Vardhan Shringla during an interaction with the country’s foreign minister A.H. Mahmood Ali who had invited foreign diplomats on Thursday to brief them on the stalled Rohingya repatriation.
This was also underscored by India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her visit to Myanmar in May this year when she sought the “safe, speedy and sustainable return of displaced persons to Rakhine State.
At the same time, India also feels that the onus is also on the Myanmarese authorities to take the Rohingya back. Seeking the quick return of the Rohingya refugees, India is assisting Myanmar with building pre-fabricated housing.
ROHINGYA RESOLUTION
India Abstains From UN Vote On Human Rights Abuse In Myanmar
Parul Chandra New Delhi 17 November 2018
Balancing its strategic interests in the region, India has yet again abstained from voting on a UN General Assembly resolution on the ‘Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar’ focusing on the plight of Rohingya Muslims when it was taken up for approval by a committee for adoption on Friday.
The resolution, among other things, takes note of the “the continued serious violations and abuses of human rights of Rohingya Muslims” and expresses concern over the “targeted violence against Rohingya Muslims and others in Rakhine State”.
India was among the 26 countries that abstained while 142 voted in its favour and 10 against it. The vote against the resolution by China, Cambodia, Laos and Russia came as no surprise as they had done so for a similar resolution in 2017 too. Likewise, India’s abstention was expected as it had chosen to do so last year as well.
While the resolution’s adoption by the Third Committee of the UNGA had been a foregone conclusion as it had 99 co-sponsors, Bangladesh which has been dealing with a massive influx of Rohingya refugees from its eastern neighbour Myanmar had been hopeful that India too would back it.
However, India has its reasons for the abstention in both years and indeed this should be seen as a positive and productive position, said sources. India has always voted against country-specific resolutions at the UN. So the decision to abstain instead of voting against the resolution should actually be seen as support for Bangladesh as it’s a shift from India’s traditional position, sources added.
This year’s resolution had been moved by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the European Union (EU). The ‘nay’ vote by China and Russia was expected as these two countries have been blocking UN Security Council resolutions seeking to impose sanctions on Myanmar for the human rights situation there.
Bangladesh which has been grappling with the humanitarian crisis triggered by the tide of Rohingya refugees that now number 1.1 million on its territory voted in favour of the resolution. However, even though the resolution found overwhelming support, Dhaka had little reason to cheer on Friday as its attempt a day earlier to begin the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar was thwarted by the refusal of those identified to return in the first batch.
At present, Bangladeshis sheltering the Rohingya who have fled Myanmar’s Rakhine in camps in Cox’s Bazar on the south eastern coast of Bangladesh. A total of 2,260 Rohingya Muslims and 65 Rohingya Hindus had been identified by the Bangladeshi authorities for repatriation in the first batch.
More work is required in order to persuade the Rohingya to return, said sources. They cited the decision of ASEAN countries to send a task force to Myanmar to assist in the repatriation with its suggestions on how the process can be eased.
India believes that the repatriation has to be “speedy and sustainable” and shouldn’t be a prolonged operation. This is learnt to have been conveyed once again by the Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh Harsh Vardhan Shringla during an interaction with the country’s foreign minister A.H. Mahmood Ali who had invited foreign diplomats on Thursday to brief them on the stalled Rohingya repatriation.
This was also underscored by India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her visit to Myanmar in May this year when she sought the “safe, speedy and sustainable return of displaced persons to Rakhine State.
At the same time, India also feels that the onus is also on the Myanmarese authorities to take the Rohingya back. Seeking the quick return of the Rohingya refugees, India is assisting Myanmar with building pre-fabricated housing.
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2018
- Messages
- 1,872
- Likes
- 4,532
That is good, but atleast BURMA take what is theirs, why are they forcing their citizens on another country directly or indirectly.https://sniwire.com/neighbours/bangladesh-hopes-india-will-back-un-vote/
ROHINGYA RESOLUTION
India Abstains From UN Vote On Human Rights Abuse In Myanmar
Parul Chandra New Delhi 17 November 2018
Balancing its strategic interests in the region, India has yet again abstained from voting on a UN General Assembly resolution on the ‘Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar’ focusing on the plight of Rohingya Muslims when it was taken up for approval by a committee for adoption on Friday.
The resolution, among other things, takes note of the “the continued serious violations and abuses of human rights of Rohingya Muslims” and expresses concern over the “targeted violence against Rohingya Muslims and others in Rakhine State”.
India was among the 26 countries that abstained while 142 voted in its favour and 10 against it. The vote against the resolution by China, Cambodia, Laos and Russia came as no surprise as they had done so for a similar resolution in 2017 too. Likewise, India’s abstention was expected as it had chosen to do so last year as well.
While the resolution’s adoption by the Third Committee of the UNGA had been a foregone conclusion as it had 99 co-sponsors, Bangladesh which has been dealing with a massive influx of Rohingya refugees from its eastern neighbour Myanmar had been hopeful that India too would back it.
However, India has its reasons for the abstention in both years and indeed this should be seen as a positive and productive position, said sources. India has always voted against country-specific resolutions at the UN. So the decision to abstain instead of voting against the resolution should actually be seen as support for Bangladesh as it’s a shift from India’s traditional position, sources added.
This year’s resolution had been moved by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the European Union (EU). The ‘nay’ vote by China and Russia was expected as these two countries have been blocking UN Security Council resolutions seeking to impose sanctions on Myanmar for the human rights situation there.
Bangladesh which has been grappling with the humanitarian crisis triggered by the tide of Rohingya refugees that now number 1.1 million on its territory voted in favour of the resolution. However, even though the resolution found overwhelming support, Dhaka had little reason to cheer on Friday as its attempt a day earlier to begin the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar was thwarted by the refusal of those identified to return in the first batch.
At present, Bangladeshis sheltering the Rohingya who have fled Myanmar’s Rakhine in camps in Cox’s Bazar on the south eastern coast of Bangladesh. A total of 2,260 Rohingya Muslims and 65 Rohingya Hindus had been identified by the Bangladeshi authorities for repatriation in the first batch.
More work is required in order to persuade the Rohingya to return, said sources. They cited the decision of ASEAN countries to send a task force to Myanmar to assist in the repatriation with its suggestions on how the process can be eased.
India believes that the repatriation has to be “speedy and sustainable” and shouldn’t be a prolonged operation. This is learnt to have been conveyed once again by the Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh Harsh Vardhan Shringla during an interaction with the country’s foreign minister A.H. Mahmood Ali who had invited foreign diplomats on Thursday to brief them on the stalled Rohingya repatriation.
This was also underscored by India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her visit to Myanmar in May this year when she sought the “safe, speedy and sustainable return of displaced persons to Rakhine State.
At the same time, India also feels that the onus is also on the Myanmarese authorities to take the Rohingya back. Seeking the quick return of the Rohingya refugees, India is assisting Myanmar with building pre-fabricated housing.
Then what is the meaning of nations and borders?
sorcerer
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 26,919
- Likes
- 98,471
Pulling down the Maldive's chinese sponsored and financed dummy who came to power by coup and India INSTALLING A DEMOCRATIC GOVT through DEMOCRACY is how INDIA speaks LOUD.
and Then as soon as India Maldive Govt took charge, Indian PM went there despite all the election schedules.
Before Modi left, the Maldives said, they are also keeping the DHRUV helicopters
Tight slap on chinese.
India has a way of speaking out loud and this is how India does it and this is what the world is worried about...the language India uses to SPEAK LOUD.
Speaking loud aint always army and bang Booms...
indiatester
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jul 4, 2013
- Messages
- 5,847
- Likes
- 20,243
How are we balancing these two?
1
2
1
2
Haldiram
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2018
- Messages
- 5,708
- Likes
- 28,648
India never speaks loudly. One IFS diplomat said in a book that "Indian foreign policy is like elephants making love...it happens at the highest level and no one else knows the outcome until a few years have passed".View: Will India ever learn to speak loudly? The signs, so far, are dismalPM Modi is a tireless traveller and de facto foreign minister, but has it changed anything for India's position in the global order?
Glacial Pace in 2018Watching the World Go By
India speaks directly to the stakeholders (ex : in Bangladesh, there are big industrialists who finance the elections, whose factories receive electricity from India. Whether they support Zia or Hasina depends not on their beliefs but on whether India will continue to supply raw materials and provide a market for their finished goods or not. So we can be sure that Hasina will not change her colors after election. Same thing with Sri Lanka and Maldives. Most of the businesses, hotels, etc are either owned by Indians or patronized by Indian tourists, so India has a great leverage there. We can silently arrange a meeting in Delhi and change the government there. China cannot outdo this form of influence only with money.)
India is a land of extremes. When we do something bad, we are worse than Africa (take for example how dysfunctional our PSU banks are; Even the ink inside the pens is not working sometimes) but when we do something good, we are better than America (ex ISRO space missions etc). Defense manufacturing is where we underperform but foreign policy is one sphere where India outshines even bigger nations. People expect drastic results but forget to see the larger trend since our previous wars. During 1965 and 71, all the countries that had supplied weapons and free oil to Pakistan (notably, France, Indonesia, Iran) have been plucked out of Pakistan's orbit. UNSC member countries that opposed India's nuclear program back then by drafting the NPT are today the largest suppliers of nuclear raw material to us (ex Canada, France, US, Russia). Countries that assassinated our space scientists to sabotage our space program are today standing in line to launch their satellites through our launchers and sharing intel to make sure no one else tries to sabotage their payloads. None of these countries "love" India ideologically, but India has managed to plug a vested interest among other nations in a manner that it is not in their interest for our vital assets to be harmed. EU nations have set up automobile manufacturing plants in India. Tomorrow if the Gulf nations try to freeze oil flow to India, it will be Europe that will intervene to get the oil supply started because their auto companies will be affected. We were able to do a silent coup in Maldives, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and no one batted an eye.
When India sets its mind on something it gets it sooner or later. We don't have to be loud on foreign policy. Where we have to be loud is in countering foreign opinion on our domestic issues like fake human rights claims, atrocity literature etc. It hurts our tourism revenues. Sadly, the use of media to further our soft power hasn't been taken up seriously. WION has become just another NDTV with a yellow logo.
- Joined
- May 31, 2017
- Messages
- 5,052
- Likes
- 21,957
India to host G20 Summit in 2022: PM Modi
"I am grateful and I invite leadership from across the world to come to India in 2022," PM Modi said.
Express Web Desk |New Delhi |Updated: December 2, 2018 7:19:14 am
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday said India will host the G20 Summit in 2022, the year the country will celebrate the 75th Independence Day. The announcement was made at the closing ceremony of the two-day summit held in Argentina’s captial Buenos Aires.
“In 2022 India completes 75 years since Independence. In that special year, India looks forward to welcoming the world to the G-20 Summit! Come to India, the world’s fastest growing large economy! Know India’s rich history and diversity, and experience the warm Indian hospitality,” PM Modi tweeted after making the announcement.
"I am grateful and I invite leadership from across the world to come to India in 2022," PM Modi said.
Express Web Desk |New Delhi |Updated: December 2, 2018 7:19:14 am
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday said India will host the G20 Summit in 2022, the year the country will celebrate the 75th Independence Day. The announcement was made at the closing ceremony of the two-day summit held in Argentina’s captial Buenos Aires.
“In 2022 India completes 75 years since Independence. In that special year, India looks forward to welcoming the world to the G-20 Summit! Come to India, the world’s fastest growing large economy! Know India’s rich history and diversity, and experience the warm Indian hospitality,” PM Modi tweeted after making the announcement.
Willy3
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2018
- Messages
- 1,463
- Likes
- 4,469
Election 19 me aur 22k commitment ????India to host G20 Summit in 2022: PM Modi
"I am grateful and I invite leadership from across the world to come to India in 2022," PM Modi said.
Express Web Desk |New Delhi |Updated: December 2, 2018 7:19:14 am
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday said India will host the G20 Summit in 2022, the year the country will celebrate the 75th Independence Day. The announcement was made at the closing ceremony of the two-day summit held in Argentina’s captial Buenos Aires.
“In 2022 India completes 75 years since Independence. In that special year, India looks forward to welcoming the world to the G-20 Summit! Come to India, the world’s fastest growing large economy! Know India’s rich history and diversity, and experience the warm Indian hospitality,” PM Modi tweeted after making the announcement.
His overconfidence making me unnerve
Hopefully he isn't planning to troll world leaders and own countrymen by letting pappu hosting G20 summit
It's about India....not modi...............................
sorcerer
Senior Member
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2013
- Messages
- 26,919
- Likes
- 98,471
India is IN both the groups. Its not barging in, India is there because the group finds INDIA relevant.
