Global Indian News
In Pakistan, prime ministers are not known to complete their full terms due to the perennial power tussle between the elected civilian government and the all-powerful military, which is always …
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The G20 summit of the world’s most powerful economies ended in the picturesque German port city of Hamburg on July 8, with a separate Leaders’ Statement on jointly tackling the rising scourge of terrorism and a joint formulation on sustaining inclusive global economic growth.
With US President Donald Trump walking out of the Paris Accord a few weeks ago, climate change became an intensely divisive issue, with Mr Trump, known for his mercurial temperament, arrayed against virtually the rest of G20 countries, making it a sort of G19-versus-US power play contest. Protracted discussions among Sherpas and officials of G20 countries went down the wire, ending in a mid-way compromise between the US and the rest on the issue of climate change.
From India’s point of view, a separate standalone joint statement on terrorism was a major takeaway, which shaped proactively by Indian negotiators. “Originally, there was a plan to have an annexe on terrorism, but India from day one argued that it should be converted into a leaders’ statement on counter-terrorism,” Dr Arvind Panagriya, India’s Sherpa for G20 and Vice-Chairman of Niti Ayog, told select journalists in Hamburg.
In his speech at the G20 summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented an 11-point Action Agenda for combating terrorism, which included suggestions for exchange of lists of terrorists among G20 nations, easing and expediting of legal processes like extradition and concrete steps to choke funds and weapon supply to the terrorists. He asked world leaders to unite against terrorism and singled out Pakistan-based terror groups Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) for imperative global action. Mr Modi reminded the world community that some countries were using terror as a tool to achieve political objectives and pitched for “deterrent” action collectively by the G-20 members against such nations.
HAMBURG: Ahead of the BRICS summit in China, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined that the BRICS grouping should play a pivotal role in combating terrorism, addressing climate change and take the lead in fuelling global economic growth.
Mr Modi was speaking at the meeting of
the leaders of the five BRICS countries on the sidelines of G20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany. China will host the forthcoming 9th BRICS Summit in September in Xiamen.
In his intervention, Mr Modi underscored that BRICS has been a strong voice and needs to show leadership on terrorism and global economy. He added that G20 should collectively oppose terrorism financing, franchises, safe havens, support and sponsors.
Amid worsening relations between the two Asian giants triggered by a protracted border standoff, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping discussed “a range of issues” to defuse tensions that could spin out of control, if not managed with tact.
The leaders of the two countries shook hands warmly and smiled on the sidelines of the meeting of BRICS countries in Hamburg, which belied an increasingly hostile atmosphere that has enveloped bilateral ties.
Reliable sources said the conversation lasted for nearly four minutes.
HAMBURG: Amid India’s aggravating relations with China, Prime Minister Narendra Modi touched down in the northern German port city of Hamburg for the G20 summit of the world’s major and emerging economies which. The summit will focus on forging a unified global response to a host of global crises, including the proliferation of trans-national terror networks, climate change and sustainable development.
At the G20 summit, Mr Modi is expected to highlight India’s concerns about trans-national terrorism and diminishing commitment to the Paris Accord, which suffered a major blow after the abrupt withdrawal of the US from the pact. On the issue of climate change, Mr Modi, who had a successful meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington House only a couple of weeks ago, is expected to fully support the G2 agenda, under the German presidency, focus on climate change and sustainable development.
India sees a convergence with major focus areas of the agenda of the 12th G20 summit, being held in Hamburg on July7-8, which include, besides terrorism and climate change, issues relating to free and open trade amid the rising wall of protectionism, migration, black money and global stability.
“A marriage made in heaven, which is now being implemented on earth,” this is how Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu evocatively described India-Israel relations as the two countries elevated their relations to the level of strategic partnership and signed seven pacts in key areas, including agriculture, space and development cooperation.
The personal chemistry and camaraderie between India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Israeli host were all too visible and genuine as they rhapsodised about each other’s country, shared values and a kindred vision for a radiant future of India-Israel relations. The two leaders spoke with a sense of mission, which may have something to do with the ancient but modern city of Jerusalem, with Mr Netanyahu declaring in the tone of a prophet: It’s a partnership to seek the good and to achieve the good…This is a good day.”
It was clearly not just inspired rhetoric as the outcomes that emanated from over two hours of talks between the two leaders and their delegations were pragmatic and action-oriented, which would have transformative impact on the lives and fortunes of people in the two countries.
If Indian talent and Israeli technology are married and fused, along with fostering of deep civilizational and people-to-people bonding, this “marriage made in heaven” could bear new flowers and fruits in days to come, imparting more content and depth to the newly-forged strategic partnership.
JERUSLAEM/TEL AVIV: In a transformational moment for India-Israel relations, Jerusalem has launched an all-out charm-offensive to roll out the red carpet for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first-Indian leader to visit the Jewish nation.
In resonant gestures that will underscore the unique and special character of the expanding India-Israel relations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not only personally receive the Indian leader at the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, but will also accompany him to nearly all the events and functions connected to the prime ministerial visit.
Israel’s pivot towards India
In political and strategic circles in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, one can listen in positive vibes and buzz about PM Modi’s visit to Israel, which is hailed here as historic and transformative, indicating a “pivot towards India.” “We are very excited to welcome PM Modi. He is a good friend of Israel and the Jewish people,” said Mark Sofer, deputy director general of the Asia and Pacific division of the foreign ministry and a former ambassador to India
There will be concrete deliverables and substantive outcomes after talks between PM Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on July 5. Many key agreements in areas of agriculture, defence and space are expected to be signed, said informed sources.
Out of closet: De-hypenating Ties
But what will mark out Mr Modi’s visit is the formal end of ambiguity and ambivalence about India-Israel relations, which had been deliberately kept discreet due to New Delhi’s apprehensions about offending and alienating the Arab world. Read more…
It promises to be a gourmet meal as the leaders of the world’s oldest and largest democracies have their first full-spectrum meeting and dinner in Washington DC on June 26. The buzz and hype surrounding India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fifth visit to the US is relatively subdued – the carnival-like festive atmosphere and feverish energy that marked his first visit to the US, with his rock-star like show at Madison Square Garden, in September 2014 seems a distant echo, but even though the horizon of expectations has shrunk there are still some appetising dishes on the table which both sides can pick and choose to suit their taste and some serious business to transact.
Looking ahead, cutting through minutiae and complexity of issues, the really important question for India is whether the new US president believes in a “New India” which PM Modi is trying to create and whether this new India synthesises with Trump’s promise of Making America Great Again. If there is win-win fit, then indeed the chronic “hesitations of history” will be passe, and a new symphony can steer India-US relations onto a higher trajectory. Read more…
Buoyed by a national referendum that has made him the most powerful leader of Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has touched down in India on an important visit that seeks to reset Ankara’s relations with the world’s most populous democracy. This is Mr Erdogan’s first foreign visit after winning the national referendum by a thin margin, and indicates the importance Turkey is placing on scaling up relations with India, which have been shadowed by Ankara’s unhelpful positions on Kashmir and its close ties with Islamabad.
Turkey’s all-powerful leader will be in India for a little over twenty-four hours, but this brief visit is expected to have a transformative impact on New Delhi-Ankara relations. The agenda for talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting Turkish leader is multi-layered and diverse, including elevating economic and strategic relations.
For New Delhi, getting Ankara’s support for its drive to secure membership of the elite 48-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group will top the agenda. Turkey, which has not given unqualified support to India, has insisted on “criteria-based approach”, echoing Beijing’s stance on common criteria for all the non-NPT signatories who aspire to join the elite nuclear club.
Turkey’s stand on India’s membership of the NSG is not the only issue that has riled India. It extends to Turkey’s hostile stand on the Kashmir issue.
Moving beyond problematical issues, India and Turkey are expected to focus on scaling up their economic partnership. Given the prowess of Turkish companies in sectors like infrastructure and construction, India will be expecting Turkey’s support for the Make in India project.
Exposing duplicity on terrorism, articulating multiple images of India, extolling seven decades of Indian democracy and the importance of building bridges with Central Europe and Eurasia. It’s a challenge to compress these weighty themes in a few minutes, but that’s precisely what Vice-President Hamid Ansari did in a mid-air interaction with journalists while on his way back from a five-day trip to Armenia and Poland.
Mr Ansari, a former diplomat and an erudite scholar, is not the kind to resort to fiery rhetoric, but he was full of eloquent indignation at the continuing duplicity of some states who hide behind technicalities on the pressing issue of terrorism, which he rightly described as “a universal epidemic.”
Intensifying counter-terror cooperation figured prominently in his discussions with the top leadership of Poland and Armenia. India has been relentlessly pushing for Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism for over two decades, but unfortunately some countries have chosen quibbles and sophistry to block its passage in the UN, which has stymied the fight against global terrorism. CCIT has a special resonance for Mr Ansari as it was during his tenure as India’s Permanent Representative of India to United Nations in New York in 1994 that India had launched a global outreach for CCIT. Till this day, the India-backed CCIT is embroiled in semantic sophistry and cold-blooded calculations by some countries due to their vested interests. Mr Ansari’s spirited response to a question on adopting the CCIT was, therefore, natural. Noting that every country is facing the problem of terrorism in a lesser or greater degree and understands the problem, Mr Ansari exposed sophistry practiced by some states by hiding behind technical niceties, a veiled reference to OIC nations which have been in the forefront of stalling the CCIT.
In the days he spent in Poland and Armenia, the vice-president also observed multiple images of India that permeated the perception of the country among people of these countries. In both Armenian capital Yerevan and Polish capital Warsaw, one was struck by the popularity of Indian films and food. The people one spoke to had their own story to tell, while some were stuck with clichés and stereotypes.