VIF Neighbourhood News Digest: 3rd October, 2018
PAKISTAN

Saudi Arabia not to be made part of CPEC: Dawn

October 3, 2018

Pakistan said on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia would not be made part of the $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework and the kingdom’s proposed investments would fall under a separate bilateral arrangement. Speaking at a joint news conference with Infor­mation Minister Fawad Chaudhry, Minister for Planning and Development Khusro Bakhtiar said there was no decision to bring a third country, like Saudi Arabia, under the framework of the CPEC. He was responding to a question about the possibility of Saudi Arabia becoming part of the Joint Working Groups (JWGs) or Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) on the CPEC between China and Pakistan. Click here to read....

Pakistan, US discuss options for reviving ties: Dawn

October 3, 2018

Pakistan and the United States held two rounds of talks in Washington on Tuesday and agreed to stay engaged for rebuilding a relationship both regard as important. The first set of talks began at the White House where Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi met National Security Adviser John Bolton for 40 minutes before heading to the State Department for another meeting with his American counterpart, Secretary of State Michael Pompeo. The second meeting too lasted 40 minutes. Click here to read....

AFGHANISTAN

MoFA Fears Of US-Russia ‘Confrontation’ In Afghanistan: Tolo News

October 2, 2018

A senior official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said that the United States and Russia’s tensions on Ukraine are moving toward Afghanistan which according to him will have “negative repercussions” for the country if they begin here. The remarks were made by Hekmat Khalil Karzai, the Deputy Foreign Minister, who addressed an event on Afghanistan’s foreign policy at Afghanistan Law and Political Studies Organization in Kabul on Tuesday. “The tensions are slowly moving from Ukraine toward Afghanistan. It will be a bad situation for Afghanistan when the tensions officially begin in Afghanistan,” said Karzai. “Our goal should be to once again strengthen the consensus that Afghanistan’s stability should be important for Russia even now,” he said. Click here to read....

NEPAL

Army questioned over business deals: Kathmandu Post

October 3, 2018

Members of the parliamentary State Affairs Committee have voiced concerns over the increasing involvement of Nepal Army in business-related activities. At a closed-door meeting where journalists were barred, some parliamentarians on Tuesday demanded a high-level parliamentary committee to probe the alleged financial irregularities in the national defence force as reported by some media outlets, said a lawmaker on condition of anonymity. The committee had summoned Acting Prime Minister and Defence Minister Ishwor Pokhrel, Defence Secretary Bishnu Lamsal and Chief of the Army Staff (CoAS) Purna Chandra Thapa to brief on the Army’s plans, activities and challenges. Parliamentarians are said to have raised questions over some controversial procurement deals involving the Army and media reports of huge amounts of money illegally earned by outgoing Army chief Rajendra Chhetri. Click here to read....

MALDIVES

Maldives President Yameen 'received $1.5m in cash' before vote: Al Jazeera

October 2, 2018

An anti-money laundering body in the Maldives has informed police that President Abdulla Yameen received 22.5 million Maldivian rufiyaa ($1.5m) in hard currency days in advance of a contentious presidential election in the Indian Ocean island nation. Yameen, long dogged by allegations of corruption and rights abuses, suffered a decisive defeat in the September 23 vote in an outcome hailed as a win for democracy in the upmarket tourist destination. A confidential letter seen by Al Jazeera said the president received the money in two instalments to a private bank account at the Maldives Islamic Bank. Click here to read....

CHINA

US-China trade spat harming 3rd parties: China Daily

October 3, 2018

The escalating trade dispute between China and the US is beginning to inflict economic damage on third-party countries, according to a new report. An analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, an economic consultancy in London, concludes that US President Donald Trump’s trade measures have already hit £1.9 billion ($2.48 billion) of UK exports this year. Click here to read....

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