India decides to opt out of RCEP, says key concerns not addressed
Published: The Economic Times
05 Nov 2019
India won’t join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) because concerns about getting swamped by imports under the agreement — putting its domestic industry and agriculture at risk — haven’t been assuaged.
“The present form of the RCEP Agreement does not fully reflect the basic spirit and the agreed guiding principles of RCEP,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his address at the RCEP summit in Bangkok, according to a tweet by official broadcaster Prasar Bharati.Click here to read...
Government proposes move to secure regional waters
Published: Hindustan Times
05 Nov 2019
India on Monday proposed an “Indo-Pacific oceans initiative” at the East Asia Summit in Bangkok to ensure security in regional waters and boost the conservation and sustainable use of marine resources. Thailand, the current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), said it would discuss the initiative proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while Australia too expressed interest, secretary (East) Vijay Thakur Singh of the external affairs ministry said.Click here to read...
US, India, Australia, Japan ‘Quad’ Holds Senior Officials Meeting in Bangkok
Published: The Diplomat
05 Nov 2019
Consultations between the “quadrilateral” are picking up in 2019. For the first time since their ministerial-level meeting in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, senior officials from the United States, India, Australia, and Japan met in Bangkok on Monday.
According to the U.S. Department of State’s readout on the meeting, the four met “for consultations on collective efforts to advance a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific.” The meeting marked the continuation of the September 26 New York ministerial-level meeting’s agenda.Click here to read...
Trump admn notifies UN of withdrawal from Paris Agreement on climate change
Published: The Tribune
05 Nov 2019
The United States has formally notified the United Nations of its withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, a global agreement in which President Donald Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had played instrumental roles.
Although Trump had announced his decision to withdraw from the historic Paris Agreement on climate change on June 1, 2017, the process began on Monday with the formal notification and the US will be out of the pact on November 4, 2020.Click here to read...
Pakistan embassy in Kabul closes visa section amid tensions
Published: The Asian Age
04 Nov 2019
Pakistan's embassy in Kabul has said it was indefinitely closing its consular office in the Afghan capital due to security reasons, amid mounting tensions between the neighbouring countries. Closure of the visa section will come as a huge blow for many Afghans, hundreds of whom apply daily for permits to travel to Pakistan where they seek medical treatment, goods and university educations.Click here to read...
