Neighborhood News Digest – 17 April 2023

Afghanistan

China eyes Afghanistan's lithium reserves, offers to invest USD 10 billion – The Economic Times

Taliban are simply not able to ensure security in places such as Kabul. The fact that ISKP has been increasingly able to mount major attacks against targets such as the Foreign Ministry or Kabul Longan Hotel in December 2022 points toward the fact that the Taliban's security provisions are failing heavily. In particular, ISKP is actively targeting China, which has become especially close with the Taliban regime. Click here to read... [2]

Afghanistan Freedom Front confirms death of its Senior Commander Akmal Ameer – The Print

Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) has confirmed the death of its Senior Commander, Akmal Ameer, on Sunday, Afghanistan-based Khaama Press reported. Akmal Ameer, a former commander of the Afghan Special Forces, and his seven companions were killed during a clash with the Taliban in southern Salang, Parwan province. Click here to read... [3]

Afghanistan Territory Will Not Be Used Against Russia, Central Asian Countries: Taliban – Republic World

A member of the delegation from the Russian Foundation for Islamic Culture, Sciences and Education who visited Afghanistan on Sunday told Sputnik that a senior Taliban official had provided assurances that the Taliban movement will prevent Afghan territory from being utilised against Russia. This affirmation was conveyed to Moscow by the delegation by Magomedbashir Albogachiev who was part of the delegation that reportedly met with officials from the Taliban government in Kabul. Click here to read... [4]

India signs MoU with World Food Programme for sending wheat to Afghanistan – The Hindu

India on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the World Food Programme (WFP) paving the way for sending 10,000 metric tonnes of wheat for the people of Afghanistan. The signing ceremony between officials of the Ministry of External Affairs and the United Nations WFP was held in Mumbai where the WFP assured that it had the required infrastructure on the ground to ensure speedy delivery of wheat to the most vulnerable sections of the Afghan population. Click here to read... [5]

Bangladesh

Is Bangladesh slowly embracing an Indo-Pacific strategy? – India Nerrative

Bangladesh is visibly and invisibly leaning towards the superpowers including the United States, China and Russia. But it also has friends and allies in the Middle East. India has been a proven friend, which has partnered Bangladesh’s development. Bangladesh is now inching closer to embracing the Indo-Pacific Strategy, despite the country’s professed non-aligned foreign policy. Click here to read... [6]

Bangladesh Enjoys Priority in India’s ‘Neighbor First’ Policy - Geopolitics

During the last decade, the economic, political, and geostrategic relations between the two countries have been elevated to a new height as a result of diverse initiatives taken by both Bangladesh and India. Of them – Neighborhood First Policy (NFP) is the leading strategy of the Narendra Modi government which prioritizes improving ties with its close neighbors in the region in which Bangladesh is envisaged as an indispensable facest. During his visit to Bangladesh in April 2022, S Jaishankar, India’s Minister of External Affairs, emphasized that “Bangladesh is a top priority for India’s “Neighborhood First Policy.” According to Indian President Droupadi Murmu, “Bangladesh preserves a special place in India’s Neighborhood First Policy”. Click here to read... [7]

Why is Bangladesh roasting? – Dhaka Tribune

The searing heatwave in Bangladesh over the past two weeks has led to some surreal sights being witnessed across the country. Some people were seen using the sunlight alone to fry eggs on their balconies, while others struggled to cross roads that had literally melted under the heat. Load shedding and water shortages made the situation worse in some areas. Click here to read... [8]

Bhutan

GoI to facilitate Bhutan-Bangladesh electricity trade – Kuensel

The Government of India (GoI) has agreed to facilitate the export of electricity from Bhutan to Bangladesh through India. Bangladesh plans to initially import around 1,500MW of electricity from Bhutan. According to the foreign and external trade ministry, the proposed trilateral hydropower cooperation among Bhutan, Bangladesh, and India, both the government, India and Bhutan expressed their commitment towards greater sub-regional cooperation, including in the energy sector, which would lead to increased inter-linkages between the economies for the mutual benefit of all stakeholders.

Bhutan’s graduation from LDC status triggers WTO accession – Bhutan Times

After 24 years of observing the World Trade Organization (WTO), Bhutan is studying its accession to joining the organization following its graduation from the Least Developed Countries (LDC) status by the end of this year. This move could open up new opportunities for Bhutan’s economy but also comes with certain obligations and commitments. Click here to read... [9]

The Tiny Kingdom Of Bhutan Secretly Held Millions Of Dollars In Cryptocurrency – Forbes

The Himalayan kingdom has quietly been dumping millions of dollars into bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Its investments, which have never been publicly disclosed, were revealed in the bankruptcy filings of lenders BlockFi and Celsius. According to court documents reviewed by Forbes, Bhutan’s $2.9 billion sovereign investment arm was a customer of bankrupt crypto lenders BlockFi and Celsius, which it has never publicly disclosed. Click here to read... [10]

China 'pressurising' Bhutan to change stance on Doklam issue – Firstpost

The Chinese Communist Party is “heavily pressurising” Bhutan to alter its stance on the Doklam issue, a Delhi-based foreign policy think tank has revealed. For the unversed, Doklam is a highly disputed area between India, China and Bhutan. The region made headlines in 2017 when China began extending its road south of Doklam by deploying construction vehicles and road-building equipment. Click here to read... [11]

Maldives

Maldives gov't supports KSA efforts to end Yemen crisis - Avas

The Maldives government has expressed its strong support for the continuous efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to reach a comprehensive political solution to end the crisis in Yemen. A statement issued by the Foreign Ministry said the government especially welcomes the recent meetings held in Sanaa during the period 8 to 13 April, 2023 by the Saudi delegation, headed by His Excellency Mohammad Al Jabir, the Ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to Yemen, building upon the Saudi Initiative announced in March 2021, and the positive momentum created by the humanitarian truce in Yemen since its announcement by the United Nations in April 2022. Click here to read... [12]

Maldives Covid-19 case tally surpasses 186,000 with over 100 new cases - Raajje

In its latest figures publicized on Monday, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) confirmed that Covid-19 cases being reported from the congested capital of Maldives, Malé City, are continuing to spiral. As such, over the past week, Maldives confirmed 148 new Covid-19 infections, out of which 100 cases were confirmed from the Greater Malé Region, 11 were detected from residential islands outside of the capital and 37 from others including industrial islands, liveaboard vessels and resorts. Click here to read... [13]

Myanmar

The Rohingya and Myanmar’s planned election as ICJ keeps heat on junta - Indian Express

Earlier this month, the International Court of Justice at The Hague rejected the Myanmar junta’s appeal for a 10-month reprieve to file a counter-memorial — or reply — to The Gambia’s case that Myanmar was in breach of the international Genocide Convention. Click here to read... [14]

OHCHR Needs To Be More Sincere In Myanmar-Bangladesh Rohingya Repatriation – Eurasia Review

Currently, more than 1.2 million Rohingya are living in camps in Cox’s Bazar, Teknaf. Although Bangladesh sheltered these Rohingyas for humanitarian reasons, it has been making strong demands to the international community to take this oppressed population back to Myanmar safely, sustainably and with dignity. The United Nations has described the operation as an act of ethnic cleansing. Click here to read... [15]

Contraband worth ₹32L from Myanmar seized - Pune Mirror

The Mizoram Police and the Assam Rifles have seized 5.44 lakh kgs of areca nut, also called betel nut or ‘supari’, valued at Rs 31.73 crore in the past 100 days after these contraband were smuggled from Myanmar, officials said on Sunday. A Mizoram Police official said that following the directives of state government, the police is making all out efforts in the fight against illegal transportation of smuggled dry areca nuts, resulting in significant seizures during the past 100 days (from January 1 to April 10). Click here to read... [16]

Nepal

Nepal, South Korea agree to work together to promote Korean tourists to Nepal

Nepal and South Korea have decided to collaborate in order to boost Korean tourists visiting Nepal. On Friday, during the sixth meeting of the bilateral consultation mechanism in Seoul, officials resolved to look into the potential of signing a memorandum of understanding on tourism cooperation. Click here to read... [17]

Joint Letter to Finance Minister: Expand Nepal's Child Grant Program - HRW

In the 1990s, Nepal became a pioneer of social protection policy in South Asia by introducing an old age allowance. Building on that legacy, Nepal has an opportunity to further develop world-leading social protection policies that protect human rights by reducing inequality, poverty including child-poverty, increase resilience to shocks, and invest in a more just economy. With 40 percent of the population under the age of 18, investing in social protection for children is more important than ever to protect their rights and for Nepal’s future prosperity. Click here to read... [18]

Pakistan

Pakistan gets closer to IMF deal after UAE pledges $1 billion – Reuters

The United Arab Emirates has confirmed financial support of $1 billion to Pakistan, the South Asian nation's finance minister said on Friday, removing a key hurdle to securing a much-awaited bailout tranche from the International Monetary Fund. The commitment is one of the IMF's last requirements before approving a staff-level pact to release a tranche of $1.1 billion, delayed for months, that is crucial for Pakistan to resolve an acute balance of payments crisis. Click here to read... [19]

Pakistan Planning Grenade Attacks In J&K After Eid, During G-20 Meet: Sources -Times Now

Grenade attacks on specific targets in Jammu and Kashmir, killings after Eid -- which is about ten days away, and attacks in Srinagar around the G-20 meeting, intelligence sources said. The attacks are primarily to be aimed at security forces and political workers. Click here to read... [20]

World Bank estimates decline in Pakistan's GDP per capita income to USD 1,399 – Hindustan Times

In its report 'Macro Poverty Outlook for Pakistan: April 2023', the bank noted that GDP per capita growth is estimated at -1.5 per cent in 2022-23 in comparison to 4.2 per cent in 2021-22. World Bank has cut Pakistan's GDP forecast to 0.4 per cent. The unemployment rate in Pakistan is estimated to rise from 10.2 per cent in 2022-23 to 10.1 per cent in 2021-22. Poverty will inevitably rise with pressures from weak labour markets and high inflation, as per the Business Recorder report. Click here to read... [21]

'Comprehensive operation' in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: War is coming like a whirlwind in Pakistan – Firstpost

As the International Monetary Fund slashes Pakistan’s growth to a mere 0.5 per cent, and there is no sign at all of the promised funds, yet the Cabinet Committee on National Security issued notice that it was set to launch an “all-out comprehensive operation” against terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Such operations don’t come cheap, not to mention taking a toll on the army. But it seems the ‘establishment’ is on board, and that’s all that matters in Pakistan. Click here to read... [22]

IMF wants 'more guarantees' in fresh trouble for Pakistan – Business Today

After assistance confirmation from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has sought more financing guarantees from Pakistan to release a tranche of $1.1 billion fund, GeoTV reported on Saturday. The IMF, which has withheld part of the bailout package for months, has asked Pakistan to arrange $6 billion in external financing. Click here to read... [23]6

Sri Lanka

India gets more space as Sri Lanka amends aviation law – Economic Times

The Sri Lankan cabinet has given the go-ahead to amend the country's civil aviation law to allow public-private partnerships in the aviation sector, a development that may open up opportunities for Indian companies. Sri Lanka may allow the participation of private companies in ground handling at the airports at the initial stage, said people familiar with the matter. Click here to read... [24]

China will support Sri Lanka at all times - CIDCA Deputy Chairman – Daily News

Deputy Chairman of China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) Deng Bozing has assured Minister of Transport, Highways and Mass Media Dr. Bandula Gunawardena that China will continue to provide necessary support to Sri Lanka at all times. A special meeting between Deputy Chairman of China International Development Cooperation Agency Deng Bozing and Minister of Transport, Highways and Mass Media Dr. Bandula Gunawardena was held at the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka recently. Click here to read... [25]

How agrarian utopianism shapes Sri Lanka - Himal

The idealised "village" was at the core of the people’s struggle last year. As a fundamental of Sri Lankan nationalist thought, agrarian utopianism helps to explain the country’s past and imagine a different future. They longed for a future free of corruption, racism, sexism and even capitalism, although they had no clear plan to achieve this ideal. Thus, the Gota Go Village – and it is of great importance that it was a “village” – was anarchistic, utopian and also syndicalist.

Sri Lanka’s Cultural Genocide Against Tamils Escalated After The IMF Bailout – EN News

Tamil Diaspora raises serious concerns about Sri Lanka’s systematic escalation of cultural genocide against Tamils and calls upon all Sri Lanka's creditors, IMF, and World Bank to prioritize the rights of the indigenous people of the land over financial return. By showing Tamils that it considers them unwelcome, Sri Lanka has driven Tamil investments, entrepreneurship, and talent elsewhere for 40 years. Its anti-Tamil state-building project is the root of its constant political instability. This has ended in an unhealthy environment for all foreign investmentsClick here to read... [26]