Neighborhood News Digest – 15 May 2023

Afghanistan

Taliban urges Qatar to invest in Afghanistan – The Print

Taliban’s spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said that officials of the Afghan interim government in their meeting with the Qatari delegation who visited Kandahar on Friday urged them to invest in Afghanistan. Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani arrived in Kandahar and met with Taliban officials. Mujahid said that the Taliban requested that Qatar take steps for the improvement of relations between the international community and Afghanistan, reported Tolo News. Click here to read... [2]

Russia calls for “inclusive leadership” in Afghanistan – The Print

The Russian special envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, has said that the priority of the countries in the region is for an “inclusive leadership” in Afghanistan, Tolo News reported. TASS news agency cited Kabulov in a report as saying that Western countries “are putting the cart before the horse,” believing that the Taliban must first solve legal issues.” “This is not a workable approach.” Click here to read... [3]

Pakistan and China Agree to Extend CPEC to Afghanistan, Stress on Combating Terrorism – News18

Pakistan, China and Afghanistan have agreed to forge closer economic ties by extending the Beijing-backed China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan to fully harness the country’s potential as a hub for regional connectivity. Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang and Afghanistan’s Taliban-appointed acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi held the 5th China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue, where they also underlined the need to prevent any group from using their territories for terror activities against any nation. Click here to read... [4]

Bangladesh

Bangladesh won’t buy anything from countries that impose sanctions: PM Hasina - Siasat

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that Bangladesh will not purchase anything from countries that impose sanctions against it. The prime minister made the remarks on Saturday when inaugurating the 60th convention of the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) in Dhaka, Xinhua news agency reported. “There is now a tendency to impose sanctions, and sanctions on those by whom we contain terrorism. We have made a decision. I have said that I will not buy anything from those who will impose sanctions,” said the prime minister. Click here to read... [5]

Fakhrul warns govt of political storm if caretaker demand remains unmet – Dhaka Tribune

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday warned that the current regime will have to face a strong political storm if it does not concede to their demand for holding the next election under a non-party caretaker government.At a massive public rally in front of the party's Nayapaltan central office, he also threatened that their party will put up a strong resistance if the government tries to hold the next election under it ignoring the mass demand for a polls-time neutral administration. Click here to read... [6]

Bangladesh escapes worst of Mocha impacts – New Age

Bangladesh largely escaped the worst impacts of very severe cyclone Mocha, as the storm barely touched the country’s southeastern tip while making landfall on Sunday afternoon on the Bangladesh-Myanmar coast. The cyclone, however, made a mess of St Martin’s island, about 9km south of the southeastern tip of mainland Bangladesh, with a battering wind of up to 147 kph, levelling about 1,100 houses, and snapping 3,200 trees.Click here to read... [7]

Bhutan

Bhutan’s remote village finds reliable market for its milk – The Print

Goenpa, a remote village in Bhutan, has found a reliable market for its milk at Koufuku International’s dairy processing plant in Chenary, Trashigang, The Bhutan Live reported. Although the farmers benefit from this convenient arrangement, they believe that revising the current milk prices is essential due to the increasing cost of animal feed. Click here to read... [8]

6th Indian Ocean Conference: Bhutan's Foreign Minister thanks Indian govt for support during Covid – Wion

According to Bhutan's Foreign Minister Tandi Dorji, the kingdom is close to finding a solution to its border dispute with its neighbour China. Speaking to WION's Sidhant Sibbal outside of the 6th Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) in the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, Dorji confirmed that the border is peaceful and serene and refuted China's claims to be invading its land. He also hoped that the border would be marked as quickly as possible to prevent any potential future disputes. Click here to read... [9]

Bhutan: Royal Textile Academy pays tribute to Queen Mother on her 60th birthday – The Print

To mark the 60th birthday of the Queen Mother, Sangay Choden Wangchuk, the Royal Textile Academy, in collaboration with the Textile Museum, unveiled a tribute to a woman whose influence and dedication have left an indelible mark on Bhutanese society, reported The Bhutan Live. Many distinguished guests, including Princess Euphelma Choden Wangchuk, were present at the inauguration of a timeline museum, honouring the extraordinary life and works of the Queen Mother. Click here to read... [10]

Bhutan: Hope to end border row with China – The Tribune

Bhutan is on the verge of resolving the border dispute with neighbouring China, its Foreign Minister Tandi Dorji told a TV channel in Dhaka on Saturday. “Bhutan and China share a very close and cordial relationship. Our border in the north has not been demarcated. We have had 24 rounds of talks and we continue to have our expert group meeting. We hope that it (the dispute) will be resolved very soon,” he told the channel. Click here to read... [11]

Nepal

Jaishankar meets Nepal's Foreign Minister Saud; discussion held on boosting bilateral ties – The Telegraph Online

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Nepali counterpart Narayan Prakash Saud for the first time here on Friday and discussed ways to boost bilateral ties in energy, trade, connectivity and hydroelectricity. The two ministers met on the sidelines of the 6th Indian Ocean Conference being held in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka. Click here to read... [12]

Chinese-built Pokhara Airport yet to receive any international flights: Report – Wion

Nearly five months since Beijing inaugurated the Pokhara International Airport (PIA) in Nepal under its Belt and Road initiative, the airport is yet to receive a single international flight. With the airport performing dismally and barely sustaining itself, questions are rising if it could be a debt trap by the Chinese side to corner Nepal.Click here to read... [13]

Nepal's Ex-Deputy PM Top Bahadur Rayamajhi Arrested For Involvement In Fake Bhutan Refugee Scam – Republic World

Nepal's former deputy prime minister and a senior leader of the CPN-UML Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, who had been absconding since the court issued an arrest warrant against him two weeks ago in connection with the fake Bhutanese refugee scam, was arrested here on Sunday, police said. Click here to read... [14]

Scores protest in Nepal demanding action against refugee scammers and corrupt – The Print

A large number of people on Saturday held a protest in Kathmandu demanding action against refugee scammers and the corrupt. The demonstration comes in light of the arrest of the former Home minister Bal Krishna Khand amid allegations of high-level involvement in sending Nepalese citizens as fake Bhutanese refugees to the US. The protesters held placards and shouted slogans calling for accountability and non-interference from any front as the police continues their investigation. Click here to read... [15]

Pakistan

Imran Khan accuses Pakistan’s military of ordering his arrest – The Guardian

Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan has escalated his criticism of the country’s powerful military, accusing the head of the army of harbouring a “personal grudge” against him and ordering his arrest and a crackdown on his party. “It is personal. It’s got nothing to do with national interest,” Khan told the Guardian in an interview at his home in Lahore, after a dramatic week in which he was arrested at Islamabad’s high court by almost 100 paramilitary officers on Tuesday and held in police custody, in connection with a land corruption case. Click here to read... [16]

Pakistan braces for another tense day on Monday due to planned protest by key govt ally – The Economic Times

The protest planned to be held in Islamabad's Red Zone would raise serious questions about government policy of stopping rivals like Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf from political activity in the capital and looking the other way when its own partners bring protesters. Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said that reports provided by security agencies about the protest were "very alarming" and asked the organisers to change the venue. Click here to read... [17]

More than a dozen dead in Balochistan attack in Pakistan – AlJazeera

At least 13 people including soldiers have been killed in an attack on a security facility in southwestern Pakistan. A Frontier Corps camp in the Muslim Bagh area of northern Balochistan was attacked in the early hours of Friday. The military launched an operation to rescue hostages and clear the area, the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations, said in a statement on Saturday. Click here to read... [18]

Pakistan Army Moves Terrorists To Launchpads Along LoC For Infiltration Into India – Swarajya

Despite the prevalent state of civil unrest in the neighbouring state of Pakistan, intelligence sources have warned of possible movements of terrorist troops comprising of 10-20 members on the launchpads along the LoC with Pakistan. “The agencies are receiving inputs that terrorists have come to launchpads from their camps and are waiting to be pushed towards the Indian side," sources in the security establishment said. Click here to read... [19]

IMF asks Pakistan to arrange USD 8 billion for successful bailout review – The Print

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Saturday asked Pakistan to arrange USD 8 billion in fresh loans to back the external debt repayments during the next seven months for the successful completion of the long-stalled ninth review bailout package, reported The Express Tribune. IMF’s demand comes despite receiving confirmation from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) further eroding chances for the revival of the USD 6.5 billion bailout package. Click here to read... [20]

Sri Lanka

‘Big Brother’ India ‘helped us’, says Sri Lanka minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, & ‘we are reciprocating’ – The Print

In an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the 6th Indian Ocean Conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh, de Silva said: “We understand the concerns of India. We have to ensure the security of India is not threatened by anybody else [in the region].” The Sri Lankan minister’s comments come days after India extended a $1 billion credit line for the cash-strapped island country by one year — till March 2024. This was part of India’s $4 billion emergency assistance package extended to Sri Lanka early last year, which was slated to end in March. Click here to read... [21]

Australia to gift aircraft to strengthen Sri Lanka’s maritime security – Colombo Page

The Australian Government has announced that it will gift a former Royal Australian Air Force Beechcraft KA350 King Air aircraft (registration A32-673) to the Sri Lankan Government. The aircraft will be used to enhance Sri Lanka’s sovereign aerial maritime surveillance capability. This was conveyed to President Ranil Wickremesinghe when an Australian delegation led by the Australian High Commissioner Paul Stephens met the President at the Presidential Secretariat Friday. Click here to read... [22]