VIF Information Alerts - 17 April 2018

Japan and China try to reset relations in shadow of Trump’s trade war threat
Published: South China Morning Post
16 Apr 2018

China and Japan have promised to reset their often frosty bilateral relationship as they kicked off their first high-level economic talks in eight years on Monday. The two nations also warned of the impact of a trade war on the global economy and agreed that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would visit China, with President Xi Jinping making a reciprocal visit. Click here to read.... [2]

Modi govt’s Act East policy boosts development, security but challenges lie ahead
Published: Hindustan Times
17 Apr 2018

In the early 1990s, then Congress-led government at the Centre introduced the ‘Look East Policy’, a novel concept that aimed to turn the country’s Northeast into the gateway to the Asia-Pacific region, and help build stronger ties with India’s extended neighbourhood. The policy remained India’s pivot for successive governments, including the first National Democratic Alliance regime led by BJP veteran Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1999 to 2004.

While dividends of the Look East policy can be put up for debate, the Narendra Modi government, riding high on its landslide victory in the 2014 parliamentary elections, had different plans altogether for the oil-rich and tea-growing region, located at a strategic junction of China, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Myanmar. Click here to read.... [3]

Pakistan has taken serious measures to curb terror: Russian envoy
Published: The Indian Express
17 Apr 2018

In what is expected to raise eyebrows in New Delhi, the Russian envoy to India, Nikolay Kudashev, on Monday said that Pakistan has taken “serious measures” to curb terror financing and shown desire to be a part of global and regional efforts to fight the menace. Kudashev, however, said it would not be correct to say that Russia was getting closer to Pakistan as Moscow’s relations with New Delhi “are unique and second to no one”. Click here to read.... [4]

Pakistan NGO: More people died in encounters than terror attacks in 2017
Published: Hindustan Times
16 Apr 2018

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said on Monday that more Pakistanis had died in incidents described as “encounters” than in terror attacks last year. The independent NGO’s annual report for 2017 said: “More Pakistanis died in incidents described by law enforcement agencies as encounters than in gun violence or in suicide attacks in 2017, according to the findings of research conducted by the Centre for Research and Security Studies. Click here to read.... [5]

Minor blast near Indian consulate office in Nepal, no injuries reported
Published: The Asian Age
17 Apr 2018

A bomb went off outside an Indian consulate office in Nepal's Biratnagar, damaging the wall of the premises, a media report said on Tuesday. Morang SP Arun Kumar BC said the blast took place Monday night in an open space behind the building that caused minor damage to the wall. Police said they are investigating to find out on who caused the blast, Kathmandu Post reported. Click here to read.... [6]

Army man joins Hizbul Mujahideen: J&K police officials
Published: The Times of India
16 Apr 2018

An Army man who had gone missing from south Kashmir earlier this month has joined the Hizbul Mujahideen terror group, police officials said today. Mir Idrees Sultan, who was posted in the Army's Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) regiment, joined the group yesterday, a police official said. Click here to read.... [7]

Bangladesh eyes settlement in U.S. cyber heist suit ahead of its own case
Published: Reuters
17 Apr 2018

An Ecuadorian bank and Wells Fargo have reached an out-of-court settlement over a 2015 cyber heist, providing a possible precedent for the Bangladesh central bank’s planned suit to recover $66 million still lost in one of the world’s biggest such cases.

A suit by Ecuador’s Banco del Austro against Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) was quietly settled in February, less than a month before a trial date was set, and the U.S. district court in Manhattan sealed all discussions, according to court documents. No other major media has reported the settlement. Click here to read.... [8]

Rohingyas commit 15 murders, 148 other offences in Bangladesh camps since Aug 2017
Published: bdnews24.com
16 Apr 2018

Police say the Rohingyas have carried out 15 murders and 148 incidents of other sorts of offences at the refugee camps in Bangladesh in around eight months since the latest exodus started on Aug 25 last year. The crimes committed in the camps include rape, abduction, smuggling, and attempted robbery. As many as 336 Rohingyas are accused in the 163 cases over the incidents. Police, however, think the number of offences committed by the Rohingyas is not ‘alarming’, considering the huge number of refugees. Click here to read.... [9]

Maldives rejects UN body’s call to let former president fight election
Published: Gulf Times
16 Apr 2018

The Maldives rejected a demand by a UN human rights watchdog yesterday that former president Mohamed Nasheed be allowed to stand for office, including in a presidential election later this year. The UN Human Rights Committee, a panel of independent experts overseeing states’ compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, said Nasheed’s conviction on terrorism charges was based on vague laws, contained serious flaws and violated his right to a fair trial. Click here to read.... [10]