VIF Neighbourhood News Digest: 5th September, 2018

PAKISTAN
Pompeo due today in Islamabad amid chill in Pak-US ties: Dawn

September 5, 2018

US Secre­tary of State Mike Pompeo is reaching here on Wednesday to meet officials of the new government in Pakistan, but his brief stay in the capital, analysts fear, could be tense. It would be the first high-level visit from Washington since the new government assumed office. Secretary Pompeo would be accompanied by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford. The trip, which has been preceded by a public spat over the State Department readout of Mr Pompeo’s phone conversation with Prime Minister Imran Khan and the US announcement about ending Coalition Support Fund (CSF) reimbursements, is taking place at a very tense time in the Pakistan-US relationship. Click here to read... [2]

AFGHANISTAN
Pompeo Confirms Khalilzad To Become US Adviser on Afghanistan: Tolo News

September 5, 2018

Former US Ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad will join the State Department as an adviser on Afghanistan, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday as he headed to Pakistan to discuss Islamabad’s role in helping to end the Afghan conflict. “Ambassador Khalilzad is going to join the State Department team to assist us in the reconciliation effort, so he will come on and be the State Department’s lead person for that purpose,” Pompeo told US pool reporters travelling with him. Former cricket star Imran Khan’s party won Pakistan’s general election on July 25. The U.S. military recently said it would cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan over Islamabad’s failure to take decisive action against militants. The Trump administration says Islamabad is granting safe haven to insurgents who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge Pakistan denies. Click here to read... [3]

NEPAL
Oli defends BIMSTEC joint military exercise: Kathmandu Post

September 5, 2018

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has defended the joint military exercise among the armies of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) member countries as a “friendly gesture” amid growing criticism of the drill from within the party and the opposition.

Answering questions raised by opposition lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Oli said BIMSTEC neither has any military motive nor Nepal believes on a military pact. Had there been any military motive, Oli said, the issue would have been included in the Kathmandu Declaration, released after the completion of the regional summit on Friday. Click here to read... [4]

BANGLADESH
66% support Sheikh Hasina: Daily Star

September 5, 2018

Around 66 percent of the respondents support Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as the PM, according to a survey by the International Republican Institute (IRI). It also found that 64 percent of them have favourable opinions for the Awami League-led government. The Washington-based organisation conducted the survey between April 10 and May 21 this year. BSS received a copy of the survey on Monday. IRI collected data using a multi-stage stratified probability sample through in-person, in-home interviews. The sample was stratified by division, by district, and by urban and rural locations. Majority people of the country have said the country is marching ahead in the right direction under the leadership of PM Hasina, while a sense of high optimism is vindicated over the current economic situation, said IRI, a non-profit and non-partisan organisation, which is committed to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide. Click here to read... [5]

CHINA
Beijing declaration, action plan adopted at FOCAC summit: Xinhuanet

September 5, 2018

A declaration and an action plan were adopted Tuesday at the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The Beijing Declaration -- Toward an Even Stronger China-Africa Community with a Shared Future and the FOCAC Beijing Action Plan (2019-2021) were adopted at the two-phase roundtable meeting, chaired respectively by Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, the co-chair of the forum. Click here to read... [6]

Belt, Road aligns with African nations: China Daily

September 5, 2018

China and Africa will align the Belt and Road Initiative with the development strategies of African nations to bring more opportunities for the growth and prosperity of the continent, President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday. Click here to read... [7]