VIF Information Alerts - 7 September 2018

Joint Statement on the Inaugural India-U.S 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue

Published: Press Information Bureau, Government of India
06 Sep 2018

Minister of External Affairs Smt Sushma Swaraj and Minister of Defence Smt Nirmala Sitharaman welcomed Secretary of State Mr. Michael R. Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mr. James N. Mattis, here today for the inaugural India-U.S. Ministerial 2+2 Dialogue. They welcomed the launch of the 2+2 Dialogue as a reflection of the shared commitment by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and President Mr. Donald Trump to provide a positive, forward-looking vision for the India-U.S. strategic partnership and to promote synergy in their diplomatic and security efforts. They resolved to continue meetings in this format on an annual basis. Click here to read.... [2]

Iran to handover Chabahar port to Indian firm for operation in a month: Iranian Minister

Published: The Economic Times
07 Sep 2018

India and Iran have political goodwill to pursue infrastructure projects and continue energy trade overcoming challenges created by US withdrawal from the nuclear deal and subsequent sanctions, suggested Iran’s Roads & Urban Development Minister Abbas Ahmad Akhoundi who was hosted in New Delhi, coinciding with the Indo-US 2+2 Dialogue.Click here to read.... [3]

Beijing to train Afghan troops on Chinese soil

Published: The News
07 Sep 2018

China will train Afghan troops on Chinese soil, Afghanistan’s ambassador to Beijing said, describing the military cooperation as an effort to fight al Qaeda and Islamic State militants bent on attacking China from its western neighbour. Afghanistan has also requested that China provide Afghan security forces with combat helicopters, Ambassador Janan Mosazai told Reuters in an interview.Click here to read.... [4]

Pakistan has capacity to store water for 36 days

Published: The News
07 Sep 2018

Pakistan being a water stressed country has the capacity of storing water for a maximum of 36 days, while the rest of the world can hold water for use for 130 days, the officials of Ministry of Water Resources informed the Senate Special Committee on Water Scarcity here Thursday.

Water Resources Secretary Shumail Ahmed Khawaja while briefing the committee regarding water availability in the country and its storages said that current water available resources is 138 million acre feet (MAF) with a storage capacity of 13.7 MAF which is only 10 percent of available water resources.Click here to read.... [5]

U.S. Accuses North Korea of Plot to Hurt Economy as Spy Is Charged in Sony Hack

Published: New York Times
06 Sep 2018

North Korea engaged in a yearslong effort to hack into American companies and steal from financial institutions around the globe, the Justice Department charged on Thursday in a 174-page criminal complaint that detailed how hackers caused hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of damage to the global economy. " target="_blank">Click here to read.... [6]

Trade data shows US economy rejects trade war

Published: Global Times
06 Sep 2018

According to data released by the US Commerce Department on Wednesday, the US trade deficit increased 9.5 percent to $50.1 billion in July, widening for a second straight month and surging to a five-month high since the trade war started. Ironically, the US trade deficit with China swelled 10 percent to a record $36.8 billion, a head-on blow to the US policies in the trade war.Click here to read.... [7]