Neighbourhood News Digest: 7th February, 2019

PAKISTAN

'I'm ready for talks ─ are they?': FM Qureshi throws down gauntlet on dialogue with Delhi: Dawn

February 7, 2019

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Wednesday said that the Pakistani government is ready for talks with India. In an exclusive interview with Sky News, Qureshi was asked by Dominic Waghorn on World View whether Pakistan had plans to liberate Kashmir. "The prime minister is saying 'wake up'. The situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir is deteriorating by the day. And it isn't just the prime minister ─ the United Nations and the All-Parties Parliamentary Group constituted by the House of Commons are all saying that; voices in India are talking about how they're losing, how they're alienating Kashmiris and that it's a lost cause.Click here to read... [2]

AFGHANISTAN

Joint Declaration Issued After Moscow Talks: Tolo News

February 7, 2019

Delegates attending the peace talks in Moscow on Wednesday issued a joint declaration in which they outlined a nine point approach to promote “intra-Afghan” dialogue aimed at finding a political settlement to the conflict in the country.Click here to read... [3]

NEPAL

Over 300 Nepalis trafficked through the India-Myanmar border from December to January

In what could be the biggest incident of trafficking of Nepali citizens in a month, authorities in Manipur, the northeastern state of India, and activists have said that as many as 301 Nepali men and women might have been smuggled into other countries using the India-Myanmar border. The rescue operation of Nepali citizens being trafficked to Southeast Asian and Gulf countries, which started on Friday morning, has gathered more pieces of evidence that show they were trafficked into Myanmar via Moreh--on the India-Myanmar border--between December and January.Click here to read... [4]

CHINA

Is China about to abandon its ‘no first use’ nuclear weapons policy? : South China Morning Post

February 7, 2019

China might come under pressure to reconsider its long-standing “no first use” nuclear policy as it engages in a maritime arms race with the United States, analysts have warned.Click here to read... [5]