VIF Neighbourhood News Digest: July 19, 2019

PAKISTAN

Pakistan will grant consular access to Indian spy Jadhav: FO: Dawn
July 19, 2019

The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday announced that Pakistan will grant consular access to Indian spy Kulbushan Jadhav. "As a responsible state, Pakistan will grant consular access to Commander Kulbushan Jadhav according to Pakistani laws, for which modalities are being worked out," a press release issued by the FO read. According to the statement, the decision was made in pursuant to the verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Click here to read.... [2]

AFGHANISTAN

Taliban’s Plan To Overrun Kabul Failed: Mohib: Tolo News
July 19, 2019

The National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib on Thursday said the Taliban militants had plotted major attacks on the start of the current year to occupy Kabul, but the group failed to take over a single district in the country. While assessing the security situation in the northern province of Parwan on Thursday, Mohib said that the Afghan security forces managed to recapture several areas which had fallen to the Taliban in the past. “This year, the enemy was looking to enter Kabul or at least take over several provinces,” Mohib said. He said that Afghan people will not accept the peace in which they do not see the interests of their country. Click here to read.... [3]

BANGLADESH

Bangladesh receives first cargo ship from Bhutan using India as transit: BDNews 24
July 19, 2019

An Indian cargo ship carrying stone aggregates from Bhutan that set sail from Dhubri, India arrived at Narayanganj on Tuesday. An inaugural ceremony was held at Narayanganj on Thursday, the High Commission of India said. Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das, Bhutanese Ambassador Sonam T Rabgye along with Vice Chairman of Bashundhara Group Safwan Sobhan received the first-ever consignment through the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol route. The ship, MV AAI of the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), was digitally flagged off by Mansukh Mandaviya, Indian Minister of State for Shipping, on July 12. The ship then sailed from Dhubri in Assam and travelled to Narayanganj over the river Brahmaputra. Dhubri was declared a port of call in October 2018. Click here to read.... [4]

CHINA

More than 50 major companies, from Apple to Nintendo, pull production from China because of the trade war: Washington Post

Throughout the trade war, President Trump has frequently claimed the conflict would force companies to pull their production out of China and move it to the United States. More than a year into it, he’s been proved half-right. More than 50 multinational corporations have announced plans to move manufacturing out of China, or are considering to do so, according to reporting from the Nikkei Asian Review. Apple, Google, Nintendo and Dell, among others, are trying to avoid the import penalties on $250 billion in Chinese goods. But rather than move their operations to the United States, as Trump urged, many of these companies are aiming to rebuild their supply chains abroad, primarily in Southeast Asia. Click here to read.... [5]

Construction begins on China-Russia border cableway: China Daily
July 19, 2019

Workers on Thursday broke ground on a cableway spanning Heilongjiang River, which forms the China-Russia border, in hopes of advancing tourism in the region. It is the first cross-border cableway between the two countries. On completion, the cableway will link up Heihe, a city in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, and the Russian city of Blagoveshchensk across the Heilongjiang River, also known as Amur River. As China's opening-up gains further steam, exchanges between the two cities have been increasing. Border crossing, however, has remained stubbornly slow. Click here to read.... [6]