VIF Information Alerts - 19 July 2019

Germany seeks India’s stamp on US-led Afghanistan talks
Published: The Economic Times

19 Jul 2019

Germany wants India to endorse the Zalmay Khalilzad peace process in Afghanistan. “We would like to see India play a bigger role in Afghanistan,” said Markus Potzel, Germany’s special envoy to Afghanistan. Potzel will be meeting with senior officials in the MEA on Friday. Germany has played a key role in facilitating the intra-Afghan dialogue that happened in Doha on July 7-8.Click here to read... [2]

U.S. warship destroys Iranian drone in Strait of Hormuz: Trump
Published: Xinhua

19 Jul 2019

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that a U.S. warship destroyed an Iranian drone in the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking at the White House, Trump said that USS Boxer, an amphibious assault ship of the U.S. Navy, destroyed the drone that threatened the U.S. warship by flying within 1,000 yards of it and ignored multiple warning. Trump said the drone was "threatening the safety of the ship and the ship's crew," calling the downing a "defensive action."Click here to read... [3]

Airspace closure caused over Rs8bn loss: minister
Published: The Dawn

19 Jul 2019

KARACHI: Federal Minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan said on Thursday that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) suffered a loss of Rs8.5 billion because of airspace restrictions since February in the wake of Indian aggression.
“It’s a huge loss for our overall [aviation] industry,” he said. “But this restriction hit India harder than Pakistan. The loss of India is almost double. But at this juncture détente and harmony are required from both sides.”Click here to read... [4]

Pakistan propaganda on Kashmir successful: Defence ministry report
Published: India Today

19 Jul 2019

India has failed to counter Pakistan propaganda on Kashmir allowing it to internationalise the issue citing human rights excesses in the state. The Ministry of Defence (MoD), in its annual report, said that Pakistan has been successful in taking Kashmir to global platforms despite efforts to combat the propaganda.
"Pakistan's effort to portray the Kashmir issue has received a fillip following the publication of two international reports by the office of United Nations Human Rights Commission and the British Parliaments All Party Coordination Committee," the MoD report for 2018-19 said.Click here to read... [5]

Nepal-China railway plans hit a dead end
Published: Asia Times

18 Jul 2019

The ambitious Nepal-China rail link, which is expected to break the tiny Himalayan nation’s sole dependence on India for trade and transit, is looking financially unfeasible as disagreements crop up between principal stakeholders. There is no consensus among political actors about how this project, which is part of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative, should be funded.Click here to read... [6]

'India can’t be world’s refugee capital’: Centre asks SC to extend NRC deadline
The Asian Age

19 Jul 2019

The Centre on Friday asked the Supreme Court to extend the July 31 deadline for the Assam list and said that it needed to tweak the process for inclusion of names in the list. Tushar Mehta told court that "there is a growing perception that lakhs of illegal migrants have been included in the NRC list in alleged collusion with local NRC officials in the state of Assam. Illegal immigrants have to be dealt severely. India cannot be the refugee capital of the world."Click here to read... [7]