VIF Neighbourhood News Digest: August 12, 2019

PAKISTAN

Qureshi, Bilawal to spend Eidul Azha in AJK to show solidarity with Kashmiri people: Dawn
August 12, 2019

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari arrived separately in Azad Jammu and Kashmir's (AJK) capital Muzaffarabad on Sunday night to celebrate Eidul Azha and show solidarity with the Kashmiri people. Click here to read... [2]

AFGHANISTAN

US Seeks 'Lasting, Honorable' Peace Agreement: Khalilzad: Tolo
August 12, 2019

US Special Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in an Eid message on Twitter on Sunday said that he hopes this is the last Eid where Afghanistan is at war. He said that he knows Afghans yearn for peace adding that "we stand with them and are working hard toward a lasting and honorable peace agreement and a sovereign Afghanistan which poses no threat to any other country". “Many scholars believe that the deeper meaning of Eid al-Adha is to sacrifice one's ego. Leaders on all sides of the war in Afghanistan must take this to heart as we strive for peace,” he tweeted. Click here to read... [3]

BANGLADESH

'Dengue situation turned serious for lack of preparations': Dhaka Tribune
August 12, 2019

The dengue situation has taken a serious turn in the country for lack of preparations to tackle it, Environment, Forests and Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin has said. “If we prepare in advance, the dengue situation would not turn so serious,” he said, while speaking at a views-exchange meeting on mosquito eradication and cleanliness at Moulvibazar municipality auditorium on Sunday. Citing the case of Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, who could not finish his budget speech in parliament on June 13 after being infected with dengue, Shahab Uddin said: “A dangerous situation was created following the bite of a little mosquito. There would have been no such situation if we had prepared beforehand.” Click here to read... [4]

Myanmar

Landslide Kills at Least 51 in Myanmar, With More Heavy Rain on the Way: The New York Times
August 12, 2019

Monsoon downpours that set off flooding and a landslide in Myanmar late last week have killed at least 51 people and left dozens more missing, the authorities said, in the deadliest natural disaster to strike a part of the nation’s southeast in decades. Click here to read... [5]

Sri Lanka

Gotabaya Rajapaksa launches Sri Lanka presidential bid: Al Jazeera
August 12, 2019

Sri Lanka's main opposition party has named Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a former defence chief who spearheaded a military campaign to end the country's long-running civil war but faces accusations of human rights violations, as its presidential candidate. Click here to read... [6]

Bhutan

Bhutan King lights thousand lamps in memory of Swaraj, offers prayers: Business Standard
August 12, 2019

Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck lit thousand butter lamps and offered prayers in the memory of Sushma Swaraj, who passed away after suffering cardiac arrest, according to a media report. Special prayers for the former external affairs minister were performed at Simtokha Dzong on Wednesday. Click here to read... [7]

Nepal

Newly discovered lake in Nepal likely to become world's highest: India Today
August 12, 2019

A newly-discovered lake in Nepal is likely to set a new record of being the world's highest lake replacing Tilicho, which is situated at an altitude of 4,919 metres in the Himalayan nation and currently holding the title. The Kajin Sara lake in Manang district was discovered about a few months ago by a team of mountaineers, the Himalayan Times reported. It is located at Singarkharka area of Chame rural municipality. Click here to read... [8]

China

Commentary: RMB exchange rate reform progress makes U.S. claim just a farce: People's Daily
August 12, 2019

Since China launched a market-oriented RMB exchange rate reform four years ago, the reform progress has been recognized by the global community, except for the United States, sadly. On August 11, 2015, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced a major improvement to the formation of the RMB's central parity rate against the U.S. dollar. It makes the central parity rate more consistent with the needs of market development. Click here to read... [9]

Cathay Pacific employee unions play down mainland China’s protest-linked aviation sanctions: South China Morning Post
August 12, 2019

The unions of Cathay Pacific Group’s pilots and flight attendants have allayed fears that new Chinese aviation safety regulations targeting the company will lead to havoc for its operations. Click here to read... [10]