Category: Politics

Indian aircraft carrier Rafale jets will be equipped with French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation. But American fighter plane manufacturer Boeing is pitching for the new ship, offering F-18s. A 43,000-ton ship, INS Vikrant, was commissioned by India this week. There are 30 aeroplanes and helicopters that can be accommodated on the giant vessel, less than half the number of Nimitz class carriers in the US Navy.

INS Vikramaditya is equipped with Russian-made MiG-29s. In the beginning, INS Vikrant will be fitted with Russian-made MiG-29s. When the deal has been approved by the government, Vikrant will rearm with Western aircraft.

Officials RFI of India’s four-year quest for 57 dual-role combat jets for its two aircraft carriers that, “As of now, there is no one else in the race except Boeing and Dassault.”

In 2011, India purchased 45 MiG-29s in instalments, and nine years later, it ordered the import of 21 more and the modernization of 59 more. Captain Rajat Kumar, the commander of INS Vikrant’s air wing, is concerned about the MiG-29s that will be equipped with four 88 megawatt gas turbines on board.

On the brand-new carrier, which cost 2.52 billion euros and took 20 years to create, Kumar told the journalists, “The MiG-29 is a large aircraft – it was designed by the Russians and it is quite challenging to land on a deck,”

Nuclear cooperation between India and Russia got a boost with Atommash AEM Technologies, Volgodonsk branch (part of Rosatom Machine Building Division – Atomenergomash) completing welding of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant Unit No. 5.

According to an official statement, 11,000 heat-exchange coils and preliminary components have been installed inside the steam generator. Over the course of seven days, the heads are automatically welded at a temperature between 120 and 250 degrees. In addition, 935 kg of flux and 660 kg of wire were required to weld the two welds.

As part of the assessment, specialists will fire welds locally and perform a full range of technical inspections, including manual check-ups, hydraulic tests, and eddy-current tests. As part of the reactor facility, the steam generator is a heat exchanger that belongs to the first safety class.

A 14-meter-long and over four-meter-diameter piece of equipment weighs 350 tons and is 14 meters long. Four steam generators are included in one NPP unit. Located in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India, Kudankulam NPP has VVER-1000 power units. Kudankulam NPP’s first power unit has been running at its design power level of 1,000 MW since February 2016.

The United States seeks to step-up maritime security cooperation with allies Japan and the Philippines, in the wake of China’s “increasingly hostile maritime actions” in the Indo-Pacific waters.

 The U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Raymond Greene said non-observance of international law and coercive actions by Beijing are aimed at increasing its control over the region. “Specifically, the increasingly hostile maritime actions by the People’s Republic of China threaten the safety of our waterways,” he said at a news conference before meeting officials from the three countries.

“No one nation should be able to dominate Indo-Pacific waters through coercion and outright intimidation,” he said. “Might does not make right, and we do not shy away from calling out Beijing’s provocative actions.”

He added China carried out the militarization of the East and South China Seas, bugging foreign fishing and other vessels, and using up maritime resources and the environment.

After the United States, China ranks second highest in military spending and is modernizing its forces at a brisk pace. It says its military is solely for defense and to safeguard its sovereignty.

Japan feels China poses a huge regional security threat and is concerned about escalating tensions surrounding Taiwan, which Beijing declares as its territory.

On Tuesday, Indian-origin barrister Suella Braverman became the UK’s new Home Secretary, succeeding her colleague of Indian descent Priti Patel. As a member of Parliament for Fareham in south-east England, who served as the Attorney General under Boris Johnson, she was among the first to put her hat in the ring to replace Johnson as Tory leader and Prime Minister.

The newly-elected Prime Minister Liz Truss has named Braverman as her Home Secretary. In addition to having two children, Uma is the daughter of Christie Fernandes, a Goan-origin father. During the 1960s, her father immigrated from Kenya to the UK, while her mother was born in Mauritius.

According to the BBC, Braverman will oversee projects such as sending some asylum seekers to Rwanda, a plan that has faced legal challenges. A prominent pro-Brexit member of the Conservative party who wants a clear break from Europe, including removing the UK from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), Braverman said, “I want to embed the opportunities of Brexit and tidy up outstanding issues… and cut taxes.”

However, she was eliminated in the second round of the initial Tory MP ballot and threw her support behind Truss, who was rewarded with the highest office in government as Prime Minister.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived in India on Monday on a four-day visit to meet the top leaders to further strengthen the multidimensional relationship and make a deal on at least seven bilateral agreements in areas like water management, railway, and science and technology.

The Prime Minister and her entourage took off from Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in A VVIP flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines and landed at Palam International Airport in New Delhi.

“This is a state visit and she (Hasina) is going to Delhi at the invitation of her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi,” Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen told a media conference on Sunday.

Mr. Momen said Sheikh Hasina will discuss a range of issues with PM Modi, some of which are security cooperation, investment, improved trade relations, power, and energy sector cooperation, water sharing of common rivers, water resources management, border management, and fighting drug smuggling and human trafficking.

Mr. Momen, who is also in India, said the agreements expected to be signed during the visit would be on water management, railway, science and technology, and information and broadcasting.

“After the (signing) ceremony, honorable prime Ministers of the two countries will issue a joint statement,” he said. He added Dhaka expects that the high-level visit would prove successful to “help achieve our goals”.

On Monday, a drawn-out election process resulted in Liz Truss being named the new leader of the ruling Conservative Party and new prime minister of the U.K. There was an 82.6% turnout, with Truss taking about 57% of the vote, while Sunak received 42%.

The country’s former finance minister Rishi Sunak was beaten to the top spot by Truss, until now the country’s foreign minister. In the last few weeks, Conservative Party members voted on their favorite candidate, 81,326 for Truss and 60,399 for Sunak.

In her speech, Truss thanked her supporters and ostensibly mentioned Boris Johnson, her “friend.” She said she would govern as a Conservative, stating that she would deliver on what she promised voters in 2019. Truss also stated that she would push for a “bold tax cut” and economic growth. In addition to dealing with short-term energy supply issues, she plans to deal with long-term ones. As for the upcoming election in 2024, Truss promised delegates that her party would win.

Liz Truss is the ally of outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who congratulated her on her “decisive” victory and said she had “the right plan to tackle the cost of living crisis, unite our party, and continue our great work of uniting and leveling up our country.”. Rishi Sunak, who defeated candidate leadership, echoed that sentiment. “Now is the time for all Conservatives to stand by her 100 percent.”

On September 6, Rajnath Singh met with Mongolian counterpart Saikhanbayar Gursed in order to boost defense cooperation between the two countries. His visit to Mongolia between September 5 and 7 is the first visit by an Indian defense minister to an East Asian country.

Mr. Singh is on a five-day visit to Mongolia and Japan beginning Monday with the aim of enhancing India’s strategic and defense ties with the two countries amid a shifting regional security matrix and geopolitical turmoil.

He tweeted, “Productive interaction with Mongolia’s Defence Minister, Mr. Saikhanbayar Gursed in Ulaanbaatar today. We had in-depth deliberations on adding further momentum to India-Mongolia defense cooperation.”

On September 8 and 9, the Mongolian Defence Minister will visit Japan for two days. On September 8, there will be a ‘2+2’ dialogue. Five months after Japan’s prime minister visited India for the annual Indo-Japanese summit, the dialogue is taking place.

The Defence Ministry announced Mr. Singh’s visit to Mongolia on Sunday, saying it will further consolidate defense cooperation and strategic partnerships between the two nations. A statement said that Mr. Singh would meet with Mongolia’s Minister of Defence Lt. Gen. Saikhanbayar as well as President U. Khurelsukh and the Chairman of the State Great Khural (parliament) G. Zandanshatar.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi put in writing to UAE President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to further cement the bilateral strategic relations and the possibility of growing them to serve their common interests, the official media reported.

 Modi’s letter was handed over to the UAE President Mohammed by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday during his recent visit to the UAE.

Jaishankar visited UAE this week to attend the meetings of the 14th session of the UAE-India Joint Committee and the 3rd session of the UAE-India Strategic Dialogue.

“During the meeting, the two sides discussed various aspects of their bilateral relations and the importance of cooperating to enhance and advance them within the framework of their comprehensive strategic partnership and the UAE-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), in addition to several regional and international issues of mutual concern,” UAE’s official news agency WAM reported.

“Thank HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for receiving me. Conveyed the personal greetings and warm wishes of PM @narendramodi. Highly value his guidance in taking our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership to greater heights,” Jaishankar said in a tweet on Friday.

Bilateral trade in the last financial year was approximately USD 72 billion. The gulf nation is India’s third largest trade partner and second largest export destination.

The White House announced on Thursday that US President Joe Biden will meet his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa this month. The administration considers bringing African nations closer to the US when South Africa and most of its neighboring countries have taken a neutral stand on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The announcement of the September 16 visit followed close post-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to South Africa last month, in which he stated the Biden government sees the 54 nations of Africa as “equal partners” in tackling global issues.

However, South Africa and much of the continent have brushed aside the US condemnation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has upset the U. S administration.

South Africa restrained itself in a United Nations vote to criticize Russia’s action, and Ramaphosa has abstained from any criticism of Russia and instead has called for a reconciliation.

Biden and Ramaphosa, who had a telephonic conversation in April, are expected to hold talks on trade and investment, infrastructure, climate and energy, public health, and South Africa’s pivotal role in Africa, officials said.

“The two Presidents will reaffirm the importance of our enduring partnership, and discuss our work together to address regional and global challenges,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre released a statement announcing this month’s meeting.

The governor of Arizona, Dough Ducey, arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday on a trip that is focused on securing critical chips that are the focal point of the inflamed tech rivalry between the United States and China.

Ducey is expected to meet the President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, as well as business tycoons and university representatives in the semiconductor industry during his three-day visit to the self-ruled island. He becomes the latest US politician to visit Taiwan after recent trips by the US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, and some US senators.

Beijing, which considers Taiwan a province that must be forcefully reunited with China, has reacted angrily to the visits.

During his Taiwan visit, Ducey is looking to lure suppliers for a new $12bn semiconductor plant being constructed in Arizona by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (TSMC), the world’s biggest supplier of the critical chips used in almost all electronic devices.

The governor will then visit South Korea, where he will meet South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and business leaders later in the week.

“Arizona has excellent relationships with Taiwan and the Republic of Korea,” Ducey said before starting the trip. “The goal of this trade mission is to take these relationships to the next level — to strengthen them, expand them and ensure they remain mutually beneficial.”