Category: Politics

On Tuesday, the United Kingdoms Prime Minister Mr. Borris Johnson entitled Iraqi-born education secretary Nadhim Zahawi as the new finance minister of the nation.

Meanwhile, another loyalist, Michelle Donelan was also entitled by Johnson for replacing Zahawi’s place in the education ministry. The announcement came after the shock resignation of Rishi Sunak. Along with Sunak, Sajid Javid also resigned as the health minister blaming Johnson for losing the ability to govern the country.

According to a leading newspaper, Queen Elizabeth II approved the appointment of Zahawi. The 55-year-old came to the UK along with his Kurdish family when he was a child who did not know English before a lucrative business career. Prior to becoming an MP in 2010, he was involved in local politics in Lindon and co-founded the influential polling company YouGov and was widely praised for overseeing the nation’s pandemic vaccine rollout.

However, unlike Sunak, he has attracted negative attention for his private wealth mainly in 2013, when he claimed parliamentary expenses to heat his horse stables. As he left the meeting, Zahawi refused to comment on reports regarding whether he will support Sunak’s pleas for fiscal discipline against Johnson’s free-spending instincts.

A bipartisan group of American state governors and top officials have given assurance for building formidable bilateral ties with India and aimed for investment from the Indian corporate sector who according to them, bring foreign direct investment along with skills and make way for local jobs in the US.

Governors Tom Wolf from Pennsylvania and Asa Hutchinson from Arkansas along with Lt Governors Garlin Gilchrist from Michigan, and Eleni Kounalakis from California made a dynamic announcement in front of over 100 Indian businesses who are in the US to attend the annual Select USA Investment Summit in Washington D.C.

 Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India’s Ambassador to the US, hosted a reception at the famous India House. She stated that these top State level elected bureaucrats claimed Indian businesses bring profit to their state economy, add additional skill sets, and most important of all, create jobs.

According to a survey conducted in 2020 by the Confederation of Indian Industries, over 155 Indian companies have invested USD 22 billion.

Pennsylvania Governor Wolf told the audience that” India is a dynamic nation” and a” sleeping giant”. The Republican governor remarked he was proud to have carried on his appreciation and friendship with India through all these years.

On Tuesday, the Group of Seven (G7) nations pledged $4.5 billion to prevent malnutrition in the most vulnerable people, as well as urging Russia to end its blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. It was announced by the G7 leaders that they would not impose sanctions against imports of agricultural products, including those from Russia, and humanitarian aid deliveries.

The statement released by the G7 said, “We commit to an additional $4.5 billion to protect the most vulnerable from hunger and malnutrition, amounting to a total of over $14 billion as our joint commitment to global food security this year”.

They further stated that they were urgently requesting that Russia end its blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports, destruction of vital port and transportation infrastructure, destruction of grain silos and terminals, illegal allocation of Ukrainian agricultural products and equipment by Russia, as well as all other actions that further hinder Ukrainian food production and exports.

A statement issued by the Biden administration regarding Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions said that it “has strangled food and agriculture production and have used well as a weapon of war”.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi and president of the UAE, and conveyed his condolences on the death of the former leader of the Gulf nation.

 Following the UAE leader’s election last month, this is their first meeting where Mr. Modi expressed his condolences to Sheikh Mohamed for the loss of Sheikh Khalifa, who died on May 13 at the age of 73 after a long illness. He expressed grief over Khalifa’s death, describing him as a visionary leader who improved India-UAE relations.

Following his participation in a productive G7 Summit in Germany, Modi arrived here for a brief visit. He interacted with several world leaders on the margins of the summit, addressing issues pertaining to global well-being and prosperity.

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arinfam Bagchi Tweeted, “In a special gesture, UAE President and Ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, accompanied by senior members of the Royal Family, was at Abu Dhabi airport for the interaction with PM”.

Modi’s last trip to the UAE was in August when he received the UAE’s highest award, the Order of Zayed, conferred by the UAE president.

On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his optimism that the wealthy nations of the G-7 would support India’s efforts to combat climate change and extended an invitation to them to take advantage of the enormous market for clean energy technologies that are developing in the nation. He asserted that India’s commitment to its climate commitments is clear from its performance.

PM Modi emphasized India’s achievements during his speech at the G7 Summit session on “Investing in a Brighter Future: Climate, Energy, and Health.” He claimed that India had met its goal of 40% non-fossil energy capacity nine years earlier than expected.

He said, “The target of 10% ethanol blending in petrol has been achieved five months ahead of schedule.” India has the world’s first fully solar-powered airport. India’s huge railway system will become “net zero in this decade”

He further added that investing in research, innovation, and manufacturing in this area is an option for G-7 countries and that India can provide a scale that can make a new technology affordable for the entire world. He also said that Indian culture and lifestyle have long been incorporated into the circular economy.

In Monday’s top defense-level talks, India and Malaysia discussed the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) offer as well as the future of the Su30 MKM aircraft of the Malaysian Air Force. Rajnath Singh and Malaysia’s senior defense minister, YB Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, held video conferencing talks.

According to reports, the Indian offer for 18 Tejas fighter jets to satisfy Malaysia’s needs was discussed extensively. Earlier, India offered Malaysia a dual package for the indigenous fighter jets as well as maintenance services for the Su30 MKMs it operates.

The Indian Defense Ministry spokesperson said, “The defense minister highlighted the areas in which Indian defense industries could assist Malaysia. He suggested a visit of senior officers from Malaysia to Inda to get a first-hand experience of the facilities and products of the Indian Defense Industry”.

The Indian aircraft has already been the subject of several rounds of technical discussions, with the Tejas emerging as the frontrunner in competition with Chinese and South Korean jets, but a government-to-government agreement could also be reached.

Mr. Hussein was offered an extended invitation by Mr. Singh to visit India at the soonest convenient time to talk about developing more substantial and strategic defense cooperation.

Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani landed on Friday in Cairo, marking his first official visit to Egypt since the boycott of Doha by four Arab states.

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani arrived in Cairo, his first visit to Egypt since the thaw in relations between the two countries. Four Arab nations viz- Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain had boycotted Doha in mid-2017 but in January of last year, the Arab quartet signed the Al-Ula Declaration with Qatar terminating their all-round boycott of Doha.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi received the Qatari emir at Cairo International Airport, while the flags of both countries flew over the tarmac, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Tamim’s two-day visit will see the signing of several economic agreements, and the launch of meetings to boost trade, investment, and economic ties, and ensure Qatari investment in Egypt, especially in the energy sector. The two leaders are expected to talk about ways to improve bilateral relations and address the current regional and international political issues concerning both countries.

The visit comes ahead of American President Joe Biden’s expected tour of the Middle East next month.

In a historic move, US President Joe Biden signed the most sweeping gun violence bill in decades. A bipartisan compromise was reached on Saturday that had seemed inconceivable until a series of mass shootings, including a massacre of 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas.

Citing the families of shooting victims, President said, “Lives will be saved. Their message to us was to do something. Well today we did”. According to a bipartisan group of senators, the deal “doesn’t achieve all I want,” but it “does include things I’ve long advocated for that are going to save lives.”

Following Senate ratification on Thursday, the House provided final approval on Friday, and Biden acted soon before departing Washington for two meetings in Europe. The proposal will toughen background investigation for the youngest gun purchases, prevent firearms out of the hands of much more domestic violence abusers, and assist jurisdictions in enacting red flag laws that make it simpler for police to seize weapons from dangerous suspects.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court struck down a New York law that restricted people from carrying concealed weapons. Biden signed the measure two days later. Meanwhile, he will be hosting an event on July 11 for lawmakers and families affected by gun violence.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Munich, Germany to attend the G7 summit on June 26 and 27. Mr. Modi was invited by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to visit the country that is holding and chairing the G7, a meeting of the world’s seven richest nations.

Ahead of the summit, Mr. Modi said that he was looking forward to “fruitful discussions” along with other world leaders on topics like climate, food security, energy, environment, counter-terrorism, gender equality, and democracy.

During a meeting on the sidelines of the G7 Summit, Narendra Modi met with Argentinean President Alberto Fernandez in Munich and discussed all aspects of bilateral relations.

He also said he looks forward to meeting Indian Diaspora members throughout Europe, who contribute immensely to their local economies as well as enriching India’s relations with Europe.

He addressed the Indian diaspora in Munich and said, “Today is June 26 which is also known as the day when India’s democracy that’s is in the DNA of every Indian was trampled and suppressed 47 years ago. Emergency was a black spot on the vibrant history of India’s democracy”.

Germany has also invited Argentina, Indonesia, Senegal, and South Africa as guests to recognize the democracies of the global south as its partners.

Senior diplomat Ruchira Kamboj, on Tuesday, has been appointed as India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York.

Kamboj, the current envoy to Bhutan, will succeed T S Tirumurti as the Indian ambassador to the UN. A 1987-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) office, Ruchira Kamboj, was the all-India women’s topper of the 1987 Civil Service batch and the topper of the Foreign Service batch in the same year. Kamboj’s diplomatic journey started in Paris, France, where she was posted as the Third Secretary in the Indian Embassy in France from 1989 to 1991. After that, she returned to Delhi, where she was appointed as an under-secretary in the Europe West Division of the Ministry of External Affairs from 1991 to 1996. From 1996 to 1999, she worked in Mauritius as First Secretary (Economic and Commercial) and Head of Chancery at the Indian High Commission in Port Louis. She later became India’s high commissioner to South Africa, from July 2017 to March 2019. From 2002 to 2005, Ms. Kamboj served as a counselor at India’s Permanent Mission to the UN in New York. On 17 May 2019, she was appointed as Indian envoy to Bhutan.

The Ministry of External Affairs said in a brief statement that Ms. Kamboj is expected to take up the task soon.