MoS Anupriya Patel Attends 10th East Asia Summit Economic Ministers' Meeting
Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel attended the 10th East Asia Summit Economic Ministers' Meeting in Siem Reap City, Cambodia and reiterated India's commitment to supporting the forum in strengthening the regional economic architecture.
The meeting saw representation from all 10 ASEAN countries as well as 8 partner countries viz. Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation and the USA.
The ministers exchanged views on global and regional economic developments including the outcomes of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference, post-pandemic economic recovery efforts, and measures adopted to mitigate the impact of global supply chain disruptions and strong inflation pressure.
Sep 20, 2022
Kazakhstan Invites PM for CICA's October Summit
Kazakhstan invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Conference on Confidence Building Measures and Interaction in Asia (CICA) Summit, which it is hosting in capital Astana on October 12-13.
The event, which comes close on the heels of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, will give Central Asian nations an opportunity to expand ties with India.
Currently the CICA exists as the largest intergovernmental forum in Asia with 27 member countries, aiming to enhance cooperation, security, promote peace and stability in Asia. The CICA also has 9 observer countries, 5 observer organisations and 5 partner organisations.
The forum was first initiated by the first President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev on 5 October, 1992 at the 47th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Sep 19, 2022
Jitendra Singh to Lead Delegation for Global Clean Energy Action Forum
Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh leads a joint ministerial delegation to the US to participate in the Global Clean Energy Action Forum.
The delegation, comprising Minister for Power and New and Renewable Energy R. K. Singh, will also take part in the joint convening of Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM13) and Mission Innovation (MI-7) from September 23 to 25 at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.
The event will bring together thousands of clean energy leaders from around the world, including CEOs, innovators, young professionals, civil society and ministers from over 30 countries to accelerate clean energy innovation and deployment.
European Parliament: Hungary no Longer a Full Democracy
The European Parliament adopted a report that declared Hungary to be no longer a democracy.
The European Parliament had adopted a parliamentary report that declared Hungary to be "a hybrid regime of electoral autocracy".
It concluded that the European values are currently under threat in Hungary and thus, it is no longer a democratic country.
The recent motion at the European Parliament is symbolic disapproval from the EU towards Hungary that has witnessed years of opprobrium over the rule-of-law issues under the regime of the current populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
However, this adoption may not lead to any specific punishment targeting Hungary.
Security Chiefs of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan Hold Talks to End Border Fighting
The security chiefs of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan sat down for talks to stop fighting on the border between the two countries that so far has killed at least 24 people and wounded over 100.
The Kyrgyz border service announced the new round of talks as the two ex-Soviet nations traded blame for shelling that resumed after what appeared to be a brief respite overnight.
PM Modi Leaves Historic Uzbek City of Samarkand
Prime Minister Narendra Modi left Uzbekistan's historic city of Samarkand after attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit and holding bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The SCO held its first in-person summit in Samarkand in Uzbekistan after two years. The summit also saw the participation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Putin, Raisi and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif among other leaders from the Central Asian countries.
Joao Lourenco Re-elected as President of Angola
The National Electoral Commission announced Joao Lourenco as the President with 51% of the votes. President Joao Lourenco is a member of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), and he was re-elected as the President of Angola. The election results extended the hegemony of the MPLA, which is the only party that has governed Angola since its Independence from Portugal in 1975.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Joao Manuel Goncalves Lourenco on being re-elected as the President of Angola and emphasized on working together to strengthen the bilateral relations between India and Angola.
Sep 18, 2022
Won't be Part of Turf War in Indian Ocean: Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe
Sri Lanka will not take part in any "big power rivalry" in the Indian Ocean and it is unfortunate that his country has been made the "punching bag" for Hambantota, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said, weeks after India and China clashed over the docking of a high-tech Chinese ship at the country's southern port. Wickremesinghe said that the Indian Ocean region needs to be open to all to ensure freedom of navigation.
Sep 17, 2022
Swedish PM Magdalena Andersson Announces Resignation after Losing Election
Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson announced her resignation after losing the election.
Andersson, also leader of the ruling Social Democratic Party, conceded defeat at a press conference following the election.
She handed in her resignation notice after it emerged that the opposition blue bloc consisting of the Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats, the Liberal Party and the Sweden Democrats, had won 176 of the 349 seats in parliament.
Meanwhile Andersson's red bloc, consisting of her Social Democratic Party, the Left Party, the Green Party, and the Centre Party, won 173 seats.
Iran Signs Formal MoU to Join SCO
Iran signed a memorandum of commitments to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), giving boost to India's focus on an inclusive connectivity agenda in the Eurasian region that would function parallel to China's Belt and Road Initiative.
Iran and the SCO started a formal process for Tehran's accession to the bloc in March. Iran's membership was later approved by the Iranian administration. Iran would attend the SCO as a full member from the Summit to be hosted by India in 2023.
Iran is central to India's plan to increase engagement with Russia and Central Asia, besides the remaining part of Eurasia.