epubdos : Afghanistan
SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS
Prepared for the U.S. Department of State
Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
TO:
SCA & Staff
DATE:
Wednesday, April 17, 2024 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan
The Taliban suspend two TV stations in Afghanistan for neglecting Islamic and national values (AP)
AP [4/17/2024 5:08 AM, Rahim Faiez, Neutral]
The Taliban have suspended the activities of two TV stations in Afghanistan, alleging they failed to “consider national and Islamic values.”

An official from the Information Ministry’s Media Violations Commission, Hafizullah Barakzai, said a court will investigate files on the two Kabul-based stations. Noor TV and Barya TV cannot operate until the court gives its verdict.

“Despite repeated warnings and recommendations, Noor TV and Barya TV did not follow journalistic principles, they did not consider national and Islamic values,” Barakzai said on Tuesday.

He gave no further details on the alleged violations.

Many journalists lost their jobs after the Taliban takeover in 2021, with media outlets closing over a lack of funds or because their staff left the country. Women journalists face additional hardships because of work bans and travel restrictions.

There was no immediate comment from the two broadcasters. Noor TV, which began broadcasting in 2007, is backed by the country’s former foreign affairs minister and leader of Jamiat-e-Islami party, Salahuddin Rabbani.

Barya TV began operations in 2019 and is owned by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the former prime minister, and the warlord leader of Hizb-e-Islami party who is still based in Kabul.

The Afghanistan Journalist Center called the suspensions an illegal act by the Taliban-controlled government. It also said the suspensions were another step toward further media restrictions in the country.

In its annual report from 2023, the center said it documented at least 168 instances of violations of journalists’ rights, including one death and 61 arrests.

Although the numbers reflected a decrease compared to 2022, when the center recorded 260 incidents, the center noted that eight media outlets were banned in 2023 Five were temporarily barred from operating, while three remained banned outright.

Despite promising a more moderate rule, the Taliban have imposed their interpretation of Islamic law, or Shariah, in many aspects of daily life.

During their first time in power, in the late 1990s, the Taliban barred most television, radio and newspapers in the country.
Pakistan
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan call for cease-fire in Gaza (VOA)
VOA [4/16/2024 2:51 PM, Sarah Zaman, 761K, Neutral]
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan jointly called for a cease-fire in Gaza on Tuesday, with Saudis urging de-escalation in the region without mentioning Iran’s recent strike on Israel.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud led a high-level delegation to Islamabad Monday on a two-day visit to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan.

Addressing a joint press conference with Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar at the end of the short visit, Al-Saud urged a cessation of hostilities in Gaza between Israel and militant group Hamas, citing the mounting death toll of Palestinians.

“The situation is unacceptable. This is a complete failure of the international system. We must have a cease-fire now,” Al-Saud said.

“The reality is the international community is not living up to its responsibility. We must do more to end the killing,” the Saudi foreign minister added.

According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, since October 7 of last year, Israeli military operations aimed at eliminating Hamas have killed more than 33,000 Palestinians. The war broke out after Hamas attacked Israel, killing nearly 1,200 civilians and taking around 250 hostages.

Pakistan’s foreign minister said he had discussed the war in Gaza with the visiting foreign minister.

“We both agree that what we need is immediate and unconditional cease-fire to take place,” Dar said.

Without naming Israel, Pakistan’s foreign minister declared the situation in Gaza a genocide and called for accountability.

Both the top diplomats urged unhindered delivery of aid to Palestinians.

According to ReliefWeb, a platform run by United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, six months into the war, 90 percent of Gazans are displaced with more than half-a-million on the verge of famine.

Neither official called for the release of the more than 100 Israeli hostages still in Hamas custody.

Silent on Iran

Addressing the regional fallout of the Gaza war, Riyadh’s top diplomat called for de-escalation, but refrained from calling out Iran for launching a massive drone and missile attack against Israel over the weekend.

“Look, we are already in an unstable region. The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is already inflaming the region. We do not need more conflict in our region,” Al-Saud said.

Long-time rivals Riyadh and Tehran restored diplomatic ties last year. The deal brokered by China ended a seven-year rift between the two Muslim countries.

“So, it is our position that de-escalation must be everyone’s priority. When there are differences, they should be resolved through dialogue, not through the use of force,” Al-Saud added.

The Iranian attack involving some 350 drones and missiles came in response to Israel’s alleged strike on Iran’s consulate in Syria on April 1. The strike killed two Iranian generals and five other officers of its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to Tehran.

The Pakistani foreign minister also did not address Iran’s attack on Israel.

He called, however, for the creation of a Palestinian state with pre-1967 borders, reiterating Pakistan’s diplomatic position on the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

“It is good for Israel, perhaps, also,” Dar said, mentioning the Jewish state only once in his remarks.

No investment deal

Pakistan presented a wide range of investment options to the visiting Saudi delegation, however, no deals were inked during the visit.

The delegation included Saudi ministers for water and agriculture, and industry and mineral resources, as well as the assistant minister for investment and senior officials from the Saudi Public Investment Fund, among others.

The Saudi visit follows one by a Pakistani delegation to Saudi Arabia earlier this month. During that visit, led by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, both sides agreed to expedite “the first wave of investment package worth $5 billion which was discussed previously,” according to a Pakistani foreign ministry statement.

Pakistani state media recently reported Riyadh could invest $1 billion in Reko Diq — a copper and gold mine project — in the restive Balochistan province. The two sides, however, did not report any progress on that during Tuesday’s media briefing.

Al-Saud, whose team met with Pakistan’s president, prime minister and the powerful army chief, sounded optimistic about future investment in the cash-strapped South Asian country, saying his delegation was “impressed” with the presentations it received.

Critics, however, say Pakistan has boasted of billion-dollar pledges from Saudi Arabia in the past as well with little to show for it.
Riyadh eyes significant investment in Pakistan, Saudi FM says (Reuters)
Reuters [4/16/2024 11:43 AM, Asif Shahzad, 11975K, Positive]
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that Riyadh will be "moving ahead significantly" to invest in projects in Pakistan, days after Islamabad announced that the Kingdom had pledged to expedite $5 billion in investment.

Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah arrived in Islamabad on Monday to lead a delegation on a two-day visit as part of efforts to boost economic cooperation.

His Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar told a joint news conference that Pakistan gave extensive briefings to the delegation on potential investment projects.

Dar outlined areas of interest for Saudi investors such as agriculture, mining, information technology and aviation.

The prince said he was very impressed with the briefings on the investment opportunities.

"This gave us some very, very significant confidence that we will be able to move forward on those projects which we decide to identify as a worthy of investment," he said, adding, "I am sure we will be moving ahead significantly."

The delegation came to follow-up on the understanding reached between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during their recent meeting in Makkah Al Mukarramah to enhance economic cooperation between the two countries.

Sharif met with the crown prince last week and discussed expediting a planned $5 billion investment package, which cash-strapped Pakistan desperately needs to shore up its dwindling foreign reserves and fight a chronic balance of payment crisis.

The Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a body consisting of Pakistani civilian and military leaders set up to promote investment in Pakistan, briefed the delegates to showcase various sectors for investment, Dar said.

The visit came ahead of Pakistan seeking a 24th bailout from the International Monetary Fund. Pakistan Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb is in Washington to attend the IMF, World Bank spring meetings where he will open formal talks for the new loan programme.
Death toll from 4 days of rains rises to 63 in Pakistan with more rain on the forecast (AP)
AP [4/17/2024 3:53 AM, Riaz Khan, 456K, Negative]
Lightning and heavy rains led to 14 deaths in Pakistan, officials said Wednesday, bringing the death toll from four days of extreme weather to at least 63, as the heaviest downpour in decades flooded villages on the country’s southwestern coast.

Most of the deaths were reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in Pakistan’s northwest bordering Afghanistan. Collapsing buildings have killed 32 people, including 15 children and five women, said Khursheed Anwar, a spokesman for the Disaster Management Authority. Dozens more were also injured in the northwest, where 1,370 houses were damaged, Anwar said.

The eastern province of Punjab has reported 21 lighting- and collapse-related deaths, while Baluchistan, in the country’s southwest, reported 10 dead as authorities declared a state of emergency following flash floods.

On Wednesday, Baluchistan was bracing for more rains amid ongoing rescue and relief operations, as flash floods inundated villages near the coastal city of Gwadar.

Heavy rains also came down on the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Authorities said a new spell of heavy rain is set to hit many areas, including the capital Karachi.

Pakistan is seeing heavier rain in April due to climate change, said Zaheer Ahmed Babar, a senior official at the Pakistan Meteorological Department.

“This month, so far there has been 353% more rainfall than normal in Baluchistan,” Babar told The Associated Press. “Overall, rainfall has been 99% higher than the average across Pakistan, and it shows climate change has already happened in our country.”

Babar said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province witnessed 90% more rain than usual in April, although rainfall in other parts of the country has remained relatively normal. It has been the wettest April in the past 30 years.

In 2022, downpours swelled rivers and at one point flooded a third of Pakistan, killing 1,739 people. The floods also caused $30 billion in damages, from which Pakistan is still trying to rebuild. Baluchistan saw rainfall at 590% above average that year, while Karachi saw 726% more rainfall than usual.

Neighboring Afghanistan also witnessed heavy rains this month. So far, 33 people have died in rain-related incidents there.
Iran president to visit Pakistan ‘very soon’, PM Sharif says (Reuters)
Reuters [4/17/2024 5:17 AM, Charlotte Greenfield, 11975K, Neutral]
Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi will visit Pakistan "very soon", Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday, as the Muslim neighbours look to mend ties after January’s tit-for-tat missile strikes at what they said were militant targets.

The strikes had fed concern about wider regional instability after the war between Israel and Hamas erupted on Oct 7.

News of the visit comes as the United States and its allies plan fresh sanctions against Iran for its unprecedented attack on Israel on Saturday, while seeking to deter the latter from a major escalation.

Sharif’s office issued a statement on Raisi’s visit following a cabinet meeting, after Pakistan signalled earlier that it could take place.

This week broadcaster Geo News said the Iranian president would arrive in Pakistan on April 22, citing sources.

Pakistan’s foreign office did not respond to a request from Reuters for comment on the report, however.

The neighbours have had a history of rocky relations, but the missile strikes were the most serious incidents in years.

Swift efforts to lower the temperature subsequently led to assurances that they respected each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, while vowing to expand security cooperation.

Pakistan has previously called on all parties in the Middle East to "exercise utmost restraint and move towards de-escalation".

In another sign of warming Middle East ties, Sharif’s office added that Saudi Arabia would invest billions of dollars following a visit to Pakistan this week by its foreign minister.
US opposition to Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline risks losing an entire region to China (The Hill – opinion)
The Hill [4/16/2024 3:00 PM, James Durso, 1.6M, Neutral]
On April 22, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, is scheduled for a state visit to Pakistan. Their number one topic probably won’t be Hamas or the Houthis, but rather a pipeline.

The Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline was conceived in 1950, and in 2010 — despite U.S. opposition — the countries concluded a 25-year Gas Sale and Purchase Agreement, and construction of the 2,775 km pipeline from Asaluyeh, Iran, to Multan, Pakistan. The initial cost estimate was $7.5 billion.

Pakistan suffers persistent power shortages, causing 18-hour blackouts in rural areas and 6- to 10-hour load-shedding in cities. Although Pakistan has made investments in power generation and distribution, in January 2023 the country suffered a breakdown in the national grid. Another blackout happened in October 2022.

According to the World Bank, an unreliable supply of electricity is “a significant barrier to economic growth.” One recent study found that business profitability in developing countries may be reduced up to almost 40 percent by power crises, and the U.S. Institute of Peace reports of Pakistan, “the shortages impose large costs on the economy as a whole — estimated at about 2 percent of gross domestic product annually — through lower output, exports, and employment.”

In August 2023, Pakistan announced it was suspending the project under threat of U.S. sanctions. Iran rejected Pakistan’s attempts to get out of its agreement, but granted a 10-year extension, and both sides got to work on a way forward. The Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline was already behind schedule (Iran has completed its leg of the pipeline) and Pakistan was facing an $18 billion penalty at the time the Americans intervened.

In February 2024, Pakistan approved the first phase of the pipeline, and in March 2024 announced it would ask the U.S. to relax sanctions so that the project could proceed. The U.S. promptly responded that “importing gas from Iran would expose Pakistan to U.S. sanctions.”

Pakistan wants to avoid the $18 billion penalty, and Iran has set September 2024 as the deadline to finish the 780-kilometer Pakistan section of the pipeline.

With the pipeline looking uncertain, one alternative is the Central Asia-South Asia power project, a $1.16 billion plan to export surplus hydroelectricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The U.S. Agency for International Development expects a commercial start in 2024, but that may slip if Afghanistan cannot build power pylons and other facilities. And is it possible to expand the project if Pakistan loses Iranian gas for power generation?

Another potential energy source is the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India natural gas pipeline, an 1,100-mile, $10 billion project to ship 33 billion cubic meters of gas per year that has seen numerous delays since the pipeline consortium was announced in 2014. Construction started in early 2018 with a projected in-service date of 2021, but halted later that year after workers clearing the route were killed by unknown assailants. The project’s $10 billion cost estimate is now a decade old, and an update may cause further delay to the Asian Development Bank-funded effort.

In June 2023, the United Nations reported conflict between personalities within the Taliban government, which may further delay this project as well, even as Pakistan’s energy deficit worsens. Despite (or perhaps because of) the Taliban infighting, officials from Pakistan and Turkmenistan met in Islamabad in June 2023 and signed a Joint Implementation Plan, committing both sides to speeding up implementation.

Pakistan’s loss of Iranian natural gas may benefit the U.S. from a trade perspective, as it may create a dependency in Pakistan on American liquified natural gas, as in Europe after the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline and the cancellation of the EastMed gas pipeline.

Pakistan may eventually move away from gas and quadruple domestic coal-fired power instead, but this will make its already bad air quality even worse. If Pakistan decides to adopt sustainable and green electricity generation, that will open the door for China, the world’s leader in renewable power and supplier of solar panels.

The Americans already disrupted the region with their failed war in Afghanistan. The gratuitous kneecapping of a needed energy project demonstrates Washington’s heedless pursuit of revenge for its 1979 humiliation in Tehran, regardless of the cost to others. U.S. actions will likely reanimate anti-Americanism — never far beneath the surface — limiting the efforts of Pakistan’s government to move closer to the U.S. and limit its dependence on China.

Another American aim may be to starve the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, the $62 billion project to connect Kashgar, China, to Pakistan’s Gwadar port. The corridor is a major component of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, consisting of highways, railways and pipelines. The inability of CPEC to supply water and power to Balochistan, Pakistan’s poorest region, may increase violence by the Baloch insurgency against Chinese companies.

The winner in all this is China, Pakistan’s “all-weather friend.” China’s minister of foreign affairs, Wang Yi, will probably dispense with “I told you so” and start talking up “win-win” solutions as he steers Pakistan even more into China’s corner.

China’s big investments in Pakistan, its “lifeline” energy purchases from Iran, its patience and realism in Afghanistan, and its increasing ties in Central Asia, where it has proposed a China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism and entered into Comprehensive Strategic Partnerships with former Soviet republics, shows it is “gathering in” countries with natural resources occupying strategic locations in Eurasia.

The Central Asian republics want good ties with the U.S., but Washington must avoid policies that damage their economies and endanger needed projects like the Trans-Afghan Railway that will link Uzbekistan (and all Central Asia) to Pakistan. Otherwise, U.S. policies will ensure Russia and China will make gains with minimal effort.
India
Indian Police Kill 29 Suspected Maoist Rebels in Chhattisgarh (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [4/16/2024 11:29 AM, Sudhi Ranjan Sen, 5543K, Negative]
At least 29 suspected Maoist rebels were killed and one security personnel was injured in a gun battle in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, three days before the start of national polls.

The security forces have recovered 29 bodies during searches that followed the gun battle, India’s Border Security Force, a police organization, said in a statement. Several weapons including light machine guns were recovered. The operation is continuing.

The Maoist rebels, who oppose a parliamentary democracy, are spread across India’s mineral-rich areas of central and eastern India. The government had told the parliament in 2022 that its actions had resulted in “unprecedented improvement” in controlling the violent extremist movement.
Indian police kill 29 suspected Maoist rebels in a gunbattle in a central state (AP)
AP [4/16/2024 2:02 PM, Staff, 22K, Negative]
Police in India killed at least 29 suspected Maoist rebels in the central state of Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, authorities said, three days ahead of the start of a national election in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third term.

According to a statement, police launched a raid after a tipoff about the presence of Maoists in the Kanker district. Three members of the security forces were wounded in the gunfight, after which police seized several weapons.

Indian soldiers have been battling Maoist rebels across several central and northern states since 1967, when the militants — also known as Naxalites — began fighting to demand more jobs, land and wealth from natural resources for the country’s poor indigenous communities.

Indian government says the insurgents, inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, pose the country’s most serious internal security threat.

The rebels are active in several parts of India, especially in Chhattisgarh, one of the country’s poorest states despite its vast mineral wealth, and often attack government troops and officials.

Indian Home Minister Amit Shah vowed to eliminate insurgency from the state and described it as the “biggest enemy of development, peace and bright future of youth.”

“We are determined to free the country from the scourge of Naxalism,” Shah wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Indian security forces kill at least 29 Maoists in gunbattle (Reuters)
Reuters [4/16/2024 10:20 AM, Jatindra Dash, 5239K, Negative]
Indian security forces killed at least 29 Maoist rebels in a gunbattle in the central state of Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, police said, days before the start of elections in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third straight term.

Kanker district, where the clash occurred, will vote in the second of seven phases in the elections on April 26 while neighbouring Bastar, a Maoist stronghold, votes in the first phase on Friday.

The rebels, who ascribe to a form of communism propagated by late Chinese leader Mao Zedong, have waged a guerrilla-style struggle against the government, especially in central and eastern India, for decades, leading to periodic clashes and casualties on both sides.

Police officials said they received a tip-off about the presence of Maoists in the area on Tuesday and launched a raid that led to the gunbattle, which also injured three members of the security forces.

"After the encounter, during the search of the area, bodies of 29 Maoists were recovered," police said in a statement, adding that several weapons and ammunition were also seized from the location.

Maoists say they are fighting to give poor Indian farmers and landless labourers more control over their land and a greater claim to its minerals currently exploited by major mining companies.

Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, while campaigning in Chhattisgarh on Sunday, vowed to eliminate insurgency from the state within three years if Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is voted back into power.
Why Does It Take India Six Weeks to Vote? (New York Times)
New York Times [4/17/2024 12:01 AM, John Yoon and Hari Kumar, 831K, Neutral]
When Indians start heading to the polls on Friday, it will be just the beginning of a colossal democratic process. Not until June 4, after six weeks of voting, will India know whether its powerful prime minister, Narendra Modi, will remain in office for a third term.

Why does it all take so long? The short answer: India is the world’s most populous nation, with 969 million eligible voters. That’s more than one-tenth of the world’s population, or about four times the number of eligible voters in the next largest democracy, the United States.

The longer answer involves India’s geography, election rules, security apparatus, holidays and electronic voting machines — a complicated choreography for a big, complicated nation.

Mind-Bogglingly Large

India’s first national elections, from 1951 to 1952, lasted over 120 days. In 1977, they took five days. But, generally, they have taken weeks or months, even without primary elections, because of their sheer scale.

The country has a land area of more than a million square miles, with people in megacities, scattered throughout the Himalayas, in the Thar Desert, inside forests and along the Ganges.

India’s laws also state that voters can’t be required to travel more than 2 kilometers, or 1.2 miles, from their home to get to a polling station. To make that possible, 12 million election workers will traverse the country to set up polling stations this year, sometimes by foot, bicycle, helicopter or boat — or even by horse, camel or elephant.

Some of those trips can take days. In 2019, the country’s highest polling station was more than 15,000 feet above sea level in the Spiti Valley of the Himalayas. In 2009, a team of five trekked deep into the Gir Forest in Gujarat, in India’s west, to reach the lone inhabitant of a remote Hindu temple.

“It is an honor, it really is,” the priest, Bharatdas Darshandas, told reporters after the election that year. “It proves how India values its democracy.”

Preserving Order

In the early years of India’s democracy, clashes between supporters of rival parties turned deadly. Candidates were kidnapped. Local police officers, failing to maintain order, were accused of taking sides under pressure from the ruling politicians. So, starting in the 1990s, national paramilitary forces began to be deployed on a large scale in elections.

India is deploying over 300,000 members of its federal security forces to help transport voting machines and maintain peace at voting booths this year. Because they can’t cover the entire nation at once, elections are split into multiple stages. In each stage, the soldiers shift from one region to another.

These safety precautions prolong elections that would otherwise take a few days, said Vikram Singh, the former police chief of India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh, who had supervised security forces in past elections. But he said voters were safer because of them.

Violence is infrequent at polling stations today. The presence of soldiers there also instills confidence in the election results.

While having multiple stages has prevented violent outbreaks, it has also prompted criticism that it makes the election process take too long. S. Y. Quraishi, a former chief election commissioner, said in an interview that the gaps between the phases had given more time for rumors and disinformation to spread.

Working Around Holidays

When the Election Commission of India schedules votes, it tries to avoid India’s various public holidays and religious festivals. Harvest season, the academic calendar, exam schedules and the weather are also considered.

The careful planning has helped achieve high voter turnout. In 2019, 67 percent of the electorate voted in the national election, the highest participation rate in the country’s history.

One holiday during this election is Mahavir Jayanti, on April 21, one of the most important festivals in Jainism, a religion of some six million people in India. Another is Buddha’s birthday, May 23, when monks will carry sacred relics of Buddha on chariots, and people will decorate their homes with flowers and donate to those in need.

Millions of Machines

Electronic voting machines became a standard in all of India’s national elections in 2004. They have made voting simpler for millions of people, particularly in India’s teeming cities, where the busiest polling stations can serve up to 12,000 people on the voting day.

The machines were built to be more portable and lighter than traditional ballot boxes. But they must be transported to wherever the polling stations are set up. Each machine consists of a “control unit” that tallies and stores votes; “balloting units” with buttons that voters press; and a printer that creates a paper trail.

They also come with special carrying cases that make them easy to pack. Workers follow elaborate safeguards to transport them around the country.

Thanks to these machines, once the voting is over, the counting goes fast.
Indian election: Prime Minister Modi’s BJP seeks supporters in the U.S. (NBC News)
NBC News [4/16/2024 11:43 AM, Mithil Aggarwal and Megan Lebowitz, 3304K, Neutral]
This week the world’s biggest democratic election kicks off in India, as almost 970 million voters decide whether to give Prime Minister Narendra Modi a third term. The election will last six weeks after a campaign that has sprawled across India — and into the United States as well.

Modi’s supporters credit him with putting India on the global stage and turning it into one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. His critics, however, say Modi has fanned a wave of Hindu nationalism, cracked down on opponents, stifled press freedom and stoked religious tensions with Muslims and other minority groups.

In the weeks leading up to the election, which begins Friday, the overseas arm of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has enlisted members of the Indian diaspora in the U.S. to campaign on his behalf, either by phone calling friends and family in India or by traveling to India themselves.

More than 60 Modi supporters turned up to an event at the Potomac Community Center in Maryland last month, many of them wearing scarves of saffron, a color associated with Hindu nationalism.

At the event, leaders of the Overseas Friends of BJP listed what they saw as Modi’s achievements since taking office in 2014: developments in infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, technology and education and, more recently, the inauguration of a grand Hindu temple on a contested holy site.

Attendees were urged to use these as talking points to nudge friends and family in India to vote for Modi, and many stood ready to help.

“Especially when they see me, that I’m from [the] United States, it carries a weight,” said Kanwaljit Soni, OFBJP’s coordinator for the Sikh community, who was planning to travel to India to campaign ahead of the election, which runs from April 19 to June 1.

It’s a familiar routine for him. During the last election, in 2019, he said, he spent three weeks in India traveling from village to village to encourage people to vote for the BJP.

“I will be going to where my roots are in the different states,” he said.

Aware of the gargantuan task of defeating Modi, the fractured opposition has tried to consolidate into a single coalition by fielding a single candidate against the BJP. But many candidates have already switched to the BJP or backed out of the coalition.

“It’s no longer party versus party. It’s a person against a person, and there is no other credible person with a national stature like Modi,” said Sanjoy Chakravorty, a professor of geography, urban studies and global studies at Temple University in Philadelphia and the author of “The Truth About Us: The Politics of Information From Manu to Modi.”

The opposition has been further constrained by what it says are strong-arm tactics by Modi and his government. Dozens of opposition politicians have been jailed or are under investigation, and there were protests last month when Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, was arrested in connection with corruption allegations that he denies.

Last month, Modi’s government froze the bank accounts of the main opposition party, the Indian National Congress, in a tax dispute. The party said the move was politically motivated and hindered its ability to campaign.

Modi has said that India’s democracy remains robust and that there is “absolutely no discrimination.” His government says the Congress party fears a historic defeat and that its accounts were frozen because it failed to file tax returns for past donations.

The Congress party has also tried to mobilize support among Indian Americans with rallies across the U.S., arguing that India cannot afford a third Modi term.

“Democracy is under an existential crisis in India right now and people are afraid to speak out,” said George Abraham, vice president of the Indian Overseas Congress.

But it is hard to compete with Modi, who experts say has built the narrative of being a “great leader,” his face appearing everywhere in India from outdoor displays to vaccination certificates. That has extended abroad to the Indian diaspora in the U.S., which has never been more passionate about politics at home.

Modi’s state visit to Washington last year drew a few hundred protesters, but thousands of South Asians also flooded the city’s landmarks, either to support him or just to revel in the historic moment.

“It’s the convergence of the whole nation into a person,” Chakravorty said.

Adapa Prasad, president of Overseas Friends of BJP, said the group aimed to reach almost 50,000 members of the Indian diaspora in the U.S., with the goal of helping Modi and the BJP secure a landslide victory.

And Maryland was just the first stop.

The group planned to hold pre-election rallies in 20 U.S. cities, modeled after Modi’s “Chai Pe Charcha,” or “discussions over tea” — televised programs in which he discusses various issues with citizens and top leaders.

There are an estimated 4.4 million people of Indian origin living in the U.S., making them the largest Asian American group, according to the Census Bureau. While many are U.S. citizens, barring them from voting in Indian elections, they may still have family links in India.

For those unable to travel to India, there is also the option of campaigning by phone, Prasad said.

People who are “sympathetic to BJP” will call their relatives in India and urge them to vote, he said.

India has a multiparty parliamentary system in which the candidate who receives the most votes in their home constituency wins. The party with the biggest share of candidates in the Legislature gets to pick the prime minister. Even though Modi’s party received 37% of the votes in 2019, it won 303 out of the 543 seats.

Flanked by almost a dozen party flags, supporters in Maryland chanted “Victory of Mother India” and, “This time, above 400” in Hindi, referring to the BJP’s goal of securing more than 400 seats.

Calling Modi a “sensible leader,” Peeyush Uniyal, who is originally from the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand and now lives in Ellicott City, Maryland, said that “especially from the development point of view, I think it becomes a no-brainer.”

He dismissed concerns about the rise of Hindu nationalism as “overblown.”

Virginia resident Upasana Dhankhar said it was her first time venturing into politics. “It’s the consistency of leadership,” said Dhankhar, a former professor of Indian history.

She moved to the U.S. in 2019, the same year Modi revoked the Indian Constitution’s Article 370, which granted semiautonomous status to Kashmir, India’s only Muslim-majority region. The widely criticized move in the disputed territory was followed by the arrival of thousands of troops and a six-month communications blackout.

“Resolving the Kashmir problem was a big thing,” Dhankhar said, mirroring an argument from a PowerPoint slide titled “Article 370 SCRAPPED.”

The BJP’s campaign in the U.S. was another way of revving up Modi’s global fanbase, Chakravorty said.

“The entire civilization is on the rise,” he said, “and they want to be part of it.”
Inside the formidable grassroots operation of India’s BJP (Financial Times)
Financial Times [4/16/2024 11:42 PM, Benjamin Parkin, John Reed, and Jyotsna Singh, 1.9M, Neutral]
With a vermilion Hindu tika smeared on his forehead and a saffron and green scarf swathed around his neck, Dimple Shrivastava is ready for a busy day of campaigning with Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party.

The 29-year-old party volunteer in Bhopal, a city of lakes and palaces in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, is hoping to ensure Modi’s return for a historic third term in elections that start this week and in which almost 1bn people are registered to vote.

In Madhya Pradesh, party activists like Shrivastava receive a daily itinerary every morning through a party-run app called Sangathan (Organisation). Their assignments can range from helping out with local services such as garbage collection to visiting at least five houses for tea with voters.

“We can understand more or less who is not voting [for the BJP] and why, so we focus on them,” says the activist, who must then upload photos on the app proving he met his daily targets.

Since Modi first won power a decade ago, the BJP has dominated Indian politics. The party won a majority in the lower house in 2019 and together with its allies controls more than half of India’s states, including Madhya Pradesh.

A big part of that success is often attributed to the personal charisma of Modi, who has developed an almost cult-like presence in Indian politics and who has used holograms to appear at multiple rallies around the country. Critics complain about creeping authoritarianism under Modi, whose government has cracked down on opposition rivals and civil society voices.

But what is less appreciated is the sheer organisational depth and discipline of Modi’s party, which has become one of the most efficient electoral machines in modern democratic politics.

The BJP claims it has 180mn members, although this figure is impossible to verify and follows a scheme where supporters simply had to call a number to register as members. Independent analysts say there are no accurate figures for party membership but nonetheless agree that the party can mobilise large armies of volunteers that allow it to crowd out its rivals on the street.

“This is the most organised and effective political party in the democratic world,” says Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author of a biography of Modi. That status is “in large part because it is also backed by the millions-strong cadre of its ideological fountainhead, the RSS”, India’s Hindu nationalist parent organisation.

The party is structured into a series of state, district and local-level units in a strategy designed to deploy its manpower with such granularity that each grassroots worker can target as few as 30 voters. In many parts of the country, there is a BJP representative on practically every street.

This helps with everything from relentless door-knocking to social media campaigns in which activists disseminate talking points to neighbourhood WhatsApp groups. Their messaging often combines promotion of Modi’s signature welfare and development schemes with religious rhetoric that celebrates his role as a defender of Hinduism. Analysts say that none of the BJP’s national rivals can compete with this street-level operation.

“They have sliced the electorate along geographical and sociological units,” says Christophe Jaffrelot, a professor of political science at Sciences Po and King’s College London. “You have WhatsApp groups for streets, for lawyers, for shopkeepers. These people in war rooms are bombarding them with messages for their vote.”

With the morning heat beginning to bite in Rahul Nagar, a hilly working-class Bhopal neighbourhood, Shrivastava is joined by about a dozen other BJP activists. Slowly marching through the neighbourhood’s narrow alleys, they chant Modi’s name and knock on doors with well-rehearsed pitches about the party’s work.

Manju Mandolia, a 30-year-old mother of two, interrupts them to complain about her inability to secure free food supplies due to out-of-date paperwork. Shrivastava assures her that he will personally see to it that she is registered that very day.

“This is Modi-Ji’s guarantee,” he declares, reminding them who to thank come polling day. “For the first time, a leader is doing huge work for the nation. His leadership is the cause of immense pride for us.”

Even Modi’s opponents concede the strength of the BJP’s grassroots effort. “They have the machine on the ground . . . we are not a cadre party: we have been a leader party,” Jairam Ramesh, head of communications at the rival Indian National Congress party, told the FT during a recent trip by Rahul Gandhi, the main face of Congress, to Madhya Pradesh.

Rajneesh Agrawal, a BJP state secretary, says this organisational drive keeps the party on its toes. “Sometimes workers become overconfident and think we may win anyway, so we keep doing activities, setting them targets,” he says. Come voting day, “we will start bugging our booth-level workers from 5am”.

In the election, which takes place over seven phases from April 19 to June 1, the BJP is targeting a two-thirds majority in parliament, increasing their count from 303 to 370 of 543 seats.

If Modi were to achieve such a victory, it would give him the powers to implement sweeping economic reforms. It would also allow him to do much more to enshrine Hindu values — and for many BJP supporters, this goal remains a central element of the party’s appeal.

One of the BJP’s political strengths is its roots in Hindu religious organisations. The party was created in 1980 as an offshoot of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a paramilitary religious nationalist group set up under British colonial rule to protect Hindu culture and transform India into a Hindu homeland.

The RSS and its affiliates, which include trade unions, NGOs and women’s groups, have not only served as a source of BJP ideology but a feeder organisation and vast support network.

Modi himself came to the BJP via the RSS, joining the group as an activist in his native state Gujarat in his twenties before switching to party politics. He became the BJP’s general secretary in 1987 and in 2001 he was named the state’s chief minister. Top ministers in Modi’s government, such as Amit Shah and Nitin Gadkari, have also worked with the RSS.

The RSS has for decades championed causes to address long-standing Hindu grievances that, under Modi, became core tenets of the BJP government’s agenda.

This included revoking autonomy for India’s only Muslim-majority territory, Jammu and Kashmir, in 2019 alongside campaigns to “liberate” Hindu shrines allegedly defiled by Muslim rulers over the centuries. It culminated with Modi inaugurating a new temple to Lord Ram on the site of a demolished mosque in January, considered by many to be the prime minister’s greatest triumph.

While the RSS denies that it campaigns for any political party, analysts say that its members are a valuable source of manpower for the BJP when needed. “The RSS has front organisations or affiliated bodies across every spectrum you could think of,” says Mukhopadhyay. “And they all step out to campaign for the BJP candidates.”

Among the next generation of leaders is Sanjay Singh Rathour, a coiffed, muscular 26-year-old who started with the Bajrang Dal, a militant RSS-affiliated youth group, before becoming a BJP youth leader in Bhopal. Rathour says his time at the Bajrang Dal inspired him to champion Hindu nationalism.

Outsiders “can’t but be impressed with what they see, our dedication, discipline and service”, says Rathour, whose office wallpaper is decorated with an oversized image of the new Ram temple. “When people see us they can see and feel our commitment and discipline, and they get connected to us.”

His job now is to cultivate the next generation of BJP supporters, particularly among young voters: The Election Commission says 18mn 18 and 19-year-olds will be casting a ballot this year for the first time.

Like Shrivastava, Rathour’s day begins with instructions through the Sangathan app, summoning him to a planning meeting with his boss, a BJP state assembly member, and then to meet beneficiaries of government welfare schemes. He garlands them with caps and scarves, decorated with Modi’s face, in the BJP’s saffron.

After an evening prayer meeting, Rathour visits a nearby tea shop for a conversation with first-time voters over cups of hot, sugary chai. Among them is Gaurav Mahajan, a 22-year-old student and first-time voter who needs little convincing.

Mahajan says the proliferation of new roads and electricity connections in Bhopal has boosted the value of his family home. But he also admires how the party has placed Hinduism, the religion of 80 per cent of the population, at the centre of public life.

“Being a Hindu is a VIP tag,” Mahajan says. “When the BJP comes back to power this time, I am very sure India will be declared a Hindu nation. I want that to happen because then no minority can crush us.”

The RSS has flourished under Modi, claiming that the number of neighbourhood units — known as shakhas — has risen from 45,000 in 2014 to 73,000 today.

The RSS’s ascendancy under Modi has alarmed critics, who point to rising hate speech and policies that human rights groups allege are aimed at turning Muslims into second-class citizens.

“The primary glue remains their Islamophobic viewpoint,” says Mukhopadhyay. “On the one hand, they say everybody is free to follow their own faith in this country, but they also say everybody is a Hindu: the culture of this land is essentially Hindu.”

Joining Shrivastava on his rounds in Rahul Nagar is Lakshmi Prakash Gorewar, a formidable 51-year-old who is head of the local BJP’s women’s wing.

Gorewar is from one of the lowest and most marginalised of India’s caste groups. Modi is himself is from an underprivileged caste and one of the prime minister’s triumphs has been to broaden the BJP into a mass movement that appeals well beyond its traditional base of upper-caste male Hindus to women and lower-caste Indians too.

The party has cultivated an army of workers like Gorewar to act as a bridge between the government and ordinary Indians, helping resolve bureaucratic hurdles and vowing to stamp out the corruption and pilferage that has plagued welfare distribution.

“Modi has worked a lot, and the workers have been working with their mind, body and financial strength,” she says. “We are very committed to bringing Modi-Ji back in power. Women in particular want to see that happen.”

“You cannot win in India by upper-caste patriarchy,” says Devesh Kapur, a political scientist at Johns Hopkins University. “Once you’ve got a level of consolidation around [upper-caste] Hindus, then the next level is that you want to make sure that all caste groups are represented.”

Election data from 2019 collected by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies in New Delhi showed how a sharp shift in support among women and lower caste groups towards the BJP helped propel them to a majority.

“We see a range of surveys around the world that men are voting more rightwing and women are voting more leftwing,” Kapur adds. “In India, it’s an exception. Women have moved to the BJP.”

Gorewar says women have benefited disproportionately, pointing to a cash-transfer programme for women and another offering subsidised cooking gas. (Modi this year announced a cut in cooking gas cylinder prices on March 8, International Women’s Day.) They “have cemented the BJP’s position among female voters”, she says.

Residents of Rahul Nagar, who are primarily from lower castes, still tend to prefer the rival Bahujan Samaj party. Gorewar, who has held door-to-door meetings in the area almost every day for the past three months, explains it is her job to convince them otherwise.

Welfare has been a central part of Modi’s appeal among India’s hundreds of millions of poor and marginalised people. Since taking power in 2014, the prime minister has stepped up spending on social transfers and subsidies for food, fertiliser and housing, including a scheme in which more than 800mn people receive free rice and wheat. Even those programmes that existed before Modi have been branded for maximum political benefit, often by affixing his image to handouts.

Pankaj Chaturvedi, a spokesman for the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, says the BJP’s popularity comes from its ability to deliver. “[Activists] never tell you, ‘Go and vote for the BJP’. They say: ‘Go and vote for that person who is going to benefit you more,’” he says. “People can judge the difference.”

Yet life in neighbourhoods like Rahul Nagar remains tough. Joblessness is high with nationwide youth unemployment at 45 per cent last year, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy. And Gorewar is met with a chorus of complaints, mostly from women lamenting their struggles securing paperwork for food handouts or the lack of local drainage that leaves putrid water to cascade through the area.

At one point, Gorewar delights the crowd by haranguing a group of municipal electricity workers to improve local service. The party’s welfare schemes “have cemented the BJP’s position among female voters”, she says.

To fund such a massive enterprise, the BJP needs deep financial backing, and it has found it, from donors large and small.

In addition to welfare, the party promotes a centre-right, laissez-faire, pro-big business economic agenda, and has through its history enjoyed support among business — from small-scale entrepreneurs to big conglomerates.

The symbiotic relationship between the BJP and business has become the subject of intense scrutiny in the build-up to the election, with Congress repeatedly attacking Modi for his close ties to billionaires like Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani.

Data from an opaque campaign finance scheme known as electoral bonds underscored how the BJP has dominated its rivals financially. The Supreme Court this year deemed the scheme, introduced by Modi in 2017, unconstitutional over its lack of transparency.

About half of the approximately Rs120bn donated went to the BJP, with leading donors including mining and construction conglomerates and India’s so-called lottery king. Congress, by contrast, received only about 10 per cent.

The scheme was structured in a way in which only the government could know the identity of donors, meaning that business “had an incentive to give to the BJP over other parties”, says Sukrit Puri, a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The limited information available on electoral bonds and other officially reported political contributions is widely thought to underestimate the large amounts of undeclared party financing that analysts say takes place “off the books”.

While most of the BJP’s donations come from big business, judging by the limited public data available, the party actively deploys its grassroots network to court small donors.

Volunteers like Shrivastava are set fundraising targets and encouraged to collect micro-donations ranging anywhere from Rs1,000 to Rs10,000.

Shrivastava, who receives a call from the BJP’s state office while campaigning reminding him to meet his fundraising target, says the aim is not only financial but to create long-term relationships with local businesses. “If they can part with their money, then they will be associated with you for their lifetime,” he says.

With the BJP’s opposition in disarray, its financial dominance and deft blend of personality politics, welfare and religious nationalism has led to a sense of inevitability about the outcome of the poll. Warning signs for the government persist, including simmering frustration over unemployment, which the Modi government has struggled to contain despite a fast-growing economy from which India’s conglomerates are profiting.

But analysts say that even after a decade, Modi’s election machine appears to be stronger than ever. According to Kapur, the political scientist: “The thing that a lot of [commentators] simply don’t get: They work harder than the opposition.”
Jobs and rights on young voters’ minds for India polls (Agence France-Presse)
Agence France-Presse [4/16/2024 10:42 PM, Staff, 11975K, Neutral]
Around 130 million young adults aged 18 to 22 will be newly eligible to vote in India’s national elections when polls open Friday -- more people than the entire population of Mexico.

AFP asked four first-time voters who were too young to vote in the 2019 elections about who they would support and the issues that mattered to them:

Mumbai university student Abhishek Dhotre, 22, said he was unhappy with "the communal discord that is seen all throughout India" as a result of the government’s muscular Hindu nationalism.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has brought India’s majority Hindu faith to the forefront of political life.

That has left Muslims and other minorities anxious about their futures in the nominally secular country.

Still, with India’s economy growing at a breakneck pace, overtaking former colonial ruler Britain as the world’s fifth-largest in 2022, Dhotre wants Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to win again.

"With the flow of development, infrastructure and everything that’s going on, I would prefer the current government to stay," he told AFP.

Thrishalini Dwaraknath, 20, epitomises India’s economic changes -- she is about to move from Tamil Nadu to the tech hub of Bengaluru, both of them in the south, to work as a software developer.

"I’m excited to be part of the Indian democracy and voicing my opinion for the first time," she told AFP. "And I’m glad that my voice matters."

She praised Modi’s government for its achievements in office but said it needed to do more to help millions of unemployed young Indians find work.

India’s annual GDP growth hit 8.4 percent in the December quarter, but the International Labour Organization estimated that 29 percent of the country’s young university graduates were unemployed in 2022.

"Addressing the skill gap between students and the job market is key," Dwaraknath said.

One first-time voter who will definitely not be backing the BJP is Gurpartap Singh, 22, a wheat farmer from the northern state of Punjab.

Farmers in Punjab were the backbone of a yearlong protest in 2021 against the Modi government’s efforts to bring market reforms into India’s agricultural sector.

The reforms were later shelved, marking a rare political defeat for the prime minister, but farmers say their demands have still not been met.

"So many farmers died in the protest," Singh said. "They have not got justice."

Farmers are a significant voting bloc in India -- hundreds of millions of people make their living from the land.

"The government that thinks about the farmers, youth -- that is the government that should come to power," Singh said, adding that the BJP had failed that test.

India’s 1.4 billion people encompass a vast range of backgrounds including a transgender community estimated to be several million people strong.

The Hindu faith has many references to a "third gender", and a 2014 Supreme Court ruling said people could be legally recognised as such.

They nonetheless face entrenched stigma and discrimination, and Salma, a transgender Muslim woman from the Hindu holy city of Varanasi, said she did not expect that to change under another BJP government.

"All the time this government has stayed in power, they have done nothing good for us," said Salma, who declined to say who she would vote for.

"We should get equal rights."
Will Modi win 400 seats in India’s election? The south holds the answer (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [4/16/2024 11:30 PM, Sanjay Kapoor, 2060K, Neutral]
In the early part of his campaign for India’s upcoming 2024 election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a target for his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance that is ambitious even by the standards of his successful coalition.

“Abki baar 400 paar,” Modi declared, claiming that the National Democratic Alliance, the ruling group of parties, would cross the 400-seat mark in a house of 543 parliamentary seats, with the BJP alone winning 370. Only once in India’s 77 years as an independent nation has any party or alliance won more than 400 seats: the now-in-opposition Congress Party in 1984, in the aftermath of the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Yet, with India poised to hold the first phase of its 44-day, seven-stage election on April 19, analysts say the success of Modi’s calculations could hinge on one significant part of the country, which has so far remained largely impervious to the BJP’s Hindu majoritarian charms: the country’s south.

Home to about 20 percent of the nation’s population, the five southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Telangana, and the union territories of Puducherry and Lakshadweep, constitute India’s most economically prosperous region. The south contributes more than 30 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

But despite Modi’s pitch that his government has helped boost the Indian economy, the BJP won just 30 of the 131 seats from the region – the vast majority of them from one state, Karnataka – in 2019. It drew a blank in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, and lost the constituencies of Puducherry and Lakshadweep. Some analysts believe a repeat is inevitable.

Nationally, the BJP won 303 out of 543 seats, almost maxing out in most northern states – its traditional strongholds – and leaving the south as the territory it likely needs to gain in for the party to win a larger mandate than in 2019.

“BJP is very unpopular in Andhra Pradesh and other southern states. In fact, anyone that allies with the BJP will do badly in these elections,” said Mohan Guruswamy, a political analyst and the chairman of the Centre for Policy Analysis (CPA), a New Delhi-based think tank.

Parakala Prabhakar, an economist and the husband of India’s finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, said the coming election would reflect a “north-south divide”. Prabhakar has been a critic of the government his wife is a key member of.

The BJP’s struggles in India’s south are not new. With substantially better development indices, including on education and health, than the north, the region has been relatively immune to the religion-driven politics that have traditionally characterised the BJP.

The southern state of Kerala, for instance, has an infant mortality rate of six deaths out of every 1,000 births– almost on par with the United States. The figure for the BJP-ruled state of Madhya Pradesh on the other hand stands at 48, a rate similar to that of war-torn Afghanistan.

Those relative development gains make the BJP’s Hindu majoritarian Hindutva ideology less of a draw in the south, said Prabhakar.

Kishore Chandra Deo, a former federal minister who resigned in February from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), a regional force in the state of Andhra Pradesh, after it decided to ally with the BJP in the 2024 election, agreed. “In North India, it is possible to bring about religious consolidation whereas in the south, it is not possible,” Deo said.

“Here, the Ram temple is not an issue,” he added, referring to the temple to the Hindu god Ram consecrated by Modi in January, in the city of Ayodhya. The temple was built on the ruins of the 16th-century Babri Masjid mosque, which was demolished by hardline Hindu activists in December 1992.

Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, the Tamil Nadu minister for information technology and digital services, who until recently was the state’s finance minister, echoed Deo’s view.

“The south has a tradition of harmonious co-existence between all religions going back several hundred years. Attempts at communal polarisation will definitely backfire in the south,” Rajan told Al Jazeera.

That hypothesis is now about to be tested – starting on Friday.

Modi’s Tamil Nadu push

Despite its traditional struggles there, the BJP and Modi have been trying hard to break through in the state of Tamil Nadu, which, with 39 seats, sends the largest contingent of parliamentarians from the south to the national legislature.

All of Tamil Nadu votes on April 19, and Modi has made at least six trips to the state in the lead-up to the election – using an artificial intelligence-driven app that translates his Hindi speech into Tamil in real-time for audiences; and apparently breaking down in tears at the support the BJP claims he has received during rallies.

Modi has also revived a dispute over Sri Lanka’s Katchatheevu Island, which was settled by New Delhi and Colombo 50 years ago. Modi and his government have claimed the island was gifted to Sri Lanka by the former Congress government. Katchatheevu has historically been an emotive subject in Tamil Nadu, where the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham (DMK), a Congress ally, has historically been opposed to Sri Lanka’s control of the island, just 33km (20 miles) off India’s coast.

Ahead of the election, the BJP and Modi have also tried to accuse the DMK of being anti-Hindu. Last September, DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin made controversial remarks comparing “Sanatana Dharma” (the eternal religion) to malaria and dengue. Sanatana Dharma is used by many Hindus as an alternative term to Hinduism, though others – including the DMK – have long associated it with the caste system embedded in traditional Hinduism.

Amid this push, some New Delhi-based pollsters have suggested that the BJP could increase its vote in Tamil Nadu to 20 percent from under 4 percent in 2019 – and win a few seats too.

That is easier said than done, say analysts.

Cracking the southern fortress

Tamil Nadu’s politics has for decades been shaped by anti-Brahmanical sentiments: Ideas of nationalism have long been met with suspicion in the southern state, where they are seen as a way to preserve the historical domination of Brahmins, who sit at the top of India’s complex caste hierarchy.

One of the early idealogues of what is known as the Dravidian movement was EV Ramasamy Naicker – better known by his pen name, Periyar – who was critical of Hinduism and broke with the Congress, which through much of the 20th century was widely viewed as an upper caste party. BJP leaders have frequently criticised Periyar but both the DMK and its rival, the All India Anna DMK (AIADMK), swear by his legacy.

To the northwest of Tamil Nadu, the state of Karnataka has for the past two decades proven much more fertile ground for the BJP in southern India. Home to the city of Bengaluru, India’s tech and startup hub, Karnataka was ruled by the BJP from 2008 to 2013, and then again from 2018 to 2023. In the 2019 national election, it won 25 out of the state’s 28 seats.

Now back in power in Karnataka, the Congress, which won just one seat in 2019, will be hoping to win more – riding on a campaign alleging that Modi’s government has engaged in “discrimination” and “injustice” against southern states.

On average, southern states receive far fewer resources from the central pool of taxes collected by the federal government than what the people of these states pay through taxes, as compared with the north, explained RS Nilakantan, the author of South vs North: India’s Great Divide.

Proponents of this approach point out that the federal government needs to support states with weaker social indices in the north more, to help them get better. But critics argue this punishes southern states for their success, even as there is little evidence that northern states are making rapid advances in health or education using central resources.

“Tamil Nadu, for instance, is getting back 29 paise for every rupee that it contributes to the union government,” Rajan, the Tamil Nadu minister, said. “We have come to a situation where the ruling parties of the southern states have had to hold protests in Delhi to highlight the injustice done to them and fight to protect federalism.”

Those worries in southern states have been amplified by the prospect of delimitation by 2026, a process through which boundaries of constituencies will be redrawn to ensure they have roughly equal voter numbers.

Because India’s south has been far ahead of the north in population control measures, the delimitation exercise could significantly shrink the south’s seats in parliament, reducing its political power. Tamil Nadu, for instance, could see its seats drop to 30 from 39, while northern Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, could see seats go up from 80 to 90, according to Nilakantan.

“The North vs South is not just an emotive issue,” said Rajan. “It boils down to hard facts and figures.”
India-South Korea-US Trilateral Technology Cooperation (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [4/16/2024 9:29 AM, Wondeuk Cho and Simran Walia, 201K, Positive]
In March 2024, South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held their 10th Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) in Seoul, marking the first such gathering in almost six years. A week later, in their trilateral technology dialogue, the United States, South Korea, and India explored possibilities for collaboration in key emerging technology fields such as semiconductors, biotechnology, space, artificial intelligence (AI), and quantum technology.

Together, these events mark a trajectory toward deeper strategic cooperation between South Korea and India in the Indo-Pacific era. Both countries have now gained significant momentum to bolster their bilateral partnership beyond the confines of their existing special strategic partnership, paving the way for a new chapter that is anticipated to endure for the next five decades and beyond.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral summit on the occasion of the 2023 G-20 meeting, where they evaluated the ongoing cooperation between the two countries, particularly in advanced manufacturing such as electric vehicles. Acknowledging the growing significance of cooperation in key technological domains among countries that share common values, they agreed to further broaden the scope of supply chain collaboration, especially within emerging sectors such as IT and electronics.

In the current geopolitical environment, the Indo-Pacific region needs minilateral frameworks with like-minded countries for mutual concerns and objectives. The decision to create this trilateral in the technology domain emerged from the inaugural South Korea-U.S. Next Generation Critical and Emerging Technologies Dialogue in Seoul held in December 2023. During a review meeting, recent advances also saw the United States and India broaden the scope of the India-U.S. Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET). Biotechnology, key minerals, processing methods for rare earths, digital connectivity, digital public infrastructure, and innovative materials were among the topics discussed.

Shared values, including a dedication to democracy and maintaining the rules-based international order, form the basis of the “defining partnership” between the United States and India. The U.S. is committed to supporting India’s rise to prominence as a major global power and considers India an important partner in ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. The involvement of the U.S. and India in the Quad framework shows the wider need for both nations to engage in such minilaterals and trilaterals for the security of the Indo-Pacific region.

In 2022, South Korea unveiled its new Indo-Pacific policy, making it quite evident that the country wants to become a “Global Pivotal State.” Seoul also aims to work with like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific region and contribute to the peace and stability of the region. With South Korea being a key economic tiger in Asia, India is eager to venture into new fields such as critical and emerging technologies, semiconductors, green hydrogen, human resource mobility, nuclear cooperation, and supply chain resilience.

Similar to India as a fulcrum of the Indo-Pacific rules-based order, South Korea too is cautious about China’s antagonistic response to the Quad. While South Korea is not a member, the four-nation group’s ongoing emphasis on topics like infrastructure development, climate change mitigation, pandemic control, and emerging technologies aligns with Seoul’’s priorities. The U.S., India, and South Korea have converging interests in their Indo-Pacific strategies involving potential avenues of cooperation.

India contributes to the South Korea-U.S. alliance as a democracy with comparable objectives concerning critical and developing technologies. India’s increasing domestic market, aspirations to become a semiconductor pioneer, and relationship with South Korea as a regional partner with shared democratic and sovereign ideals all play a part in this.

In India, the United States and Korea have teamed up to pursue shared development objectives, a major partnership that was revealed in New Delhi. Their respective international development organizations, USAID and KOICA, have formalized their relationship through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to advance common global development objectives. With the help of this MOU, USAID and KOICA will pool their resources and expertise to address critical issues in India, including women’s economic empowerment, disaster and climate resilience, digital literacy, and opening up opportunities for trilateral cooperation with the Indian government. The alliance wants to promote innovative collaborations, boost local economic trade, and give new digital and entrepreneurial resources to support local livelihoods.

The new communication mechanism between the U.S., South Korea, and India is among the first diplomatic agreements on technology cooperation signed by New Delhi. India also takes part in the Quad’s collaboration on other technologies, such as 5G and 6G.

The trilateral technology dialogue will have significant economic effects. This alliance can transform the manufacturing landscape and foster employment growth in these nations by acting as a driving force behind improvements in the global technology markets. The combined technological might of India, South Korea, and the United States might encourage the development of innovation hubs, increase exports, and improve investments.

The tech dialogue might significantly influence the global tech competition. This collaboration could act as a restraint on China’s growing technological hegemony, especially in areas like 5G and artificial intelligence.

To maintain a balance of power and thwart China’s goals in the Indo-Pacific region, the United States, South Korea, India, and other nations anticipate that AI will be a key component of their defense and security plans. Innovation and data-sharing in the AI space could help these partners offset their growing fears about China’s military might.

The trilateral cooperation on critical and emerging technologies is a crucial and promising area for improving the bilateral relationship between India and South Korea. However, to strengthen strategic trust and evolve into true strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific, trilateral cooperation is not enough. Both South Korea and India must establish more cooperative platforms in areas of mutual interest going forward.

For instance, given the significant interest both countries have in the defense industry, there is a pressing need to approach the expansion of cooperation in this field more vigorously. South Korea’s export of K-9 self-propelled howitzers to India and local production there are undoubtedly positive examples. Now is the time to broaden this scope and actively consider cooperation between the two countries on maritime weapon platforms.

Additionally, in response to growing maritime terrorism, piracy activities, illegal fishing, and other security threats in the Indian Ocean region, it is worthwhile for both countries to not only utilize existing regional multilateral platforms such as IORA and IONS to enhance cooperation on maritime security and maritime domain awareness, but also consider joint bilateral exercises. Such maritime security cooperation is not only vital for India, as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean, but also holds critical benefits for South Korea, which holds a strategic interest in the Indian Ocean as a crucial sea line of communications.

The three nations should further work on fortifying their partnership to protect their interests and maintain the rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific region. A trilateral dialogue between India, the U.S., and South Korea ensures equal stakes and obligations in technology-sharing without the added burden of requiring India to give up some of its traditional policy independence.

In addition to building a strong international technology infrastructure and investment model to support innovation and the health of the economy, the alliance should seek to work together on the responsible use of AI in surveillance and intelligence sharing to make the most of this trilateral technology dialogue. By establishing common data protection standards, this partnership would also gain from enhancing cybersecurity infrastructure and bolstering supply chain resilience.
India’s Reliance Tries to Sell US Oil as Russian Flows Gain (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [4/16/2024 6:17 AM, Sharon Cho and Serene Cheong, 5543K, Neutral]
Reliance Industries Ltd. offered US oil to other buyers in Asia last week, an unusual move for refiners who rarely seek to resell crude within weeks of buying it.

India’s biggest private processor tried to sell West Texas Intermediate Midland crude for May loading, according to traders with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified as the information is private. Reliance didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

India moved away from some of its more traditional suppliers after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, taking advantage of cheaper oil from Russia shunned by other buyers. Purchases cooled recently as US toughened sanctions on Moscow and cargoes of Sokol crude, a key grade, were among those left in limbo.

The South Asian country has recently resumed purchases of Sokol, which may have encouraged large buyers like Reliance to sell on more expensive alternatives. US officials said earlier this month they had not expected New Delhi’s processors to stop buying Russian petroleum.

WTI Midland, Sokol and the UAE’s Murban are all similar varieties which yield more diesel than alternative crudes when refined.

The traders did not specify whether the reselling of the US oil by Reliance was linked to the resumption of Sokol purchases. It is also still unclear if flows of Russian crude to India will return to last year’s record levels.

Reliance also attempted to sell cargoes of Murban crude for April-May loading before offering the American oil, the traders said.
Indian Citizenship Law’s Exclusion of Sri Lankan Tamils (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [4/16/2024 1:29 AM, Roshni Kapur, 201K, Neutral]
The debate on which refugees qualify for Indian citizenship has intensified with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government enacting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019 and notifying the rules in March this year.

The CAA 2019 amended the Citizenship Act of 1955. It uses religion to determine whose citizenship can be fast-tracked. The legislation provides for expediting citizenship to religious minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan – i.e. Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Parsis, Jains and Christians – who entered India on or before December 31, 2014. The law excludes Muslims, who are a majority in the three countries.

The new legislation has been hailed by supporters as a humanitarian gesture that seeks to put an end to the suffering of non-Muslim minorities, who have been subjected to discrimination, persecution, and torture in predominately Muslim countries in India’s neighborhood.

Justifying its decision to exclude Muslims from the CAA, the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that Islam has been enshrined as the state religion by the constitutions of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Religious minorities in these countries are subjected to persecution, prompting many to seek refuge in India.

However, Muslims in these countries, such as Hazaras in Afghanistan or Ahmadiyyas in Pakistan, are also being persecuted.

Critics are drawing attention to the CAA’s communal predispositions. It gives preference to some persecuted communities over others. The law is less of a humanitarian gesture on the part of the government supposedly fulfilling its moral duty as a benevolent rising power and more of a carefully considered strategy to project Islam as a persecutor religion. The Indian government is trying to project a narrative that religious minorities living in predominately Muslim countries face exclusion, stigmatization, and persecution. The inclusion of Christians appears to be an afterthought, perhaps to push back against possible criticism from Western countries.

Another criticism is the exclusion of refugee groups like the Tamils in Sri Lanka – both the Indian Tamils and Sri Lankan Tamils – who have been subjected to different forms of violence by the Sinhala-Buddhist state during varying periods of the country’s post-colonial history.

Although the Sirimavo-Shastri Pact of October 1964 sought to resolve the citizenship issue of Indian Tamils – these are Tamils who were taken as indentured labor during colonial rule to work on Sri Lanka’s plantations – by providing Sri Lankan citizenship to 375,000 and voluntarily repatriating 600,000 to India, New Delhi has yet to honor its obligations of granting them citizenship rights.

As for the Sri Lankan Tamils, they were severely impacted by the civil war (1983-2009). Around 100,000 of them were killed in that war and over a million were internally and externally displaced. Those who were better off migrated to the West, but most fled to India, mainly to the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Around 100,000 remain in India even after the end of the civil war.

Sri Lankan Tamils escaping the fighting on the island were welcomed in Tamil Nadu during the 1980s. That changed following the assassination of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by LTTE militants in 1991. Public sympathy disappeared and the state government transferred the non-camp refugees to the camps, closed educational institutions, and kept them under constant surveillance. This continues to date. The lack of job opportunities, difficult weather conditions, and restrictions on their freedom of movement have made life difficult for those in these camps.

The Tamil Nadu government has been receptive to the requests of the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees for citizenship rights, and both regional parties, the Dravida Munetra Kazahagam (DMK) and the All India Anna DMK (AIADMK), have requested the central government to adopt a proactive approach in supporting them.

The exclusion of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees from the CAA has come in for criticism from several quarters. Extending them citizenship rights is a complex issue that involves politics, security concerns, and the state agenda.

It is alleged that some Sri Lankan Tamil refugees are involved in criminal and separatist activities. There are concerns that sections of the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora and Tamil nationalists in India are trying to revive the LTTE movement and the Tamil Eelam project.

Some countries with a large Sri Lankan Tamil refugee population, such as Canada, have kept a close watch on the LTTE’s activities within its territory, and investigated its alleged fundraising and money laundering activities. Are India’s security concerns in this regard reasonable or exaggerated?

Some Indian leaders who have called for citizenship rights for Sri Lankan Tamils say that security concerns could be addressed by putting those who are found to have any allegiance to the LTTE “behind bars.” Sri Lankan Tamil refugees have been arrested from time to time for their alleged involvement in the smuggling of weapons and drugs to revive the LTTE.

Although some sections of the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora, and by extension refugees, may continue to espouse Tamil nationalist sentiments, distinctions should be made between liberal democratic nationalism and separatist nationalism that condones extremism.

The exclusion of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees from the CAA does not bode well either for the community or for India.

According to Romeo Alfred Roy, a lawyer representing the community, 90 percent of Tamil refugees in India are seeking citizenship. Many do not desire to return to their place of origin in Sri Lanka due to job insecurity, loss of lives, painful memories, and general uncertainty. While the younger generation is completely detached from its place of origin, the middle-aged have some attachment that they are slowly losing.

The inclusion of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in the CAA would bestow the community with a set of political, economic, and civil rights to leave the camps, secure proper jobs, and contribute to India’s development. Instead, the state continues to bear the financial and economic burden of providing basic needs to the community.

Although Sri Lankan Tamils have received some benefits from India, they continue to lack fundamental rights coupled with constant state surveillance.

It is unclear how the Indian government would deport illegal migrants who do not qualify under the CAA, given that there is no deportation agreement with some neighboring states. Illegal migrants who are pushed out of the porous border usually end up returning, perpetuating a cycle of expulsion and return.
Herders on front line of India’s Himalayan dispute with China say they’re losing grazing land – and a way of life (CNN)
CNN [4/16/2024 10:37 PM, Simone McCarthy and Aishwarya S Iyer, 6098K, Neutral]
High in the Himalayas, the people of a remote northern Indian territory fear their way of life is under threat from the changing climate, looming development – and border tensions with China.

At stake, they believe, is the future of Ladakh, one of the world’s highest elevation regions, where indigenous tribes maintain nomadic traditions on sprawling plains hemmed in by mountains punctuated by Buddhist monasteries.

For years, Lopzang Dadul herded his yaks, sheep and goats across the vast, vertiginous landscape near India’s contested border with China, following the seasons to find grazing land.

But now, Dadul says, shepherds are being barred by the Indian military from lands that for generations sustained Ladakh’s nomadic way of life – a situation he and others say has worsened following a deadly 2020 border clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers.

“In India, the army is not letting us go to places which they call no-man’s land … civilians are not allowed to go there anymore,” says Dadul, 33, a father of two from the village of Phobrang.

“If we do not get enough land we will have to sell our livestock … and look for another option.”

Ladakh’s herders inhabit what is now a highly strategically sensitive area, where India’s contested 2,100-mile (3,379-kilometer) boundary with China has for decades been a source of friction between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

“A lot of these grazing lands are in contested areas between India and China, and (after the 2020 clash) these grazing lands have now been denied to the locals, because they have been brought as part of buffer zones between India and China,” according to Sushant Singh, a senior fellow at the Indian think tank Centre for Policy Research.

Both India and China maintain a significant military presence along their de facto border, known as the Line of Actual Control (LAC), which has never been clearly defined and has remained a source of friction since a 1962 Sino-Indian border war.

Four years ago, border tensions broke out into the open when a clash in Ladakh-Aksai Chin brought the first known fatalities in conflict between the two countries in more than four decades – with at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers killed.

The violence was followed by a process of disengagement, the creation of buffer zones and ongoing border talks – but the situation remains tense and neither India nor China have publicly specified where the zones are, making for a murky reality on the ground.

For that reason, the location of some of those zones may “not be clear to the local people,” said Manoj Joshi, a distinguished fellow at the New Delhi think tank Observer Research Foundation.

The movement of herders is seen as sensitive because both countries have in the past used their presence in an area to assert military control over it, said Singh.

“First graziers go, then you pitch up tents, and then your soldiers reach and then you say ‘this is our area,’” he said, noting why India is blocking them from entering these zones.

Konchok Stanzin, 37, a councilor in Ladakh’s Chushul constituency, which encompasses four border villages, says such restrictions have impacted herders’ access to land.

“Rezeng La, Mukhpari, Black Top, Helmet Top and Gurung Hill. All these areas are winter grazing areas of Chushul village. Now people find it very difficult to go there. These areas are now no-man’s land,” said Stanzin, who has been raising awareness about these issues since 2020.

But those interviewed by CNN also point to what they say is the impact of Chinese encroachment and changes to the control of contested lands over time, including from the 2020 clash.

“We know the reality, we know the ground situation. If the (Indian) government says we have not lost an inch of land, then whatever we have lost is already lost,” said Stanzin.

Dadul in Phobrang said the “Chinese are coming toward us constantly. They have been crossing the line and coming in,” he said. “China is capturing the land, the Indian government is saying nothing is lost, the (Indian) Army is not letting us go there.”

CNN was unable to independently confirm the status of the restricted land described in this report, nor claims of Chinese encroachment or loss of Indian territorial control after the 2020 clash.

In a statement, India’s Ministry of Defense told CNN: “No Indian territory has been lost during the standoff. Negotiations are currently underway for disengagement at the remaining friction points.”

On the buffer zones, the ministry said: “all disengagements achieved till date have been based on the principle of Mutual and Equal Security. Currently, a mutually agreed moratorium exists on military activities from both sides in areas where disengagement has been affected, to maintain peace and tranquility.”

The “number of Indian graziers and livestock in traditional grazing areas has seen a sharp rise” after the events of 2020, the ministry’s statement added. “There has thus been no adverse impact on the livelihood of locals in the area.”

China’s Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

Protest and hunger strikes

Mounting concern over threats to the way of life in Ladakh – from lost grazing lands to climate change and industrialization – have driven thousands from across the region to its joint capital city of Leh in recent weeks to demand greater rights ahead of India’s general election, which begins Friday.

There, some 3,500 meters (11,550 feet) above sea level, residents are calling for Indian statehood for Ladakh to ensure political representation, as well as inclusion in the national constitution’s Sixth Schedule, which grants special rights to tribal areas. Organizers say at least 10,000 people turned out during a single day in Leh last month to support the start of an ongoing, weekslong hunger strike.

Ladakh lost special controls over its land in 2019, following a controversial move by the Indian central government that stripped the former state of Jammu and Kashmir of its statehood and broke off Ladakh, which had been a part of it, into a separate territory.

The change placed the region under the direct control of India’s central government, which critics say has pared back national environmental protections and backed ecologically harmful infrastructure development pushes in other sensitive parts of the country in recent years.

China doesn’t recognize what its Foreign Ministry has called the “so-called union territory of Ladakh,” saying the “western section of the China-India border has always belonged to China.” In addition to China, the territory of Ladakh also shares a disputed border with Pakistan, another neighbor with which New Delhi has fraught relations.

Now many in Ladakh are concerned about the potential damage of future New Delhi-backed industrial projects, or that an influx of people moving in could shift the largely tribal demography.

“Only local people will think about the next few generations, (others will) … make mistakes at best and sell off the place at worst,” said Sonam Wangchuk, an activist and educator widely known across India, who is leading the hunger strike to draw attention to environmental threats facing Ladakh.

Speaking to CNN during the 19th day of a 21-day fast last month, Wangchuk said in a steady but weakened voice that without protections and representation, “we will have no control on how to secure these mountains.”

He pointed to plans for a solar plant and the potential for more environmentally damaging industry to follow.

The activism has faced pressure from local authorities.

Earlier this month, Wangchuk and other civil society leaders called off a planned peaceful march toward the border they said was meant to reveal grazing lands lost to Chinese encroachment, after local authorities banned unauthorized gatherings and temporarily slowed internet speeds, citing an “apprehension of breach of peace.”

CNN has reached out to Leh’s district magistrate and local police for comment.

Some, like the Ladakh president of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), say protections on land, jobs and culture in Ladakh could be granted through other means, which local leaders have rejected. He also suggested the border dispute is a factor in why other demands won’t be met.

“We are with the border with China and Pakistan. How can a sensitive (place) like Ladakh just be turned into a state immediately?” the local party leader, Phunchok Stanzin, told CNN.

‘Way of life is going away’

The nomadic traditions of shepherd communities living off the land and selling goats’ wool to be spun into luxurious Pashmina had already been diminishing in Ladakh in recent decades.

A tourism boom and the impacts of climate change – as receding glaciers and other impacts drive flash floods, drought and reduced snowfall – are among factors shifting how some families make their livings.

Namgail Phonchok, 51, whose village lies south of the piercing blue waters of Pangong Lake that stretches from India into China, fears his children won’t be able to continue their way of life – including due to access restrictions on grazing lands.

“When they won’t let us graze, then we will sell our animals. We do not know what other job to get, and our own work will also go, then what will we do?” he said, adding that “if big industries come here then the environment will get ruined completely.”

Between longer-term changes and new restrictions on grazing lands, “our nomadic way of life is going away,” Phonchok said.

Dadul, in Phobrang, has seen those changes too.

He says 60 of the 113 households in his village used to be nomadic; now only 10 are maintaining the tradition due to those factors and lost grazing lands.

“Nomadic way of life is a very rare thing in India. In one home you have yaks, sheep, goats, horses and other livestock … yaks are meant for transportation and milk, cheese and butter, and the goats give Pashmina. This is the actual eco-friendly and sustainable way of life,” he said.

“When the army steps back from the real border, this effect spills over to the village … and the movement of the nomadic tribes is restricted,” he added.

New Delhi has denied that its border tensions with China are impacting the lives of the shepherds there.

And Prime Minister Narendra Modi – India’s Hindu nationalist leader, who is widely expected to win a rare third term in the upcoming election – has tread cautiously around the border issue, claiming in the wake of the June 2020 border clash that “no one has intruded” into Indian territory.

Modi’s comments appeared to contradict his own foreign minister, who said the violence began after “the Chinese side sought to erect a structure in Galwan valley on our side of the LAC.” Beijing at the time said, “none of the responsibility lies with China,” blaming Indian troops for “starting provocations” and crossing the de facto border.

New Delhi says two sites remain contested along the Ladakh border after disengagement at other contested zones following the 2020 clash. Observers believe Chinese forces are blocking Indian patrols in those contested areas where they previously had access.

At the points where there has been disengagement, the establishment of buffer zones means “both sides have pulled back by mutual agreement and neither side patrols there,” as opposed to earlier, when troops could patrol up to their claim, according to Joshi in New Delhi.

‘Real protectors’

New Delhi’s official response – and the lack of transparency over buffer zones – has fueled domestic debate about India’s position on the border.

A report from a Ladakh police superintendent released in 2023 further stoked concerns – detailing how Indian forces lost their presence in 26 of 65 patrol points over an unspecified period. Reduced patrolling led to an ultimate loss of control over such areas, where China grabs land “inch-by-inch,” the report said.

The report also accused China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of having “taken advantage” of the buffer areas established in the de-escalation talks by objecting to Indian forces’ movement in the buffer zone and asking for further pushback.

It noted: “Much restrictions on the movement of civilians and grazers near the forward areas on the Indian side, indicating their ‘play safe’ strategy that they do not want to annoy the PLA by giving them the chance to raise objections on the areas being claimed as disputed.”

A copy was posted online by Indian magazine The Caravan alongside a report from Singh, from the Centre for Policy Research.

Singh, who is also a lecturer at Yale University, suggested the lack of clarity on the border situation may stem from Modi’s concerns over Chinese military superiority – and tarnishing his government’s image.

If Modi’s strongly nationalist government were to acknowledge loss of territorial control, “it would be very difficult for him to then not take some aggressive action to regain that lost territory,” he said.

“Then the risk of escalation would be very high and, in that escalation, I think Mr. Modi’s government fears that they could be humiliated – that they could lose to China.”

But some from Ladakh argue that the sensitivity of the region, both environmentally and strategically, is the very reason to allow the local people more control over the land – including access around the border.

“The shepherd is going to the mountain and protecting it every day,” said Dadul, the shepherd from Phobrang.

“If the real protectors are brought to the borders and allowed to stay there, then what is left will be protected.”
NSB
How rainwater harvesting has become a lifesaver in Bangladesh (The New Humanitarian)
The New Humanitarian [4/16/2024 4:14 PM, Zakir Hossain Chowdhury, Neutral]
In coastal Bangladesh, the changing climate has brought about a crisis for communities that have relied upon ponds and bore wells for their drinking water for generations: Rising sea levels mean those traditional sources of survival are now contaminated with salt.

The imperfect alternative is drinking pond water – frequently unpurified. This can lead to chronic diarrhoea and other waterborne diseases, made worse if people then drink saline water. Women and children often bear a double burden, suffering particularly serious health effects while also carrying the responsibility of providing water for their families.

Visual journalist Zakir Hossain Chowdhury travelled to Bangladesh’s western border districts of Satkhira and Khulna, where thousands of residents have found ways to preserve rainwater rather than let it be lost to run-off. While at least 30 million coastal residents have no access to safe drinking water, rainwater harvesting and a new government push to desalinate groundwater are providing a beacon of hope.

"There was a high miscarriage rate among women in coastal areas compared to other districts,” but that rate has come down since communities began harvesting rainwater, Shanjana Parvin, a doctor at the Friendship Hospital in Satkhira district, told Chowdhury.

Bangladesh averages 2,200 millimetres of rainfall annually – one of the highest amounts in the world. Efforts to capture this sustainable and affordable source of fresh water are transforming lives, while last year the Bangladeshi government eliminated a tax on imported parts needed to run solar-powered water desalination plants, in the hope of lowering costs.

The government hopes that ramping up solar-powered desalination will stem the increasing salinity of underground water due to natural disasters like cyclones, rising sea levels, declines in groundwater levels, and changes in upstream river discharge. It announced plans last year to give up to 50,000 coastal communities access to clean water by building 1,500 new desalination plants.

Those affected aren’t waiting around for others to find solutions. They have embraced rainwater harvesting to build their own resilience in the face of the climate crisis.

The simplest method involves using roofs to redirect the rainwater into a tank or cistern. It can then be used in irrigation to sustain crops and plant life. In general, rainwater is also considered clean enough to drink without the need for additional treatment.

Experts say rainwater harvesting can help communities in both flood- and drought-prone areas by providing access to clean water during emergencies, ensuring water security during dry periods, and reducing run-off that can worsen flooding and flood risks.

Chowdhury’s photos show how rainwater harvesting is empowering coastal communities to sustainably safeguard their health, while also fostering livelihood diversification through agriculture and gardening.

Filling vessels at Sweet Water Pond

In the Koyra area of Khulna district, women dip jugs into Sweet Water Pond, which has been created by rainwater harvesting. Most of the women have to walk around four kilometres to collect drinking water, and sometimes they make the trip twice a day.

Despite being fed by harvested rainwater, Fresh Water Pond can be contaminated because it is also used for watering animals, washing clothing, and bathing. Drinking the water may cause adverse health effects, such as chronic diarrhoea.

‘Now I can take care of my two children’

Rabeya Akter, 24, collects rainwater from a water tank in the Shyamnagar area of Satkhira district. "Now I can take care of my two children and their education properly,” Akter said, referring to the time she saves not having to walk long distances to other water sources.

The tank Akter uses is part of an NGO project to use rainwater harvesting to improve access to clean water for vulnerable communities in coastal Bangladesh.

“Carrying water from long distances every day is much harder, even though I was drinking little water, thinking about my family," Akter said.

Because they require basic materials and rely on simple structures – roofs and tanks – rainwater harvesting systems are easy to install and relatively inexpensive.

Women find water close to home

A woman collects water from the rain using a plastic sheet in her yard at Koyra in Khulna district near Sundarban.

Traditionally, women in Bangladesh are responsible for collecting water for their families. Rainwater harvesting allows them to collect clean water closer to home, reducing the time and effort spent fetching water from distant and potentially contaminated sources.

Being able to collect drinking water close to their homes can also help protect women from gender-based violence. Studies have found travelling long distances – especially to secluded areas – to fetch water often leaves women susceptible to abuse.

‘People aren’t capable of paying for it’

Robin Chandra Das, from the Bangladesh-based international NGO Friendship, stands in the desalination plant he monitors in Shymanagar in Satkhira district.

During the hot summer season when there is little to no rainwater and the ponds are dry, desalination efforts – which remove the salt from the existing salty groundwater – can be the only good source of water.

Friendship has already installed six desalination plants. “Our six water treatment plants in the coastal areas deliver fresh drinking water to more than 80,000 people in the coastal area of Bangladesh,” Das said.

Desalinated water from Friendship’s plants costs 10 Bangladesh taka (about $0.10) for 20 litres, but this isn’t always the case. “Where salinity is high, it costs so much to desalinate that people aren’t capable of paying for it," Das explained.

The many uses of rainwater

Rainwater isn’t just needed for drinking.

It also helps maintain agricultural productivity, promotes kitchen gardening, and provides a source of income for rural communities. It can be used for non-potable needs like washing clothes, cleaning, and sanitation, and reduces the strain on municipal water supplies, especially during peak demand periods.
Sri Lanka debt restructuring stumbles as govt rejects bondholders’ proposal (Reuters)
Reuters [4/16/2024 2:29 PM, Uditha Jayasinghe and Marc Jones, 5.2M, Neutral]
Sri Lanka on Tuesday rejected international bondholders’ proposal to restructure more than $12 billion in debt, putting at risk critical International Monetary Fund support and delaying its efforts to resolve a two-year-long debt crisis.

Some of the proposal’s "baseline" assessments and a lack of a contingency option in the case of continued economic weakness were the two main reasons the deal was not agreed, the government said in a statement.

Colombo said it hoped to hold further talks "as soon as feasible" but the immediate risk was that without a compromise in the coming weeks, the next tranche of all-important IMF support money could potentially get delayed.

Sri Lanka has already struck a deal with its main government creditors, but an "agreement in principle" with bondholders was also needed to secure IMF Board approval for the next $337 million instalment of its $2.9 billion programme.

The government said one of the main stumbling blocks had been that the "baseline parameters" of the bondholders’ plan had not matched those embedded in its IMF programme.

It added that the bondholders’ "steering committee" that it has been negotiating with in recent weeks had not wanted to extend "restricted discussions" - a key part of debt talks where they are held privately, behind closed doors.

Following an initial extension, it would be unusual for big money managers to remain restricted for too long given it also limits their ability to participate in the market.

A source familiar with the process said discussions could continue as early as later on Tuesday, with some interested parties in Washington for the IMF/World Bank meetings.

The source said that, as has been the case in other recent debt negotiations, an asymmetry of information between the parties, including a lack of visibility among bondholders of the terms agreed with both the Paris Club and China, has complicated the negotiations.

CONTENTIOUS MLBs

Sri Lanka also disagreed with a proposal to link future repayments to bondholders to the country’s macroeconomic growth, through "macro-linked bonds" or MLB for short.

It said it was seeking more protections if Sri Lanka’s economy were to underperform IMF growth projections, and a "test" for triggering both the upward and downward adjustments in the MLB.

Disappointment that a deal had not yet been reached sent Sri Lanka’s bonds down about 2.5 cents , , leaving them at just over half their original face value at between 54 and 55.4 cents on the dollar.

"Completing the IMF review by June becomes difficult now because there will have to be more talks," said Udeeshan Jonas, chief strategist at equity research firm CAL Group.

IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis since independence from the British in 1948 after its foreign exchange reserves fell in early 2022 leaving it unable to pay for essentials including fuel, cooking gas, and medicine.

The island nation defaulted on its foreign debt in May 2022 and kicked off negotiations with bilateral creditors several months later, eventually securing an agreement in principle with China, India and the Paris Club last November.

Sri Lanka also needs agreements with each of the bilateral creditors, including the Export-Import Bank of China, to complete the IMF review process.

Supported by the IMF program, Sri Lanka has seen its once soaring inflation moderate to 0.9% in March and its currency strengthen 7.6% so far this year. The economy is expected to return to growth after contracting 2.3% in 2023.

It is one of several poorer countries that have been hit by debt crisis in recent years and were struggling to put it behind.

Ghana this week has also seen its $13 billion restructuring talks stumble after the IMF indicated that the deal it was hoping to strike with bondholders would not be enough to make its debt levels sustainable again.

Viktor Szabo, an emerging market debt portfolio manager at Abrdn in London, said Sri Lanka’s setback was likely to be just a delay rather than a deal-breaker.

"It is moving in the right direction," Szabo said. "But it is just a bit slower than expected."
Central Asia
Kazakhstan’s Compensation Claims Against Kashagan Oil Firms Jump to $150 billion (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [4/17/2024 2:12 AM, Nariman Gizitdinov, 5.5M, Neutral]
Kazakhstan has increased its arbitration claims against international oil companies that developed the Kashagan oil field to more than $150 billion, demanding compensation for lost revenue in addition to a dispute over costs, according to people familiar with the matter.

Kazakhstan’s government was already involved in a $15 billion arbitration over production costs at the giant field, which has been beset by delays, technical difficulties and cost overruns since development began more than 20 years ago. The additional claim is for as much as $138 billion in lost revenue, reflecting the calculation of the value of oil production that was promised to the government but not delivered by the field developers, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

The row underscores the difficulty of operating in Central Asia’s largest oil-producing nation, where major international companies face challenging environmental and geological conditions, plus a government that takes a robust approach to maximizing value from its production-sharing agreements.

Still, in earlier disputes with oil majors the government of Kazakhstan has demonstrated a certain degree of flexibility, on occasion settling for less than was initially claimed. Last year, the nation signaled it could consider resolving its disputes with the Kashagan partners through direct talks.

Companies including Eni SpA, Shell Plc, Exxon Mobil Corp. and TotalEnergies SE invested about $55 billion to develop Kashagan, which currently produces just under 400,000 barrels a day of oil. While the field was one of the biggest discoveries in decades, it also brought numerous technical challenges, from a sea that was frozen for almost half the year to a reservoir that contained high concentrations of poisonous gas.

Kashagan pumped its first oil in September 2013 — eight years later than targeted and $45 billion over its initial budget — only to shut down a month later after leaks were detected in a pipeline. Production resumed in 2016 and the field gradually reached output of much as 270,000 barrels a day in 2017. Eni, the lead developer in the project’s early stages, had estimated that Kashagan would reach a plateau in production of at least 1.5 million barrels of oil a day.

The North Caspian Operating Co., the joint venture that runs the project, said in a statement that it has as number of disputes concerning the application of certain provisions of the Kashagan production sharing agreement that are subject to arbitration.

“The contracting companies consider that they have acted in accordance with” that contract, according to the statement. NCOC declined to comment further due to the confidential nature of the proceedings.

“Eni confirms that an arbitration procedure has been commenced by the Kazakh authorities,” the company said in a statement. The Italian oil firm declined to comment on specific terms of the process, but said in general that it does not believe, “the basis for the claims or the specific amounts of compensation requested to be reasonably substantiated or credible.”

Shell declined to comment. Exxon referred questions to NCOC. TotalEnergies didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry declined to comment.

Compensation Claims

Prior to the latest increase in claims, Kazakhstan was already alleging that the Kashagan partners should not have deducted $13 billion of costs from the revenue received by the government. That amount has now increased to $15 billion, the people said.

There is a further compensation claim related to contracts in the Kashagan development that were allegedly tainted by corruption, the people said.

The companies are also facing a separate $5.1 billion fine for allegedly breaking environmental rules, after Kazakhstan’s court of appeal upheld government claims over sulfur storage.

The operator of the field has denied being at fault in the cases related to the environmental and cost claims.

Kazakhstan has been successful before in challenging the international majors for alleged failures at the country’s two largest oil developments. In 2020, Shell, Eni and their partners in the Karachaganak oil and gas venture paid $1.3 billion to settle a long-running dispute with the state over revenue sharing. In 2008, the Kashagan partners agreed to pay $5 billion to Kazakhstan and sell a larger stake in the venture to state-run KazMunayGas to settle a dispute over delays and cost overruns.
Russia, Kazakhstan fight floods as Putin ally says officials should have done better (Reuters)
Reuters [4/16/2024 11:29 AM, Tamara Vaal and Lucy Papachristou, 39236K, Neutral]
Kazakhstan’s president described floods across the north of the country as a national disaster on Tuesday and ordered his government to free up funds for relief efforts by cutting spending elsewhere.

In Russia, also hit by the worse floods in living memory, a top ally of President Vladimir Putin said regional authorities had fallen short in their forecasting and emergency response.

Water levels in rivers in swathes of Russia’s Ural and southwestern Siberian regions, as well as adjacent areas of Kazakhstan, were still rising rapidly, officials said.

The disaster has been caused by the fast melting of large snowfalls amid heavy rain, swelling the tributaries of several of Europe’s largest rivers.

The total number of people evacuated from their home, which had stood at 125,000 as of late Monday, rose towards 200,000 as the governor of Russia’s Tyumen region told residents of Ishim, a town of 65,000, that they should leave urgently.

"The probability is growing of dams bursting, or water pouring over them," governor Alexander Moor said. "You all know about the danger. Gather your valuables. Immediately drive to safe places, to relatives or evacuation points where we will supply you with all essentials."

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrived in Petropavlovsk, where the local governor said 10,345 people had been evacuated as parts of the city remained under water.

"We are going through tough times. This is a disaster of a national scale," Tokayev told residents. "I think the next 10 days will be critical, but we are already taking measures to rebuild the country and deal with the aftermath of this disaster."

Tokayev’s office said that in order to free up money for disaster relief, he had ordered the cabinet to cut all non-essential budget spending and cancel some events, including an economics and international affairs conference in the capital.

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which handles some 1% of global oil, said it was working to protect its facilities from floods in Kazakhstan’s Atyrau region.

In Russia, Security Council secretary Nikolai Patrushev said "huge material damage could have been minimised" if regional authorities had paid more attention to forecasting the water levels and responding more effectively.

Some people in the affected areas have also expressed frustration with the authorities.

"I don’t want to blame anyone, but if it was known from mid-March that the flood would be severe, why didn’t the city and regional administration do anything?" one resident of the Russian city of Orenburg posted on social media.

Others mocked the authorities for carrying out non-urgent renovations on a street in the centre of the city instead of focusing on dams. "Orenburg is drowning, and they are removing tiles," one person wrote.

In Kurgan, some locals singled out regional governor Vadim Shumkov for criticism. "Why is there such a mess going on here?" one resident posted.

But another Kurgan local, who gave his name as Oleg, told Reuters the authorities had done "good work" ahead of the floods to strengthen the dam and evacuate residents.

"I haven’t seen such protective measures in my whole time in the city," the 47-year-old said, adding that the floods had not yet reached his neighbourhood and he was staying put for now in his multi-story apartment building.
Jailed Kazakh Journalist Mukhammedkarim Launches New Hunger Strike (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [4/17/2024 5:41 AM, Manshuk Asautai, 235K, Negative]
Independent Kazakh journalist Duman Mukhammedkarim, who is on trial for what he says are politically motivated charges of financing an extremist group and participating in a banned group’s activities, has launched another hunger strike to protest against the delay of an investigation into a complaint he filed against jail guards, whom he accused of torture.

Mukhammedkarim’s lawyer, Ghalym Nurpeisov, said on April 16 that his client launched the hunger strike three days earlier.

Mukhammedkarim, whose Ne Deidi? (What Do They Say?) YouTube channel is extremely popular in Kazakhstan, was sent to pretrial detention in June 2023 over an online interview he did with the fugitive banker and outspoken critic of the government, Mukhtar Ablyazov.

Ablyazov’s Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan (DVK) movement was declared extremist and banned in March 2018.

As Mukhammedkarim’s trial started on February 12, he complained of being beaten by jail guards, prompting prosecutors to launch a probe into the matter. The trial was postponed indefinitely to allow for the investigation.

Mukhammedkarim and his defense team insist that it’s illegal to keep him behind bars for such a long period with his trial on hold.

If convicted, Mukhammedkarim could be sentenced to up to 12 years in prison.

Domestic and international right organizations have urged the Kazakh authorities to drop all charges against Mukhammedkarim and release him immediately. Kazakh rights defenders have recognized Mukhammedkarim as a political prisoner.

Rights watchdogs have criticized the authorities in the tightly controlled former Soviet republic for persecuting dissent, but Astana has shrugged the criticism off and denied there are political prisoners in the country.

Kazakhstan was ruled by authoritarian President Nursultan Nazarbaev from its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 until current President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev succeeded him in 2019.

Over the past three decades, several opposition figures have been killed and many jailed or forced to flee the country.

Toqaev, who broadened his powers after Nazarbaev and his family left the oil-rich country’s political scene following the deadly, unprecedented anti-government protests in January 2022, has promised political reforms and more freedoms for citizens.

However, many in Kazakhstan consider the reforms announced by Toqaev cosmetic, as a crackdown on dissent has continued even after the president announced his "New Kazakhstan" program.
Rough Police Raids Rattle Kyrgyz Capital’s Creative Subculture (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [4/16/2024 2:23 PM, Chris Rickleton, 223K, Neutral]
It was around 1 a.m. when a Bishkek bargoer "peacefully smoking a cigarette outside" understood that his favorite subculture venue in Kyrgyzstan’s capital was being raided by armed police.

"Suddenly we heard a terrible stomping sound and a group of about 10 men wearing combat fatigues quickly burst into the space. One of them gave an order to detain us and raise our hands above our heads," said the man who, like the other witnesses to the raid, requested anonymity.

Ailan Bar, an art and music space open for more than two years that has not had police trouble in the past, was one of a "series" of bars raided by Bishkek police over the weekend who were ostensibly searching for narcotics.

In an April 16 press release about one of the raids -- accompanied by footage from Ailan -- the Bishkek City Police Department claimed the operation a success, noting three people who had been detained on suspicion of using drugs had subsequently tested positive for banned substances.

"It should be noted that these activities will be carried out on an ongoing basis," city police said.

That part of the statement sounds particularly ominous for a subculture in Bishkek that has been notable for growing in diversity and creativity in recent years.

But it would be par for the course for today’s Kyrgyzstan -- where zero tolerance seemingly applies to a lot of things.

Homemade Bong Boast

As drug busts go, the results being hailed by Bishkek’s city police department in regard to weekend raids seem rather modest.

Police said that they found "a ready-made cigarette with narcotics, a device for grinding drugs…a homemade bong, and potent medicines."

Some objects relating to that haul were shown in the footage from the Ailan raid, where young men were seen lying face down as officers searched the premises.

At one point, the camera homed in suspiciously on medication in Lyrica-branded packaging. The Pfizer-produced anti-epileptic medication has been a source of controversy in Kyrgyzstan as in other countries over potential misuse and addiction, but it is not illegal, and it can be obtained at Kyrgyz pharmacies with a doctor’s prescription.

Another police press release from April 15 -- and apparently referring to a raid on a different Bishkek venue -- stated that police had been successful in finding "two zip bags containing a white powdery substance with a specific chemical odor, presumably mephedrone."

But the release said that only one member of that club’s management and one clubgoer had tested positive for narcotics, without naming the venue or the drugs they had allegedly shown positive results for.

Accounts from Ailan Bar suggest the raids were heavy-handed.

One bar employee described roughhouse tactics, intimidation, and other inappropriate behavior on the part of the officers in an interview with RFE/RL.

"Most of them were OK, but probably three of the men were very aggressive. They yelled at us and even allowed themselves to be violent. They struck one of our friends on the leg and he is still limping. Another customer was struck in the stomach. They were shouting at a foreigner who did not understand Russian. I explained to them that he did not understand but they continued shouting," the employee said.

"The police separated the men from the women for the searches, which were more thorough for the men," the employee added. "They tried to be calmer and more jovial with the women. They asked them, ‘Why do you come here to such a dangerous place?’ They responded that they came because it is a safe place for them. One policemen even started flirting with a woman."

RFE/RL has contacted Bishkek police in relation to those claims but had not received a response at time of publication.

In total, according to both sources, 10 people from Ailan were taken to a Bishkek police station for testing. The bar itself was sealed off by police.

"In the days [since April 14], we haven’t been told anything by the police," said the bar employee.

Police State Versus Safe Spaces?

Bishkek is not even close to being Central Asia’s richest city, but it has for some time been the host of a surprisingly diverse entertainment scene.

The Kyrgyz capital was the first place in the region to boast a craft-beer pub that sold bonafide craft beer brewed onsite, for instance.

Founded by female brewers, it became a hangout for locals and foreigners alike.

Of late, Bishkek has been captivated by the cosplay trend, which has seen young people throng to Japanese-style anime festivals in fancy costumes.

Since its founding, Ailan Bar has built itself a reputation as a "safe space" for creative people and culture aficionados, according to the staff member, who says the bar’s security conducts its own checks and refuses entry to anyone who might be perceived as a troublemaker.

This month was anime film month, while Ailan regularly holds board-game nights and free art sessions. An electronic dance night was being held on the night of the police raid.

"After the raid, some of the organizers said they are afraid to hold events with us," said the staffer.

That prospect might not trouble the increasingly hard-line regime of President Sadyr Japarov and his de facto co-ruler, Kamchibek Tashiev, whose brand of populism is rooted in traditional Kyrgyz values rather than any love of anime.

This month, a new Russian-style law restricting the work of foreign-funded nonprofits entered into force, a development that critics see as bringing the country further in line with the deeper authoritarianism of the neighborhood.

Tashiev’s own very negative views on drugs are well known, meanwhile.

Early notice of this came more than two years ago, after the famous anti-corruption journalist Bolot Temirov was arrested in a raid by armed police at his Temirov Live media outlet’s office in Bishkek.

At the time, Temirov Live had just released an investigation uncovering the Tashiev family’s apparent influence over the operations of a state-controlled fuel refinery.

Temirov was initially charged with possession of narcotics, a charge that even one of Bishkek’s local courts -- not famed for their independence in regards to government critics -- later dismissed.

The journalist, later convicted on a separate charge, had been adamant that the drugs were planted to discredit him. A drug test showed him to be clean.

The charges did, however, stick to one of his colleagues, Bolot Nazarov, who according to police tested positive for drug use.

During the initial outcry over the arrests, the powerful Tashiev insisted on Nazarov’s guilt, citing leaked footage that purportedly showed Nazarov smoking a homemade bong.

At a press appearance, Tashiev showed himself to be fixated with this object -- an easily assembled contraption well known to teenage marijuana smokers around the world and known in Russian as a "bulbulator" -- insisting it was only used for "heavy narcotics."

"This is not any pure drug, it [becomes] a chemical drug. The ‘bulbulator’ increases the effectiveness," Tashiev claimed, briefly earning himself the mocking moniker "Bulbulator" on social media.
Rights Watchdog Calls On EU States, Turkey Not To Return Tajik Dissidents (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [4/16/2024 6:12 AM, Staff, 223K, Negative]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on several EU countries and Turkey to refrain from sending Tajik dissidents taking shelter in their countries back to Tajikistan.

Several individuals linked to the banned Tajik opposition movement Group 24 who were residing in EU members Lithuania and Poland as well as Turkey have disappeared or been threatened with being extradited back to Tajikistan over the past several months.

On April 8, self-exiled Tajik opposition activist and ex-member of Group 24 Sulaimon Davlatov was sent to pretrial detention for two months by a court in Lithuania on a charge related to an alleged violation of the Baltic nation’s national security.

The 40-year-old Davlatov, who has lived in Lithuania for nine years, is known for his online criticism of Tajik authorities. In 2015, the former member of Group 24 and the Congress of Constructive Forces opposition movements, was detained in Finland at the request of Tajik authorities, but later released.

Komron Khudoydodov, a brother of former Group 24 activist Shabnam Khudoydodova, was ordered by a Warsaw court to leave Poland, where he has been living since 2018 on a humanitarian visa, after his asylum request was rejected. His sister was charged with extremism and placed by Tajik authorities on Interpol’s red-notices list in 2015.

Nasimjon Sharifov and Suhrob Zafar, two senior members of Group 24, disappeared in Turkey in February and last month respectively. Zafar has resided in Turkey since 2014, where he received multiple threats that he would be abducted and sent back to Tajikistan. Sharifov and Zafar had previously been detained in 2018 by the Turkish authorities at the request of Dushanbe but were eventually released.

In March 2015, Group 24’s founder, businessman Umarali Quvatov, was assassinated in Istanbul. The group, which has been promoting democratic reforms in Tajikistan, was banned by the Tajik government and designated a terrorist organization in 2014.

“Tajikistan should unequivocally end its decade-long hunt of perceived critics abroad, especially those related to Group 24 and other banned groups,” said HRW’s Syinat Sultanalieva.

“The EU and Turkey should protect opposition activists and refrain from returning them to Tajikistan, a country known for engaging in transnational repression, where they risk being tortured.”

The two EU member states and Turkey "should denounce cases of transnational repression and review any cooperation agreements with states engaged in targeting critics abroad,” the New York-based rights watchdog said.
In Tajikistan, climate migrants flee threat of fatal landslides (Agence France-Presse)
Agence France-Presse [4/16/2024 10:12 PM, Staff, 929K, Negative]
Peeling onions in her new home, Yodgoroy Makhmaliyeva recalled the terrifying moment four years ago when a landslide buried her family home in mountainous Tajikistan.

Heavy snow and rain, she said, sent a deluge of rocks, water and mud crashing into the house in the Central Asian country estimated to be among the most vulnerable to effects of climate change.

"We had lived in fear until the day the mountain collapsed and destroyed our house," the 61-year-old said, wearing a shimmering headscarf.

Makhmaliyeva and her husband Jamoliddin had feared a torrent of earth would destroy their home, and are now among thousands of Tajiks displaced by a growing number of natural disasters.

Authorities in the ex-Soviet country of around 10 million believe hundreds of thousands live in regions threatened by mudslides, landslides, avalanches, floods and earthquakes.

They have made relocating people to safety a priority -- a daunting task for one of the world’s poorest countries.

The Makhmaliyevs were rehoused in a new village in the Khuroson district, some 70 kilometres (43 miles) south of the capital Dushanbe.

Rows of modest homes built for "ecological migrants" lined a road surrounded by fields, with mountain peaks dotting the horizon.

‘Did not know where we will live’

Makhmaliyev recounted that the couple’s old home had already survived several mudslides before it was levelled in early 2020.

"We spent a week digging out everything that was covered in dirt while we lived in a tent," the retired music teacher said.

"We didn’t know where we were going to live," his wife Makhmaliyeva added.

One year later the couple were allotted their home in the village designated for people threatened by natural disasters.

Tajikistan says it relocated 45,000 people between 2000 and 2017, and that tens of thousands of others are waiting their turn.

The issue is pressing. Authorities say 557 emergency situations linked to natural disasters in last year alone killed 51 people.

‘Huge material damage’

The couple said the village where they look after six grandchildren is comfortable. Their own children are working in Russia like millions of other Tajiks.

Sitting on a bench embracing four small children, Makhmaliyev thanked President Emomali Rakhmon, who has ruled the tightly-controlled country since 1992, for the new family home.

Rakhmon has repeatedly underlined the huge financial and material damage his country suffers each year due to natural disasters.

He has even urged the population to stockpile food because of how vulnerable the country is to the negative effects of climate change.

A large portrait of the 71-year-old leader was plastered on the entrance of the village.

- ‘Houses for future displaced’ -

In a field across the road from the Makhmaliyevs, construction was ongoing to house new arrivals.

"It’s houses for future displaced people," Murotbek Murodov, a uniformed officer with the emergency situations ministry, told AFP.

He said 67 new residential buildings were being built after a "natural disaster" hit another village.

"Approximately 900 village residents were evacuated," he said, adding those displaced were due to be rehoused in Khuroson.

"The aim is to put all residents in risk zones to safer places," he added.

‘Thousands of danger zones’

Murodov said there were more than 1,000 "dangerous zones" in the country that people needed to be removed from.

A United Nations report on climate change published this year said Tajikistan is the "most exposed" of all Central Asian countries.

The World Bank, meanwhile, has said that "natural catastrophes are a serious threat to economic stability" in the country, estimating that they caused more than $1.8 billion in damage between 1992 and 2019.

In the safety of his new home, Makhmaliyev ploughed a small garden as workers nearby laid foundations for new houses that would soon house Tajikistan’s newest climate migrants.
Indo-Pacific
More than 100 killed across Pakistan and Afghanistan as flash floods and heavy rains sweep the region (CNN)
CNN [4/17/2024 3:58 AM, Sophia Saifi, Asim Khan, Masoud Popalzai, Irene Nasser, and Kathleen Magramo, 6.1M, Negative]
Unseasonal rainfall has lashed Pakistan and Afghanistan over the past few days, killing more than 100 people across the neighboring countries, authorities said.

In Afghanistan, heavy rain and floods in 23 provinces killed 66 people and wounded 36 others, according to preliminary reports from Mullah Janan Sayeq, a spokesman for the Ministry of Disaster Management.

Sayeq added that 600 animals died, and more than 1,200 houses have either been fully or partially destroyed in the deluge.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan said Tuesday that the heavy rains and floods have affected more than 1,200 families and damaged almost 1,000 houses, according to a statement on X.

More than 63,000 acres of land has been damaged, and the statement added that the UN and its partners are “assessing the impact and related needs and providing assistance.”

Afghanistan has been reeling from years of conflict and natural disasters – last year alone, more than 150 people died from the harsh winter cold wave followed by dozens of deaths due to flash floods. Last October, a deadly 6.3 magnitude earthquake rattled its western Herat province, killing over 2,000 people.

The impoverished country has plunged deeper into an economic and humanitarian crisis ever since the Taliban took over in August 2021, and getting aid into the country has been difficult.

Several major foreign aid groups suspended their operations in the country late 2022 when the hardline Islamist group ordered all local and international non-governmental organizations to stop their female employees from working there.

The ongoing severe rain is also wreaking havoc in bordering Pakistan, where 32 people have died in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to a report released by the provincial disaster management authority.

Eight more people died in the southwestern province of Balochistan, according to provincial authorities.

Nearly 170 houses were completely destroyed and more than 1,250 partially damaged, local authorities said, while the country’s meteorological office warned of more rainfall in Balochistan on Wednesday, extending to the rest of Pakistan on Thursday.

The heavy downpours are unusual for the region at this time of the year, as Pakistan typically experiences the monsoon season from June through September.

Pakistan ranks as one of the most climate-vulnerable nations in the world even though it is responsible for less than 1% of the world’s plant-warming emissions.

The South Asian country has faced dramatic climate conditions, including record heatwaves and catastrophic floods that submerged one-third of the country in 2022 – as the climate crisis exacerbates extreme weather events.
Heavy rains and floods kill over 100 across Pakistan and Afghanistan (VOA)
VOA [4/16/2024 1:00 PM, Ayaz Gul, 761K, Negative]
Authorities in Pakistan and Afghanistan said Tuesday that intense unseasonal rainfall, lightning and floods across both neighboring countries had killed at least 100 people over the past several days.

A spokesman for the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority said floods had caused human and material losses in 13 of the country’s 34 provinces.

Janan Saiq reported that the disaster resulted in nearly 50 fatalities, dozens of injuries, and the loss of hundreds of livestock.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan said Tuesday that the recent heavy rains and floods have affected more than 1,200 families and damaged almost 1,000 houses and at least 25,000 hectares of agricultural land.

The statement noted that the U.N. and partners “are assessing the impact and related needs and providing assistance.”

The Afghan meteorological agency has predicted that more heavy rainfall is expected in most provinces.

Poverty-stricken Afghanistan has been reeling from the devastation of years of conflict and natural disasters, including floods, droughts and earthquakes.

Last October, a series of earthquakes rattled western Herat and surrounding provinces, killing around 1,500 people.

Devastation in Pakistan

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s federal and provincial authorities reported that over 50 people have died due to heavy rains, flash floods, lightning, storms and landslides.

Most of the fatalities occurred in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, and central Punjab province. Officials said that at least 42 people were killed in both provinces, and many more were injured.

Southwestern Baluchistan province and areas elsewhere in Pakistan have reported the rest of the casualties and losses to houses, as well as agricultural land.

The National Disaster Management Authority has advised emergency services to remain on high alert, as another spell of heavy rains is expected later this week.

Officials have blamed climate change for the unusually heavy rains in Pakistan.

Although the South Asian nation, with an estimated 250 million population, contributes less than 1% to global greenhouse gas emissions, it is listed as one of the most vulnerable countries to the impacts of climate change.

Pakistan experienced severe flooding in 2022 due to seasonal heavy monsoon rainfall and floods, resulting in at least 1,700 deaths, affecting 33 million people and submerging approximately one-third of the country.

After visiting flood-hit areas in 2022, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Pakistanis were “facing a monsoon on steroids — the relentless impact of epochal levels of rain and flooding.”

Guterres criticized a lack of climate action, despite rising global emissions of greenhouse gases.

“Let’s stop sleepwalking towards the destruction of our planet by climate change. Today, it’s Pakistan. Tomorrow, it could be your country," he said.
Twitter
Afghanistan
Nilofar Ayoubi
@NilofarAyoubi
[4/16/2024 1:14 PM, 64.6K followers, 6 retweets, 33 likes]
The Taliban’s Ministry of Education hiring 100,000 religious Madrasa teachers is a concerning trend. This action occurs while educational institutions remain inaccessible to women and girls, potentially exacerbating the spread of extremist ideologies. It’s crucial to emphasize that religious education cannot substitute the formal academic learning provided in schools and universities. The potential for children to be indoctrinated with extremism in these madrasas has raised alarms among families. Hence, the presence of modern and formal education in schools and universities is essential for the advancement of any society.

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[4/16/2024 4:05 PM, 23K followers, 2 retweets, 2 likes]
Afghanistan still exists and matters, says this panel @afpc @CACI_SilkRoad, focusing on it in Washington this afternoon #CentralAsia #SouthAsia

Lina Rozbih
@LinaRozbih
[4/16/2024 5:17 PM, 408.8K followers, 7 retweets, 20 likes]
As a civilian victim of Cold War & four decades of Civil war in Afghanistan that destroyed my country & killed millions of innocent Afghans, I know that justice is not obtained by war, nor by force or tyrannical rule of brutal regime like the Taliban. #war #peace

Sofia Hamid
@sofiahamid8
[4/16/2024 7:16 AM, 2K followers, 40 retweets, 73 likes]
941 days since the Taliban banned school for girls in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is the only country in the world that women are banned from education. #Afghanistan

Bilal Sarwary
@bsarwary
[4/16/2024 2:36 PM, 253.1K followers, 5 retweets, 10 likes]
Two schools in Taluqan city, once prestigious institutions for girls backed by the German Development Bank, now bear the stamp of Taliban ideology. This trend mirrors the Waziristanization of northern Afghanistan, risking a surge in extremism. Recent military maneuvers by Russia & Tajikistan near the Afghan border underscore the gravity of the situation.

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzi12947158
[4/16/2024 1:38 AM, 2.5K followers, 1 retweet, 1 like]
Since seizing power of Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban has systematically dismantled most of the freedoms and rights of Afghan girls and women. In keeping with their restrictions, the Taliban refused to allow four women to travel to Kosovo: https://rukhshana.com/en/two-afghan-womens-rights-activists-receive-kosovos-presidential-medal-of-merit
Pakistan
Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan
@ForeignOfficePk
[4/16/2024 10:21 AM, 476K followers, 25 retweets, 65 likes]
The Government and people of Pakistan express deepest sympathies and condolences at the loss of precious lives and livelihoods and damage to properties caused by heavy rains and flash flooding in several provinces of Afghanistan. We pray that the Almighty may grant patience and fortitude to the bereaved families to bear the irreparable loss and wish a swift recovery to the injured.

Shahbaz Rana
@81ShahbazRana
[4/17/2024 12:57 AM, 48.3K followers, 15 retweets, 53 likes]
IMF sees further uptick in Pakistan’s inflation The IMF has kept Pakistan’s economic growth forecast unchanged at 2% but increased the inflation projection to 25% for this year,as the country undergoes another round of increases in utility and fuel prices
India
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/17/2024 1:17 AM, 97.2M followers, 1K retweets, 3.9K likes]
Sharing my interview with @dinamalarweb in which I have spoken about various subjects and also highlighted our vision for Tamil Nadu. https://www.dinamalar.com/news/tamil-nadu-news/-10-years-is-just-a-trailer--/3601865

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/17/2024 12:51 AM, 97.2M followers, 1.7K retweets, 13K likes]
Remembering our respected former PM Chandra Shekhar Ji on his birth anniversary. He was an exemplary leader, who rose from the grassroots and made rich contributions to national progress. He is remembered for his emphasis on serving the poor and downtrodden. He was also at the forefront of resisting the Emergency and safeguarding our democratic ideals.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 11:54 PM, 97.2M followers, 16K retweets, 90K likes]
The first Ram Navami after the Pran Pratishtha in Ayodhya is a generational milestone, weaving together centuries of devotion with a new era of hope and progress. This is a day crores of Indians waited for. Innumerable people devoted their lives to this sacred cause.
May the blessings of Prabhu Shri Ram always remain upon us and guide our paths towards righteousness and peace, illuminating our lives with wisdom and courage.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 1:12 PM, 97.2M followers, 4.1K retweets, 26K likes]
After programmes in Bihar and West Bengal, landed to a euphoric welcome and roadshow in Guwahati. I thank the people of this vibrant city for the special welcome.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 8:55 AM, 97.2M followers, 3.9K retweets, 20K likes]
Today’s visuals and images from Raiganj will give sleepless nights to TMC. Their corruption, cronyism and bullying are being REJECTED by the people of West Bengal!

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 7:02 AM, 97.2M followers, 4.1K retweets, 13K likes]
West Bengal’s anger against TMC, Congress and Left is clearly visible. Come to Raiganj to witness the enthusiasm for the BJP. https://twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1gqxvQpAYrQJB

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 5:51 AM, 97.2M followers, 4.4K retweets, 37K likes]
I congratulate all those who have successfully cleared the Civil Services Examination, 2023. Their hard work, perseverance and dedication has paid off, marking the start of a promising career in public service. Their efforts will shape the future of our nation in the times to come. My best wishes to them.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[4/16/2024 5:52 AM, 97.2M followers, 7K retweets, 50K likes]
I want to tell those who didn’t achieve the desired success in the Civil Services Examination- setbacks can be tough, but remember, this isn’t the end of your journey. There are chances ahead to succeed in Exams, but beyond that, India is rich with opportunities where your talents can truly shine. Keep striving and exploring the vast possibilities ahead. Wishing you all the very best.

Rajnath Singh
@rajnathsingh
[4/16/2024 1:11 PM, 24.1M followers, 662 retweets, 1.1K likes]
Addressed a public meeting at Krishnagiri constituency in Tamil Nadu. Today’s youth are not interested in traditional politics; they seek a politics that ensures both their own future and the future of India and only the Bharatiya Janata Party can fulfill this aspiration. The DMK has predominantly offered family-centric governance and corruption to Tamil Nadu. While the BJP says nation first, the DMK says family first.

Rajnath Singh
@rajnathsingh
[4/16/2024 1:05 PM, 24.1M followers, 725 retweets, 2.1K likes]
The outpouring of love for Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi and BJP at the Roadshow in Thiruvannamalai filled my heart with joy. The BJP is gaining tremendous response from people in Tamil Nadu. I thank the people of Thiruvannamalai from the bottom of my heart.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[4/16/2024 5:24 AM, 3.1M followers, 201 retweets, 1.6K likes]
An enthusiastic interaction at the Institute of Company Secretaries of India @icsi_cs in Bengaluru. Spoke about how to realize a Vishwa Bandhu Bharat. The 24x7 effort for 2047 will help create many more opportunities for Company Secretaries.

Richard Rossow
@RichardRossow
[4/16/2024 9:55 AM, 28.7K followers]
The @WorldBankSAsia’s Macro Poverty Outlook for India.
- Construction, manufacturing, and services drove national growth in FY23-24;
- 7.5% GDP growth expected; decelerating to 6.6% next year;
- Pvt consumption will be low due to weak agro performance
https://bit.ly/3UifDFg
NSB
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[4/17/2024 3:33 AM, 35.5K followers, 1 retweet, 8 likes]
The third FOC between Bangladesh & Nepal has been held today in Kathmandu, Nepal. During the FOC, led by the Foreign Secretaries of Bangladesh & Nepal, the whole gamut of the relationships were discussed. They expressed satisfaction on the excellent bilateral relations between the two the neighbors.

Awami League
@albd1971
[4/17/2024 3:10 AM, 637K followers, 11 retweets, 28 likes]
Prime Minister #SheikhHasina and the central leaders of Bangladesh Awami League have paid respect to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to commemorate the historic #MujibnagarDay today. #Bangladesh #LiberationWar #17thApril #Mujibnagar

Awami League
@albd1971
[4/16/2024 12:08 PM, 637K followers, 48 retweets, 130 likes]
Tomorrow, April 17, marks the historic #MujibnagarDay. On this day in 1971, the first Bangladesh government, widely known as the ‘Mujibnagar government’ was formed by the elected leaders of #Bangladesh as the rightful constitutional, logical, and realistic step forward toward the full realization of our dream of an independent country of our own. https://albd.org/articles/news/31116/ #LiberationWar1971

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives
@MoFAmv
[4/16/2024 8:30 AM, 53.7K followers, 13 retweets, 19 likes]
Secretary, Multilateral Ahmed Shiaan met with the SR on Environment David Boyd. Reflected on Maldives’ leading role in the international recognition of the right to a healthy environment as a human right & on a range of issues pertaining to the environment.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives
@MoFAmv
[4/16/2024 8:34 AM, 53.7K followers, 21 retweets, 31 likes]
State Minister @SherynaSamad met with Russian Ambassador Levan Dzhagaryan today. Enhancing bilateral ties and increasing tourist arrivals from Russia were discussed. @RusEmbSriLanka

MOFA of Nepal
@MofaNepal
[4/17/2024 12:31 AM, 257.2K followers, 6 retweets, 28 likes]
The Third Round of Nepal-Bangladesh Foreign Office Consultations began in Kathmandu this morning. Foreign Secretary Ms. Sewa Lamsal @ and Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh Mr. Masud Bin Momen @ are leading their respective delegations.

Embassy of Nepal, Washington, D.C.
@nepalembassyusa
[4/16/2024 10:16 PM, 3.3K followers, 2 retweets, 13 likes]
Finance Minister Hon. Barshaman Pun’s engagements in Wasington, D.C. on 16th April 2024.@WorldBank @USChamber @IFC_org

Harsha de Silva
@HarshadeSilvaMP
[4/16/2024 11:42 AM, 356.9K followers, 5 retweets, 26 likes]
Expressing disappointment with lack of transparency in Government’s debt restructuring process. Initial comments highlight concerns and call for increased transparency. Full statement attached. #SriLanka #DebtRestructuring

M U M Ali Sabry
@alisabrypc
[4/17/2024 1:25 AM, 5.2K followers, 7 likes]
The 15 Sri Lankan fishermen taken into custody last December by Myanmar authorities & sentenced to 07 years rigorous imprisonment, granted a general amnesty -
Central Asia
Temur Umarov
@TUmarov
[4/16/2024 4:51 AM, 13.6K followers, 11 retweets, 23 likes]
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, which previously scored on the less repressive end of the authoritarian range, now fit the broader Central Asian trend of authoritarian consolidation. @freedomhouse https://freedomhouse.org/report/nations-transit/2024/region-reordered-autocracy-and-democracy

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[4/17/2024 3:14 AM, 23K followers, 1 retweet, 3 likes]
Kyrgyzstan: @PowerUSAID @USAIDCtrAsia expressed 🇺🇸 strong concerns about the “Foreign Representatives” law and pending “Law on Mass Media,” underscoring the potential that such laws will cause key development partners on health, education, governance, and media to leave 🇰🇬 or significantly decrease funding. https://usaid.gov/news-information/press-releases/administrator-samantha-power-meets-kyrgyz-chairman-cabinet-ministers-akylbek-japarov

Navbahor Imamova
@Navbahor
[4/16/2024 9:46 AM, 23K followers, 3 retweets, 2 likes]
"The United States lauded Turkmenistan’s cooperation with the International Labor Organization to address forced labor and its granting access to the ILO to independently observe the cotton harvest." @StateDept @State_SCA

Asel Doolotkeldieva
@ADoolotkeldieva
[4/16/2024 7:43 AM, 13.9K followers, 1 retweet, 10 likes]
Current buzz words in Bishkek are associated with two Mega projects: the construction of Kambar-Ata hydro power and China-Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan railroad. If Japarov manages the impossible, i.e. finding money for them, he might call early elections. Jackpot, unlimited popularity

Bakhtiyor Saidov
@FM_Saidov
[4/16/2024 7:59 AM, 3.5K followers, 7 retweets, 22 likes]
It is always a pleasure to meet the Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Foreign Minister of #Turkmenistan H.E. Rashid Meredov. Main topic on our agenda was further expanding the deep strategic partnership between our two nations. #Underscored that UZ-TM Leaders lay a strong foundation to continue the high positive dynamics in our ties. During the political consultations held today @uzbekmfa, we reviewed our targets in all areas of cooperation, as well as the regional agenda. Proposed to establish regular exchanges between the respective departments of two ministries.

{End of Report}
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