Afghanistan
Taliban lament lack of support despite victory against illicit Afghan drugs (VOA)
Pakistan
US Allocates $101 Million To Boost Democracy, Counter Terrorism in Pakistan (The Media Line)
Pakistani Islamist Leader Opposes Military Operation To Root Out Militants (Radio Free Europe)
India
India Defense Budget Drops As Government Focuses on Jobs (Bloomberg)
Modi Faces Backlash From States After Allies Get Budget Aid (Bloomberg)
India’s budget reflects new power realities of Modi’s fickle coalition (Reuters)
India’s Finance Minister backs increasing Chinese direct investment (Reuters)
Decoding Newly Appointed Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s Visit to Bhutan (The Diplomat)
David Lammy arrives in India for trade talks (BBC)
India Says Houthi Sea-Drone Strikes Require Armed-Guards Review (Bloomberg)
India Loses Warship After Fire and Capsize (Newsweek)
Surge in attacks brings fear to calmer parts of Kashmir (BBC)
India’s strategic railway bridge closes the gap to Kashmir (Agence France-Presse)
NSB
An Unbending Leader’s Crackdown Rains Carnage on Bangladesh (New York Times)
Bangladesh crawls back to normalcy after violent clashes that killed nearly 200 people (AP)
Bangladesh partially restores telecommunication services as protests taper off (Reuters)
Bangladeshi students allege police tortured them after protests crackdown (The Guardian)
In Bangladesh, protests are no longer about the quota system (Al Jazeera – opinion)
In Bangladesh, frequent floods leave government playing catch-up (Reuters)
18 People Killed In Plane Crash in Nepal (New York Times)
Plane slips off runway and crashes at Kathmandu airport, killing 18 (Washington Post)
Nepal plane crash at Kathmandu airport kills 18 (Reuters)
Nepal poised for closer ties with China under new prime minister (Nikkei Asia)
Sri Lanka Cuts Rate to Bolster Growth While Price Gains Slow (Bloomberg)
Central Asia
Kazakh President Refuses To Pardon Jailed Former PM Masimov (Radio Free Europe)
What Explains the Declining Reputation of Higher Education in Uzbekistan? (The Diplomat)
‘Don’t Even Whisper In Your Language’: Russian Course For Central Asians Lays Down Strict Rules (Radio Free Europe)
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SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS
SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS