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:
Thursday, September 26, 2024 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan
Allied Countries Accuse Taliban of ‘Gross’ Violations of Women’s Rights (New York Times)
New York Times [9/25/2024 4:14 PM, Marlise Simons, 831K, Neutral]
Four countries on Wednesday accused the Taliban of “gross and systematic” violations of the U.N. treaty on women’s rights in Afghanistan, saying they would take the group to the world’s highest court because of its harsh, widely criticized restrictions on women.

The plan was described by foreign ministers from Germany, Australia, Canada and the Netherlands at the United Nations in New York, where the General Assembly was meeting on Wednesday. The ministers said they intended to take the Taliban to the International Court of Justice, the top U.N. court.

The treaty, regarded as an international bill of rights for women, was signed in 1979 and includes most of the world’s nations, including Afghanistan, which joined in 2003. (The United States is one of the few countries that has not ratified it.)

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban has systematically rolled back many of the rights that women won during the 20-year U.S. occupation. Last month, the Taliban released a 114-page manifesto codifying its restrictions on women, which include barring them from secondary schools or universities, working for aid organizations and traveling any significant distance without a male relative. Human rights monitors say Afghanistan is the most restrictive country in the world for women, and the only country in the world where girls are barred from education beyond the sixth grade.

Taliban authorities have dismissed criticism of the restrictions and defended its policies, saying they are grounded in the Islamic teachings that govern the country.

At the United Nations on Wednesday, the four foreign ministers condemned what they called “the gross and systematic human rights violations and abuses in Afghanistan, particularly the gender-based discrimination of women and girls.”

They said “we have repeatedly urged Afghanistan and the Taliban” to comply with international law and to lift all restrictions on the rights of women and girls, including on their right to education. “However, the situation has not improved; to the contrary, it continues to worsen.”

The ministers said that Afghanistan must be held accountable for its numerous violations under the treaty, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

If the case is heard, it would be the first time the U.N.’s top court considered the alleged violation of the treaty, which forbids all forms of discrimination against women.

“This is momentous; it will give Afghan women a new important platform before world opinion and make them protagonists in their struggle,” said Rangita de Silva de Alwis, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and an adviser to Afghan women activists.

The court, based in The Hague, was established by the founding charter of the United Nations in 1945 to settle disputes between member states. The court typically has a panel of 15 judges, elected by the U.N. General Assembly and Security Council.

Its decisions are legally binding with no possibility of appeal, but the body has few means of enforcing them, and the Taliban could ignore the process.

The formal complaint against the Taliban cannot be filed immediately. The court’s rules require a formal notification that there is a dispute, followed by a six-month period in which the parties are to try to settle their dispute.

But Afghan women in Europe and North America said they were thrilled the process had been set in motion. Many have joined a Coalition for Justice, which includes more than 100 expat Afghan women who have become activists for those in Afghanistan.

“Today’s action was a great move and we are very grateful to the countries who listened to the women,” said Ghizal Haress, a lawyer who was the official ombudsperson dealing with government corruption before she fled Kabul in 2021. Ms Haress was among the women whose activism led the four governments to bring a case against the Taliban.

The activists described lobbying European lawmakers, organizing conferences and holding demonstrations.

“We knew what was coming as soon as the Taliban arrived,” said Ms. Haress, now a scholar at York University in Toronto. “But we are now making sure that the many women are not forgotten who live under a system of violence and gender apartheid.”
Taliban say it’s absurd to accuse them of gender discrimination (AP)
AP [9/26/2024 4:58 AM, Staff, 88008K, Neutral]
The Taliban said Thursday it was absurd to accuse them of gender discrimination and other human rights violations, as four countries vow to hold Afghanistan’s rulers accountable under international law for their treatment of women and girls.

Australia, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands are set to start legal proceedings against the Taliban for violating a U.N. convention on women, to which Afghanistan is a party.

The countries launched the initiative on Wednesday on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, which is taking place in New York until Monday.

Despite promising more moderate rule after they seized power in 2021, the Taliban have barred women and girls from education beyond sixth grade, many public spaces and most jobs. In August, the Vice and Virtue Ministry issued laws banning women’s bare faces and prohibiting them from raising their voices in public.

More than 20 countries expressed their support Thursday for the proposed legal action against the Taliban.

“We condemn the gross and systematic human rights violations and abuses in Afghanistan, particularly the gender-based discrimination against women and girls,” the countries said.

“Afghanistan is responsible under international law for its ongoing gross and systematic violation of numerous obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,” they added.

The countries said they did not politically recognize the Taliban as the legitimate leaders of the Afghan population.

“Afghanistan’s failure to fulfill its human rights treaty obligations is a key obstacle to normalization of relations,” they said.

The Taliban’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said human rights were protected in Afghanistan and that nobody faced discrimination.

“Unfortunately, an attempt is being made to spread propaganda against Afghanistan through the mouths of several fugitive (Afghan) women and misrepresent the situation,” he said on social media platform X.

“It is absurd to accuse the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan of violating human rights and gender discrimination,” he added.

The Taliban reject all criticism of their policies, especially those affecting women and girls, describing it as interference. They maintain that their actions are in line with their interpretation of Islamic law, or Sharia.

Fereshta Abbasi, an Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, urged other countries to register their support for the four countries’ legal action and for them to involve Afghan women as the process moved forward.

“The announcement by Germany, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands may mark the beginning of a path to justice for the Taliban’s egregious human rights violations against Afghan women and girls,” said Abbasi.
Taliban to be taken to international court over gender discrimination (The Guardian)
The Guardian [9/25/2024 11:47 AM, Patrick Wintour, 92374K, Neutral]
The Taliban are to be taken to the international court of justice for gender discrimination by Canada, Australia, Germany and the Netherlands in a groundbreaking move.

The move announced at the UN general assembly is the first time the ICJ, based in The Hague, has been used by one country to take another to court over gender discrimination.

The case is being brought under the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, which was adopted by the general assembly in 1979 and brought into force in 1981.

Afghanistan, prior to the 2021 Taliban takeover of the country, ratified the convention in 2003.

In the first legal move of this type since the Taliban took over, it is expected that Afghanistan would have six months to provide a response before the ICJ would hold a hearing and probably propose provisional measures.

Advocates of the course argue that even if the Taliban refuse to acknowledge the court’s authority, an ICJ ruling would have a deterrent effect on other states seeking to normalise diplomatic relations with the Taliban. Signatories to the ICJ are expected to abide by its rulings.

There has been concern that the UN has held talks with the Taliban in which women’s issues have been excluded from the agenda in an attempt to persuade the Taliban to attend.

The initiative has the support of three female foreign ministers: Penny Wong from Australia, Annalena Baerbock from Germany, and Mélanie Joly from Canada. It is also being backed by the Dutch foreign minister, Caspar Veldkamp.

In the latest round of suppression in Afghanistan the Taliban have decreed that Afghan women are prohibited from speaking in public, prompting an online campaign in which Afghan women sing in protest.

At a UN side event this week the actor Meryl Streep said: "A female cat has more freedom than a woman. A cat may go sit on her front stoop and feel the sun on her face. She may chase a squirrel into the park. A squirrel has more rights than a girl in Afghanistan today because the public parks have been closed to women and girls by the Taliban. A bird may sing in Kabul, but a girl may not."

The countries involved in the litigation say they are willing to negotiate with the Taliban in good faith to end gender discrimination, but will, if the necessary stages prove fruitless, seek a hearing at the ICJ.

Last month, the Taliban published a new set of vice and virtue laws that said women must not leave the house without being fully covered and could not sing or raise their voices in public.

Streep spoke alongside Afghan activists and human rights defenders, who called on the UN to act to protect and restore the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan

Asila Wardak, a leader of the Women’s Forum on Afghanistan, said that the system of what has been described as gender apartheid being imposed on women and girls in Afghanistan, was not just an Afghan issue, but part of the "global fight against extremism".

Akila Radhakrishnan, strategic legal advisor on gender justice at the Atlantic Council thinktank, said: "This case, by centering violations of women’s rights not only has the potential to deliver much needed justice to the women and girls of Afghanistan, but also forge new precedents for gender justice."
Taliban locked in showdown with Afghanistan’s old-guard diplomats (Nikkei Asia)
Nikkei Asia [9/26/2024 3:54 AM, Staff, 88008K, Neutral]
Afghanistan’s diplomats in Turkey have watched helplessly as Taliban envoys replaced their old colleagues at the consulate in Istanbul over the past few months.

Now, envoys still working in the capital, Ankara, fear there is a target on their backs as Afghanistan’s rulers install fresh recruits at the embassy and dozens of other missions globally.

The new staff are ostensibly working with appointees of the previous Afghan government, which the Taliban booted in mid-2021 as its beard-and-turban wearing soldiers swept to power for the second time in a quarter century.

But Turkey, like every other country, does not officially recognize the Taliban government, which has curtailed women’s rights under an ultrastrict version of Islam. A recently passed law banned women from showing their faces or speaking in public.

"No one from [the old government] is left in Istanbul," a well-placed source told Nikkei Asia, referencing the consulate. "Taliban-appointed staff keep coming and going ... The Taliban’s policy is to push everywhere, not only in Ankara. They want the embassy for themselves."

The situation in Turkey is playing out at Afghan missions around the world, from Istanbul to Kuala Lumpur and beyond.

The country’s London embassy is set to close this week as the Taliban squeeze old-guard diplomats who have relied on consular service fees to survive with no funding from Kabul for the past three years.

The push has left diplomats who fear returning to Afghanistan at risk of being stranded -- or forced to seek refugee status -- and Afghans living overseas with few options for consular services.

"[Pre-Taliban] diplomats cannot go back to Afghanistan," said the source familiar with the Turkish missions. "That is clear."

In July, the Taliban said it would no longer recognize visas or passports issued by 14 diplomatic missions, mostly in Europe, because staff have refused to cooperate with the hardline group, considered a terrorist organization by some Western governments.

"They were removed because they didn’t report their daily routine consular activities to ... the foreign ministry in Kabul," Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen told Nikkei when asked about the policy. "Secondly, they charged fees more than that which was allowed. Third, they lined their own pockets by not depositing the money received as fees in official accounts."

But the Taliban’s crackdown on what it calls renegade missions has drawn criticism.

The recent actions "represent a dangerous escalation that not only threatens the Afghan diaspora but also compromises fundamental principles of international law and human rights," said Patoni Teichmann, executive director at the European Organisation for Integration.

Embassies run by the Taliban pose a "direct threat" to Germany’s national security, as they could be an avenue for radical Islamist groups to reach the Afghan diaspora and broader Muslim community, Teichmann said.

"The Afghan community in Germany, many of whom fled persecution by the Taliban or actively fought against their rule, would face unimaginable risks should these missions fall under Taliban influence," she added.

Afghanistan’s embassy in Berlin and the Bonn consulate were virtually paralyzed because they refused to cooperate with the Taliban, leaving Munich as the key functioning diplomatic mission in Germany.

"Some have given in and others are continuing to isolate themselves and live off the income from consular fees. But, of course, this is not a solution for eternity," said Carsten Wieland, a former German diplomat specializing in Middle East affairs.

While the Taliban government has yet to be recognized by any country, it has said its diplomats are now installed at nearly 40 missions worldwide, including in China, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates.

The group, which ruled Afghanistan from the mid-1990s until U.S.-led forces ousted it shortly after the 9/11 attacks, has recently notched modest gains at achieving international recognition.

Kyrgyzstan removed the Taliban from its banned terrorist group list, while Uzbekistan’s prime minister visited Kabul in August, marking the highest-level foreign visit since the Taliban’s takeover.

Kazakhstan, meanwhile, has accepted a Taliban-chosen charge d’affaires, typically the ambassador’s deputy. The UAE has a Taliban ambassador.

"Only in some countries, and with the consent of the host country, have the Taliban imposed their own ambassadors and virtually chased away the old ones," Wieland said.

A new Taliban "ambassador" is also working at the embassy in Kuala Lumpur although the role is recognized by the host government as a charge d’affaires position, said sources close to the Malaysian government. Malaysia sent a working group to Kabul in May and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is hoping to visit Afghanistan later this year to forge closer relations and trade ties, they said.

In Pakistan, the Taliban have a number of staff, including an acting ambassador recognized as a second-in-command. This despite Pakistan locking horns with its neighbor over a range of issues, including a spike in violence by offshoot militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

Tokyo’s embassy does not have Taliban staff, but the Japanese government acknowledges who rules Afghanistan.

"There are people living under the Taliban regime, which is in real power," an official at Japan’s Foreign Ministry told Nikkei. "It is important to engage and communicate with the Taliban government and demand improvements."

Winning diplomatic recognition is key to Taliban efforts at reviving mineral-rich Afghanistan’s shattered economy, which the World Bank estimates contracted 26% in the two years through April.

A long-delayed mining project contracted to state-owned China Metallurgical Group has been restarted, with the Taliban claiming it holds the world’s second-biggest copper deposits, a potential lifeline for the cash-strapped government.

A Turkish businessman doing deals in Afghanistan said Taliban envoys at the Istanbul consulate are going all out to prove themselves.

"It functions very well," he told Nikkei on condition of anonymity. "They are so business-oriented and want to prove that they can do [it]."
Taliban formally seek invitation to Russia’s BRICS summit (VOA)
VOA [9/25/2024 11:47 AM, Ayaz Gul, 4566K, Neutral]
Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban confirmed Wednesday that they have formally sought to join the upcoming Russia-hosted summit of the BRICS intergovernmental group of major emerging economies.

The leaders of the 10 members of BRICS, which stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, are set to convene October 22-24 in the southwestern Russian city of Kazan for the meeting. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates joined the bloc this year.

"BRICS is an important economic forum, and as a developing economy, Afghanistan needs to join such economic gatherings," Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy Taliban spokesperson, stated in a video message aired by their official broadcaster.

"The Islamic Emirate is seeking a presence at the upcoming BRICS forum, and the request has been formally communicated to the host nation," Fitrat stated, using the official title of their government in Kabul, which is officially not recognized by any country. He shared no further details.

There has been no immediate Russian response to the Taliban’s assertion.

Moscow has developed close informal ties with the de facto Afghan leaders since they retook control of the conflict-ravaged nation three years ago, when the United States-led Western countries withdrew their troops after almost two decades of war with the then-insurgent Taliban.

However, Russia has not recognized the Taliban as a legitimate government in alignment with the global consensus on the issue of recognition. Taliban delegations have repeatedly visited Moscow in recent months for bilateral economic and trade discussions.

The Russian foreign and justice ministries submitted a proposal to President Vladimir Putin in June to remove the radical Afghan group from Russia’s list of designated terrorist organizations. The move prompted speculations that Moscow has come closer to officially recognizing the de facto Kabul authorities.

The Taliban have been on Russia’s list of transnational militant groups, which includes al-Qaida, since 2003.

The de facto Afghan leaders have implemented their strict interpretation of Islamic law, known as sharia, in the impoverished South Asian nation, prohibiting Afghan girls from attending schools beyond the sixth grade, suspending female students from universities, barring women from most workplaces, and banning music.

The Taliban also have introduced stoning and public executions of women for crimes such as adultery.

The U.N. and other nations

The international community, including the United Nations, has consistently called for the urgent reversal of restrictions on women before considering granting diplomatic legitimacy to the Taliban regime.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told a meeting on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this week that the Taliban’s treatment of women can be compared to "some of the most egregious systems of oppression in recent history."

"We will continue to amplify the voices of Afghan women and call for them to play a full role in the country’s life, both inside its borders and on the global stage," he said.

U.N. officials maintain that last month’s enactment of a morality law by the Taliban has made it even more challenging to recognize Kabul rulers.

Taliban leaders reject criticism of their governance, saying it is aligned with local culture and sharia.

"It means that one of the major obstacles to Afghanistan’s full reintegration into the international community cannot be part of a necessary dialogue," Roza Otunbayeva, the head of the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, told a Security Council meeting last week.

China and the Taliban

China has also ramped up its political and economic ties with Kabul and is one of two countries, along with the United Arab Emirates, that have formally accepted a Taliban-appointed ambassador.

On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a news conference that Beijing expects the Taliban to "look at the legitimate concerns" of the global community.

"That said, women’s rights and interests are not the entirety of the Afghan issue, nor the core or root cause of the issue," Lin said. He referenced the U.N. estimates stating that almost 24 million people in Afghanistan need humanitarian assistance, with more than half of them battling severe food insecurity.

"The international community needs to focus on the most pressing difficulties Afghanistan faces, promote the rebuilding and development in Afghanistan … and at the same time encourage, in the spirit of equality and respect, the governing authorities of Afghanistan to improve and strengthen protection of women and children’s rights," Lin stated.

Chinese companies have signed several agreements with the Taliban to enhance economic and trade cooperation, focusing mainly on the Afghan mining sector.

Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told a news conference in Kabul last week that his government controlled about 40 Afghan embassies and consulates worldwide, and that its diplomatic relations with the international community were improving. He stated that the Taliban are keen to develop "friendly" ties with Western nations.

The U.S. and the West at large insist that formal recognition of the Taliban depends on their actions regarding women’s rights, education for girls and women and freedom of movement.
House Condemns Biden and Harris Over Afghanistan Withdrawal (New York Times)
New York Times [9/25/2024 4:14 PM, Karoun Demirjian, 831K, Neutral]
A bipartisan House majority passed a resolution on Wednesday condemning President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and 13 other current and former members of the administration over their roles in the chaotic and deadly U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, after 10 Democrats joined all Republicans in delivering the rare and sweeping rebuke.

The 219-to-194 vote was the House’s final roll call before members departed Washington to focus on the election, in which control of the chamber is up for grabs. Though the resolution was uniquely broad and direct in condemning the president, members of his cabinet and top advisers in a personal capacity, instead of as an administration, the vote was symbolic because the measure carries no force of law.

Still, the participation of 10 Democrats — almost all of them facing tight re-election contests — buoyed the Republicans behind the effort to formally hold senior administration officials primarily responsible for the failures of the withdrawal in the summer of 2021, which left 13 U.S. service members dead. Democratic leaders have dismissed the resolution as a politically biased crusade.

“Ten Democrats just joined me in condemning Biden-Harris admin officials who played key roles in the deadly Afghanistan withdrawal,” Representative Michael McCaul, the Texas Republican who is the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement on social media after the vote. “I am glad these colleagues put politics aside and voted to do what was right — deliver accountability to the American people.”

While the bipartisan vote was a political punch to the Biden administration at the height of a critical campaign season, the move stood as a far cry from the sort of legislative consequences that Republicans had threatened to wield against Mr. Biden when they began the various investigations into his administration’s policies and his personal conduct.

“After their laughingstock flop of an impeachment investigation, they’re flailing about now to attack the president or the vice president however they can,” Representative Jamie Raskin, Democrat of Maryland, who opposed the Afghanistan measure, said after Wednesday’s vote. “The country sees it as cheap election-year antics and games.”

Republicans began the congressional session signaling that their investigations, which ran the gamut from Afghanistan to the business dealings of Mr. Biden’s son Hunter, could deliver serious, tangible consequences for the president, including even impeachment. Earlier this year, the G.O.P.-led House impeached Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, over the administration’s border policies, voted to recommend contempt charges for Attorney General Merrick B. Garland for failing to comply with a subpoena, and rebuked Ms. Harris for her handling of immigration and security at the southern border.

But efforts to take similar aim at the president ran aground, particularly after Mr. Biden exited the presidential race. In the last several weeks, the G.O.P. has been scrambling to refocus its scrutiny on Ms. Harris, now the Democratic nominee, who had not previously been the main target of any investigations.

Republicans defended the pivot, and the fact that their final, pre-election punch against the administration’s top members was effectively a messaging resolution, as a satisfactory outcome.

“I think we’ve been able to provide the American people the truth about Covid, the truth about Biden corruption, the truth about the debacle in Afghanistan,” Representative James R. Comer, the Kentucky Republican who is the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said in an interview. “I think we’ve done a good job getting the truth out.”

Representative Chip Roy, Republican of Texas, added in an interview: “Democrats effectively impeached Biden when they abandoned him in July and went with Kamala Harris. Democrats executed their own president, politically.”

Democrats said the resolution was a politically craven effort to sully Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris by cherry-picking evidence from the Afghanistan investigation that would put them in a bad light. Mr. Biden’s approval ratings fell sharply after the chaotic withdrawal and never recovered.

“Could it have something to do with the elections that are coming up in less than 45 days?” Representative Gregory W. Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs panel, said on the floor, dismissing Wednesday’s move as intended “solely to attack the Biden administration in an election year.”

Mr. McCaul had recommended that both Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris be rebuked in a 353-page report that the panel’s Republicans released this month, blaming the “Biden-Harris administration” for the failures of the withdrawal. Former President Donald J. Trump has asserted that Ms. Harris was responsible for the deaths of the 13 service members during the evacuation because she professed to be the last person in the room when Mr. Biden made the decision to withdraw.

Ms. Harris has in turn accused Mr. Trump of trying to exploit the service members’ deaths for political gain, including by taking campaign photos and videos at Arlington National Cemetery. The G.O.P.’s report largely excused Mr. Trump from culpability, despite his administration’s having struck the deal with the Taliban that pledged the United States to a timeline to depart Afghanistan.

Condemnation resolutions are often used to express lawmakers’ animus against policies, adversaries, terrorist groups and actions that lawmakers deem reprehensible enough to demand congressional castigation. But they do not carry formal consequences, beyond shaming the targets of the resolutions in a more formal manner than the heated debates that are a daily occurrence on Capitol Hill.

Among the people the resolution condemned alongside Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris are Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser; Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken; Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III; and certain current and former press secretaries for the White House, State Department and Pentagon. The resolution did not fault any uniformed military officials for the withdrawal.

The Democrats who joined Republicans in voting for the measure were Representatives Yadira Caraveo of Colorado, Henry Cuellar of Texas, Don Davis of North Carolina, Jared Golden of Maine, Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, Jeff Jackson of North Carolina, Greg Landsman of Ohio, Susie Lee of Nevada, Mary Peltola of Alaska and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington. Their offices did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
House approves GOP resolution condemning Biden and Harris over Afghanistan withdrawal (AP)
AP [9/25/2024 5:26 PM, Stephen Groves, 88008K, Negative]
House Republicans on Wednesday voted to condemn President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for the disastrous U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, capping their work in Washington with legislation that carried no legal weight but drove a political point ahead of the November elections.

The resolution passed 219 - 194 with 10 Democrats and all Republicans voting in favor. It condemned Biden, Harris and other officials in the administration for "decision-making and execution failures throughout the withdrawal from Afghanistan" as well as blamed them for the deaths of 13 U.S. service members who were killed by a suicide bomber at Kabul’s airport during the final days of the evacuation.

On the campaign trail, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who as president negotiated the withdrawal deal with the Taliban, has repeatedly blamed Harris for the chaotic and deadly evacuation while she was serving as Biden’s vice president. Harris, now the Democratic candidate for president, has shot back that Trump is to blame for his role in the deal and that she agrees with Biden’s decision to end America’s longest war.

Republicans have used their House majority to make Trump’s case in recent weeks, releasing a report that mostly blamed Biden. On Tuesday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee also advanced contempt of Congress charges against Secretary of State Antony Blinken following a contentious back-and-forth with the Cabinet secretary over an appearance to testify on the withdrawal.

"Three years ago, the world witnessed one of the most devastating policy disasters in American history. The Biden-Harris administration withdrew all U.S. forces from Afghanistan with no plan, no care and no remorse," Rep. Michael McCaul, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said on the House floor Wednesday.

"As a result, 13 brave U.S. servicemembers and over 170 Afghan civilians were murdered and 45 U.S. servicemembers and countless others were injured," added McCaul, a Texas Republican.

Most assessments have concluded Trump and Biden share blame for the collapse that concluded the 20-year war, which saw Taliban fighters take over Afghanistan again before the last American troops even flew out of the Kabul airport. Over 2,000 U.S. troops were killed in Afghanistan.

The reviews, including the 18-month House investigation led by House Republicans, have not pinpointed any instance where Harris had a particular impact on decision-making on the withdrawal.

The main U.S. government watchdog for the war points to Trump\u00b4s 2020 deal with the Taliban to withdraw all U.S. forces and military contractors as "the single most important factor" in the collapse of U.S.-allied Afghan security forces and Taliban takeover. Biden\u00b4s April 2021 announcement that he would proceed with the withdrawal set in motion by Trump was the second-biggest factor, the watchdog said.

Democrats on Wednesday faulted House Republicans for rushing the resolution to the House floor and criticized it as an attempt to further politicize blame for the withdrawal.

"Republicans are trying desperately to clean up a candidate, a candidate that truly has a flawed record - Trump\u00b4s record - on this withdrawal," said Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Three years after the U.S. withdrawal, former Afghan forces are hunted by the Taliban (NPR)
NPR [9/25/2024 4:35 PM, Monika Evstatieva, 40123K, Neutral]
The Taliban are still hunting down former Afghan soldiers and police officers, three years after the chaotic American withdrawal. Many of the men, who were trained by U.S. and NATO forces, simply disappear from homes and villages. Others are on the run, or in hiding. Mohammed, a former police officer, is one of them.

In the summer of 2021 he was on his police shift, and heard the Taliban were closing in on the capital. He knew that anyone working in law enforcement was a target. Mohammad told NPR he had worked as a police officer for seven years, after graduating from the police academy. People knew him well.

He didn’t feel safe at home in Kabul, and he fled to Iran alongside hundreds of exiled Afghan law enforcement officers. Mohammad says the Taliban considered them "a force for America," "traitors, trained by NATO," and "nonbelievers."

Life in Iran was equally challenging. Moving from place to place, unable to secure work and stay legally, he was faced with an uncertain future. He says he was told that to stay in Iran legally, he would need to join the Fatemiyoun Brigade, an Iran-backed militia group made up, in part, of Afghan refugees. He was a police officer, not a soldier - he didn’t want to fight. The alternative, however, was deportation back to the Taliban, if he was caught illegally in Iran. He weighed his options and slipped back over the border to hide in Afghanistan. He’s been hiding for a year.

Mohammad is one of many former members of law enforcement who’ve been targeted by the Taliban, he and other former law enforcement tell NPR. There were more than 270,000 Afghan soldiers and police officers - trained by American and NATO forces - when the Taliban took over in 2021, according to the Brookings Institution. Many are still being hunted for their affiliation with the West.

Hayatullah served as an Afghan National Army soldier for over a decade. When the Taliban approached his military base in 2021, he pleaded with his commanders to take action. "What the hell is going on here? Let’s do something. Let’s go out and fight against them," he told them. But the commanders told him not to cause trouble. "You are still a young officer, you don’t know anything. Just calm down," they told him.

When the Taliban fighters finally entered the base, Hayatullah says, all the soldiers just stood and faced them. There was no fighting. The Taliban told them if they just gave up their weapons, they wouldn’t be hurt. "We won’t kill you for a few days, so, go to your home," Hayatullah says the Taliban told them.

Hayatullah says he left the base on foot. He walked for days, avoiding the main roads. Eventually he made it home to his village, where he kept a low profile, doing mostly farm work.

But Hayatullah says it wasn’t just weapons and expensive military equipment the Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers left behind. They also left thousands of pages of documents, filled with information. No one destroyed them. "Right now the Taliban use [that] intelligence, those secrets, to target the ANA soldiers and officers," he says.

The Taliban are also using intimidation as a tactic, sources tell NPR - bribing or threatening local village elders to give up the location of men like Hayatullah. When two police officers disappeared from a neighboring village this summer, Hayatullah says, he knew he was next. The village elders also warned him. "You are not safe here anymore," he says they told him. He is also hiding in Kabul, where he feels safer, because of the sheer number of residents.

Men like Hayatullah and Mohammad are still at risk. They cannot work legally to support their families. Identifying themselves to any employer would put them in grave danger. They live off loans from their extended family, hoping they’ll be able to repay them one day, if they can find a way to leave Afghanistan.

Resettlement in the United States

Both men tell NPR, they see resettlement as their only way out.

It is possible to get a refugee visa to the United States, but the process is complicated and time consuming. Each application requires a referral from an American military member or an NGO, which for some is impossible to obtain. Still, a small number of Afghans continue to arrive in the United States.

"The truth is that we’ve welcomed 165,000 Afghans into our communities since August 2021," says Shawn VanDiver, president and founder of Afghan Evac, which helps Afghan wartime allies in the relocation process. "That’s because this broad cross-section of America came together and has been pushing and pulling the government to do the right thing," he adds.

A backlog of cases, however, has made processing new cases challenging. Legislation introduced last year aims to tackle many of the roadblocks to resettlement. The bipartisan bill, the Afghan Adjustment Act, was introduced in the Senate in July of 2023. A similar bipartisan bill was introduced in the House.

If passed, the legislation would create a pathway to citizenship for thousands of Afghans already in the United States and open up resources to help in the ongoing efforts to protect Afghans left behind.

The bill has been stalled in Congress for over a year.

VanDiver, a Navy veteran, says taking care of the people who stand with the U.S. military during war is crucial. "We [the U.S. military] follow through on our word," he said. "And that means we need both the current and the next administration, as well as Congress, to take the actions that are necessary, so that our country can keep its word."

Bryan Stern, an Army and Navy combat veteran,and Purple Heart recipient, agrees. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan. In 2021, he saw the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and went over, along with several other veterans, to help with the evacuation of Americans and Afghans.

Since then, he has founded Grey Bull Rescue, an organization that has expanded to help with evacuations around the world. He says his motivation stems from his deep gratitude for the Afghan soldiers he worked alongside with. "I am alive today, because of the Afghans, he said. "I gave my word that we’re not going to leave you behind."

To Stern, leaving Afghan war allies behind isn’t just a moral issue. It also sets a dangerous precedent for future operations. "If that’s how we treat people who we worked with day in and day out for 20 years, what does that say when I want to do that again somewhere else?" he said. "Who would believe me?"
New bill would prohibit US financial aid to Afghanistan until wrongfully detained Americans are released (FOX News)
FOX News [9/25/2024 3:23 PM, Charles Creitz, 48844K, Neutral]
American taxpayer dollars would no longer be able to fund aid to Afghanistan until "wrongfully detained" U.S. citizens are released under new legislation drafted in the House.

The No Funding Without Freedom Act would also require the State Department to offer regular updates regarding unlawfully detained American citizens there.

Rep. Dan Meuser, a Pennsylvania Republican whose constituent Ryan Corbett is among those detained in the Taliban-controlled country, said the bill will cut off the billions transferred to Kabul since the "disastrous" 2021 withdrawal.

Corbett, a native of Meuser’s district, worked with "Bloom Afghanistan," a humanitarian organization. He was detained in August 2022 and is reportedly in declining health.

Corbett has had limited familial contact and remains in a heavily sheltered environment.

A second detainee, George Glezmann of Atlanta, Georgia, was detained in 2022 during a five-day cultural trip to the country.

The father and husband remains in captivity, which has included solitary confinement, and is reportedly suffering from hemangioma — a blood vessel condition — malnutrition and hypertension.

The bill added that the secretary of state would make the ultimate determination whether an American detained in Afghanistan is in such a position wrongfully.

Meuser said the U.S. remains the largest humanitarian donor to Afghanistan, providing more than $2.6 billion since President Joe Biden withdrew the U.S. military from the country.

"Last month marked three years since the Biden-Harris administration’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, which allowed the Taliban to seize control of the country. And despite the Taliban’s wrongful imprisonment of Americans like Ryan Corbett and George Glezmann, this administration has continued to provide billions of dollars in humanitarian aid to the terror group," Meuser said.

"We must leverage all options, including withholding financial aid, to secure the release of Ryan and George."

Meuser’s bill later gained a handful of sponsors, including Reps. Bill Posey, R-Fla., Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., French Hill, R-Ark., and Greg Lopez, R-Colo.

Corbett was accused of "anti-state activities," and there are no official charges against him, Corbett’s wife Anna told "Fox & Friends" in a January interview.

"I received a picture when the Qataris visited a second time. And he has lost so much weight. He has aged like 15 years. We received the picture, and it was so traumatic to see him."

Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., added at the time that the State Department has been "tremendously helpful" in working with Qatar to allow access to Ryan Corbett.

"[Anna] has only had 22 minutes’ time in this period of over 16 months to actually have communication with him. We are just asking, pleading everyone… to get him out, and back."

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
Pakistan
Pakistan Wins Approval From IMF Board for $7 Billion Bailout (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [9/25/2024 10:33 PM, Ronojoy Mazumdar and Ramsey Al-Rikabi, 27782K, Positive]
Pakistan secured final approval to start a $7 billion loan program from the International Monetary Fund, unlocking crucial financing to sustain the nation’s recovery from a crisis.

The IMF executive board on Wednesday gave the final approval for the 37-month program, the prime minister’s office and IMF said in separate statements. The move allows for an immediate disbursement of about $1.1 billion, Pakistan State Bank governor Jameel Ahmad told reporters earlier on the day.

“The new program will require sound policies and reforms to support the authorities’ ongoing efforts to strengthen macroeconomic stability, address deep structural challenges, and create conditions for a stronger, more inclusive, and resilient growth,” the Washington-based fund said in its statement.

Pakistan has been relying on IMF aid to keep up with its debt obligations after suffering a dollar shortage that brought the South Asian nation to the brink of an economic collapse. The nation faces about $26 billion in loan repayments in the fiscal year started July.

The nation’s dollar bonds are among the top performers in emerging markets this year, handing investors a return of 38%. Notes due 2031 rose 0.4 cents to 85.1 cents to the dollar on Thursday.

Rating Upgrades

The program starts after a delay, as Pakistan had earlier expected to secure IMF board approval in August after a preliminary deal in July. The nation had raised its tax revenue goal by a record 40% and increased energy prices to meet demands set by the IMF.

Pakistan secured an upgrade from Moody’s Ratings in late August and Fitch Ratings in July. The IMF program brings certainty over Pakistan’s sources of financing to meet its needs over the next two to three years, Moody’s said.
Pakistan PM Sharif welcomes IMF’s $7 billion funding agreement (Reuters)
Reuters [9/25/2024 7:03 PM, Charlotte Greenfield and Surbhi Misra, 37270K, Positive]
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the International Monetary Fund’s decision to approve a $7 billion funding agreement for the country, his office said on Wednesday.

Islamabad had been working on implementing conditions that Sharif had previously called "strict" from the IMF to complete the 37-month loan programme agreed to in July, which the country hopes will be its last.

The IMF said the new program will require "sound policies and reforms" to strengthen macroeconomic stability and address structural challenges alongside "continued strong financial support from Pakistan’s development and bilateral partners."

An immediate disbursement of about $1 billion will take place.

Sharif, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, told Pakistani media this week that Pakistan had fulfilled all of the lender’s conditions, with help from China and Saudi Arabia.

"Without their support, this would not have been possible," he said, without elaborating on what assistance Beijing and Riyadh had provided to get the deal over the line.

Rollovers or disbursements of loans from Pakistan’s long-time allies, in addition to financing from the IMF, have helped the country meet its external financing needs in the past.

The government had also vowed to increase its tax intake, in line with IMF requirements, despite protests in recent months by retailers and some opposition parties over the new tax scheme and high electricity rates.

Pakistan has been struggling with boom-and-bust economic cycles for decades, leading to 22 IMF bailouts since 1958. Currently the country is the IMF’s fifth-largest debtor, owing the Fund $6.28 billion as of July 11, according to the lender’s data.

The latest economic crisis has been the most prolonged and has seen Pakistan facing its highest-ever inflation, pushing the country to the brink of a sovereign default last summer before an IMF bailout.

Inflation has since eased and credit ratings agency Moody’s has upgraded Pakistan’s local and foreign currency issuer and senior unsecured debt ratings to ‘Caa2’ from ‘Caa3’, citing improving macroeconomic conditions and moderately better government liquidity and external positions.
First It Was Lynch Mobs. Now Police Kill Pakistanis Accused of Blasphemy. (New York Times)
New York Times [9/26/2024 12:01 AM, Zia ur-Rehman, 831K, Negative]
The entrance to the district police headquarters in southern Pakistan was carpeted with rose petals, a grand gesture of respect. A crowd filled the air with chants of Islamic slogans. Many carried garlands and flower bouquets to laud the officers for their actions.

The throngs were ecstatic because the police had killed a man. His supposed crime: “blasphemous content” on social media.

The man, a 36-year-old government doctor, had been shot “unintentionally” as he resisted arrest, the authorities claimed. But human rights groups called it an extrajudicial killing, the second such one in a week. On Sept. 12, a 52-year-old man in custody on suspicion of blasphemy was shot dead inside a police station in southwestern Pakistan.

The cases have reverberated across the nation, highlighting the volatile nature of Pakistan’s religious landscape. Blasphemy, a legal offense that can carry the death penalty, has long been a sensitive issue in a country that is more than 96 percent Muslim. Even a mere accusation can be deadly; mobs sometimes lynch people before their cases can go to trial.

Rights activists have expressed concerns over the government’s tolerance of hard-line Islamist groups and over surging violence among their supporters after blasphemy allegations. The killings of the two men this month have ignited fears that the police, pressured by the mob actions, may now be taking matters into their own hands, too.

“The Pakistani police force is a deeply conservative institution, mirroring the broader societal challenges in the country,” said Zoha Waseem, a policing expert at the University of Warwick in Britain. The killings, she said, raise “serious concerns about the ability to fairly address hate crimes and curb lynch mobs in blasphemy-related cases in the future.”

The doctor who was killed, Shah Nawaz, was accused of “desecrating” the Prophet Muhammad with a post on Facebook. He went into hiding, fearing for his life. Mr. Nawaz was dismissed from his job and faced blasphemy charges after a cleric filed a police complaint.

Islamist political parties organized violent protests demanding his immediate arrest, despite Mr. Nawaz’s insistence that he had not written the post on his account, which had long been dormant. One cleric even publicly announced an $18,000 bounty on his head, declaring that punishment for blasphemy was beheading.

Mr. Nawaz’s family said he voluntarily surrendered to the police in Sindh Province, hoping to avoid the fate of others lynched by mobs. A minister in the provincial government from Mr. Nawaz’s hometown confirmed that Mr. Nawaz was in police custody.

However, on the night of Sept. 18, the police claimed that Mr. Nawaz had been killed as they tried to arrest him.

Mr. Nawaz’s family vehemently denied the police’s account, asserting that he had been murdered in what is known in South Asia as an “encounter,” in which officers kill a person and invent a story about having acted in self-defense during a shootout.

“Police breached our trust and killed Nawaz while he was in their custody, instead of bringing him before a court of law,” said his brother, Babar Kumbhar.

The aftermath of Mr. Nawaz’s death was marked by further violence. When his family tried to bury his body on their private land under the cover of darkness, after being denied burial at a graveyard, a mob armed with weapons and Molotov cocktails chased them, seized the body and set it on fire.

The mob’s actions set off public outrage, as did videos of the rose-petal celebrations at the police station. The provincial government suspended officers who had been involved in Mr. Nawaz’s case and started an investigation.

Islamist groups threatened protests against the government’s actions, hailing the police officers as heroes for “defending Islam.”

A week before Mr. Nawaz’s death, a police officer in Balochistan Province, in Pakistan’s southwest, killed Abdul Ali, a shopkeeper, while he was in custody. Mr. Ali had been accused of using objectionable words against the Prophet Muhammad. He had been transferred to a more secure facility because of growing demands that he be handed over to a mob so they could kill him.

A police officer posing as a relative of Mr. Ali’s gained access to the station and shot him. Since then, the family of the officer, who has been arrested, has been receiving visitors offering praise for the killing of Mr. Ali.

Pakistan inherited 19th-century British laws outlining punishments for blasphemy-related offenses. In the 1980s, the government revamped those laws to add harsh penalties for those who insult Islam.

Last year, the nation passed a law to increase the punishment for derogatory remarks against revered personalities — including the Prophet Muhammad’s family, wives and companions, and the first four caliphs — to at least 10 years of imprisonment, up from three.

The Center for Social Justice, a Lahore-based minority rights group, reported that at least 330 people, mostly Muslims, were charged in 180 blasphemy cases last year.

Although Pakistan has never executed anyone for blasphemy, mob killings and other violence are another matter.

In recent years, police stations have been burned after officers refused to hand over blasphemy suspects to mobs, and groups have stormed stations to try to lynch accused individuals.

In June, a mob broke into a police station in the Swat Valley, in northwestern Pakistan, and snatched a man who had been detained there after being accused of desecrating the Quran. The attackers lynched the man and burned down the station.

In May, the police rescued a Christian man from a mob in Sarghoda, a district in Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, after allegations that he had deliberately burned pages of the Quran. A week later, he died from injuries suffered in the attack.

In February, a female police officer in Lahore rescued a woman from an attack by a mob that had mistaken the Arabic script on her dress for Quranic verses.

Last year, eight people accused of blasphemy were killed extrajudicially, primarily by mobs with insufficient intervention from the police and other authorities, the Center for Social Justice reported. This year, the number of such deaths has risen to eight with the two killings this month.

With fear rising after the recent killings, many in Pakistan are posting disclaimers on social media stating that any offensive content on their accounts was not posted by them.

Experts and rights activists attribute the surge in blasphemy-related violence to the rise of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, or T.L.P., a radical Islamist party. The organization was initially formed to demand the release of Mumtaz Qadri, a police officer who assassinated Punjab’s governor, Salman Taseer, in 2011 over proposed changes to the blasphemy law.

In April 2021, the T.L.P. organized violent countrywide protests demanding the expulsion of the French ambassador after President Emmanuel Macron of France eulogized a French teacher murdered for showing caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in a classroom.

Rabia Mehmood, a Lahore-based researcher who studies blasphemy-related violence, said the Pakistani government’s tolerance of the T.L.P.’s supporters and groups defending the country’s blasphemy laws had fostered a climate conducive to extrajudicial violence.

“This sends a message that no one is safe from the wrath of blasphemy vigilantes, far-right lawyers or law enforcement personnel on the hunt for victims of fabricated blasphemy cases,” she said.
25 people killed in days of clashes between Shiites and Sunni Muslims in Pakistan (AP)
AP [9/25/2024 10:34 PM, Staff, 456K, Negative]
At least 25 people have been killed in days of clashes between armed Shiites and Sunni Muslims over a lingering land dispute in northwest Pakistan, officials said Wednesday.

The clashes — which started over the weekend in Kurram, a district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan — continued on Wednesday. Officials said dozens of people from both sides have been wounded since Saturday.

Kurram has been a scene of sectarian violence in recent years.

Authorities said they were trying to prevent the land dispute from turning into sectarian violence in the restive northwest, where extremist groups from the two sides have a strong presence.

Barrister Saif Ali, a spokesman for the provincial government, said authorities with the help of tribal elders were trying to defuse tension and both sides had agreed to a cease-fire following peace talks in Kurram.

Shiite Muslims make up about 15 percent of the 240 million population of Sunni-majority Pakistan, which has a history of sectarian animosity between the two communities.

Although both live together largely peacefully in the country, tensions between them have existed for decades in some areas, especially in Kurram, where Shiites dominate in parts of the district.

Dozens of people from the two sides were also killed over the same dispute in July.
Pakistani security forces say they killed 8 militants in a raid in the restive northwest (AP)
AP [9/26/2024 3:37 AM, Staff, 456K, Negative]
Pakistani security forces killed eight militants in an overnight raid in a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban in the volatile northwest bordering Afghanistan, the military said Thursday.

Troops also seized weapons and ammunition from the insurgents’ hideout after an intense shootout in North Waziristan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, it said in a statement.

The military provided no details about the slain militants, including their affiliation. Such operations often target the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP.

North Waziristan served in the past as a base for TTP and foreign militants until many were killed or forced out in multiple operations by security forces.

The TTP are a separate group but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in 2021. The Taliban takeover in Afghanistan has emboldened the Pakistani Taliban.

Many TTP leaders and fighters have found sanctuaries in Afghanistan, raising tensions between the two countries. Pakistan wants the Afghan Taliban government to stop the TTP from using Afghanistan to launch attacks in Pakistan.

Afghanistan’s government says it does not allow anyone to use Afghan soil to attack any other country, including Pakistan.
Pakistan Turns to Private Sector for CPEC’s Next Phase (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [9/25/2024 7:36 AM, Umair Jamal, 1198K, Positive]
In recent weeks, China and Pakistan have been showing an increased interest in developing deeper cooperation, specifically reenergizing the next phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. In addition to security cooperation for Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan, ongoing discussions between the two sides are seeking to resolve pending financial issues.

There are several projects across various sectors on Pakistan’s "wish list" for the next phase of CPEC. It is anticipated that the wish list will be presented to the Chinese premier, Li Qiang, when he visits Pakistan next month to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Islamabad.

Integral to this new phase of CPEC are five key corridors: growth, innovation, green initiatives, livelihood enhancement, and regional connectivity. Notably, they will facilitate progress on pending projects such as railway upgrades and the development of industrial zones - critical components that will bolster economic activity.

A noteworthy shift in strategy is evident as Pakistan seeks to transform CPEC into a business-to-business cooperation model. This approach invites private sector participation at its core.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently articulated a vision where joint ventures between Pakistani and Chinese firms, particularly in textiles and agriculture, will be central to this initiative. These partnerships, as per the Pakistani premier, are poised not only for domestic growth but also for exporting products to markets with high demand.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has echoed these sentiments by advocating for a leading role for the Pakistani private sector in constructing this next phase of CPEC. According to the finance minister, by focusing on monetizing infrastructure rather than just building it, there’s an opportunity for sustainable economic growth that benefits both countries.

Moreover, the developing security cooperation between Pakistan and China is critical in addressing the challenges posed by threats to Chinese projects and personnel in Pakistan. The attacks targeting these initiatives have undeniably created friction, undermining the pace of progress on CPEC in recent years. Critics are right to highlight that the precarious security situation, particularly in Balochistan, continues to place significant stress on efforts aimed at enhancing CPEC-related cooperation.

However, amid these challenges lies a obvious urgency from both nations to forge solutions through innovative channels of collaboration. Recent exchanges of proposals signify a commitment from both sides to deepen their cooperation against militancy. Notably, a proposed anti-terrorism cooperation agreement suggests a proactive approach, with plans for establishing a joint security company dedicated to safeguarding Chinese citizens already engaged or set to engage during CPEC Phase II.

Moreover, China’s reported proposal for incorporating advanced security measures - such as vehicle-mounted mobile security equipment and armored vehicles - into Phase II underscores an understanding of the risks involved and a willingness to invest in protective strategies.

Pakistan’s receptiveness toward collaborating with Chinese officials marks a pivotal shift.

The recent high-level meetings between Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and China’s Minister for Political and Legal Affairs Chen Mingguo reflected a strong desire from both sides not only to confront military challenges but to expand the discussion on the subject into other related areas. The partnership in this regard seems to be expanding beyond mere counterterrorism discussions as it includes cross-border cooperation on anti-smuggling and anti-narcotics initiatives as well.

Additionally, joint police-paramilitary force exercises in areas that link China and Pakistan, such as Xinjiang and Gilgit-Baltistan, are being discussed. This indicates the growing need for an integrated strategy to maintain stability along routes that are essential to the success of CPEC.

Furthermore, Pakistan’s ability to secure Chinese financial backing has been instrumental in negotiating a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). China’s assistance has been vital because the country has not put excessive pressure on Islamabad to pay up outstanding CPEC payments or withdraw its $4 billion currency deposits, which is a necessary condition to seal the new IMF agreement. This indicates that China’s interests in Pakistan are strategic in nature and can withstand challenging circumstances.

Although both sides see the need to work together to find cooperative solutions to CPEC and security issues in the face of growing threats, doubts persist about whether these initiatives will actually address the underlying causes of instability or if they will only act as temporary fixes.
India
As Quad Completes 20 Years, India Takes on Multiple New Responsibilities (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [9/25/2024 6:25 AM, Elizabeth Roche, 1198K, Neutral]
One of the key engagements of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his September 21-23 visit to the United States was the Quad Leaders’ meeting. Hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware, the summit took place as the Quad, which brings together the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia, completes two decades of existence.

The four countries came together first in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami to offer humanitarian assistance to affected countries. Since 2021, Quad leaders have met six times, including twice virtually. The foreign ministers of the four countries have met eight times since 2019.

The Wilmington Declaration is noteworthy for the many new initiatives that the grouping - seen as ranged against China - has pledged to undertake as part of its agenda. Indeed, Biden was caught by a hot mic as saying: "China continues to behave aggressively, testing us all across the region. It is true in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, South Asia, and the Taiwan Straits."

From an India perspective, what stands out is the number of the new Quad initiatives that the country is directly involved in, indicating New Delhi’s willingness to take on more responsibilities as it looks to burnish its credentials as a leading power in the Indo-Pacific. Also interesting is the fact that these initiatives directly take on several Chinese ventures and plans in the region.

Previously, India was declared the "weak link" in the grouping, as it was seen to be opposed to the idea of Quad being a military alliance to counter China. New Delhi’s argument that it stood for an alternative narrative to China’s in the Indo-Pacific was perceived as illustrative of this weakness. As was India’s prioritizing of non-traditional security issues including maritime domain awareness, humanitarian and disaster relief, and vaccine diplomacy within the Quad.

In the Wilmington Declaration, India (as opposed to Indian) finds mention at least a dozen times - far more than in previous Quad Leaders’ declarations.

In the September 2021 Washington Quad Declaration, for instance, India is mentioned four times - all in the context of vaccine supply initiatives against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cut to 2024, India is named as the host for the critical Quad Regional Ports and Transportation Conference to take place next year in Mumbai. This is part of the new Quad Ports of the Future Partnership, "which will harness the Quad’s expertise to support sustainable and resilient port infrastructure development across the Indo-Pacific, in collaboration with regional partners," the Wilmington Declaration said. Through this, "Quad partners intend to coordinate, exchange information, share best practices with partners in the region, and leverage resources to mobilize government and private sector investments in quality port infrastructure across the Indo-Pacific region," it said.

Significantly, this comes against the backdrop of China’s Belt and Road Initiative that is involved in infrastructure development, including the construction of ports, across a swathe of countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

In 2025, India will host a new regional Maritime Initiative for Training in the Indo-Pacific. This will "enable our partners in the region to maximize tools… to monitor and secure their waters, enforce their laws, and deter unlawful behavior," the Wilmington Declaration said. This initiative can be seen as a measure to counter China’s illegal and unregulated fishing practices as well as unreported surveys of the seabed by Chinese scientific research vessels. Data collected by such vessels is seen as critical to civilian scientific research; it can also be used by the military to detect the passage of submarines, for instance.

Besides the maritime training move, 2025 will also see the "first-ever Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission" to improve interoperability among Quad countries and advance maritime safety.

The India-organized workshop on strengthening power sector resilience was appreciated, as was India’s commissioning of a feasibility study to examine expansion of undersea cable maintenance and repair capabilities in the Indo-Pacific. The second complemented efforts made by the Quad through its Partnership for Cable Connectivity and Resilience, the Declaration said. Cable connectivity is a seriously contested domain between the United States and China given their high-stakes technology war. The U.S. fears Chinese firms building subsea cables carrying global data that will pass on sensitive information to the Chinese government.

The role of Indian institutions is mentioned in the context of training people in Open RAN (Radio Access Network) systems. Open RAN allows interoperability between cellular network equipment provided by different vendors. The U.S. is pushing against China’s edge in telecommunications equipment business and 5G standardization. "The U.S. also plans to invest over $7 million to support the global expansion of Asia Open RAN Academy, including through establishing a first-of-its-kind Open RAN workforce training initiative at scale in South Asia, in partnership with Indian institutions," the Wilmington Declaration said.

Then there is the Quad Cancer Moonshot initiative that is described as a "groundbreaking partnership to save lives in the Indo-Pacific region." This builds on Quad cooperation in vaccine deliveries during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is seen as an idea close to Biden’s heart given that he lost his son Beau to cancer in 2015. India’s role in this venture includes the provision of detection kits and cervical cancer vaccines worth $7.5 million to the Indo-Pacific region. India is already known as the "Pharmacy of the World" for its production of vaccines and medicines, and this effort only adds to that reputation.

Besides, its commitment to invest $2 million in new solar projects in Fiji, Comoros, Madagascar, and Seychelles; India’s establishment of a space-based web portal for Mauritius to monitor extreme weather events; and its award of 50 Quad scholarships, worth $500,000, to students from the Indo-Pacific to pursue a four-year undergraduate engineering program at a Government of India-funded technical institution have all come in for praise in the Wilmington Declaration.

Given the above, it was perhaps more than symbolic that Biden put his arm on Modi’s shoulder when he said "Way beyond November" when asked if the Quad would survive after the U.S. presidential polls that month.

India is the host of the Quad Leaders’ Summit in 2025. Hence, the gesture may have been Biden’s way of passing on the baton to Modi. But more importantly, with Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio leaving office and Australian Prime Minister Antony Albanese facing polls next year, Modi of India would be the one constant presence at summits since 2021, when the Quad began meeting at the leaders’ level. In fact, Modi has been in office since 2017, when the Quad first regrouped.
Heavy rains snarl traffic, shut schools in Mumbai and nearby regions (Reuters)
Reuters [9/26/2024 4:03 AM, Shilpa Jamkhandikar, 5.2M, Negative]
Torrential rain lashed India’s financial capital Mumbai, triggering floods and killing at least four people as well as paralysing the city and forcing schools to close on Thursday before easing slightly in the afternoon.

Some parts of Mumbai recorded around 275 mm (11 inches) of rain on Wednesday evening, which crippled road traffic and delayed the trains millions of city residents use every day.

Four people died from rain-related incidents, officials said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi cancelled a trip to the city of Pune, nearly 200 kms, (124 miles) from Mumbai, after authorities declared a red alert due to the rain.

With more rain expected in Mumbai as well, authorities also issued a citywide red alert and urged residents to stay home. Schools and colleges were shut and fishermen were asked to stay away onshore until Friday.

Drone footage posted on social media showed snarled highways clogged with cars - some with their drivers still inside, others abandoned by frustrated drivers. Hundreds of thousands of commuters spent hours on the road.

India’s monsoon rains started retreating from the northwest of the country earlier this week, nearly a week later than normal, the state-run India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in a statement.

The monsoon generally begins in June and starts to retreat by Sept. 17 but the rains continued this year, which has helped to replenish reservoirs but damaged the crop harvest in some states.

Heavy rain was also forecast for some parts of the southern state of Telengana on Thursday, the weather office said.

In neighbouring Bangladesh, rain brought relief after a week of intense heat, but it also flooded streets, worsening the already bad traffic in the capital Dhaka and other parts of the country.
India’s manufacturing incentives progress amid efforts to cut China imports (Reuters)
Reuters [9/25/2024 9:09 AM, Manoj Kumar and Shivangi Acharya, 37270K, Positive]
India’s cash incentives to boost domestic manufacturing have attracted over $17 billion of investment since the 2020 launch of the production-linked scheme, a government official said on Wednesday, amid efforts to reduce imports from China.

The scheme, which offers 4-6% cash incentives on incremental sales to manufacturers, was launched across 14 sectors including electronics, pharmaceuticals, textiles and white goods.

"The PLI scheme has been successful to attract investments and boost manufacturing," said Amardeep Singh Bhatia, Secretary of the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade.

India has emerged as a global hub for electronics manufacturing, particularly smartphones, and is now the second-largest producer of mobile phones, he said, citing Apple’s iPhone exports - exceeding $12 billion in the 2023/24 fiscal year ending March.

The incentives have resulted in production worth about 11 trillion rupees ($131.6 billion) and nearly one million jobs over four years, he said.

After reducing mobile imports from China by attracting global players like Apple, India now plans to produce more laptops, tablets, computers and servers, official sources said.

On Tuesday, the government extended by three months the "import management system", launched in November 2023, which requires companies to register their laptop and tablet imports.

"We have signalled to the industry that we want to cut imports particularly from China," one of the government official sources, said.

India’s IT hardware market, including laptops, is estimated at nearly $20 billion, with nearly $5 billion domestic production, according to Mordor Intelligence, a consultancy.

India announced the new system for laptops, tablets, personal computers and servers after it rolled back an earlier plan to impose a licensing regime, requiring the likes of Apple (AAPL.O), Dell (DELL.N), and HP (HPQ.N), to obtain licences for shipments of imported laptops and tablets.

In the first phase, the government has approved incentives for 27 IT hardware manufacturers including Acer, Dell, HP, and Lenovo to manufacturer in India, expecting production of about $42 billion over the next few years, government officials said.

"India has a strong case for building its own laptop manufacturing capabilities," said Ajay Srivastava, founder of Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), a Delhi-based think tank, noting that China contributed significantly to these imports worth over $9 billion in 2023/24.

In India, rising incomes, expanding business activities and education have boosted demand for laptops and other devices, that favour local manufacturing.

Among local electronics manufacturers, Dixon Technologies (DIXO.NS) has qualified for the incentives scheme and hopes to meet 15% of India’s domestic demand by the fiscal year 2025/26.

"Dixon plans to create a capacity of 2 million units by FY26, which shall cater to 15% of India’s total requirement," Prithvi Vachani, Executive Director at Dixon Technologies told Reuters.

Dixon, that has separate pacts with global firms like HP to make laptops and computers in India, will secure manufacturing components locally "in times to come", Vachani added.
The Kashmiri politician whose return from jail ruffled feathers (BBC)
BBC [9/25/2024 9:00 PM, Staff, 67197K, Neutral]
As Indian-administered Kashmir prepared for assembly elections earlier this month, a local MP returned home from a Delhi prison to campaign for his candidates. Who is he and why does his return matter to the region’s politics? Auqib Javeed reports from Srinagar.

Sheikh Abdul Rashid, who had been in jail since Article 370 was abrogated in 2019, was granted interim bail earlier this month on terror funding charges he denies.

The 57-year-old, who is popularly known as Engineer Rashid, has urged people to vote for his candidates instead of regional or national parties. His Awami Ittehad Party has fielded candidates on more than three dozen seats.

The high-stakes assembly elections are the first since the region’s autonomy was revoked in 2019. With 873 candidates across 97 constituencies in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley and Hindu-majority Jammu, the elections have been described by federal officials as a proof of normalcy in a region long plagued by insurgency. The third and last phase of the polls will be held on Tuesday and votes will be counted on 8 October.

Kashmir’s politics, dominated by mainstream parties pledging allegiance to India, has had a history of individuals and groups seeking separation from the country or enhanced autonomy for Kashmir, with some of them supporting an armed movement to achieve that.

Some separatist groups in the past have also backed Pakistan’s role in Kashmir. India and Pakistan both claim Kashmir in full, but control only parts of it.

But this assembly election has seen participation of many former separatist leaders as well.

Rashid has chosen to be part of the democratic process but has been vocal against what he calls Delhi’s "heavy-handed" rule in Kashmir.

He is known for his fiery speeches, and leading protests in unconventional ways against alleged government excesses, often irking authorities.

He made waves in June when he defeated regional political heavyweight Omar Abdullah in parliamentary elections. While he was lodged in jail, his sons led an emotionally charged and successful campaign on his behalf.

But this time he is able to speak to voters directly and he has also smartly used social media to amplify his messages.

Within hours of being released on 11 September, Rashid told the media that he was going to fight against the removal of Article 370.

The article allowed the state its own constitution, a separate flag and freedom to make laws. Foreign affairs, defence and communications remained the preserve of the federal government.

"We don’t accept Prime Minister [Narendra Modi’s] decision taken on 5 August [2019],” he said, referring to the day when the autonomy was abrogated.

He then went live on Facebook, repeating similar messages. The hour-long speech currently has more than 2.5m views, 44,000 likes and 25,000 comments – an unusually high number for a regional politician.

Rashid’s popularity worries his regional opponents, who have termed him a “proxy” of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Two former chief ministers of the state and the heirs of leading regional parties, Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, have publicly questioned his party’s funding and alleged that he was dividing voters to favour the BJP.

He has repeatedly denied the allegations. "If I were a BJP man, I wouldn’t have spent over five years in jail,” he told the BBC. "I won [almost] 500,000 votes in the general elections, how could I be dividing votes?".

Prof Sheikh Showkat Hussain, a political analyst, said Rashid’s release from jail just days before the elections did give his opponents a pretext to accuse him of collusion with the BJP-run federal government in Delhi.

“Despite these allegations, his win in the 2024 parliamentary elections from jail has given him an unprecedented credibility in the eyes of the locals,” he said.

Rashid has also worked hard to carefully craft his image.

Unlike the valley’s prominent leaders who have established political lineages, Rashid has managed to establish an image of a “common man’s politician” who doesn’t shy away from taking on authorities.

In 2012, he attempted to bring dozens of dogs into the state secretariat as a protest against the government’s inaction on the growing canine menace in his constituency, where numerous dog bite incidents had been reported.

"I hope the ministers and bureaucracy now understand the seriousness of the issue," he said at the time.

But Rashid’s bluntness and candour have also landed him in trouble.

In 2015, he hosted a “beef party” to protest a ban on the slaughter of cows, considered sacred by many Hindus, in several states. A day later, members of the BJP, then a part of the state’s ruling coalition, assaulted him in the assembly.

A few days later, members of a Hindu group outraged by the "beef party" attacked him at Delhi’s Press Club, dousing his face with ink as he protested the lynching of a Kashmiri truck driver accused of cow smuggling in Jammu.

Rashid’s unusual protests have often addressed the alleged human rights violations in the Kashmir valley, a charge that the federal government denies.

On International Human Rights Day in 2015, his party marched through Srinagar with a cow, a mule, a goat, and a dog, holding placards saying, “Animals have more rights than people in Kashmir.” He and other leaders were detained.

His family members say they are not surprised by his politics as he had a “rebellious nature” since childhood.

“He used to protest against the human rights violations, presence of military bunkers, forced labour by the army," said his brother Khurshid Ahmad Sheikh.

In 2008, he resigned from his government job as an engineer to contest assembly elections, winning twice in a row as an independent candidate.

Once elected to the state assembly, he gained recognition across Kashmir for protesting against what he called the government’s “anti-people” policies, analysts say.

“The element of protest makes him popular. He has been a crowd-puller since he entered politics,” said Noor Mohammad Baba, a political analyst based in Kashmir.

His jail term has intensified public interest in his rallies, he added.

At a recent rally, an enthusiastic group of men assembled to listen to him. Some of them were curious onlookers hoping to see the man in the news, and some were his fans.

Did the allegations of Rashid being a “proxy of Delhi” bother them?

“Almost all the regional parties have been in an alliance with the BJP [in the past]. They aren’t in a position to allege him of complicity with the BJP,” said Rafiq Ahmad, a businessman. “People want to give Rashid a chance and see what he does.”

Rashid spoke and demanded a resolution to the Kashmir conflict and an end to the use of anti-terror laws to put Kashmiris in jail. Young men shouted in unison in support.

Within minutes, Rashid was on his way to his next public meeting.
India Gives China the Cold Shoulder (Wall Street Journal – opinion)
Wall Street Journal [9/25/2024 5:45 PM, Sadanand Dhume, 810K, Neutral]
Amid the general disarray of U.S. foreign policy, the strengthening of the Quad—a partnership among the U.S., India, Japan and Australia aimed at preventing China from dominating Asia—stands out as a rare positive development. Leaders of the four countries met in Delaware over the weekend, the sixth such meeting since 2021. They pledged to work together on a range of initiatives, from Coast Guard patrols to cancer-treatment efforts to scientific-research fellowships.

India’s enthusiasm for the Quad—revived by President Trump in 2017 after a nearly decade-long hiatus—marks an important shift in Asian geopolitics. It underscores that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has shed its hesitance about deepening ties with the U.S. lest it offend China.

“The Chinese no longer have a veto,” Gautam Bambawale, a former Indian ambassador to China, said in a phone interview from Pune, a city in western India. He points out that India’s “attempt at balancing” between Washington and Beijing ended four years ago when Chinese intrusions into the countries’ disputed Himalayan border area led to the death of 20 Indian and at least four Chinese soldiers. This event “crystallized a consensus” in India on the need to “ensure that China does not become even more aggressive.”

U.S. ties with India may never be as frictionless as those with allies such as Australia or the U.K. But by embracing the Quad, India clearly signals its preference for a U.S.-led world order over a Chinese-led one.

How did we get here? China defeated India in a brief border war in 1962, but the two nations began to stabilize relations in the 1970s. In 1988 Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping and Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi agreed to maintain peace along their disputed 2,200-mile border while working toward a settlement, and in the meantime to forge ahead with bilateral relations on other issues.

In the late 2000s, by which time China’s economy had raced ahead of India’s, Chinese troops began making more-frequent incursions into Indian territory. When Mr. Modi was first elected prime minister, in 2014, he sought to forestall further border conflict and strengthen ties with China through informal summits with Xi Jinping. The Chinese president was the first major world leader to visit India after Mr. Modi’s inauguration. (Mr. Modi feted the Chinese leader in Gujarat, the prime minister’s home state.) The Indian prime minister’s first term (2014-19) was marked by high-profile photo-op-filled summits with Mr. Xi in Wuhan, China, and Mamallapuram, India. But this mode of engagement came to an abrupt end with the 2020 border clash, the first fatal confrontation between the countries since a small skirmish in 1975.

Since the 2020 clashes, relations between China and India have worsened dramatically. The strengthening of the Quad isn’t the only example. Despite partial disengagement, tens of thousands of heavily armed Indian and Chinese troops remain stationed at the boundary. Direct commercial flights no longer link the two countries. According to media reports, as of last year no accredited Indian foreign correspondent remained in China, and no accredited Chinese correspondent was based in India. In remarks at the Asia Society in New York on Tuesday, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar described India-China relations as “very significantly disturbed.”

On the business front, India has barred Huawei from its 5G networks, made it harder for Chinese companies to invest in India, banned TikTok and many other Chinese apps, and aggressively wooed U.S. companies interested in diversifying production outside China. Apple now builds about 14% of its iPhones in India and expects to build 25% there by 2028, according to former Indian Information Technology minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar. In a phone interview, Tanvi Madan, an expert on India-China relations at the Brookings Institution, said “India’s approach toward China is now not even the Reaganesque ‘Trust, but verify.’ It’s ‘Don’t trust, verify.’ “

For the U.S., convergence with India on the China question is welcome. India may lag China by most measurements, but it’s a significant and growing power in its own right. This year, India rose to third place in the Australian Lowy Institute’s Asia Power Index, behind only the U.S. and China.

For India, U.S. support is critical for a range of goals, including countering a hostile China-Pakistan alliance, attracting foreign direct investment and closing the technological gap with China. More important, a Chinese-led global order would lead to India’s de facto subordination to an overbearing nuclear power with claims on Indian territory.

That’s not to suggest that the U.S. and India face no challenges. Many U.S. policymakers are understandably miffed at India’s continued closeness with Russia despite its invasion of Ukraine. A botched alleged Indian attempt to assassinate a U.S. citizen who is a Sikh separatist has strengthened American skeptics of India and angered Indian nationalists. And many Indian pundits blame America’s penchant for promoting democracy for the recent downfall of Sheikh Hasina, the pro-Indian former Bangladeshi prime minister.

On the whole, though, at least for now, these are speed bumps on the road to deeper U.S.-India cooperation. As Mr. Bambawale, the former ambassador, points out, “The long-term issue in international politics will continue to be competition between the two major powers.” By showing that China can’t be trusted to keep its word, Mr. Xi has helped Mr. Modi arrive at the right answer.
For India, It’s Not Such a Great Day in the Neighborhood (Bloomberg – opinion)
Bloomberg [9/25/2024 5:00 PM, Mihir Sharma, 27782K, Negative]
Sri Lanka has a new president in nationalist outsider Anura Kumara Dissanayake. His victory is a testament to the vitality of the country’s democracy: Two years after demonstrators forced the resignation of the island’s president and prime minister, protest leader Dissanayake prevailed against two well-connected centrists.

For regional behemoth India, however, the results cap a troubling trend. Dissanayake has worried New Delhi because his party, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, made a name for itself in the 1980s with an anti-India terror campaign. While the new president has tried to mend fences, including during a visit earlier this year, India will consider him a poor exchange for his predecessor, Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was distrustful of China and supportive of Indian investment.

Similar political transitions have transformed South Asia. Just last month, Bangladesh’s long-serving prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, was overthrown and fled to India for refuge. Earlier in the summer, K.P. Sharma Oli, who has always been close to Beijing, returned as Nepal’s prime minister.

An “India out” campaign in the Maldives swept its current president, Mohamed Muizzu, to power in 2023. And it’s likely Indian officials would prefer that Imran Khan, who remains wildly popular with the Pakistani electorate, stays in the jail where most believe his country’s military has put him.

New Delhi began the year secure in its relationships with Kathmandu, Dhaka, and Colombo; the only neighbor it can now mostly count on is the tiny monarchy of Bhutan — a decades-old treaty ally that manages its security and foreign policy in close cooperation with India.

While internal developments obviously drove most of these political transitions, Indian policy has done the country no favors. While Indians like to remind people that theirs is the world’s largest democracy, their neighbors complain that New Delhi doesn’t always promote and support democratic values in the region.

Indeed, pro-government commentators openly boast that India’s foreign policy has succeeded by “shaping democratic verdicts” in its neighborhood and “turning a blind eye to democratic deficits.”

Sometimes, though, realpolitik is just short-sightedness. Hasina’s exit in Bangladesh followed elections a few months earlier that most — including the US — did not view as free and fair. India overlooked that and appeared taken by surprise when she turned out to be massively unpopular after all.

Similarly, New Delhi’s courting of the military junta in Myanmar — which memorably led then-US President Barack Obama to upbraid India’s parliament in 2010 for “shying away” from the defense of democracy — might soon turn sour. Indian officials were incensed at the time, insisting that the strong hand of the Burmese military was needed to manage the volatile border. Now anti-government rebels control large parts of that same frontier, making ties to the junta more of a liability than an asset.

It didn’t have to be this way. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi was first elected in 2014, he invited leaders of neighboring nations to his swearing-in. He had an opportunity to reset relations with all of them and to create new partnerships based on economic integration and mutual respect for democracy.

In the years since, diplomats ceded control of relations with those countries — and with China, with whom India shares the longest of its borders — to the security establishment. That has turned out to be a crucial mistake. If you see your neighbors primarily through a security lens, you risk picking allies and condoning behavior that together alienate large swathes of the electorate. When political winds shift, such bets can turn rapidly.

You might think that India’s extraordinary soft power would make up for some of these missteps. But the influence of its movies and media, which are followed closely across South Asia, can be unhelpful. After the Maldives election, popular Bollywood stars declared they would stop vacationing there. And the hyper-nationalist news media focuses relentlessly on stories that citizens of these smaller neighbors feel portray their countries unfairly.

India would be wise to study China’s relations with its neighbors. That would give policymakers some idea of what not to do, as well as what might work. Economic integration is essential: As the region’s biggest market, India needs to be a source of prosperity for its denizens.

On the other hand, expecting smaller countries to kowtow is a mistake. India’s rise might be as inevitable as China’s. Neither would-be superpower, though, can afford to ignore the aspirations of its neighbors.
NSB
Bangladesh: New Rohingya Refugees Lack Protection, Aid (Human Rights Watch)
Human Rights Watch [9/25/2024 9:00 PM, Staff, Neutral]
Bangladeshi authorities should allow Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar to obtain protection and humanitarian assistance, Human Rights Watch said today. An estimated 18,000 Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh in recent months to escape abuses amid the surging fighting between Myanmar’s military junta and the ethnic Arakan Army, while another 10,000 are reportedly waiting at the border. Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) forces have pushed back thousands of Rohingya since early August 2024.

On September 23, Bangladeshi security forces arrested an estimated 100 Rohingya refugees in a raid on shelters where new arrivals were staying, as well as about 30 who were crossing the Naf River. They forcibly returned the refugees to Myanmar the following day, saying they were acting under orders.

“Bangladeshi authorities need to allow Rohingya fleeing renewed attacks in Myanmar to enter the country and ensure that they receive protection and aid,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The recent arrivals are in urgent need of food and medicine but are afraid that seeking assistance will put them at risk of being forcibly returned to Myanmar.”

Human Rights Watch in August and September 2024 interviewed 10 Rohingya who recently entered Bangladesh, as well as humanitarian workers and Bangladeshi border authorities. Refugees described being denied entry by border guard officers, forcing them to turn to smugglers to escape threats to their lives and safety in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State.

Bangladesh has not registered any new arrivals, leaving them without access to food rations and health care and at constant risk of being forcibly returned to Myanmar. Bangladeshi authorities should urgently collaborate with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to register new Rohingya refugees.

In recent months, the Myanmar military and Arakan Army have committed mass killings, arson, and unlawful recruitment against Rohingya in Rakhine State. About 630,000 Rohingya remain in Myanmar under a system of apartheid that leaves them especially vulnerable to renewed fighting. The conflict has displaced more than 320,000 people in Rakhine State and southern Chin State since hostilities resumed in November 2023. Dozens of Rohingya have drowned while fleeing as overcrowded boats capsized. On September 23, most of the 18 passengers on a boat reportedly drowned after it capsized in the Naf River.

Bangladesh already hosts about one million Rohingya refugees and authorities say that the country is not able to accept any more. Muhammad Yunus, who is leading the interim government, has called on donors and international partners to fast-track third-country settlement and increase humanitarian assistance.

While Yunus has acknowledged that sending Rohingya back to Myanmar means “pushing them to death,” the BGB has ramped up forced returns since the escalation of fighting in Rakhine State’s Maungdaw township in early August. The border guards have set up at least one new site in the Teknaf border region to detain refugees slated for return. A Bangladeshi border guard official told Human Rights Watch they had pushed back 6,000 Rohingya since August 5.

Border guard forces have also reportedly detained unaccompanied children and returned them to Myanmar. Bangladesh should engage the UNHCR to assist in the urgent identification and reunification of families, Human Rights Watch said.

Bangladesh is obligated to respect the international law principle of nonrefoulement, which prohibits countries from returning anyone to a place where they would face a real risk of persecution, torture, or other serious ill-treatment, or a threat to life. This principle is codified in the UN Convention against Torture, to which Bangladesh is a party, and in customary international law.

Rohingya refugees told Human Rights Watch that smugglers demanded everything in their possession, even spare clothing, as payment to take them to Bangladesh. A refugee from Maungdaw said that in August, Bangladeshi border guards provided him and four family members with food and water but refused their boat entry. He paid Bangladeshi smugglers with his wife’s gold jewelry, who then brought them across the border by bribing the border guards. “It’s a business for them,” he said. “When we are living in between death and life.” There were also reports of smugglers, after being paid, abandoning Rohingya before reaching Bangladesh’s mainland.

Many recent arrivals are sheltering with relatives, often hiding out due to fear of forced return or harassment at checkpoints. “We are hiding and unable to leave the shelter,” said a 28-year-old Rohingya man who entered Bangladesh in July along with six family members. “Security forces have already set up multiple checkpoints and have said that no new Rohingya refugees will be allowed in the camps. We are hungry and desperate because the UN agencies have not included us in their database or provided food rations.”

A Bangladeshi foreign ministry official told Reuters that the government had not decided whether to register recent arrivals: “If we decide to register them, it could open the floodgates, and that’s something we can’t afford. But at the same time, how long can we ignore this issue?”

A humanitarian worker said that some newly arrived Rohingya have been denied access to health services due to lack of documentation, despite aid agencies’ policies that all refugees should be granted access to medical care, regardless of registration status.

Unregistered refugees said that they were too fearful to seek health care for illnesses or injuries. A man who arrived in early August said that when his 6-month-old son became sick, the family was unable to obtain adequate medical care “because we are not registered, and instead had to go to a quack doctor.” A 53-year-old Rohingya woman said that she had to consult an expensive private physician when she was ill. “I didn’t try to go to the NGO-run hospitals because I heard that they don’t allow anyone without a refugee medical record book, which I don’t have,” she said.

New arrivals also expressed fear that armed groups or criminal gangs would abduct or extort them. Violence in the camps has surged, with groups like the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO) and Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) carrying out killings, kidnappings, forced recruitment, and robberies.

A 24-year-old Rohingya man said: “We faced a lot of trouble and difficulties in Myanmar due to the fighting among the Arakan Army, military, RSO, ARSA, and the Arakan Rohingya Army, which eventually forced us to flee to Bangladesh. But there are turf wars between Rohingya armed groups inside the camp, so we still have to worry about our safety and live in constant fear of being recruited by these armed groups.”

Humanitarian workers said that as the Arakan Army has been expanding its control over Rakhine State, the Rohingya armed groups that had backed the Myanmar military are returning to the refugee camps, where they are fighting for control.

Bangladeshi authorities should work with the UNHCR to register new refugees so they can safely access medical care, food rations, and protection services, Human Rights Watch said. Critical health services should be provided to all new arrivals without any documentation requirements. Donors, including the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, and Australia, should increase funding to meet the massive needs of the refugee population to help Bangladesh support the Rohingya and host communities.

The UN Security Council should adopt measures to prevent further atrocities in Rakhine State and make progress toward durable solutions for the Rohingya, Human Rights Watch said. The council should end its inaction in the face of anticipated vetoes by China and Russia and negotiate a resolution to institute a global arms embargo on Myanmar, refer the situation to the International Criminal Court, and impose targeted sanctions on the junta and military-owned conglomerates.

“International will to press for a rights-respecting government in Myanmar is crucial for a lasting solution to the Rohingya crisis,” Ganguly said. “Instead of quiet diplomacy that achieves little, governments need to coordinate and adopt strong measures to place real pressure on the junta to end its abuses.”
Will BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami Form an Alliance in Post-Hasina Bangladesh? (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [9/25/2024 6:11 AM, Mubashar Hasan, 1198K, Negative]
The political scene in post-Hasina Bangladesh is in a massive churn. The once-powerful Awami League (AL) is in disarray. Its politics is in tatters and the party is facing a serious legitimacy crisis.

AL sources have told The Diplomat that the way former prime minister and AL chief Sheikh Hasina fled to India on August 5, without notifying party leaders and activists, has demoralized them. Moreover, in the eyes of the public, the AL government massacred students who led the people’s uprising against AL rule. Multiple judicial investigations are taking place to determine Hasina and the AL’s role in the serious human rights violations during the student-led uprising. In a nutshell, it will take time for the AL to revive its politics.

Against this backdrop, Bangladeshis are closely watching the politics of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI). The two have been alliance partners in the past. Both have borne the brunt of AL crackdowns and share a hatred of the party.

Will their shared antipathy to the AL bring them together to form an alliance?

Their similar positions on some issues, notwithstanding, the BNP and JI have differences.

Founded by Mawlana Maududi in 1941, JI’s political philosophy is based on Islamic religious principles. According to a JI publication titled "An Introduction to Bangladesh Jamaate Islami," it aims to turn Bangladesh into an Islamic welfare state. Maududi advocated for Islamic governance and enforcement of Sharia law.

However, JI’s political philosophy stands at odds with that of the BNP. Tarique Rahman, the acting chairman of BNP and the party’s de facto leader, has previously said that "politics may be influenced by religion but the framework of politics must not be based on religion." This underscores a significant ideological distinction between BNP and Jamaat.

Differences have come to the fore in recent months. Soon after the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government was set up and after Yunus’s first speech to the nation, the BNP pressed for a clearer roadmap for elections.

Jamaat Emir (chief), Shafiqur Rahman publicly derided the BNP for calling for elections even as the Bangladeshi people were yet to recover from the AL government’s brutal repression of the protests. "Still, hundreds of people are writhing in pain on hospital beds. The bloodstains haven’t been wiped away….in such a time, if someone starts chanting about elections, the nation will not accept it," Rahman said.

The BNP hit back.

"Those who lack public support… those who don’t have the ability to win votes are the ones opposing the election," BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said. In an interview with a local newspaper, Alamgir stressed that BNP and Jamaat are not in an alliance anymore as the alliance became dysfunctional long ago.

Members of both parties are downplaying their differences.

Nakibur Rahman, a U.S.-based scholar, who is a rukon or permanent member of the JI, told The Diplomat that the rhetorical disagreement between BNP and Jamaat is nothing serious. These are indications that both parties believe in democracy and democratic values of public discussion. "We appreciate that BNP is still the largest party in the county," he said.

However, it is becoming increasingly evident that the BNP-JI tactical cooperation in recent years has run its course and it is a matter of time before the two parties formally part ways and compete against each other.

Maududi rejected the Western democratic system. However, post-Maududi, the JI began participating in elections. It contested elections up until 2008. The BNP and Jamaat formed an anti-AL electoral and political alliance in January 1999. That alliance later expanded into a 20-party alliance in 2018. JI was even part of the BNP-led government between 2002-2006 and held two ministries during this period.

Both, the BNP and JI boycotted the 2014 and 2024 general elections held under Hasina’s government. They said that under Hasina elections would not be free and fair. Yet Hasina went ahead with holding a one-sided election. Although the BNP and JI participated in the 2018 elections, that election was heavily rigged by Hasina.

Both the BNP and JI were subjected to a relentless campaign by the AL when it was in power in the 2009-24 period. The AL aimed to project itself to external observers as the secular political force in Bangladesh, and the BNP-Jamaat as the radical religious force, although research shows AL invested much more state finance in Islamic values and culture than any other party in the history of Bangladesh, and even aligned with Islamist parties.

According to Bangladeshi media, the distance between the BNP and JI began to grow after the 2018 election. In 2022-23, BNP’s Rahman led from his home in exile in the U.K. a series of massive rallies on the streets of Dhaka and other cities. The JI did not participate in these rallies and was thought to be purposefully sidelined by the BNP.

AKM Wahiduzzaman, BNP’s Information and Technology Affairs Secretary told The Diplomat that the alliance between BNP and JI was more of a strategic one. "Our alliance has been driven by political pragmatism, not shared ideology…the two parties have continued anti-Hasina campaigns through mutual consultations."

It is becoming evident that there will be no BNP-JI alliance in the next general elections. This underscores a new political future for Bangladesh, according to Tasneem Khalil, editor-in-chief of Netra News, a Sweden-based, Bangladesh-focused investigative news site.

"Bangladesh will see the BNP leading liberal democratic forces in Bangladesh with the Jamaat leading the conservative and radical right political forces in the country," Khalil said.

Time will decide whether Khalil is right but for now, as Bangladesh’s political landscape rapidly changes, BNP and Jamaat politics in the post-Hasina period reflect a reconfiguration and reset in thoughts about the political future of the country.
Sri Lanka President Plans to Start IMF Talks, Focus on Stability (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [9/25/2024 11:21 AM, Anusha Ondaatjie and Asantha Sirimanne, 27782K, Positive]
Sri Lanka’s new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake said he plans to start discussions with the International Monetary Fund as part of his focus on establishing stability in the island nation before rolling out other initiatives.

"There are many plans that we want to put in place. But before that we have to achieve stability," Dissanayake said in Sinhalese in an address to the nation on Wednesday - his first since assuming office. "We will, therefore, start talks with the IMF and push forward the matters related to Extended Fund Facility."

Dissanayake, 55, a leftist political outsider, had vowed to reopen negotiations with the multilateral lender over its $3 billion bailout. Some of Dissanayake’s backers oppose the existing debt restructuring framework. He won the presidential election on Sept. 21 in a stunning rebuke of Sri Lanka’s political elite, who voters blamed for bankrupting the nation and imposing harsh austerity measures linked to an International Monetary Fund bailout.

"We will start a discussion with creditors and wrap up debt restructuring and get the concessions," he said on Wednesday, without sharing more details.

Dissanayake dissolved the nation’s parliament starting from Wednesday and called for early elections to be held on Nov. 14. Holding parliamentary elections so soon is seen as a bid to bolster Dissanayake’s numbers in the legislature and push through policies tied to campaign promises.

Under the constitution, Sri Lanka was due to hold parliamentary elections by the middle of 2025. The nation’s executive system gives the president power to dissolve the legislature and call snap polls, as well as to hold multiple cabinet portfolios.

On Tuesday, Dissanayake chose Harini Amarasuriya from his coalition as the nation’s new prime minister and appointed a three-member cabinet, which includes himself and others from his party.

Dissanayake leads the National People’s Power, a coalition of leftist political parties and groups backed by protesters responsible for ousting President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022. The NPP had just three parliamentarians in Sri Lanka’s now-dissolved 225-seat legislature.

Reviewing the debt plan or reopening IMF talks risk delaying the disbursement of fresh loans from the Washington-based lender. The IMF this week said it will discuss the timing of the third review of the nation’s loan program with the new administration "as soon as practicable."

Under the current bailout program, Sri Lanka will need to meet certain economic targets before the IMF approves the next tranche of funding, estimated at about $350 million.

Foreign Policy

Dissanayake has also said he may cancel a proposed wind power project by India’s Adani Group amid claims of a lack of transparency and uncompetitive pricing.

The new president faces the challenge of juggling the competing interests of China and India, strategic rivals who’ve been major investors.

Some analysts believe Dissanayake is more likely to favor China given his party’s Marxist roots, although he also paid a visit to New Delhi at the invitation of India’s government earlier this year.

Dissanayake’s backers have also called for greater scrutiny of investment deals with China and other nations to avoid future debt traps. He’s previously questioned the government’s trade agreement with China, saying it would undermine Sri Lankan businesses.
Sri Lanka to begin talks with IMF to take forward $2.9 bln bailout, president says (Reuters)
Reuters [9/25/2024 11:00 AM, Uditha Jayasinghe, 37270K, Positive]
Sri Lanka’s new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said on Wednesday that he plans to begin negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) immediately to take forward the country’s $2.9 billion bailout programme.

Millions of Sri Lankans voted the Marxist-leaning parliamentarian into office on Saturday, drawn by his pledges to slash taxes, fight corruption and reduce the cost of living.

Dissanayake aims to change the revenue goals set under the IMF programme to reduce high income taxes and free up funds to invest in welfare for millions of Sri Lankans hardest hit by its financial crisis.

"Additionally, to advance our debt restructuring program, we are negotiating with relevant creditors to expedite the process and secure necessary debt relief," Dissanayake said in a televised address referring to an ongoing $25 billion debt rework with creditors.

The IMF said on Tuesday it would work with Dissanayake and discuss the timing of its third review of the current programme with Sri Lanka "as soon as practicable".

Dissanayake dissolved parliament on Tuesday and is hoping to strengthen his hand in the 225-member house when a general election is held on Nov. 14. His coalition held just three seats in the parliament elected in August 2020.

A severe shortfall of dollars spun Sri Lanka’s economy into a deep financial crisis two years ago, sending inflation soaring to a high of 70% in September 2022 and forcing the country to default on its foreign debt.
Central Asia
UN rights council takes Tajikistan to task (EurasiaNet)
EurasiaNet [9/25/2024 4:14 PM, Staff, 57.6K, Neutral]
A follow-up report issued recently by the UN General Assembly’s Human Rights Council assails Tajikistan’s government for failing to implement recommendations contained in an earlier survey concerning atrocities committed during the country’s civil war in the mid-1990s.

The follow-up report relates to a mission conducted in 2019 by UN researchers intent on promoting the closure of old societal wounds left by the civil war. Among that mission’s recommendations was the establishment of a “a truth-seeking State policy” and the development of “specific mechanisms, supported by dedicated resources, for dealing with disappearances caused by and related to the civil war.”

The Tajik civil war ended in 1998 with the signing of a power-sharing agreement between forces loyal to President Emomali Rahmon and an opposition coalition. Over the subsequent decades, Rahmon assiduously consolidated his power to the point that the leading opposition force during the war, the Islamic Renaissance Party, is now officially banned.

The UN council’s Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, which prepared the follow-up assessment and presented it in late September, judged the Tajik government’s lack of commitment to implementing the UN Human Rights Council’s recommendations in unusually harsh terms.

“Based on the information provided, the Working Group finds that Tajikistan has not taken any significant steps to ensure the enjoyment of the right to know the truth and to ensure accountability for enforced disappearances that began during the civil war,” the report states. “No steps have seemingly been taken either to grant measures of reparation for the harm suffered by victims of gross human rights violations.”

“In 2019, the Working Group observed with concern that the wounds left by the violations perpetrated during the civil war remained deep 20 years later, but were intentionally ignored,” the report added. “The Working Group observes with dismay that, five years later, the situation has not changed.”
Twitter
Afghanistan
Sara Wahedi
@SaraWahedi
[9/25/2024 7:05 AM, 92.6K followers, 26 retweets, 92 likes]
The situation in Afghanistan is spiraling. The Taliban’s crackdown, once phased out monthly, is now intensifying daily with new decrees, laws, raids, and arrests. Today alone, two international NGOs were raided. Every facet of life is under siege.

Sara Wahedi
@SaraWahedi
[9/25/2024 7:05 AM, 92.6K followers]
With the world at a deadlock on how to respond, the Taliban is taking advantage by accelerating their plan to isolate Afghanistan from the Western world and limit connections to economic proxies.

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[9/25/2024 5:09 PM, 236.6K followers, 161 retweets, 468 likes]
Germany, Canada, the Netherlands, and Australia have announced plans to sue the Taliban and bring them before the International Court of Justice for gender discrimination and violations of women’s and girls’ rights.

Heather Barr
@heatherbarr1
[9/25/2024 4:24 AM, 63.1K followers, 39 retweets, 68 likes]
ICYMI--@hrw held an important discussion last week with Afghan women judges about what has happened to them since the Taliban takeover and how their absence is affecting all Afghan women. You can listen to the event here: https://t.co/qNE5SnNquV
Pakistan
Shehbaz Sharif
@CMShehbaz
[9/25/2024 4:28 PM, 6.7M followers, 520 retweets, 2.4K likes]
Held a most cordial meeting with Chief Adviser of Interim Government of Bangladesh, Prof. Muhammad Yunus on the sidelines of #UNGA79, today. While recalling their many commanalities and historic relations, both sides reiterated their common desire to enhance economic and commercial cooperation while ensuring commitment to work towards peace & development in South Asia.Our discussions focused around enhancing, people to people and cultural contacts.I also extended a most warm invitation to the distinguished Bangladesh leader to undertake an official visit to Pakistan at his earliest convenience.
India
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[9/25/2024 9:12 AM, 102.3M followers, 4.9K retweets, 22K likes]
A salute to every innovator and wealth creator who has powered the spirit of @makeinindia. This initiative has furthered growth and given wings for our Yuva Shakti to dream big! Penned a few thoughts on @LinkedIn. https://linkedin.com/pulse/10-years-make-india-narendra-modi-sb2if/ #10YearsOfMakeInIndia

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 2:56 PM, 3.2M followers, 143 retweets, 837 likes]
Signed the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement today the @UN HQ. India is proud to join the BBNJ Agreement, an important step towards ensuring that our oceans remain healthy and resilient. #UNGA79

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 2:51 PM, 3.2M followers, 259 retweets, 2.5K likes]
Met FM Sergey Lavrov this afternoon at #UNGA79. Discussed our bilateral cooperation and regional issues.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 12:35 PM, 3.2M followers, 80 retweets, 823 likes]
Nice to bump into DPM & FM Murat Nurtleu of Kazakhstan at #UNGA79 sidelines.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 10:57 AM, 3.2M followers, 302 retweets, 1.3K likes]
Spoke at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New York today on the theme ‘Global Governance Reforms’.
- Highlighted the urgency of UN reforms to ensure representative, credible and effective multilateralism. Includes expansion of UNSC in both categories.
- Noted the imperative of robust, expansive and effective international financial architecture. Spoke about India’s efforts at G20 to reform MDBs to meet aspirations of the developing world.
- Underlined the challenges of protectionism and market-distorting practices to the international trading system.
- Called for comprehensive reforms of WTO to ensure a rules-based, non-discriminatory and a fair multilateral trading system. #UNGA79

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 10:19 AM, 3.2M followers, 70 retweets, 608 likes]
Always nice to meet UN DSG @AminaJMohammed. #UNGA79

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 10:27 AM, 3.2M followers, 136 retweets, 1.8K likes]
A brief encounter with WTO DG @NOIweala at #UNGA79.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[9/25/2024 8:08 AM, 3.2M followers, 294 retweets, 1K likes]
India celebrates #10YearsOfMakeInIndia. PM @narendramodi’s vision has made India a hub of manufacturing, designing, research and innovation. As the world addresses supply chain risks and seeks trust and transparency, @makeinindia presents India as a credible partner offering real collaboration and growth.

Brahma Chellaney
@Chellaney
[9/25/2024 7:47 AM, 266.2K followers, 185 retweets, 476 likes]
In the twilight of Biden’s presidency, are some in his team, by taking advantage of the president’s apparent cognitive decline, working to derail the promising U.S.-India strategic partnership, despite that emerging informal alliance becoming pivotal to equilibrium in the Indo-Pacific? What message did they seek to send by playing the Khalistan card on the eve of the Modi-Biden meeting, or by getting Biden to extend "full support" to Bangladesh’s unelected, military-picked regime that condones extrajudicial killings, systematic attacks on minorities and other human rights abuses while freeing terrorists that threaten India’s security?

On the eve of Modi’s visit, Sikh separatists were hosted by the White House, where they were briefed by senior administration and intelligence officials, while a New York district court issued summons to India’s national security adviser on a civil suit filed by a NY-based Sikh extremist wanted in India on terrorism charges but protected by U.S. intelligence as an asset. This extremist, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, warned Air India passengers last November that their lives were at risk while threatening not to let the flag carrier operate anywhere in the world. Pannun had previously threatened to also disrupt Indian railways and thermal power plants. How would the U.S. react if an India-based militant designated by America as a terrorist were to make such terrorist threats under India’s protection?
NSB
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[9/25/2024 7:18 PM, 50.2K followers, 11 retweets, 55 likes]
In NY, Foreign Affairs Adviser HE Md. Touhid Hossain addressed #UN #SecurityCouncil Open Debate on LEADERSHIP FOR PEACE and shared #Bangladesh perspectives on #peace. @ChiefAdviserGoB

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[9/25/2024 6:08 PM, 50.2K followers, 66 retweets, 735 likes]
Foreign Minister HE Wang Yi met with 🇧🇩Chief Adviser HE Prof Muhammad Yunus in NY; and discussed deepening connects betn peoples of #Bangladesh-#China, especially engaging youth and coopn thru investment in #trade #RenewableEnergy #education. @ChiefAdviserGoB @SpokespersonCHN

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[9/25/2024 3:52 PM, 50.2K followers, 65 retweets, 741 likes]
In NY, Bangladesh Chief Adviser HE Prof Muhammad Yunus and 🇳🇵Prime Minister HE K P Sharma Oli discussed enhancing #business #energy #transport collaboration between #Bangladesh and #Nepal. Acknowledged growing presence of Nepal students in Bangladesh. @ChiefAdviserGoB @PM_nepal_ @hello_sarkar

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[9/25/2024 12:31 PM, 50.2K followers, 136 retweets, 1.2K likes]
Chief Adviser HE Prof Muhammad Yunus and Pakistan Prime Minister @CMShehbaz, in NY, discussed #Bangladesh | #Pakistan ties, engagements between two peoples and progress & prosperity in South Asian region. @GovtofPakistan @PakPMO @ChiefAdviserGoB

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[9/25/2024 10:35 AM, 50.2K followers, 39 retweets, 589 likes] Chief Adviser HE Prof Muhammad Yunus discussed with @USAID Administrator @PowerUSAID (Samantha Power) diverse areas to deepen #USA cooperation with #Bangladesh e.g. transport, energy, justice, youth. @ChiefAdviserGoB @Yunus_Centre @StateDept

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maldives
@MoFAmv
[9/25/2024 6:46 PM, 54.8K followers, 60 retweets, 56 likes]
FM @MoosaZameer accompanied HEP Dr. @MMuizzu at the #UNSC open debate on “Leadership for Peace: United in Respect of the UN Charter, in Search for a Secure Future.” HEP emphasized the need for an effective Council, reforms to enhance inclusivity and responsiveness to conflicts.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maldives
@MoFAmv
[9/25/2024 6:36 PM, 54.8K followers, 51 retweets, 55 likes]
FM @MoosaZameer addressed the #G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting held today on the sidelines of #UNGA79. He reiterated the Maldives’ call for effective multilateral systems that addresses the needs of the #SIDS, ensuring that no country is left behind in the pursuit of prosperity.

K P Sharma Oli
@kpsharmaoli
[9/25/2024 4:14 PM, 858.4K followers, 36 retweets, 200 likes]
Delighted to meet with @ChiefAdviserGoB H.E. Prof. Dr. Muhammad Yunus #UNGA79. Discussed Nepal-Bangladesh relations, focusing on energy & transit cooperation, tourism, cultural exchanges, educational ties & cooperation in regional/multilateral forums.

K P Sharma Oli
@kpsharmaoli
[9/25/2024 1:11 PM, 858.4K followers, 22 retweets, 143 likes]
Addressed the High-Level Plenary Meeting on “Addressing the Threats Posed by Sea Level Rise” #UNGA79 Representing the nation of Mt. Everest and the mighty Himalayas, I called for urgent and integrated climate action from ‘Mountain to Sea.’ #ClimateJustice

K P Sharma Oli
@kpsharmaoli
[9/25/2024 12:43 PM, 858.4K followers, 30 retweets, 171 likes]
While addressing the Climate Vulnerable Forum Leaders Meeting, I emphasized ensuring climate justice. Despite minimal GHG emissions, we suffer the most. We call for fair and concessional climate finance. We fully support the CVF Leaders Declaration #CVF #UNGA79 #ClimateAction

Anura Kumara Dissanayake
@anuradisanayake
[9/25/2024 10:31 AM, 120K followers, 141 retweets, 1.4K likes]
New Governors for 09 Provinces were appointed today (25) at the Presidential Secretariat.The newly appointed Governors are as follows,
01. Mr. Hanif Yusuf - Governor of the Western Province
02. Mr. Sarath Bandara Samarasinghe Abayakon - Governor of the Central Province03. Mr. Bandula Harischandra - Governor of the Southern Province
04. Mr. Tissa Kumarasiri Warnasuriya - Governor of the North Western (Wayamba) Province
05. Mr. Wasantha Kumara Wimalasiri - Governor of the North Central Province
06. Mr. Nagalingam Vethanayagam - Governor of the Northern Province
07. Mr. Jayantha Lal Ratnasekara - Governor of the Eastern Province
08. Mrs. Champa Janaki Rajaratne - Governor of the Sabaragamuwa Province
09. Mr. Kapila Jayasekara - Governor of the Uva Province
The President’s Secretary, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, was also present at the occasion.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake
@anuradisanayake
[9/25/2024 12:12 PM, 120K followers, 119 retweets, 693 likes]
Inaugural address to the nation - 2024.09.25

Esteemed Maha Sangha and Religious Leaders, Parents, Brothers, Sisters and Children; I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all the people of this country who have listened to our voices over the decades and breathed life into the programs we proposed. We believe that the victory you have given us will be even more strengthened if it brings joy to those who may not have agreed with our vision. Therefore, I want to dedicate this victory to all citizens of our nation. We honour and remember the courageous men and women of previous generations who made sacrifices, some with their lives, for this victory. I see this victory and the prosperous nation we aim to build as a tribute to their legacy. We believe that all people, including those who trusted us despite slander, falsehoods, and misinformation, and elected our political movement with great determination have the strength to shoulder the responsibility of building this nation together. We are capable of fulfilling this role as a united team, and we have a talented team dedicated to this mission. Our determination is unwavering.

The change we seek involves many steps that will take time. However, achieving stability and confidence in the current economy is crucial. We plan to begin negotiations with the International Monetary Fund immediately and proceed with activities related to the extended credit facility. Additionally, to advance our debt restructuring program, we are negotiating with relevant creditors to expedite the process and secure necessary debt relief. We are confident that we can gain the support of both the people of this country and the international community, and we believe that through this collective support, we can achieve success.

A key concept that resonates with the public is our commitment to making a “difference.” One of the primary changes citizens expect is to eliminate the negative traits in our political culture. Our track record thus far supports this commitment. Notably, we succeeded in making the presidential election the only one in Sri Lanka without reports of post-election violence, which reflects the trust the people have placed in us. Our aim is to confirm and stabilize this positive situation.

At this moment, I want to highlight the importance of engaging in politics with a collective focus on building our country. We are committed to providing that leadership. Regardless of whether one identifies as Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, Burgher, or Malay, our nation will not thrive until we create a practical environment where everyone can proudly say, "We are Sri Lankan citizens." We will not hesitate to implement the necessary constitutional, economic, and political reforms.

We are launching a permanent program to build a unified Sri Lankan nation that respects diversity, fully ending the era of division based on race, religion, class, and caste. We have already taken significant steps to appoint efficient and honest officials to oversee these initiatives. We are advancing steadily toward the desired changes, ensuring that public service remains intact and citizens are not adversely affected. We are committed to creating a law-abiding nation and fostering a disciplined society while ensuring the social security of all citizens. This revives the principle that everyone is equal before the law. We believe that public service plays a crucial role in nation-building. To that end, we will establish a public service that instills pride in the community and aligns with the government’s goals. Our commitment is to create an efficient, honest, and people-focused public service.

Our goal is to improve the standard of living for the people of this country. We are implementing practical programs to alleviate the heavy burdens faced by our citizens. No parent in this country should have to worry about their child’s future. Every parent deserves the right to provide their child with access to quality schools and education. We are fully committed to securing the future of the next generation by ensuring excellent education for all children. By fostering knowledge, attitudes, and skills, we are building a promising future for the young generation of our country.

When we visit a country, the airport often offers a first impression, reflecting its order, the behaviour of its people, their work ethic, and cultural practices. It also reveals the country’s cleanliness, how vehicles are driven, how the elderly are treated, the hospitality shown, and even how animals are cared for. We have developed clear plans to enhance Sri Lanka’s image in these areas, with short-term, medium-term, and long-term initiatives already underway.

Our goal is to create a nation where the world respects our passport, and where every citizen can proudly say, "I am a Sri Lankan." We aim to build a country where citizenship is a source of pride for all. Achieving this vision will require the collective effort of every citizen. We are committed to creating a system that upholds social justice for all, and we will do so with the highest sense of responsibility. We are building a secure future for our children and youth through a program that promotes knowledge, skills, education, and entrepreneurship.

The women in our community, who make up over 52% of our population, play a vital role in both the economy and the social fabric of our country. We are actively working to enhance women’s representation across all institutions. As a testament to our commitment, we have already appointed a woman as Prime Minister. A significant portion of our population consists of individuals with disabilities who require special social protection. To support this group, we have proposed a robust social safety net and are implementing short-term measures to address their needs. We ensure that no group within our society is overlooked on our journey forward. By respecting each other’s identities and harnessing them positively for the country’s progress, we make our collective contribution. We hold a strong belief in the sovereignty of the people and are committed to safeguarding their democratic rights.

I understand that some may feel uncertain due to doubts about us, but I am determined to earn your trust through my actions. I welcome your constructive criticism and encourage you to join us in building the future together. If we can set aside our differences, I believe you will see that we share the same goals. Together, we can confront the challenges facing our country and develop the necessary strategies to move forward. Our doors are open to all who are genuinely and positively committed to the progress of our nation. We require a Parliament that accurately reflects the will of the people. The existing Parliament does not represent that will. Therefore, I took the step yesterday to dissolve it. A cabinet was appointed in line with our parliamentary representation to guide the country in accordance with the constitution. There is one dream our people see every new day the sun rises. That is “tomorrow will be better than today!”

However, You and I both learn for many years, this has remained merely a dream. Opportunism, the greed of power, and authoritarianism has hindered our country’s progress. But now we have our final opportunity which cannot be missed. Let us unite to create a thriving and beautiful country that embraces diversity. Thank you

Brahma Chellaney
@Chellaney
[9/25/2024 2:07 PM, 266.2K followers, 45 retweets, 227 likes]
After winning on an anti-establishment vote, Sri Lanka’s new Marxist president has sought to extend his political fortunes by dissolving Parliament, forcing new elections. A.K. Dissanayake’s humble beginnings as a toffee seller parallel those of Modi, who began as a tea seller.
Central Asia
MFA Kazakhstan
@MFA_KZ
[9/25/2024 12:26 PM, 52.9K followers, 13 retweets, 28 likes]
On the eve of the 15th Anniversary of @Turkic_States, Kazakh FM Nurtleu chaired an informal meeting on the sidelines of the #UNGA. #OTS Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to cooperation, stressing unity and solidarity among Turkic nations. https://gov.kz/memleket/entities/mfa/press/news/details/852861?lang=en

MFA Kazakhstan
@MFA_KZ
[9/25/2024 11:11 AM, 52.9K followers, 2 retweets, 7 likes]
On the eve of the high-level week of the 79th #UNGA, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan submitted documents to the @UN Secretariat for the registration and publication of the State Border Demarcation Treaty, in line with Article 102 of the UN Charter. https://gov.kz/memleket/entities/mfa/press/news/details/852829?lang=en

MFA Tajikistan
@MOFA_Tajikistan
[9/25/2024 1:38 AM, 5K followers, 1 like]
Celebration of Independence Day and 30th anniversary of the Constitution in diplomatic missions of Tajikistan https://mfa.tj/en/main/view/15806/celebration-of-independence-day-and-30th-anniversary-of-the-constitution-in-diplomatic-missions-of-tajikistan

MFA Tajikistan
@MOFA_Tajikistan
[9/25/2024 11:03 PM, 5K followers]
Participation and speech at the General Debate of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly https://mfa.tj/en/main/view/15800/participation-and-speech-at-the-general-debate-of-the-79th-session-of-the-un-general-assembly

MFA Tajikistan
@MOFA_Tajikistan
[9/25/2024 7:45 AM, 5K followers, 2 retweets, 4 likes]
Speech of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan at the General Debates of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly https://mfa.tj/en/main/view/15801/speech-of-the-president-of-the-republic-of-tajikistan-at-the-general-debates-of-the-79th-session-of-the-united-nations-general-assembly

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[9/25/2024 10:07 AM, 201.2K followers, 1 retweet, 6 likes]
On the sidelines of the IX #AIIBAnnualMeeting in #Samarkand, President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev met with #AIIB President Jin Liqun to discuss strengthening cooperation. He initiated the preparation of a strategic partnership program with AIIB, focusing on infrastructure development until 2030. Following the meeting, an updated roadmap for 2026 was signed, outlining promising projects valued at over $4 billion.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[9/25/2024 9:21 AM, 201.2K followers, 6 retweets, 14 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev addressed the IX Annual Meeting of the @AIIB_Official in #Samarkand, centered on the theme "Building Sustainable Infrastructure for All." The agenda covered key issues related to the global economy, finance and infrastructure development in Asia and beyond.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[9/25/2024 2:59 AM, 201.2K followers, 3 retweets, 17 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev was informed of proposals aimed at advancing the vocational education system and reforming the national qualifications framework, including the integration of international educational programs. Notably, the English #BTEC program will be implemented in select schools across the country, with diplomas recognized in 70 countries globally. These initiatives seek to enhance the quality of education and align qualifications with international standards.

Saida Mirziyoyeva
@SMirziyoyeva
[9/25/2024 12:05 PM, 19.5K followers, 3 retweets, 59 likes]
Honored to be part of the Silk Roads exhibition opening at @britishmuseum Featuring rare artifacts from Uzbekistan, it highlights our rich heritage and fosters cultural connections. A must-see for anyone passionate about Silk Road history! #SilkRoadsExhibition #UzbekistanHeritage

Bakhtiyor Saidov
@FM_Saidov
[9/25/2024 11:38 PM, 9.3K followers, 2 retweets, 5 likes]
Strengthening economic ties, expanding B2B collaboration, favorable conditions for foreign companies in Uzbekistan and many more were on the focus of our today’s meeting with representatives of the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce, @Citi, @FedEx, @Visa, @JPMorgan, @UrnexBrands, Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, Thermoplan. Invite all to visit #Uzbekistan and to witness the transformations themselves.

Bakhtiyor Saidov
@FM_Saidov
[9/25/2024 4:14 PM, 9.3K followers]
Together with my colleagues from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Krygyzstan, Turkey we held the Meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of @Turkic_States. We covered the implementation of all the agreements reached during the previous summits, preparation for the upcoming events, as well as the acute topics of regional and global agenda.

Bakhtiyor Saidov
@FM_Saidov
[9/25/2024 11:19 PM, 9.3K followers, 4 retweets, 10 likes]
Privileged to address at the #UNGA79. Conveyed best wishes of peace and prosperity from @President_Uz H.E. Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the @UN leadership, heads of state, and delegations. We are witnessing the escalation of turbulences in many parts of the world. Call all for closer global cooperation in addressing pressing challenges like climate change, poverty, technological disparities. Commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals and active role in promoting peace and stability in Central Asia will remain our key priorities.
In this regard, Uzbekistan proposes for:
- reforming the international financial system to empower developing nations;
- ensuring safe, accessible digital technologies for all;
- international collaboration to combat climate change, especially in vulnerable regions of Central Asia;
- women and youth empowerment;
- joining our counter-terrorism and anti-corruption efforts;
- enhancing transport corridors and economic ties within Central Asia and beyond;
- expanding Educational center for Afghan citizens in Termez into the Global training center.

Bakhtiyor Saidov
@FM_Saidov
[9/25/2024 10:15 PM, 9.3K followers, 3 retweets, 8 likes]
Today, together with KZ DPM and FM H.E. Murat Nurtleu we submitted to the UN Secretariat the Treaty between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Kazakhstan On the Demarcation of the UZ-KZ State Border. @President_Uz H.E. Shavkat Mirziyoyev and KZ President H.E. @TokayevKZ signed the Treaty in 2022. This Agreement marks many years of joint collaboration on legal formulation of the #Uzbek-#Kazakh state border. Registration of the Treaty with the @UN Secretariat sets the precedent in the history of #CentralAsia states and demonstrates the very close friendly atmosphere in the region.

{End of Report}
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