India and the World

India hails P5+1 nuclear deal as triumph of diplomacy

- by India Writes Network

The historic nuclear deal between the West and Iran has sparked a wave of applause from around the world and elicited a strong welcome from India.

The P5+1 (US, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany) have reached what US President Barack Obama has called a “historic understanding with Iran”. The framework agreement chalks out the agenda for future negotiations, the nuanced details of which shall be worked over the next three months. It allays the fears of Iran gaining nuclear weapons under the guise of pursuing a civilian nuclear programme (under these conditions the “breakout time” would be a year, if the deal is broken), and is a big step in ending the decades of sanction and diplomatic apartheid Iran has faced from the West and its allies.

Calling it a triumph of dialogue and diplomacy, India, which has shielded its partnership with Tehran from Western pressure, has promptly welcomed the accord in Lausanne. “A significant step seems to have been taken with agreement on the parameters of a comprehensive settlement to be negotiated by June 30,” India’s external affairs ministry said in a statement.

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Real Battle in Nigeria: Buhari versus Boko Haram

- by India Writes Network

After a clear victory in elections, Nigeria’s President-elect Muahmmadu Buhari has identified his top most priority and mission: ending the deadly mix of insurgency and terrorism as epitomised in the rise of Boko Haram and its barbaric activities.

With his party, the All Progressive Congress, elected by huge margins in the states most affected by the Boko Haram group, Gen. Buhari has the requisite popular support to take on the country’s insidious enemy.

Moreover, judging by past trends, Boko Haram cadre usually either move further North East towards Chad, while maintaining pressure on security forces within the North Eastern states or disperse towards the North West, which includes Katsina-the state Buhari belongs to and has won from.

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India condemns Kenya attack, calls for global fight against terror

- by India Writes Network

India, a key partner of New Delhi in East Africa and home to a large Indian diaspora, has strongly condemned the terrorist attack on a university campus at Garissa in north-eastern Kenya and underlined the need for intensified international cooperation to combat the scourge of terrorism that cuts across terrorism.
“We stand in solidarity and sympathy with the bereaved families and the injured, and convey our heart-felt condolences to the Government and people of Kenya,” India’s external affairs ministry said in New Delhi a day after the barbaric terror attack on April 2.
“This outrageous terrorist act is yet another reminder that the menace of terrorism continues to threaten us all and the international community needs to further strengthen its fight against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” said the ministry.
In the deadliest attack in the country since US embassy bombings in 1998, at least 147 students were slaughtered when Somalia’s Shebab Islamist group attacked a Kenyan university.
The attack lasted some 16 hours from before dawn until well after dark and has ended with all four terrorists killed.
The university attack came barely a couple of years after the spectacular mall terror attack in the heart of Nairobi, and put the spotlight on the proliferation of terror networks in the African continent.

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India banks on yoga export: Blending soft power and commerce

- by India Writes Network

India is banking on the global popularity of yoga to cash in on the success of its most famous cultural export. In the recently unveiled new Foreign Trade Policy, yoga has been included under the services export section, a move that shows the government’s enterprise in leveraging its soft power.

The trade policy focus on the ancient Indian discipline of wellness has come in the run-up to a host of events India will be hosting for celebrations relating to the International Day of Yoga on June 21, a pioneering step that was possible only with India’s proactive diplomacy.

The new trade policy aspires to make India a star player in world trade by 2020 – currently Asia’s third largest economy accounts just about 2% of global trade.

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348 Indian nationals evacuated from war-torn Yemen

- by India Writes Network

As the Gulf country descended deeper into violence and anarchy, India evacuated 348 Indian nationals from the war-torn Yemen. They are being taken to Djibouti across the red sea on the horn of Africa, where the Indian Air Force is waiting to fly them home.

INS Sumitra, India’s major petrol vessel, was deployed to rescue Indian nationals after New Delhi got permission to dock its ship at Aden Harbor in Yemen, and evacuate Indians who were stranded in the port city. The Indian government has launched a massive operation through sea and air to bring back around 4,000 citizens stuck in different part of war-ridden Yemen.

The Indian Navy ship departed from Yemen to Djibouti with 348 Indian nationals on March 31 night. They have reached Djibouti on April 1 morning, from where they will be airlifted to India.

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Pakistan wakes up, says India’s growth crucial for SAARC’s success

- by India Writes Network

Signalling a turnaround in Islamabad’s attitude towards the India story, Pakistan’s High Commissioner Abdul Basit has underscored that India should continue to achieve higher growth rate and termed the country a major driving force in the success of entire South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries.

“If India rises, confidence of the entire region rises. We in South Asia do believe that India does have a wherewithal and resolves to step to the plate and ensure that it achieves its economic goals, because if India rises we are confident the entire region will rise with India,” said Mr Basit at a meeting organized by industry body ASSOCHAM in New Delhi on March 30.

The envoy also stressed on the importance of creating a level playing field among the members of SAARC, and said that economic development shouldn’t be muted in the political noise.

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Flood in Kashmir again, Modi govt. springs into action

- by India Writes Network

Before Jammu and Kashmir could fully recover from the disastrous flood of September last year, the valley woke up to another nightmare due to the incessant rain, which has created havoc in the state.

The unseasonal heavy rain in the most part of Kashmir destroyed homes, crops and raised fears of flash- flood in the state. Hundreds of people fled their homes to safer places as the main rivers started to swell. People in the state witnessed continuous power cuts, water logging and landslides, bringing back the dreadful memory of the flood last year. The weather department has forecasted torrential rain in coming week.

According to the J & K government officials, water level of Jhelum River has passed the danger level at 22.4 feet and 18.8 feet at Sangam in South Kashmir and Ram Munshi Bah Srinagar city respectively. If the water level crosses 23-feet mark, state will have to undertake massive rescue operations to evacuate people stranded in areas adjoining the river.

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Israeli Elections: Process, outcomes and what lies ahead

- by India Writes Network

The campaign slogans showed a stark divide. Likud’s “It’s us or them” and Zionist Union’s “It’s us or him”, made the campaign personal and, as several media outlets called it, a referendum on Netanyahu’s leadership. He has been in power since 2009, and the economy worsened and the peace process stalled. However, Bibi’s last-minute acrimonious campaign for right wing votes seems to have paid off.
By these elections, Israelis have shown that homeland security remains central. The peace process seems to be stalled yet again. Soon after the election results, PA official Erekat said that in light of Mr Netanyahu’s statements, it was clear that “there is no partner on the Israeli side”.
For India, the election results mean business as usual. The bilateral relations have been on an upsurge since the NDA government took over, which looks forward to buttressing ties on homeland security, defence (Israel is the third largest arms supplier) and agriculture. Israel has a robust high-technology agriculture research and implementation programme, especially suited to dry land agriculture (majority of Indian agriculture remains drought/ desertification prone). Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited Israel last year after the warm exchanges between Mr Netanyahu and Mr Modi on sidelines of the UNGA meet in Washington last year.

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