Digest year-ender for international stories for month of February, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of February, 2018

Press Trust of India

Feb 1: Kathmandu: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held one-on-one meeting with the Left alliance leader and CPN-UML chairman K P Sharma Oli and the two leaders discussed ways to take the special relationship between India and Nepal forward.

Feb 2: Washington: US President Donald Trump today authorised the release of a controversial Republican memo alleging intelligence abuses, hours after he accused the Justice Department and the FBI of a "pro-Democrat bias", saying they had "politicised" the probe against Republicans.

Feb 3: Washington: The Trump administration announces a new policy to modernise its nuclear arsenal by developing new smaller atomic bombs and enhancing its deterrence capabilities.

Feb 4: Washington: Several hundred highly-skilled Indian workers, in long agonising green card wait, from across the US along with their children and spouses hold a rally in front of the White House here in support of President Donald Trump's plan for a merit-based immigration system that among other things ends chain migration and diversity lottery visa.

Feb 5: Male: The Maldives government declared a 15-day state of emergency today as the political crisis deepened in the Indian Ocean nation amid an increasingly bitter standoff between the president and the Supreme Court.

Feb 6: Colombo/Male: Maldives' Supreme court tonight revoked an order to release nine high-profile political prisoners, hours after former president Mohamed Nasheed sought India's military intervention to resolve the ongoing political crisis in his country following declaration of emergency by President Abdulla Yameen and arrest of two top judges.

Feb 7: Beijing: China warns against any military intervention in the Maldives, saying such a move would further complicate the situation, amid repeated calls for India's military intervention by exiled former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed to resolve the political crisis. Feb 8: Dhaka: Khaleda Zia was today sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment for corruption, a body blow for the ex-Bangladeshi prime minister who may be disqualified from contesting general elections in December, as thousands of her supporters staged protests against her jailing.

Feb 9: Washington: US President Donald Trump signed a crucial spending bill today, reopening the US government after a brief shutdown, the second in three weeks, and a night of high drama in Congress.

Feb 10: Abu Dhabi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan today as the two sides signed five agreements including a historic pact awarding a consortium of Indian oil companies a 10 per cent stake in offshore oil concession.

Feb 11: Stepanovskoye (Russia), Feb 11 (AFP) A Russian passenger plane carrying 71 people crashed near Moscow today minutes after taking off, killing everyone on board in one of the country's worst ever aviation disasters.

Feb 12: Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin said today at the start of talks with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas that he had discussed the Middle East conflict with his US counterpart Donald Trump.

Feb 13: Washington: China is 'coercing' its neighbours to reorder the Indo-Pacific region to its advantage, the Pentagon tells Congress amid Beijing flexing its muscles in the East and South China Seas. Feb 14: Johannesburg: A defiant Jacob Zuma refuses to step down as the South African president, hours after the ruling African National Congress ordered him to quit by this evening or face a motion of no confidence in Parliament. Feb 15: Washington: An expelled former student armed with a powerful assault rifle unleashed a hail of gunfire in a Florida high school, killing 17 people and injuring 15 others, including an Indian-American student, in one of the grizzliest mass shootings in modern US history.

Feb 16: Kathmandu: Questions are already being raised over the future of the new Nepal government, a day after CPN-UML leader K P Sharma Oli was sworn in as prime minister, as no ministers from ally CPN-Maoist Centre have been included in the Cabinet. Feb 17: Lahore: An anti-terrorism court in Pakistan today sentenced to death a serial killer for the brutal rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl that sparked national outrage, the first ever trial in the country's history that concluded in shortest period of four days.

Feb 18: Tehran: An Iranian passenger plane on a domestic flight crashes into the country's Zagros mountains killing all 66 people on board.

Feb 19: Colombo/Male: The state of emergency in trouble-torn Maldives was today extended by 30 days after a key parliamentary committee approved President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom's request, a media report said, allowing him to reinforce his power in the picturesque Indian Ocean island nation.

Feb 20: Dhaka: Former Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia challenges the five-year prison sentence handed out to her in a corruption case, claiming that the verdict was politically motivated to debar her from contesting the general elections in December.

Feb 21: Mary (Turkmenistan): India says it is "strongly committed" to the USD 10 billion trans-national TAPI pipeline project that will help ease energy shortages in South Asia, but voices concerns over the security and predictability of supply of gas and sought contractual assurances.

Feb 22: Washington: US President Donald Trump today imposed the "heaviest-ever" sanctions on North Korea's shipping companies in a bid to prevent the reclusive nation from acquiring nuclear weapons and developing intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Feb 23: Islamabad: Pakistan today said that India's desire to become a "regional hegemon" is casting a "dark shadow" in the region.

Feb 24: Washington: President Donald Trump again blames India and China for his decision last year to withdraw from the historic Paris climate accord, saying the agreement was unfair as it would have made the US pay for nations which benefited the most from the deal. Feb 25: Beijing: In an unprecedented move, China's ruling Communist Party today prepared the ground for President Xi Jinping to stay in power indefinitely after the end of his second term in 2022 as it proposed to remove presidential term limits from the party's Constitution.

Feb 26: London: A powerful explosion ripped through a three-storey building killed at least five people and injured five others in Leicester, police said today but ruled out a terror link to the "earthquake-like" blast in the English city, home to a large number of people of Indian-origin.

Feb 27: Washington: President Donald Trump recalled a conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the high import tariffs on Harley-Davidson motorcycles, saying India is not doing the US any "favour" by slashing customs duty to 50 per cent. Feb 28: Hazeh (Syria): In Syria's rebel-held Eastern Ghouta enclave, the bombs have stopped falling from the sky but the dead are still being raised from the rubble.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of March, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of March, 2018

Press Trust of India

Mar 1: Islamabad: Pakistan says it was ready for mediation between the Afghan government and the Taliban as it extended support to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's political process in the war-torn country. Mar 2: Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso): Armed men attacked the French embassy in Burkina Faso and the country's military headquarters today before being repelled in a battle that left dozens of dead or injured.

Mar 3: Seoul: North Korea today lambasted the US for attaching preconditions to any dialogue between the states, as Seoul prepares to send an envoy to Pyongyang to help open talks on easing the nuclear stand-off on the peninsula.

Mar 4: Berlin: Chancellor Angela Merkel today vowed to work with the Social Democrats for the "good of Germany", after the centre-left party agreed to join her new coalition, but the veteran leader will go into her fourth term with weaker cards than before.

Mar 5: Beijing: China announces an 8.1 per cent hike in its defence budget in 2018 to a whopping USD 175 billion, over three times higher than that of India, as an increasingly assertive Beijing focused on the modernisation and reach of the country's military, amidst simmering disputes with its neighbours. Mar 6: Douma (Syria): Heavy air strikes and clashes shook the Syrian rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta today, as France and Britain called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting on the escalating violence.

Mar 7: Colombo: Fresh violence today erupted between majority Sinhala Buddhists and minority Muslims in other areas of central Sri Lanka's riot-hit Kandy district, prompting authorities to extend a curfew till tomorrow.

Mar 8: Washington: President Donald Trump today said he would be "fair and flexible" toward "real friends" of the US while imposing punitive trade tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum as he indicated that Mexico, Canada, Australia and "others" could be exempt.

Mar 9: Washington: President Donald Trump imposes heavy tariffs on imported steel and aluminium which he said were necessary to boost the US industry suffering from "unfair" business practices, a move that has sparked fears of a global trade war. Mar 10: Beijing: China's rubber-stamp legislature is all set to approve tomorrow constitutional changes abolishing a two-term limit for the president, paving the way for Xi Jinping to become the country's leader for life.

Mar 11: Tehran: A Turkish private jet flying from the United Arab Emirates to Istanbul carrying a group of young women crashed tonight in a mountainous region of Iran during a heavy rain, killing all 11 people on board, authorities said.

Mar 12: Kathmandu/Dhaka: A Bangladeshi passenger aircraft crashed and burst into flames today while landing at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) here, killing at least 50 people, in Nepal's worst aviation disaster in more than 25 years.

Mar 13: Washington: Beleaguered Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who was fired today by US President Donald Trump, said he would delegate his responsibilities to his deputy and would step down by end of this month.

Mar 14: Lahore: A teenaged suicide bomber today blew himself up near the residence of Pakistan's ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, killing nine people, including five policemen, police said.

Mar 15: Lahore: Mumbai attack mastermind and Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Saeed today filed a petition in the Lahore High Court, challenging a notification of the interior ministry of Pakistan to ban his social welfare activities.

Mar 16: Astana: Moscow will expel British diplomats in response to London's move to kick out 23 Russian officials over the poisoning of ex-double agent Sergei Skripal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today.

Mar 17: Beijing: Xi Jinping re-elected as president for a second five-year tenure by China's rubber-stamp parliament, days after it scrapped the two-term rule for the presidency and allowed him to have a life-long tenure. Mar 18: Moscow: Vladimir Putin won Russia's presidential election today with almost 74 per cent of the vote, according to an official exit poll, with the opposition reporting ballot stuffing and other cases of alleged fraud.

Mar 19: Beijing: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang today unveiled his new Cabinet as part of the government's efforts to stabilise the world's second largest economy and appointed a missile expert as the defence minister amidst regional tensions with its neighbours over territorial disputes.

Mar 20: Beijing: China will not cede a "single inch" of its territory to others and is ready to wage a "bloody battle" to assume its due place in the world, a belligerent President Xi Jinping, now enjoying a life-long tenure, asserted today.

Mar 21: Kabul: An Islamic State suicide bomber struck on the road to a Shiite shrine in Afghanistan's capital today, killing at least 29 people as Afghans celebrated the Persian new year. (AP) Mar 22: Washington: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg today apologised for a "major breach of trust" with its users and vowed to take steps to protect their data, as the social media giant faced heat by a massive scandal over data siphoned by a data mining firm with ties to the 2016 Trump campaign. Mar 23: Beijing: Don't be "penny wise and pound foolish" in pressing ahead with a trade war, China today warned America as it unveiled plans to impose higher tariffs on 128 US products worth about USD 3 billion, while keeping "powder dry" by sparing big-ticket items for a future date. Mar 24: Washington: After announcing a string of tough trade measures against China, US President Donald Trump has said that Beijing would no longer have a "free reign" like it had been having for many years, which resulted in a massive American trade deficit with it.

Mar 25: Dapchi (Nigeria): The schoolgirls kidnapped by the Boko Haram jihadist group in Dapchi, northeastern Nigeria, were reunited with their families today after spending nearly five weeks in captivity.

Mar 26: Washington: In a decision reminiscent of the Cold War era, the US today expelled 60 Russian diplomats, describing them as "intelligence officers" and ordered closure of the country's consulate in Seattle over the use of nerve agent allegedly by Moscow against a former Russian spy in the UK.

Mar 27: Beijing: Mercurial North Korean leader Kim Jong-un makes an unprecedented whirlwind trip to Beijing - his first foreign trip since he took over power in 2011 - and is reported to have held talks with the top Chinese leadership ahead of his planned summit with US President Donald Trump.

Mar 28: Colombo: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena today reduced the responsibilities of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in the backdrop of the ongoing political turmoil in the country.

Mar 29: Moscow: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today Moscow would expel 60 US diplomats and close its consulate in Saint Petersburg in a tit-for-tat expulsion over the poisoning of ex-double agent Sergei Skripal.

Mar 30: Tokyo: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the two leaders discussed ways to strengthen the bilateral ties.

Mar 31: London: The funeral of legendary British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking was held today in a private ceremony attended by around 500 people comprising family, friends and colleagues, at a church near the Cambridge University college that was his academic home for more than 50 years.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of April, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of April, 2018

Press Trust of India

Apr 1: Washington: The process of filing petitions for H-1B, considered as the most sought-after work visa among highly skilled Indian professionals, begins tomorrow amidst unprecedented scrutiny by the Trump administration.

Apr 2: Cairo: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has been re-elected for a second term with over 97 per cent of valid votes, the National Election Authority (NEA) said today.

Apr 3: Washington: President Donald Trump today proposed to deploy military along the US-Mexico border until a wall is built there to prevent entry of illegal immigrants into the country.

Apr 4: Washington: Personal data on as many as 87 million Facebook users was improperly shared with British political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, the company said today, far greater than the 50 million previously estimated.

Apr 5: Geneva: China has launched a World Trade Organisation challenge against Washington's proposal to slap USD 50 billion in tariffs on Chinese imports over Beijing's alleged theft of intellectual property and technology, documents published today showed.

Apr 6: Washington: US President Donald Trump ramps up his trade war rhetoric with China, seeking USD 100 billion in additional tariffs on Chinese products. Apr 7: United Nations: Pakistan has raised the Kashmir issue with UN Security Council President, saying the situation in the valley and the "escalation" of tension along the Line of Control pose a threat to international peace and security. Apr 8: Washington, Apr 8 (PTI) US President Donald Trump today warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that there would be a "big price to pay" for a chemical attack on a violence-hit town in Syria where dozens of Syrians choked to death.

Apr 9: Dhaka, Apr 9 (PTI) India and Bangladesh today inked six MoUs, including one for the construction of a 129.5-km long oil pipeline between Siliguri and Parbatipur, and discussed the Teesta water sharing issue as well as the Rohingya refugee crisis.

Apr 10: Beijing: India and China held the fifth round of Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Dialogue here, a key platform to discuss international security and disarmament issues amid Beijing's continued efforts to block New Delhi's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). Apr 11: Algiers, Apr 11 (AP) An Algerian military plane carrying soldiers, their families and some refugees crashed soon after takeoff today into a field in northern Algeria, killing 257 people in what appeared to be the North African nation's worst-ever aviation disaster.

Apr 12: Colombo: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena today suspended Parliament for nearly a month, in a surprise move in the backdrop of the ongoing political turmoil in the country.

Apr 13: Islamabad: Pakistan's deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif becomes ineligible to hold public office for life after the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the disqualification of two lawmakers, including him was permanent, in a landmark verdict ending the political future of the three-time premier ahead of general elections this year. Apr 14: Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday voiced his "total support" for US-led air strikes against Syria over its alleged use of chemical weapons.

Apr 15: Washington: The United States will impose new sanctions on Russia over an alleged chemical attack by the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad, US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said today.

Apr 16: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May opens the Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF) here, marking the start of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) with a message of using the organisation to challenge the forces of protectionism and promote greater trade.

Apr 17: Stockholm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with his counterparts from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland and Denmark today vowed to deepen cooperation between India and the Nordic countries, as the leaders deliberated on key issues of security, economic growth and climate change.

Apr 18: London: Prime Minister Narendra Modi told his British counterpart Theresa May there would be no dilution in the importance of the UK to India after it leaves the EU, as the two leaders agreed to infuse new energy into bilateral ties post-Brexit.

Apr 19: London: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today had a series of bilateral meetings, including discussions with his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina and Seychelles President Danny Faure on the sidelines of the multilateral Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) here.

Apr 20: New York: Avicii, one of the world's most successful DJs who helped lead the global boom in electronic music, died today in Oman, his representative said. He was 28.

Apr 21: Seoul: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un says he would halt nuclear tests and intercontinental missile launches, in a Saturday announcement welcomed by US President Donald Trump ahead of a much-anticipated summit between the two men.

Apr 22: Kabul: An Islamic State suicide bomber carried out an attack at a voter registration center in the capital Kabul today, killing 57 people and wounding more than 100 others, said officials form the Afghan interior and public health ministries.

Apr 23: Kathmandu: Nepalese Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli has said that he had spoken to both his Indian and Pakistani counterparts to resume the stalled SAARC process by sorting out their differences.

Apr 24: Washington: French President Emmanuel Macron and his American counterpart Donald Trump called jointly today for a new nuclear deal with Iran, after the US leader denounced the three-year-old accord as "insane." Apr 25: Islamabad/Moscow: The national security advisers of Pakistan and Russia have met in Moscow and discussed the situation in South Asia and the main challenges and threats to global security, media reports said.

Apr 26: Washington: The US Senate voted today to approve former CIA director Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, after a bruising battle by Democrats against President Donald Trump's nominee.

Apr 27: Goyang (South Korea): The leaders of North and South Korea agreed today to pursue a permanent peace treaty and the complete denuclearisation of their divided peninsula at a historic summit laden with symbolism.

Apr 28: Washington: US President Donald Trump said Saturday that "things are going very well" after talking with South Korea's President Moon Jae-in about an upcoming summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Apr 29: Seoul: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told his South Korean counterpart at their historic summit that his country would be willing to give up its nuclear weapons if the US commits to a formal end to the Korean War and a pledge not to attack the North, Seoul officials said today.

Apr 30: Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address today he had new "proof" of an Iranian nuclear weapons plan that could be activated at any time, as the US considers whether to pull out of the atomic accord with Tehran.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of May, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of May, 2018

Press Trust of India

May 1: Kano: Suicide bombers killed more than 60 people at a mosque and a market in northeast Nigeria on Tuesday, in a twin attack bearing the hallmarks of Boko Haram and a day after US President Donald Trump pledged greater support to fight the Islamist militants.

May 2: Washington: Former CIA director Mike Pompeo was today sworn-in as the US Secretary of State and immediately vowed to look into the "flawed" Iran nuclear deal criticised by President Donald Trump.

May 3: Washington: President Donald Trump confirmed today that he reimbursed his personal lawyer the USD 130,000 he had given to adult-film star Stormy Daniels to buy her silence over an alleged affair with him, forcing his advisers to prepare for a new round of questions from the public.

May 4: Washington: President Donald Trump today said that he is willing to testify before Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is probing alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, but wants assurance of fair treatment.

May 5: Jerusalem: Drumming up international support for his call to "fix" or "nix" the Iran nuclear deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reached out to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to update him on the recent developments.

May 6: Lahore: Pakistan's Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal was shot at and injured in a suspected assassination bid after he addressed a rally in Punjab province, police say.

May 7: Kabul: Authorities in Afghanistan are working with tribal elders to trace and free the seven Indian engineers abducted by Taliban gunmen in the restive northern Baghlan province, media reports say.

May 8: Beijing: Sun Zhengcai, once tipped to become President Xi Jinping's successor and later accused of plotting a coup against him, was today sentenced to life imprisonment for taking USD 26.7 million in bribes.

May 9: Washington/London: US President Donald Trump's decision to abandon the landmark Iran nuclear deal shocks the world, with America's closest allies like France, Germany and the UK expressing concern over it while Iran's foes Israel and Saudi Arabia welcoming the move.

May 10: Kuala Lumpur: Ninety-two-year-old Mahathir Mohamad was sworn in as the world's oldest elected leader after a stunning election win that swept Malaysia's establishment from power after more than six decades.

May 11: Islamabad: Pakistan's Defence Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan was today given the additional charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, days after former foreign minister Khawaja Asif was disqualified by the high court here.

May 12: Baghdad: Iraq voted today in its first parliamentary election since declaring victory over the Islamic State group, with growing tensions between neighbouring Iran and the United States threatening a power struggle.

May 13: Islamabad: Pakistan's former interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan says the "uncooperative attitude" and "stubbornness" of the Indian government has been the biggest obstacle in the Mumbai terror attacks trial reaching a conclusion, according to a media report.

May 14: Jerusalem: The US today opened its embassy in Jerusalem under a controversial move by President Donald Trump, amid a bloodbath right on the border with Gaza where Israeli soldiers shot dead at least 52 Palestinians in clashes, in the deadliest escalation of violence since 2014.

May 15: Geneva: North Korea plans to join international efforts to implement a total ban on nuclear weapons tests, it told the United Nations disarmament body today.

May 16: Washington: A key US Senate Committee today approved the nomination of veteran intelligence officer Gina Haspel to become the new director of the CIA despite the bitter debate over her role in the torture used by the US on Al-Qaeda detainees in the early 2000s.

May 17: Lahore: A top Pakistani court dismisses three petitions submitted by opposition parties to initiate treason proceedings against the embattled ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif for his controversial statement on the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, declaring them "non-maintainable".

May 18: Havana: A Cuban state airways plane with 104 passengers on board crashed shortly after taking off from Havana today, leaving a wreck of smoldering fuselage, as the country's president warned many people were feared dead.

May 19: Windsor: Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were pronounced man and wife at the majestic St George's Chapel in iconic Windsor Castle where the couple exchanged wedding vows and sealed their marriage with a kiss before millions of people around the world who watched the glorious event.

May 20: Islamabad: Pakistan's top civil and military leaders decide to give greater administrative and financial authority to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, the region through which the controversial USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor passes.

May 21: Washington: President Donald Trump today tightened financial sanctions against Venezuela following what the US described as a "sham" election in the country.

May 22: Putrajaya: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was grilled for more than four hours today over a corruption scandal that could lead to criminal charges against him, while the country's new anti-graft chief said investigations into the case were suppressed by intimidation during Najib's rule.

May 23: Beijing: Chinese President Xi Jinping says with the entry of India and Pakistan, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has gained more potential for cooperation and more expectations from the international community.

May 24: Moscow: Moscow today rejected an international investigation that found a Russian missile downed flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014, saying no such weapon had ever crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border and blaming Kiev for the tragedy.

May 25: New York: Harvey Weinstein was arrested and arraigned in a court here today on charges that he raped one woman and forced another to perform oral sex on him, months after the disgraced movie mogul was accused by over 80 women of sexual misconduct which sparked the global #MeToo movement.

May 26: London: Ireland today voted overwhelmingly to overturn the abortion ban by 66.4 per cent, a landslide victory for the yes vote to repeal the country's stringent abortion laws in a landmark referendum.

May 27: Seoul: South Korean President Moon Jae-in said today that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un committed in their surprise meeting to sitting down with President Donald Trump and to a "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." May 28: Islamabad: Pakistan's former chief justice Nasirul Mulk was today named as the caretaker prime minister until general elections on July 25 to oversee the second-ever democratic transition of power in the country ruled by the powerful army for much of its life since it gained independence 70 years ago.

May 29: Islamabad: In an unusual move, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has called for a national debate on the future civil-military relations, the role of the judiciary and other state institutions in the country.

May 30: Kiev: Ukraine admitted today it had staged the murder of anti-Kremlin journalist Arkady Babchenko in order to foil an attempt on his life by Russia, a stunning development in a case that had attracted global headlines.

May 31: Moscow: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Pyongyang invites North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to visit Russia, Moscow said, during the first meeting between the head of the reclusive state and a Russian official.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of June, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of June, 2018

Press Trust of India

June 1: Rome: Giuseppe Conte was sworn in as prime minister of Italy's new populist government today after a last-ditch coalition deal ended months of political deadlock and narrowly avoided snap elections in the eurozone's third largest economy.

June 2: Lahore: Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's Jammat-ud-Dawah will contest the July 25 general elections on the platform of Allaha-u-Akbar Tehreek as the group's Milli Muslim League is yet to be registered as a political party, a senior member of the outfit says.

June 3: Beijing: China today warned the US that trade negotiations would be void if it imposes tariffs on Chinese goods, as the latest round of talks organised to avert a trade war between the two largest economies of the world ended here.

June 4: Islamabad: Pakistan Army says there is no space for any war with India as both are nuclear powers, but warns that its desire for peace should not be mistaken for weakness.

June 5: Islamabad: A six-member caretaker federal Cabinet today took oath to run the Pakistan government under interim Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk till the general election on July 25.

June 6: Washington: The World Bank has forecast a growth rate of 7.3 per cent for India this year and 7.5 per cent for the next two years, making it the fastest growing country among major emerging economies.

June 7: Washington: Indians account for more than three-fourths of those highly-skilled professionals waiting in queue to obtain legal permanent residence status in the US, popularly known as Green Card, according to latest official figures.

June 8: Washington: India must address the ongoing crisis in its banking sector to support investment and inclusive growth agenda, says the IMF. June 9: Lahore: Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's JuD is fielding more than 200 candidates for national and provincial assembly seats across Pakistan in the July 25 general election through a dormant political entity as his party has been denied recognition, even though he himself has decided not to run for parliament.

June 10: Qingdao: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani slams the Trump administration for unilaterally dumping the Iran nuclear deal while complimented China, Russia and Europe for trying to protect it.

June 11: Beijing: China presents an upbeat picture of the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at Qingdao, saying they agreed to "cherish" the "positive momentum" generated by their Wuhan meeting and implement the "important consensus" reached at the summit.

June 12: Singapore: President Donald Trump today announced that the US will stop the "very provocative" and costly military drills with key ally South Korea after his historic summit here with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, widely seen as a concession to a jittery Pyongyang.

June 13: Islamabad: Pakistan's Election Commission rejects for a second time an application by the Milli Muslim League, an offshoot of Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's banned Jamat-ud-Dawah, to register it as a political party just weeks before the general elections.

June 14: United Nations: The UN General Assembly has adopted by a strong majority of 120 countries an Arab-backed resolution condemning Israel for Palestinian deaths in Gaza and rejected a US bid to put the blame on Hamas.

June 15: Washington,/Islamabad: Maulana Fazlullah, the dreaded chief of Pakistani Taliban, has been killed in a US drone strike in Afghanistan's restive Kunar province, according to an Afghan defence ministry official.

June 16: London: The UK government tables changes to its immigration policy in Parliament, which includes a review of its strict visa quotas available to professionals from countries like India.

June 17: Islamabad: In fresh trouble for Pakistan's ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, the anti-corruption body has launched another inquiry against him on a journalist's complaint that over Rs 56 million was sent out of the country by his family between 1988 and 1991, according to a media report.

June 18: Athens: President Ram Nath Kovind today met with the top leadership of Greece and discussed issues of economic, political and cultural importance.

June 19: Beijing: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un briefs Chinese President Xi Jinping on his historic summit with US President Donald Trump in Singapore, underscoring Beijing's "important role" in the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

June 20: Washington/United Nations: The US has quit the United Nations Human Rights Council, America's Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley announced today, calling it a "cesspool of political bias" that targets Israel disproportionately while ignoring atrocities in other countries.

June 21: London: Top Indian industry leaders today waded into the ongoing controversy over visas and immigration with the UK government, stressing that the data on Indian students did not back up the apprehension over the so-called visa overstayers.

June 22: Islamabad: Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf today resigned as the chief of All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), days after the Supreme Court barred him from contesting in the July 25 general elections. June 23: Islamabad: Pakistani Taliban militants today appointed Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud as their new chief in place of Mullah Fazlullah, who was recently killed in a US drone strike in Afghanistan's restive Kunar province.

June 24: Riyadh: Saudi women celebrated taking the wheel for the first time in decades today as the kingdom overturned the world's only ban on female motorists, a historic reform expected to usher in a new era of social mobility.

June 25: Istanbul: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan today celebrated winning sweeping new powers in a decisive election victory, as his main rival accepted the outcome despite complaints over an unequal campaign that alarmed the EU.

June 26: London: The EU Withdrawal Bill, the British government's central legislation to pave the way for the country's exit from the European Union by March next year, today officially became law in Parliament.

June 27: Islamabad: Pakistan's National Security Advisor Lt Gen (retd.) Nasser Janjua resigned today, amid reports that he had differences with caretaker Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk.

June 28: Islamabad: Pakistan has lifted a ban on a Sunni extremist outfit and unblocked assets of its chief, in a surprise decision hours before the country was placed on the 'grey list' by the Financial Action Task Force for failing to curb anti-terror financing.

June 29: Brussels: EU leaders clinched a hard-won migration deal during all-night talks today that Italy's hardline new premier said meant his country was "no longer alone" in shouldering the responsibility for migrants.

June 30: United Nations: India tells the UN that it has faced the scourge of terrorism from across the borders for decades, while its counter-terror efforts get thwarted due to lack of global support in exchange of information and extradition of the accused "hiding" outside.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of July, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of July, 2018

Press Trust of India

Jul 1: Islamabad: Pakistan hands over a list of 471 Indian prisoners lodged in Pakistani jails to the Indian High Commission here.

Jul 2: Kabul: Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani mourns the deaths of 19 Afghans, including 17 Sikhs, in a targeted suicide attack by an Islamic State bomber in the eastern city of Jalalabad that also killed the only candidate of the Afghan parliament election from the minority community.

Jul 3: Kathmandu: Nearly 150 Indian pilgrims were evacuated safely as rescue work intensified to bring back over 1,500 Indians who have been stranded in Nepal's mountainous region due to heavy rain while returning from the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage in Tibet.

Jul 4: Islamabad: A top US official has met with Pakistan's powerful Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and reminded him about Islamabad's commitment to eliminate all terrorist groups present within its borders.

Jul 5: London: A UK High Court judge issues an enforcement order in favour of a consortium of 13 Indian banks, seeking to recover funds owed to them by beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya who is fighting extradition to India on fraud and money laundering charges worth nearly Rs 9,000 crore.

Jul 6: Islamabad: Pakistan's deposed premier Nawaz Sharif was today sentenced in absentia to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment by an anti-graft court in one of the three corruption cases against him in the Panama Papers scandal, dealing a huge blow to his party ahead of the elections on July 25.

Jul 7: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May today hailed a "breakthrough" after hours of being locked in with Cabinet ministers at her official country retreat of Chequers to chair what was dubbed as a "make-or-break" Brexit meeting.

Jul 8: Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has met Zakir Naik, wanted in India for alleged terror activities and money laundering, and a ruling party strategist has stoutly defended the government's decision not to deport the controversial Muslim preacher, Malaysian media reported today.

Jul 9: London: Sri Lanka-born Canadian literary icon Michael Ondaatje's 'The English Patient' has won the special one-off Golden Man Booker Prize to mark the 50th anniversary of the prestigious literary award here.

Jul 10: Mae Sai (Thailand): A daring rescue mission in the treacherous confines of a flooded cave in northern Thailand has saved all 12 boys and their soccer coach who were trapped deep within the labyrinth, ending a grueling 18-day ordeal that claimed the life of an experienced volunteer diver and riveted people around the world.

Jul 11: Brussels: US President Donald Trump shocked allies at a fraught NATO summit today by suddenly demanding that members double their defence spending commitments.

Jul 12: Lahore: Over 300 PML-N workers and leaders have been detained in Pakistan in a massive crackdown on the party activists in Lahore ahead of the arrival of its supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, who would be arrested along with his daughter and transported to jail via a helicopter.

Jul 13: Peshawar/Karachi: At least 133 people, including a top nationalist leader, were killed and over 200 others injured today in a powerful suicide blast and a targeted attack on separate election rallies in Pakistan, the deadliest in a series of assaults on candidates ahead of the July 25 polls.

Jul 14: Peshawar: The death toll in the Balochistan suicide blast targeting an election rally rose to 130 today as two persons succumbed to their injuries, prompting the Pakistan government to announce tomorrow as a day of national mourning over a string of terror attacks that have raised security concerns ahead of the July 25 polls.

Jul 15: London: Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May today revealed that Donald Trump had suggested that she "sue" the European Union instead of negotiating with the 28-member economic bloc on Brexit.

Jul 16: Helsinki: Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin vowed a fresh start to troubled relations between the world's greatest nuclear powers at their first summit today, as the American leader rejected a chance to condemn Moscow's alleged manipulation of US elections.

Jul 17: Islamabad: Pakistan today filed its second written reply to India's arguments in the ICJ on the conviction of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism.

Jul 18: Washington: The United States is open to holding direct talks with the Taliban to encourage negotiations between the militant group and the Afghan government to end 17 years of war, US officials said.

Jul 19: Washington: President Donald Trump "disagrees" with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin's offer to allow Russian investigators to come to the US to question American citizens in exchange for assistance in the ongoing US probe into election interference, the White House said today.

Jul 20: United Nations: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today urged UN member-states to keep tough economic sanctions fully in place on North Korea and maintain pressure on Kim Jong Un to dismantle Pyongyang's nuclear program.

Jul 21: New York: Over 20 Indian-origin persons have been sentenced up to 20 years in prison in the US for their involvement in a multimillion-dollar India-based call center scam which defrauded thousands of American citizens of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Jul 22: Peshawar: A former provincial minister and senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was today killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up near his car in the troubled Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, police said.

Jul 23: Kigali: India today extended USD 200 million lines of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in defence, trade and agriculture sectors.

Jul 24: London: Prime Minister Theresa May announced today she will take personal control of Brexit negotiations with the EU, as time runs out to get a deal before Britain leaves the bloc in March.

Jul 25: Islamabad: Pakistan's flamboyant cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was leading in 105 seats while its main rival Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was way behind with 71 seats with trends indicating a possible hung parliament.

Jul 26: Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan today claimed victory in the general elections after his party emerged as the single largest in the National Assembly with its candidates winning 104 seats and leading in 14 others, amid rival political parties' claim of "blatant" rigging.

Jul 27: Johannesburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the digital revolution has offered new opportunities to the members of the BRICS grouping and other emerging economies and it is essential to invest in artificial intelligence and big data analytics to reap the benefits. Jul 28: Islamabad: Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf today emerged as the single largest party, winning 116 of the 270 contested seats, as Pakistan's election commission released final results of the general elections marred by a tediously slow vote count and resulting in allegations of rigging.

Jul 29: Beijing: Tibet has been an "inalienable part" of China since ancient times, Premier Li Keqiang has asserted as he hoped that religious groups in the sensitive region will continue to safeguard national unity and promote social harmony, the state media reported today.

Jul 30: Washington: In a major boost to India, the US today eased export controls for high-technology product sales to it by designating it as a Strategic Trade Authorization-1 (STA-1) country, the only South Asian nation to be on the list.

Jul 31: Jalalabad (Afghanistan): A suicide bomb and gun attack by militants on an Afghan government building in Jalalabad today killed at least 15 people, some burned "beyond recognition", officials said, the latest in a series of assaults on the eastern city.

(Source PTI)