Author: Disha Mishra
The European Union Foreign Affairs Council has decided to revive annual Association Council meetings with Israel, according to newly appointed EU Foreign Policy chief Kaja Kallas, following discussions with EU foreign ministers in Brussels. No date has been scheduled for the next session. The Association Council is designed facilitate an annual dialogue between Israel and the European Union. “Israel sees the Council meeting, which has been avoided for years, as an important means of promoting cooperation in a variety of areas with its largest trading partner, and a significant platform for presenting its positions on Middle East issues,” according to…
Chief of Russia’s Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed in a blast in southeastern Moscow on Tuesday morning, state media reported. The blast was caused by an explosive device that had been planted in an electric scooter, Spokeswoman for the Russian Investigative Committee Svetlana Petrenko said as per the TASS news agency. “On the morning of December 17, an explosive device planted in a scooter went off near a residential building entrance on Ryazansky Avenue in Moscow, the investigation showed. Chief of Russia’s Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Lieutenant General…
The US has reiterated its call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas as a step towards resolving the ongoing conflict. At the Daily Press Briefing, the statement was made by Matthew Miller, Spokesperson of the US Department of State. While responding the questions, Matthew Miller addressed various issues, including the hostage negotiations in Gaza, civilian casualties, the call for a ceasefire, and humanitarian aid. He also discussed other key matters in West Asia, such as the situation in Syria. When asked about the latest development on the hostage negotiations in Gaza, Matthew Miller expressed that there is a “lot…
The Swiss Embassy in New Delhi has clarified that Switzerland’s suspension of India’s Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status will not affect the bilateral relations between the two nations. In responsding to a query from media about the potential impact of the decision on Swiss investments in India, the embassy clarified, “The current suspension from the Swiss side of the application of the most-favoured-nation clause (MFN) under the protocol to the double taxation agreement between Switzerland and India does neither affect the free trade agreement between the two countries nor Swiss investments in India. It adapts the Swiss interpretation of the…
The Interior Minister of Pakistan Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday instructed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to initiate a nationwide crackdown on human smuggling networks, following Pakistani nationals lost their lives while attempting to enter Europe illegally by boat, according to a report by The News International. Naqvi emphasized the urgent need to dismantle the criminal networks, which have responsible for devastating families. Following instructions from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a committee chaired by the additional secretary of the Ministry of Interior has been formed to investigate the tragedy. The committee is required to complete its investigation and submit a report…
On Friday, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar emphasized the Neighbourhood First Policy in Parliament, while responding to a question from Congress MP Manish Tewari. Manish Tewari questioned, “India was the 8th country which the new President of the Maldives visited after being elected on an oust india campaign, and that too based upon their economic compulsions. Number two, Nepal. China was the first country the newly elected Nepalese Prime Ministert visited and signed on the Belt and Road Intitiave. Sri Lanka, 12.9 per cent of Sri Lanka’s external debt is held by China. Bhutan, the Sino-Bhutan border negotitions are…
On Friday, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated that India would like to have good ties with Pakistan as it does with all its neighbour but would like to have ties free of terrorism like any other neighbour. While addressing in Lok Sabha on Friday, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar stated that India has made it very clear it is for the Pakistani side to show that they are changing their behaviour of the past and if they don’t, it will have implications for the bilateral ties. BJP MP Naveen Jindal questioned India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar…
Khalil Ur-Rahman Haqqani, Afghanistan’s acting minister for refugees, was eliminated in an explosion in Kabul on Wednesday, as per Al Jazeera report. The attack also claimed the lives of five others. The explosion occurred at the Ministry of Refugees, where Haqqani was working. A Taliban spokesman confirmed his death, while officials from the Interior Ministry reported that the explosion resulted from a suicide bombing. The Islamic State group (IS) later claimed responsibility for the attack. Haqqani’s death represents a significant loss for the Taliban government, which came into power following the US-led withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. Since then, he…
On Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces stated, Israel eliminated the head of Hamas’s paragliding unit and a commander in the terror group’s elite Nukhba Force, both of whom were involved in the October 7 attacks. The Israel Defense Forces reported that Salah Dahham, the leader of Hamas’s paragliding unit, was killed in Jabaliya , a northern Gaza area where Hamas has been attempting to regroup. Dahham had orchestrated Hamas’s aerial infiltration into southern Israel during the October 7 attack. A separate airstrike the Israel Defense Forces killed Fehmi Salmi, a Nukhba Force commander. According to the army, Salmi was operating…
On Wednesday, Supreme leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused the United States and Israel of orchestrating the ongoing conflict in Syria, calling it as a “joint plot” intented to destabilize the region. Khamenei also claimed that a “neighbouring country” is also playing a key role in the unrest but emphasised that the main conspirators are the US and the “Zionist regime.” Sharing a post on X, he stated, “No one should doubt that what has taken place in #Syria is the product of a joint US-Israeli plot.” “A government in a neighboring country of Syria has played and is…