International News

Maldives opposition ready to bring impeachment motion against President Muizzu

January 29, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

The Maldivian opposition party has gathered enough signatures to initiate an impeachment motion against President Mohamed Muizzu.

The main opposition party in the Maldives, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has collected enough signatures needed to initiate a no-confidence motion to launch impeachment proceedings against the Mohamed Muizzu government. The impeachment motion against the pro-China President is likely to be submitted to the parliament soon.

This development comes a day after the Maldivian Parliament witnessed chaos on Sunday when lawmakers came to blows, disrupting a special session convened to seek parliamentary approval for Muizzu’s cabinet ministers. MPs from the ruling alliance consisting of the People’s National Congress (PNC) and the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) clashed with the MDP.

A viral video on social media shows MPs gathered near the speaker’s chair and engaged in a physical fight. During the altercation between Kanditheemu MP Abdulla Hakeem Shaheem and Kendhikulhudhoo MP Ahmed Easa, Shaheem sustained injuries to his head when the two parliamentarians fell near the chamber.

The violence in Parliament occurred after the MDP decided to withhold parliamentary approval for four members of Muizzu’s cabinet ahead of the voting. Subsequently, pro-government MPs initiated a protest, leading to chaos.

Meanwhile, the ruling PPM-PNC coalition has filed no-confidence motions against the Parliament’s Speaker Mohamed Aslam and Deputy Speaker Ahmed Saleem, Sun.mv news website reported.

The ruling coalition have said that denying parliamentary approval to the cabinet will be tantamount to obstructing the services the government gives to citizens.

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This article was originally published on Indiatoday

Chinese President Xi Jinping offers to strengthen China-France ties after French President inks defence deals with India!

January 29, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

Chinese President Xi Jinping announces plans to boost China-France ties and calls for joint efforts in promoting peace, security, prosperity, and progress!

Days after French President Emmanuel Macron’s high-profile visit to India, Chinese President Xi Jinping has announced to boost China-France ties. Jinping has said, “China and France should jointly open up a path of peace, security, prosperity, and progress for human development”. On the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and France, Chinese President Xi offered to “break new ground” to give a fillip to bilateral ties between the two countries.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said they have offered to step up French imports to the country. We will continue to unleash consumer and investment market demand, and continue to expand the import of high-quality products and services from France,” Wang Yi said.

The Chinese foreign minister hoped that France too would provide Chinese companies with a fair, just, and predictable business environment. China prioritises ties with France as Macron is pushing Europe to become a third bloc, a balancing force between the US and China.

Last week only French President Emmanuel Macron was invited as the chief guest at India’s 75th Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi on January 26.

During Macron’s high-profile visit to India, the two countries unveiled an ambitious defence roadmap besides intensifying cooperation in the strategic Indian Ocean and the Indo-Pacific region.

France ties up defence deal, sets Indian students’ target

The intensification of India-France cooperation in the Indian Ocean concerns China as it tries to make forays in India’s backyard.

Beijing kept a wary watch on Macron’s visit to India as Paris is emerging as a key defence partner to New Delhi amid efforts by the US and European Union to court India as a counterweight to counter China.

The US, India, and several other world powers have been discussing the need to ensure a free, open, and thriving Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of China’s rising military manoeuvring in the resource-rich region.

This Article was published on Livemint News!

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Brazilian Singer Dani Li, 42, Dies After Complications During Liposuction Surgery!

January 27, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

Brazilian pop star Dani Li tragically died aged 42 after complications during a liposuction surgery, the Metro reported. The singer, widely known in Brazil and who took part in talent shows in her hometown as a child, had an operation on Friday. It is understood that she went in for liposuction on her belly and back, as well as breast reduction. Unfortunately during the procedure in Brazil, she suffered complications and had to be rushed to a hospital. Ms Li, whose real name is Danielle Fonseca Machado, died on Wednesday.

“We are very shaken by all this. The burial will be on Saturday,” her husband, Marcelo Mira, with whom she shares a 7-year-old daughter, told local media, as per the Metro. Following her death, the family also shared on her Instagram account that a ceremony will take place at a larger venue for those who wish to pay their condolences and say goodbye “to our star”.

The 42-year-old became widely known in Brazil after her hit song ‘Eu sou da Amazonia’ (I’m from the Amazon). She was born in Afua in the Amazon jungle and began singing when she was 5 years old. After taking part in talent shows in her hometown, she moved to Macapa when she was 17. Her last song was released just two months ago.

Ms Li’s cause of death has yet to be confirmed as it’s not clear what led to the medical complication. An investigation into her death is reported to be underway, as per the Metro.

Announcing her death on Facebook, Ms Li’s close ones thanked fans for their support and said that though the family are “shaken” they are doing as well as possible.

Meanwhile, in a similar incident, popular Brazilian influencer Luana Andrade tragically died last year after undergoing liposuction surgery on her knee at a hospital in Sao Paulo. The 29-year-old influencer suffered from 4 cardiac arrests after complications arose during the cosmetic procedure.

Ms Andrade’s heart stopped approximately two and a half hours into the surgery. The doctors stopped the fat removal procedure and tried to revive her. She was transferred to the intensive care unit. A medical investigation later revealed that the influencer suffered from a pulmonary embolism, which was associated with a thrombosis.

This article was published on Ndtv News.

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North Korea says it tested new strategic cruise missile

January 25, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

North Korea said it tested its new strategic cruise missile on Wednesday, state media reported on Thursday, confirming what the South Korean military said the day before.

North Korea said it tested its new strategic cruise missile on Wednesday, state media KCNA reported on Thursday, confirming what the South Korean military said the day before.

The missile dubbed “Pulhwasal-3-31” is currently under development and the test-firing had no impact on the security of neighbouring countries, the state media said, adding it had “nothing” to do with the regional situation.

The test was also part of the process of updating the country’s weapon system, the report said, citing The Missile Administration.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it believed the firing was to test upgrades of existing missiles’ capabilities.

On Wednesday, the South Korean military said the North had fired multiple cruise missiles towards the sea off its west coast at around 7 am, while Seoul’s defence minister, Shin Won-sik, condemned the launches as a serious threat to his country.

“Strategic” typically refers to nuclear-capable weapons.

North Korea carried out its first test of a cruise missile with possible nuclear strike capabilities in September 2021.

On Thursday, South Korea said it was starting mass production of medium-altitude reconnaissance drones with the goal of deploying them in 2027 to improve surveillance capabilities and contribute to defence exports.

North Korea’s cruise missiles usually generate less interest than ballistic missiles because they are not explicitly banned by any U.N. Nations Security Council resolutions.

But analysts have said intermediate-range, land-attack cruise missiles were no less a threat than ballistic missiles and are a serious capability for North Korea.

Cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles that can be armed with either conventional or nuclear bombs are seen as particularly destabilising in the event of conflict as it can be unclear which kind of warhead they are carrying.

This article was published on indiatoday.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake that struck western China pushed thousands of people from their homes!

January 24, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

Although there was a lot of damage done by the earthquake in the bitter cold, there were not many casualties or losses of property because the epicentre of the earthquake was in Uchturpan County, close to the Kazakhstani border.

As aftershocks continued to rock western China on January 24, more than 12,000 people were staying in tents and other shelters, lighting bonfires to fend off the freezing weather.

The previous day, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake in a remote part of China’s Xinjiang region killed three people and left five injured, while damaging hundreds of buildings.

The earthquake caused significant damage amid freezing temperatures, but the toll on lives and property was relatively light, owing to the sparse population around the epicentre in Uchturpan county, near the border with Kazakhstan.

Footage shown by state broadcaster CCTV on January 24 showed evacuees eating instant noodles in tents with bonfires providing heat.

Jian Gewa, a 16-year old student in Uchturpan, said he was in the bathroom when the quake began. The entire building shook violently. “I just thought I had to get myself to safety as quickly as possible,” Jian said.

He was evacuated to a school where he was staying in a dorm room with his grandfather, joining about 200 others. Local officials said they planned to check houses’ stability before people could return.

The earthquake hit in a sparsely populated area with clusters of towns and villages scattered across an otherwise barren winter landscape. A two lane highway runs from the city of Aksu about 125 km (78 miles) to the area, through frozen brown flatlands on one side and craggy outcroppings on the other. Power lines and an occasional cement factory are virtually the only signs of human presence.

In Kizilsu Kirgiz prefecture, the earthquake caused damage of various degrees to 851 buildings, collapsing 93 structures near the epicentre and killing 910 livestock, according to the prefecture deputy party secretary Wurouziali Haxihaerbayi.

The area is populated mostly by Kyrgyz and Uyghurs, ethnic Turkic minorities who are predominantly Muslim and have been the target of a state campaign of forced assimilation and mass detention. The region is heavily militarised, and state broadcaster CCTV showed paramilitary troops moving in before dawn to clear rubble and set up tents for those displaced.

The prefecture has deployed more than 2,300 rescuers, and Akqi county evacuated 7,338 residents. In total, 12,426 people have been evacuated. Rescue crews combed through the rubble while emergency survival gear including coats and tents arrived to help the thousands of people who fled their homes.

“This 7.1 rating is very strong, but the death and injury situation is not severe,” Zhang Yongjiu, the head of Xinjiang Earthquake Administration,” told a news conference. The earthquake’s epicentre was in a mountainous area about 3,000 metres (9,800 feet) above sea level, Zhang said.

In the village of Yamansu, about 115 people were staying in a Communist Party meeting hall, their bedding neatly rolled up on Wednesday morning (January 23) on top of five long rows of metal bed frames. Medical staff were on hand to check on older residents.

A light layer of snow covered the frozen ground as temperatures remained well below freezing, although the sunshine brought people outside. The quake hit shortly after 2 a.m. on January 23. By evening, authorities said three people had died and five were injured, two seriously.

State broadcaster CCTV said 1,104 aftershocks, including five that were above magnitude 5.0, were recorded as of 8 a.m. on January 24. The largest registered at magnitude 5.7. Among the buildings damaged, 47 houses had collapsed, the government of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region posted on its official Weibo social media account on January 22.

Officials said most of the houses that collapsed were in remote areas and were built by residents. Newer public housing built by the government did not collapse.

Footage broadcast by CCTV showed staff at Aksu’s train station ordering passengers out of the waiting hall in a speedy but not panicked manner.

Some walls were cracked or partially collapsed in the empty Aksu country village of Youkakeyamansu, a name transliterated in Mandarin from Uyghur. All residents had been evacuated to a shelter.

The mountainous Uchturpan county is recording temperatures well below freezing, with the China Meteorological Administration forecasting lows reaching negative 18 degrees Celsius (just below zero Fahrenheit) this week. The county had around 2,33,000 people in 2022, according to Xinjiang authorities.

“The quake downed power lines but electricity was quickly restored,” Aksu authorities said. The Urumqi Railroad Bureau resumed services after 7 a.m. following safety checks that confirmed no problems on train lines. The suspension affected 23 trains, the bureau serving the Xinjiang capital said on its official Weibo account.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the area’s largest quake in the past century was also magnitude 7.1 and occurred in 1978, about 200 km (124 miles) to the north of Tuesday’s epicentre. Tremors were felt hundreds of km (miles) away.

Tremors also were felt in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan and reportedly as far away as New Delhi. Videos posted on the Telegram messaging platform showed people in the Kazakh city of Almaty running downstairs in apartment blocks and standing in the street, some of them wearing shorts in the freezing weather.

In Xinjiang and Kazakhstan, classes were suspended to allow children to recover from the shock. Earthquakes are common in western China.

A 6.2 magnitude earthquake that struck Gansu province in December killed 151 people and was China’s deadliest quake in nine years. An earthquake in Sichuan province in 2008 killed nearly 90,000.

“Elsewhere, authorities raised the confirmed death toll to 31 on Tuesday in a landslide in a remote, mountainous part of China’s southwestern province of Yunnan,” Chinese state media reported.

The disaster struck just before 6 a.m. on Monday in the mountain village of Liangshui. Authorities said on Tuesday that a total of 44 people were either missing or had been found dead.

This article is sourced from thehindu!

New York bound flight cancelled after passenger spots missing bolts on plane wing

January 23, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

A Virgin Atlantic flight from Manchester to New York was canceled after a passenger noticed missing screws on the plane’s wing just before takeoff.

A Virgin Atlantic flight, bound for New York, was cancelled moments before takeoff, after a passenger noticed several missing screws from the plane’s wing.

According to a report with the New York Post, the incident happened on January 15, when engineers were promptly called out to carry out maintenance checks on the Airbus A330 aircraft before its scheduled takeoff to John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City.

A video shared on social media showed an engineer climbing onto the plane’s wing and using a screwdriver to tinker with some of the fasteners.

The missing screws were spotted by 41-year-old British traveller Phil Hardy, who was onboard flight VS127 at Manchester Airport in the United Kingdom.

Hardy alerted the cabin crew moments later.

Upon being asked about the same, Hardy told the New York Times, “I’m a good flyer, but my partner was not loving the information I was telling her and starting to panic, and I was trying to put her mind at rest as much as I could. I thought it was best to mention it to a flight attendant to be on the safe side.”

Hardy also said the airline staff repeatedly reassured him there was no safety issue with the wing, but his fear was heightened given the recent ordeal in which an Alaska Airlines plane lost its door plug and a chunk of its fuselage flew off mid-flight.

According to the report, a representative for the airline said the flight ended up being axed to “provide time for precautionary additional engineering maintenance checks, which allowed our team the maximum time to complete their inspections. The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority and this was not compromised at any point.”

“We always work well above industry safety standards and the aircraft is now back in service,” the representative said.

This news was originally published on indiatoday

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Ethnic killings in one Sudan city left up to 15,000 dead – UN report

January 20, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

Between 10,000 and 15,000 people were killed in one city in Sudan’s West Darfur region last year in ethnic violence by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied Arab militia, according to a UN report seen by Reuters on Friday.

In the report to the U.N. Security Council, independent U.N. sanctions monitors attributed the toll in El Geneina to intelligence sources and contrasted it with the U.N. estimate that about 12,000 people have been killed across Sudan since war erupted on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese army and the RSF.

The monitors also described as “credible” accusations that the United Arab Emirates had provided military support to the RSF “several times per week” via Amdjarass in northern Chad. A top Sudanese general accused the UAE in November of backing the RSF war effort.

In a letter to the monitors, the UAE said 122 flights had delivered humanitarian aid to Amdjarass to help Sudanese fleeing the war. The United Nations says about 500,000 people have fled Sudan into eastern Chad, several hundred kilometers south of Amdjarass.

Between April and June last year El Geneina experienced “intense violence,” the monitors wrote, accusing the RSF and allies of targeting the ethnic African Masalit tribe in attacks that “may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

The RSF has previously denied the accusations and said any of its soldiers found to be involved would face justice. The RSF did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Reuters.

“The attacks were planned, coordinated, and executed by RSF and their allied Arab militias,” the sanctions monitors wrote in their annual report to the 15-member Security Council.

‘SHOT TO THE HEAD’

Reuters last year chronicled the ethnically targeted violence committed in West Darfur. In hundreds of interviews with Reuters, survivors described horrific scenes of bloodletting in El Geneina and on the 30-kilometer (18 mile) route from the city to the border with Chad as people fled.

The monitors’ report included similar accounts. They said that between 14-17 June, some 12,000 people fled El Geneina on foot for Adre in Chad. The Masalit were the majority in El Geneina until the attacks forced their mass exodus.

“When reaching RSF checkpoints women and men were separated, harassed, searched, robbed, and physically assaulted. RSF and allied militias indiscriminately shot hundreds of people in the legs to prevent them from fleeing,” the monitors said.

“Young men were particularly targeted and interrogated about their ethnicity. If identified as Masalit, many were summarily executed with a shot to the head. Women were physically and sexually assaulted. Indiscriminate shootings also injured and killed women and children,” according to the report.

Everyone who spoke to the monitors mentioned “many dead bodies along the road, including those of women, children and young men.” The monitors also reported “widespread” conflict-related sexual violence committed by RSF and allied militia.

NEW FIREPOWER

The monitors said the RSF takeover of most of Darfur relied on three lines of support – Arab allied communities, dynamic and complex financial networks, and new military supply lines running through Chad, Libya, and South Sudan.

The U.N. missions for Chad, Libya and South Sudan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Complex financial networks established by RSF before and during the war enabled it to acquire weapons, pay salaries, fund media campaigns, lobby, and buy the support of other political and armed groups,” wrote the monitors, adding that the RSF used proceeds from its pre-war gold business to create a network of as many as 50 companies in several industries.

Since the war started “most of the gold which was previously exported to UAE, was now smuggled to Egypt,” the monitors said.

The new firepower acquired by the RSF “had a massive impact on the balance of forces, both in Darfur and other regions of Sudan,” the report found.

The RSF has recently made military gains, taking control of Wad Madani, one of Sudan’s major cities, and consolidating its grip on the western region of Darfur.

In December the United States formally determined that warring parties in Sudan committed war crimes and that the RSF and allied militias had also committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.

The war has left nearly half of Sudan’s 49 million people needing aid, while more than 7.5 million people have fled their homes – making Sudan the biggest displacement crisis globally – and hunger is rising.

The sanctions monitors told the U.N. Security Council that “an excess of mediation tracks, the entrenched positions of the warring parties, and competing regional interests meant that these peace efforts had yet to stop the war, bring political settlement or address the humanitarian crisis.”

This article is sourced from reuters!

India, Iran Reach Final Agreement On Chahbahar Port; Aims To Bypass Pakistan

January 19, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

India and Iran have reached a final agreement on India’s first foreign port project, Chahbahar Port, reported The Economic Times on 16 January. The building of this Iranian port has been a subject of discussion between the two countries for a long time. It also came up for discussion when Prime Minister Modi visited Tehran in 2017.

At a Connectivity Conference in Tashkent in 2021, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had projected Chahbahar port as a key regional transit hub, including Afghanistan.

On November 23, 2023, Indian foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra was in Tehran to co-chair a meeting of India–Iran Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) along with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Ali Bagheri Kani.

In a tweet, he had said, “Discussed bilateral matters, connectivity projects including Chahbahar port, and shared perspective on current challenges in the region….”

What Is The Project?

Situated in Sistan-Baluchistan province in the south-eastern part of Iran, the development of the Chahbahar port on the Gulf of Oman as a connectivity project has been under the collaboration of the two countries since 2003.

They signed a deal to invest $8 billion in ports and related industries. It would be developed as a transit route to Afghanistan and Central Asia. It has two main ports, but India will develop only one of the two, namely Shaheed Beheshti port.

In addition to India and Iran, Afghanistan is also associated with the project. In January 2016, the three countries signed a trilateral economic agreement to develop the port.

Over the years, the Chahbahar project has grown and now envisages a port, a free trade zone, the 628-km railway line to Zahedan, and then the little over 1,000-km track to Sirakhs on Iran –Turkmenistan border.

The project did not have a smooth sailing. Some countries in the region and afar, motivated by their political interests, were not happy with the two countries undertaking a project that would have a far-reaching impact on the politics, economy and strategies of the region in a big way.

Finally The Agreement

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar was on a two-day visit to Iran following the US-UK forces’ attack on Houthi military positions and the minister’s discussion with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. He started his Iranian visit with a meeting with Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash.

EA Minister and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi met and discussed expediting the implementation of Iran-India agreements, including the Chahbahar Port Development Plan, and further compensating for delays.

Taking on social media platform X, the Iran Embassy in India stated, “The President stressed the need to follow up and accelerate the implementation of the agreements between Iran and India, including the Chahbahar Port Development Plan.”

Dr Jaishankar tweeted, “Detailed and productive discussion on establishing a long-term cooperation framework concerning Chahbahar port. Also exchanged views on the International North-South Transport Corridor.”

India has been pushing for the Chahbahar port project to boost regional trade, especially for its connectivity to Afghanistan, since 2016, when the sub-continent signed a tripartite agreement with Iran and the now Taliban-led nation to develop the terminal.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had also projected the Chahbahar port as a key regional transit hub, including to Afghanistan, at a connectivity conference in Tashkent in 2021.

In November 2023, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra discussed with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian ways to boost connectivity through strategic Chahbahar port and the current situation in West Asia arising out of the Hamas-Israel conflict.

Significance

EA Minister Jaishankar held wide-ranging talks with Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian on 15 January in Tehran. The main subject of discussion was India’s involvement with the strategically vital Chahbahar Port, the North-South connectivity project, and some pressing global issues.

In a post on X, after he met with the Iranian counterpart, Jaishankar said. “Our bilateral discussion focused on the long-term framework for India’s involvement with Chahbahar port and the INSTC connectivity project.”

India reiterated her interest in benefiting from Iran’s unique geographical position to access markets in Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Eurasia. “We discussed bilateral engagements comprehensively,” said the EA Minister.

The Chahbahar project will provide India with a direct route to Afghanistan by circumventing Pakistan, which denies the use of its territory by Indian trucks bound for Afghanistan.

Afghanistan is historically bound in friendship with India, and the new connectivity will lift Afghanistan from its debilitating landlocked status. Kabul will find a vast market to expand its trade, commerce, and interaction.

It will immensely reduce Pakistan’s domineering influence on Afghanistan by misusing the landlocked position of Afghanistan.

Chahbahar will put an end to China’s dominance of the region through CPEC. The threefold connectivity plan of India, namely the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), Chahbahar project, and International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), largely reduces the dependence of many Asian and Eurasian countries on China and its notorious “debt trap.”

According to the Indian Ministry of Commerce, Chahbahar port and INSTC offer 30 % cheaper imports than the Mediterranean-Suez route. Natural gas from Central Asia can be exported to India via the Chahbahar port. India is already part of projects like the TAPI gas pipeline originating in the Central Asian Republic of Turkmenistan.

From a diplomatic perspective, Chahbahar port can be used by India as a point from where humanitarian operations in Central and South Asia can be coordinated. Chahbahar port will boost India’s access to Iran, the key gateway to the international INSTC that has sea, rail, and road routes between India, Russia, Iran, Europe, and Central Asia.

It is a 7,200-km multi-modal transport corridor that connects St Petersburg to Mumbai. INSTC offers a platform for India to foster an Eurasian Free Trade Area.

Roadblocks

Some roadblocks do exist. Iran’s ties with China are growing. China has made a huge 25-year-long term investment in Iran. Iran-US strained relations create difficulties for India which is eager to maintain relations on an equal keel.

India needs international support, especially from America, to become a member of NSG.

The utility of Chahbahar port depends on good relations between India and Iran. An Iran dogged by sanctions will be an embarrassment to India. India must also fine-tune her relations with important Arab countries like UAE, Saudi, Oman, and Egypt in the background of her cordial relations with Israel.

Chahbahar Project & Disturbed Times

India has finalised the Chahbahar deal at a time when the political scenario in the Middle East is precarious. Clouds of WWIII are hovering over the region.

International naval trade waterways are under severe threat. The US and UK had to bomb Houthi military sites in Yemen to eliminate disruption in the smooth movement of commercial vessels through the Red Sea.

The world is pressing Israel to call for a ceasefire. Big powers like the US and the UK are averse to the proliferation of hostilities in the volatile Middle East. When the US bombed Houthi vessels in the Red Sea, President Biden said he had sent a private letter to Iran.

Simultaneously, Indian EA Minister Jaishankar was in the US. His 2-day visit to Tehran and reviving negotiations about Chahbahar could not be a routine exercise. Jaishankar met almost all leaders of top importance in Iran.

Was he the one who carried Biden’s private letter to Iranian authorities, observers speculate. Was Chahbahar made the curtain-raiser, observers speculate. Does Biden favor resumption of the Iran nuclear deal and try for normalization of relations, observers speculate?

This article is originally featured on EurasianTimes.

Ahead Of The Iowa Caucuses, Vivek Ramaswamy Warned Voters Against “Rivals”

January 16, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

‘I’m asking for your vote tonight because I believe it’s the right thing for our country,’ Ramaswamy said ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy has warned voters not to fall into his rivals’ “trap.” In the final hours ahead of the Iowa caucuses, Ramaswamy took to social media to take a shot at his opponents, Trump and Nikki Haley.

Vivek Ramaswamy warns voters against Trump and Haley

In an X, formerly Twitter post on Monday, Ramaswamy warned netizens against throwing away their votes in favour of his opponents. “I’ve defended Trump at every step & respect him immensely. You won’t hear me attacking him,” he wrote.

“I’m asking for your vote tonight because I believe it’s the right thing for our country. We cannot walk into the other side’s trap & watch the puppet masters quietly trot Nikki into power,” Ramaswamy added.

I’ve defended Trump at every step & respect him immensely. You won’t hear me attacking him. I’m asking for your vote tonight because I believe it’s the right thing for our country. We cannot walk into the other side’s trap & watch the puppet masters quietly trot Nikki into power. pic.twitter.com/E1gM5ydrXW
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) January 15, 2024

The post was in response to Trump’s criticism of Ramaswamy, which read, “A vote for Vivek is a wasted vote. I like Vivek, but he played it too “cute” with us. Caucus tonight, vote for Donald J. Trump, build up the numbers!!! In November, we must take our very troubled nation — a nation in decline — back from crooked Joe Biden and the radical left democrats and thugs who are destroying it. MAGA!!!”

Read full biography of Vivek Ramaswamy here!

Ramaswamy addresses Trump’s rants

In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Ramaswamy addressed the former US president’s brutal remarks on the social media platform Truth Social. “Well, I didn’t get thrown anywhere, but I think there might have been an attempt to do that,” he said.

“I took it in a lighthearted way, but the truth is that people have to have their heads stuck in the snow not to see what’s happening on the ground here. I know the mainstream media is ignoring it, but there has been a massive surge here late in the process,” Ramaswamy added.

“The American Dream”

Ramaswamy shared a clip of his Fox News interview on X, along with a lengthy message explaining his “American Dream.” “I’m a businessman, not a politician,” he wrote. “My parents came to this country 40 years ago with no money, and I’ve gone on to found multibillion dollar companies. I did it while getting married to my wife Apoorva and raising our two sons. That’s the American Dream.”

“For a long time, we conservatives have been running from something. Now is our moment to start running to something. To our vision of what it means to be an American,” Ramaswamy added in his X post ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

This article is part of Hindustan Times publication.

Continue Reading || Donald Trump Wins 1st Republican Contest Of US Presidential Race!

Donald Trump Wins 1st Republican Contest Of US Presidential Race!

January 16, 2024 by Nitesh Leave a Comment

Donald Trump swept to victory in Iowa’s caucuses — the first vote in the US presidential race — cementing his status as the presumptive Republican standard-bearer to challenge President Joe Biden in November’s election.

Donald Trump swept to victory Monday in Iowa’s caucuses — the first vote in the US presidential race — cementing his status as the presumptive Republican standard-bearer to challenge President Joe Biden in November’s election.

The former president has led polling for more than a year, but the Iowa contest was seen as the clearest insight yet into whether he can convert his advantage into a stunning White House return.

In the end, major US networks took just half an hour from the opening of polls to project the winner, with Trump securing almost three quarters of the early vote.

There had been questions as to whether Trump’s legal problems — he faces multiple civil and criminal trials in multiple jurisdictions — may have dampened his support.

But the Iowa victory would suggest the 77-year-old, who left Washington under a cloud following the 2021 assault on the US Capitol by his supporters, has succeeded in turning those prosecutions into a rallying cry to galvanize his followers.

The opening vote in the primary season, Iowa is considered crucial for winnowing the field and giving those left standing a springboard for the rest of the race.

As he takes his momentum into New Hampshire in eight days, the former reality TV star has a commanding lead that his rivals have been unable to blunt.

Bundled up Iowa residents shuffled into more than 1,600 voting locations across the state, braving sub-zero temperatures in a winter storm that forcing candidates to cancel events at the last minute — and aides to fret over turnout.

With voting barely underway as Trump was declared the winner, it was not immediately clear how his closest rivals — former UN ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis were faring.

The margin of the ex-president’s victory could be well in excess of the 12-point win his aides said would have made for a good night.

Iowa accounts for less than two percent of the delegates awarded nationwide in the process to pick a party’s candidates, so a big night by no means guarantees success in the rest of the nominating season.

But a strong showing is essential for candidates hoping for a boost before New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

The Trump machine was better organized than when he lost Iowa in 2016, with boots on the ground across the state.

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The candidate himself was off the trail in the final week, however, as he made voluntary appearances in some of the many court cases making his tilt at the White House a campaign like no other in history.

The Iowa result is critical for DeSantis, who shifted significant resources to the state and spent months wooing voters in all 99 counties.

Analysts say anything short of a second-place finish would be disastrous for the hard-line conservative, and Haley looked to be narrowly ahead in the first hour of caucusing.

Haley had tried to downplay expectations in Iowa and said she is looking simply for a strong performance ahead of the primary next Tuesday in her preferred state of New Hampshire.

She has repeatedly touted her electability over Trump, pointing to the “chaos” of his criminal cases and reminding Iowans that Republicans have lost the popular vote in seven of the last eight presidential elections.

“I think we’ve always had a target on our back because we’ve been the one moving up, everybody else is going down and that’s a great thing,” Haley told Fox News.

Caucuses — a quirk of the US election calendar — are town hall-style meetings involving speeches and debate that only a handful of states stage.

Armies of volunteers have fanned out through Iowa in recent weeks, knocking on doors or manning phone banks, while candidates dominated the air waves with talk show appearances and a barrage of campaign ads.

The caucuses feature some low-polling candidates too, including biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson.

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Caucuses also are being held by Iowa’s Democrats, along with voting by mail until March, with President Joe Biden facing two challengers but no serious threat.

This Article was originally published on ndtv.com!

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