Newsletter 9 July

July 9, 2020
 Team

This Week (July 9th)

Defense’s experts ‘seem’ divided over disengagement on LAC, as one school is claiming that LAC is shifted 1 km towards Indian side while other school is claiming opposite. Among other news in media, PM address at India Global Week 2020.

Headlines of the Week

  1. One of the key provisions of the bilateral agreements is commitment by the two sides to strictly respect and observe LAC.
  2. India set to play leading role in post-COVID revival: PM Modi
  3. Army asks soldiers, officers to delete Facebook and Instagram accounts, uninstall 89 apps
  4. Defense Minister Rajnath Singh unveils 6 strategic bridges in J&K
  5. Pakistan signs $1.5 billion hydropower project with China

One of the key provisions of the bilateral agreements is commitment by the two sides to strictly respect and observe LAC.

One of the key provisions of the bilateral agreements is commitment by the two sides to strictly respect and observe LAC.

The two SRs have also agreed that the two sides should work together to avoid any incident in future that could disturb peace and tranquility in border areas.

The next meeting of the working mechanism for consultation and coordination on India-China border affairs, the WMCC (Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination) is expected to take place soon: Anurag Srivastava, official spokesperson, MEA stated on Thurs evening.

After claim on Galwan, Nepal and Bhutan, China says ‘aggression and expansion not in our genes’

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said aggression and expansion is not in the genes of the Chinese nation throughout its 5000-year old history.

  • China has claimed India’s Galwan Valley, encroached land in Nepal, has opened another border dispute with Bhutan but wants the world to believe that it is not expansionist in nature.
  • Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has said, “Aggression and expansion has never been in the genes of the Chinese nation throughout its 5,000 years history, and China cannot and will not be another US.”
  • Yi was speaking in US-China ties when he gave this statement adding that he expects that the US will build a more objective understanding of China and a more rational policy toward the country.

Make no mistake: If India wants Himalayan peace, it must make China pay for its present aggression in order to help create a deterrent effect. Only a chastened China saddled with high costs and loss of face will rein in its aggressive expansionism. – Brahma Chellaney

 

India Has Done Its Best To Respond To China’s Aggressive Actions: Pompeo

Indians have done their best to respond to China’s ‘incredibly aggressive actions’. “I’ve spoken with Foreign (External Affairs) Minister (S) Jaishankar a number of times about this (Chinese aggressive actions). The Chinese took incredibly aggressive actions. The Indians have done their best to respond to that,” US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters.

China claims almost all of the South China Sea. Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have counter claims over the area. “The United States hadn’t done that in previous administrations. We’ll respond to this in a way that we think is appropriate. We have attempted to communicate to the Chinese leadership that we are serious about this. When I say we, it’s not just the United States. We will start very shortly a dialogue with our friends on how we collectively can respond to this challenge from the Chinese Communist Party,” he said.

 

Withdrawal from Galwan Valley puts Indian troops further from LAC

The area in which PP-14 is located – and which the Indian Army has patrolled for decades – now effectively falls inside China’s “buffer zone“. In short, LAC shifted towards the Indian side about a km.

  • Details of the mutual troop disengagement in the contested Galwan River valley, which senior government sources have shared with Business Standard, illustrate that the Line of Actual Control (LAC) — the de facto border — has been effectively shifted by a km into India.
  • The terms of disengagement, negotiated on June 30, regard the LAC as running through the so-called Y-Nallah Junction.
  • This is 1 km inside India, when compared with the LAC’s historical alignment next to Patrolling Point 14 (PP-14). The area in which PP-14 is located – and which the Indian Army.
  • Member of Rajya Sabha from Ruling party BJP, Dr Subramanian Swamy also challenged the GOI to produce the evidence of disengagements. Many defense experts in India are also speaking on same pitch, by claiming that LAC has shifted towards Indian Side.
  • China has displayed its art of deception even in its disengagement process with India.
  • The first accord of June 6 to disengage collapsed after the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) erected structures on Indian Territory and then ambushed and killed Indian Army men on verification patrol.
  • The disengagement process restarted after Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi seemed to let China off the hook with his June 19 speech at the all-party meeting. But the fresh process became a ruse for PLA to encroach on two new Indian areas — the Depsang Y-Junction; and the Galwan Valley site of the ambush killings.
  • India and China are now in their third disengagement series. But while the previous two abortive rounds followed military-level talks, the latest cycle is being driven politically.
  • We now know that Modi’s July 3 Ladakh visit, and his tough words there, were essentially designed to create domestic political space for his government to seek de-escalation with China. Barely 48 hours after his visit, India and China hammered out a disengagement deal.
  • Bite by bite, China has been nibbling away at India’s borderlands, even as successive Indian PMs have sought to appease it. When political calculations trump military factors and a nation lives by empty rhetoric, it can win neither war nor peace.

China using COVID-19 to pursue its expansionist agenda

  • The US and China are locked in a bitter tussle over coronavirus and China’s recent aggressions in the Himalayas and the South China Sea. Beijing’s belligerence forced the US to shift its troops positioned in Germany to other places with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo saying that the decision was taken after the US revisited the threats it faced and how they should be thwarted.

Claim on Bhutan, Nepal, South China Sea but Beijing not expansionist

  • Continuing with its expansionist agenda, China created a new border dispute with Bhutan during a virtual meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) where it objected to the grant for Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary (SWS) in eastern Bhutan’s Trashigang district bordering India and China, claiming that the location was disputed.
  • Similarly, in Nepal, China is using road construction in Tibet to occupy its land and according to a Nepal government report, it may establish outposts at the border in the near future.

According to a list prepared by Nepal’s Survey Department of Agriculture Ministry, China has encroached on 10 places which comprise of nearly 33 hectares of Nepalese land and as per the report, China has also been diverting the flow of rivers to increase its territory.

 

 

India set to play leading role in post-COVID revival: PM Modi

PM Narendra Modi encouraged global companies to invest in India and reiterated his call for a “self-sustaining and self-generating” economy in his opening address at India Global Week 2020.

  • The 3-day India Global Week 2020 event will see participation from several industry captains and global thought leaders, with 250 speakers addressing an expected virtual audience of over 5,000.
  • “Atma Nirbhar Bharat is not about being self-contained or being closed to the world. It is about being self-sustaining and self-generating,” Modi said, inviting global companies to come and establish their presence in India across various sectors, from agriculture, MSMEs, tech, startup, space and defense, among others.
  • In keeping with the theme of the virtual three-day summit organized by UK-based India Inc Group, PM Modi highlighted India’s convalescence in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and stated that the nation was “set to play a leading role in the post-COVID revival” thanks to India’s talented manpower.
  • “World over, you have seen the contribution of India’s talent force. This includes our talented professionals; doctor, nurses, bankers, lawyers, scientists, professors and our hardworking laborers. India is a powerhouse of talent that is eager to contribute and ever-ready to learn,” he said.
  • Talking about India’s ability to reform and rejuvenate, the PM said India has a history of overcoming social and economic challenges and said the nation was looking to recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
  • “India is fighting a strong battle against the global pandemic focused equally on people’s health and the health of the global economy. In India we are already seeing green shoots when it comes to economic recovery,” he said.
  • Modi asserted that his government’s goal was to make the “economy more productive, investment-friendly and competitive”. He touched upon the theme of Atma Nirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India), stating that India’s policy was about merging domestic production and consumption with global supply chains.
  • “There are many possibilities and various opportunities in many sunrise sectors in India,” Modi said.
  • The PM also praised the Indian pharma sector’s role in fighting the pandemic, citing its role in reducing the cost of medicines, especially in developing nations.

PM Narendra Modi will hold extensive talks with President of the European Council Charles Michel and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on a range of issues in the summit, they said

India-EU summit to be held through video conference on July 15.

The 15th summit between India and the European Union will be held via video conference on, officials of the influential grouping said on Thurs.

 

Army asks soldiers, officers to delete Facebook and Instagram accounts, uninstall 89 apps

  • The 13-lakh strong Army has directed all its officers and soldiers to delete their Facebook and Instagram accounts as well as 89 apps from their mobile phones by July 15.
  • Citing security considerations and leakage of sensitive data, the Army said those who do not follow the order will face strict action.
  • The outlawed apps include the 59 ones with Chinese links, including TikTok, which were banned by the Union government recently.
  • “The directive has been issued because there has been an exponential increase in the number of military personnel being targeted online by intelligence agencies of Pakistan and China,” said an officer.
  • The Army in November last year had also directed its personnel to avoid the use of WhatsApp for official work, while asking officers holding “sensitive appointments” to delete their Facebook accounts.
  • There have been many cases over the last two-three years where Pakistani agents posing as women have “virtually” honey-trapped Indian military personnel into divulging classified information, with even a Group Captain posted at the IAF headquarters in New Delhi falling prey to it in 2018.
  • The fresh Army directive, taken to ensure the security of classified information in the larger national interest, comes after the Navy also banned the use of Facebook for all its personnel, while also directing them not to carry smart mobile phones into bases and dockyards as well as on board warships, in Dec last year.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh unveils 6 strategic bridges in J&K

  • Of the six bridges inaugurated by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, on Thurs through a video conference, four are in Akhnoor sector, while two bridges are on the Tarnah Nallah in Kathua district in Jammu.
  • The six bridges have been constructed at a cost of Rs 45 crore.
  • The unveiled six major bridges in sensitive border areas near the International Border and Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
  • These bridges, constructed under Project Sampark of BRO, will facilitate movement of Armed Forces in strategically important sector.
  • As Defense Minister congratulated BRO for completing the six bridges in record time, he complimented them for contributing towards nation building by working in the most difficult terrain and weather conditions.
  • He acknowledged that over the last two years, with the use of latest technologies and state-of-the-art equipment the BRO has done cutting of over 2,200 km about 4,200 km of roads surfacing and about 5,800 meters of permanent bridges have been constructed.
  • Also present at the virtual inauguration were Union minister Dr Jitendra Singh, CDS General Bipin Rawat, Army Chief MM Naravane.

Pakistan signs $1.5 billion hydropower project with China

Azad Pattan is China’s third dam project since May in Pakistan-held JnK (an UN-recognized disputed region) after Kohala and Diamer-Bhasha (which will rank among the world’s largest dams). But when a project is launched in a territory China claims, it unleashes fury.

Pakistan media reported the following

  • The Power Project that would generate 700 megawatt (MW) of electricity.
  • This is the second biggest agreement Pakistan has inked with its closest ally after 1124MW Kohala Hydropower Project worth $2.4 billion.
  • PM Imran Khan witnessed the signing ceremony along with Chairman of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Authority Asim Saleem Bajwa, Ambassador of China, Yao Jing and Federal Minister for Power Omar Ayub Khan on Mon.
  • CPEC linked to Pakistan’s economic development
  • Pakistan, he said, could learn a lot from China in realms of economic progress and prosperity.
  • The hydropower project “is part of the investment in clean energy” in line with the government’s ‘Clean and Green Pakistan’ project and environment-friendly policies. This project “will not burden the people” said the premier, adding that previous power projects based on imported fuel cost the country dearly.

Greener, cleaner and cheaper investment

  • The hydropower project – a part of CPEC – “with an investment of US$ 1.5 billion, 700.7 MW Azad Pattan will involve no fuel import, thus enabling the country to move towards cheaper and greener power while generating local job opportunities”, says the official statement.
  • Chairman CPEC Authority Lt Gen (r) Asim Saleem Bajwa said that Pakistan’s focus is now on cheaper and greener power. “With an investment of $1.5 billion, no fuel import, we are moving towards cheaper and greener power” he said. The mega project will create nearly “3000 jobs” and would provide an annual income of Rs1.38 billion to Punjab and AJK from water use, he added.
  • Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar said the government was dedicated to completing the projects under CPEC. “The signing of 1.5 billion dollars 700 MW Azad Pattan hydropower project, days after signing of 2.4 billion dollars 1100MW Kohala hydropower project is a manifestation of the Government’s commitment to both CPEC and development of indigenous clean energy,” he tweeted.

Pakistan and China boost collaboration in hydropower project

  • The latest deal comes days after signing of $2.4 billion deal between Pakistan and China for a massive 1124MW Kohala Hydropower Project which is the largest investment in a single independent power producer in Pakistan.
  • Earlier in May, an agreement worth Rs 442 billion was signed with a joint venture of Power China and Frontier Works Organization (FWO) for the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha Dam.

BJP leader Sheikh Waseem Bari who was killed by terrorists today seen here celebrating 119th birth anniversary of Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee two days ago in Bandipora, North Kashmir.

One can hear speech of Home Minister Amit Shah in the background as Bari pays floral tribute.

International

Pompeo's 'nonsense' remarks on China bore audience: Chines FM

Spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thurs urged US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to stop talking about credibility, truth or responsibility, as the US is the biggest troublemaker and has been morally bankrupt.

  • After Pompeo accused the Communist Party of China of having “credibility problems” in sharing coronavirus information, Zhao said that Pompeo should stop talking about credibility, truth or responsibility.
  • “Even if you are not tired of repeating it, we have been tired of hearing your nonsense,” Zhao said at Thurs’s routine press conference.
  • The US, waving the flag of American priority, keeps breaking its international promises and shunning its responsibilities. Quitting international organizations all the time, it has become the biggest “troublemaker,” Zhao said.
  • As for the truth, Zhao asked Pompeo whether the US government could give an explanation to Americans and the international community about Fort Detrick, e-cigarette diseases and its bio labs located all over the world?
  • With the highest number of COVID-19 infections in the world, reaching 3 million, and fatalities topping 130,000 in half a year, the US is responsible for the pandemic situation, Zhao noted.
  • “Why do people like Pompeo have the courage to talk about these issues when they are morally bankrupt? We advise the US to listen to international opposition to its frequent withdrawal from multinational organizations,” Zhao said.
  • Responding to Pompeo’s accusation, Zhao noted that China reported the coronavirus epidemic to the World Health Organization at the first opportunity, and the timeline the two sides released could be cross-verified.
  • Pompeo ignored these facts and indulged in fabricating evidence to scapegoat others, but this cannot cover up the US’ mistakes and failure in handling the virus. Such deeds only further exposed the country’s lying and cheating, and revealed its hypocrisy, arrogance and ignorance to the world, Zhao said.

Nepal stops highway construction in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district

Claims of encroachment on no-man’s land further strains ties between the countries

  • Nepal has stopped the construction of a branch of an Indian national highway along the international border in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district claiming it had encroached on no-man’s land, further straining the ties between the countries.
  • The neighboring country’s move enraged those engaged in the road-laying project and also locals on the Indian side, following which security personnel from both countries intervened.
  • Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel pacified the residents and brought the situation under control.
  • “Nepal officials and its armed police force, which acts as border guards, objected to the construction of a branch of National Highway 104 going up to no-man’s land at the Bhitthamore border on Tuesday.
  • They said a portion of the around 250m offshoot of the national highway was encroaching on no-man’s land,” an SSB officer told The Telegraph.
  • “The Bihar government’s road construction department was doing the job. It had to be stopped and it is yet to resume. Work can now begin only when the land dispute is settled,” he added.
  • The SSB officer denied that there had been any fracas between the security personnel of the two countries, but said the force’s 51st battalion had written to the Sitamarhi district magistrate requesting her to facilitate the measurement of the land.
  • District magistrate Abhilasha Kumari Sharma said she was monitoring the situation and was in constant touch with her counterpart in Nepal’s Mahottari district.
  • “A team led by an additional district magistrate, of which the area’s circle officer is a part, is at the spot. Officials from the Nepal side are also present. The land measurement is being done jointly. There is friction, an interaction is going on and both sides are cooperating with each other. The matter will be sorted out amicably,” she said.
  • The road tussle is the latest episode in the souring of ties between the two countries after Nepal last month approved a new map with three territories held by India.
  • On June 13, Nepali border guards had shot dead a civilian from Sitamarhi district.
  • In East Champaran district, 110km from Sitamarhi, Nepal had on Tuesday put up a signage on a bridge between the two countries to indicate that its border started from there. However, the signage was removed after the SSB and local officials objected on the ground that border demarcation had not been done in that area.
  • Nepal has also not allowed since June the repair and strengthening of a 4.1 km-long embankment on the Lalbakeya river flowing along the border close to East Champaran district.
  • With rainfall above normal this monsoon in Bihar and heavy rain in Nepal, the district is staring at the possibility of a flood, which could be aggravated if the embankment is not completed.
  • “A joint survey by personnel from the Survey of India and Nepal officials has been conducted.
  • There is a controversy over some new portions of the embankment. The officials from the Survey of India will present their report to the Centre and the matter will be taken up between the two countries,” Shirsat Kapil Ashok, the East Champaran DM, said.
  • Bihar shares a 631 km border with Nepal.

National security law: Australia suspends Hong Kong extradition treaty

Australia has suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong in response to fears over a new national security law imposed by China.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Thursday said it would not be surprised if China sues Adrian Zenz and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) that have long been publishing and disseminating disinformation about China.

  • Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the new law undermined “Hong Kong’s own basic law” and the territory’s current level of autonomy from Beijing.
  • Australia planned to extend visas for Hong Kong residents and encourage businesses there to relocate, he said.
  • China has criticized the move as “gross interference” in its domestic affairs.
  • “We urge the Australian side to immediately stop meddling… otherwise it will lead to nothing but lifting a rock only to hit its own feet,” said a statement by its embassy in Australia.
  • Since the law was enacted last week, Canada has also suspended its extradition treaty, while the UK has offered citizenship options to Hong Kong residents.
  • Critics say the law makes it easier to punish protesters and critics of the Chinese government.
  • Hong Kong’s government says the law is required to bring order to a city that saw mass pro-democracy protests last year that often turned violent.
  • As the extent of the law’s reach is still uncertain, critics have said it could also lead to foreign nationals being arbitrarily detained in Hong Kong.
  • That has led Australia and other nations to issue new warnings to their citizens in Hong Kong. More than 100,000 Australians are in the city.
  • “You may be at increased risk of detention on vaguely defined national security grounds. You could break the law without intending to. If you’re concerned about the new law, reconsider your need to remain in Hong Kong,” said Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
  • Morrison said his government, along with others had been “very consistent in expressing our concerns about the imposition of the national security law on Hong Kong”.

New Zealand’s government also said on Thurs it would review the country’s relationship with Hong Kong. Foreign Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand was “deeply concerned” about the national security law.

“We will continue to monitor the law’s impact on the people of Hong Kong, with whom we share close links,” he said.

Nation Amid COVID-19

Active Cases

Cured / Discharged

Deaths

Total

·         India has not yet reached community transmission stage of COVID-19; there have been some localized outbreaks: Health Ministry

·         “Number of cases per million in India remains amongst the lowest in the world”: Rajesh Bhushan, OSD, Ministry of Health

·         “Death per million population in India is amongst the lowest in the world. We have 15 deaths per million while in some countries the rate is 40 times higher”: Rajesh Bhushan, OSD, Ministry of Health.

·         The number of recovered cases has overshot the number of COVID19 active cases by 2,06,588. The number of recovered cases is 1.75 times (almost twice) the number of active cases: Government of India

269,789

476,378

21,129

767,296               

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