1. India considers barter trade with crisis-hit Egypt in credit line talks
2. Fresh violence in Manipur as mobs clash with security forces, try to set BJP leaders’ house afire
3. India raises Chinese surveillance facilities at Coco Islands with Myanmar
4. India: Infiltration bids made from across border to keep terror alive in J&K, says DGP
5. Vietnamese defense minister begins two-day India visit on June 18

What Else

6. Indian unanimously elected as vice-chairman of global UN advocacy body
7. Armed forces to have common annual confidential reports for senior officers from this year
8. RBI refutes allegations of unaccounted currency notes worth billions, calls reports incorrect
9. China bans ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to farmland reclamation amid food security drive
10. Blinken, Qin hold ‘candid,’ ‘constructive’ talks, agree to meet again in Washington
11. Pakistanis were singled out, only 12 of 400 survived Greece boat tragedy: Report
12. Pakistan: Def Min Khawaja Asif cautious on US-India partnership

India considers barter trade with crisis-hit Egypt in credit line talks

• India is weighing to begin barter trade in goods like fertilizer and gas with Egypt as part of a deal that could see New Delhi extending a credit line worth billions of $ to Cairo.
• An agreement is likely to be announced later this month during PM Modi’s first visit, which faces a prolonged foreign currency shortage.
• India’s foreign ministry is consulting with departments on their appetite for fertilizer and gas from Cairo as part of the payment for the credit line.
• New Delhi is keen to diversify its fertilizer imports, especially after 2021 when some Indian states faced shortages due to Chinese export restrictions and a record price surge.
• As part of the facility, Egypt is keen to take wheat supplies, but New Delhi is unlikely to ship the grain due to its wheat export ban.
• India exported $4.11 billion of goods to Egypt in the last fiscal year, while importing $1.95 billion. (here)
• PM Modi Proposes African Union’s full membership at New Delhi G20 Summit: PM Modi has made a move to amplify Africa’s representation on the global stage and shape the future of international affairs.
• PM Modi has written to his G20 counterparts, proposing the African Union’s full membership at the upcoming Delhi Summit of G20, as requested by the African Union.
• PM has taken a leading role in backing this proposal, demonstrating his strong support and advocacy for it
• PM believes that granting full membership in the G20 would be a step towards a more just, fair, inclusive, and representative global architecture and governance.
• As part of India’s G20 Presidency, PM Modi has been dedicated to incorporating the priorities of African countries into the G20 agenda. (here)

Fresh violence in Manipur as mobs clash with security forces, try to set BJP leaders’ house afire

• 2 civilians were injured in a fresh round of violence after mobs clashed with security forces overnight in Imphal.
• The mobs attempted to torch the houses of BJP leaders.
• Multiple incidents of mob build-up and attempted violence and arson have been reported ever since the clashes broke out between Kuki and Meiti communities in May.
• The attacks in Manipur come a day after the home of the Union Minister RK Ranjan Singh was burnt down by a mob of 1200 which lobbed petrol bombs. (here)
• “Law and order condition .. is a total failure. The existing govt could not maintain peace ….. I don’t know how the state machine is failing, I feel like that,” he added.
• Singh hails from the Meiti community and has been making efforts for the restoration of peace in Manipur which has witnessed ethnic violence.

[Strainge!!! such words coming from Home Min and the same party govt in the state]

• Myanmar govt (outer govt) has notified Burmese infiltrators in India (Kukis) to: Refrain from acts prejudicial to the Sovereignty and Integrity of India, Stay away from politics, No drug running, and Respect local people, culture, and rules.

India raises Chinese surveillance facilities at Coco Islands with Myanmar

• India has raised serious concerns over Myanmar allowing China to establish monitoring and surveillance facilities at Coco Islands in the Bay of Bengal.
• This will help China to track India’s missile launches off the Balasore test range as well as strategic assets stationed off the eastern seaboard in Visakhapatnam.
• India will continue engagement with the present leadership of Myanmar led by Gen Min Aung Hlaing, South Block has raised the issue and is not satisfied with the answers
• Myanmar junta has denied that the Chinese have any role to play in extending the runway, hardening shelters, setting up monitoring stations, or infra development
• Myanmar junta is cautious of China, it has no option but to go with Beijing as the latter has continuously engaged the govt since the West declared the military regime a pariah.
• China has given some $4 bn in aid and is trying to rope in Naypyidaw in BRI along with B’desh for a China-M’mar-B’desh corridor in the Bay of Bengal and IOR (here)
• The Twitter account of the prominent tribal leaders’ group, Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), has been ‘withheld’.
• Calling it a shocking act of censorship, the statement released by ITLF said its handle has been blocked in response to a legal demand. (here)
• senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Fri came down heavily on the BJP-led central and state govts asserting that the PM is not willing to talk to the people. (here)

India: Infiltration bids made from across border to keep terror alive in J&K, says DGP

• J&K has seen an increase in Infiltration bids from across the border in the last few months, as around a dozen infiltration bids have taken place on the LoC and IB.
• J&K’s Police chief said that the ceasefire agreement is being respected by both sides but there are continuous attempts of infiltration to keep terrorism alive.
• On June 16, 2 infiltration attempts were made on the LoC in Poonch and Kupwara.
• Five terrorists were killed in the bid that was foiled in the Kupwara sector, while a huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from the Poonch sector. (here)

Vietnamese defense minister begins two-day India visit on June 18

• Def Min Rajnath Singh will hold talks with Vietnamese Def Min Gen Phan Van Giang on Mon with a focus on boosting defense ties and reviewing the situation in the SCS
• Gen Giang will begin his 2-day visit to India on Sun.
• “Both sides will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest,” the ministry stated on Sat.
• Vietnam, an important country in the ASEAN, has territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea region.
• India has oil exploration projects in the Vietnamese waters in the SCS.
• India and Vietnam are boosting their maritime security cooperation in the last few years to protect common interests.
• Relations between the two countries were elevated to the level of ‘strategic partnership’ during the visit of Vietnam’s then-PM Nguyen Tan Dung to India in July 2007.
• General Giang is also scheduled to visit Agra. (here)

Indian unanimously elected as vice-chairman of global UN advocacy body

• A senior Indian advocate has been unanimously elected as the vice-chairman of the World Federation of UN Associations (WFUNA), an international UN advocacy body.
• The appointment of Suresh Srivastava as vice-chairman reflects the prominent role of the Indian Federation of UN Associations, an affiliate body of WFUNA.
• He expressed his eagerness to collaborate with dedicated individuals from around the world who share the same passion and commitment.
• This achievement underscores the contributions made by India towards the work of the UN and its efforts to promote international cooperation and understanding. (here)

Senior officers to be posted across services as part of integration move

• The Indian military has decided to carry out common annual confidential reports to facilitate cross-service postings.
• The development comes at a time when plans for greater integration and theaterisation of the Indian armed forces are afoot.
• Over some time, the employment of officers in the tri-services organizations will only increase as the armed forces progress towards joint structures.
• As such, a need has been felt to synergize the appraisal system to undertake tasks for tri-services appointments.
• To begin with, a common Confidential Report for 2 and 3-star officers will be implemented. (here)
• The new system is likely to be put in place in the next 3-4 months.
• India is now once again determinedly working towards the theaterisation to build cost-effectively, integrated war-fighting machinery, with a “consensus” being achieved among tri-services. (here)

RBI refutes allegations of unaccounted currency notes worth billions, calls reports incorrect

• The central bank (RBI) debunked all the claims, saying the interpretations drawn from replies to different units as too far-fetched and grossly incorrect.
• This came in the backdrop of media reports [Free Press Journal] alleging a substantial amount of banknotes are missing citing the response to an RTI query.
• The RBI clarified that these reports are incorrect as they stem from a misinterpretation of information obtained from the currency printing presses under the RTI Act.
• The central bank reassured that all banknotes issued by the presses have been properly accounted for, dispelling any notion of unaccounted currency.
• The RBI reportedly did not receive 1,760.65 million currency notes of ₹500 each (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

China bans ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to farmland reclamation amid food security drive

• China’s top land use regulator has warned local authorities against blunt efforts to reassign land for crops amid a national push for food security.
• In a directive last week, the Ministry of Natural Resources said local govts were “strictly banned” from applying “one-size-fits-all” measures to land use.
• The order follows a slew of complaints about reclamation cases along a planned green belt surrounding the city to use for farming.
• Food security has become a national priority in recent years as ties with the West have frayed and the war escalated in Ukraine.
• China’s total arable land has decreased amid rapid industrialization and urbanization in recent decades, and local governments are now under growing pressure to guarantee a certain acreage for crop cultivation. (here)

Blinken, Qin hold ‘candid,’ ‘constructive’ talks, agree to meet again in Washington

• US Secy of State Antony Blinken arrived in Beijing on Sun amid worsening ties between the two over spy balloons and rising chip wars to meet with Chinese FM Qin Gang.
• Washington said that the country’s top diplomat stressed the importance of keeping open lines of communication and held “candid, substantive, and constructive talks”.
• The meeting goes around 330 mins on the 1^st day of his visit followed by a working dinner.
• Meanwhile, the Chinese FM has also agreed to pay a return visit to Washington upon Blinken’s invitation to “continue the discussions.
• Notably, Blinken’s visit was postponed after a suspected Chinese spy balloon flew over US airspace which sparked a row between the two countries.
• As per Chinese state-run CCTV, Qin told Blinken that relations between Washington and Beijing “are at the lowest point since the establishment of diplomatic relations”.
• “The Taiwan issue is the core of China’s core interests, the most important issue in China-US relations, and the most prominent risk,” Qin told. (here)

• Blinken talks to Japanese and South Korean counterparts ahead of China trip: US Secy of State Blinken spoke separately to his S Korean and Japanese counterparts, stressing the importance of “sustained … trilateral cooperation”.
• This comes as N Korea has stepped up missile launches in the past year, and Tokyo resists growing pressure from Chinese vessels around islands contested with Beijing.
• Blinken on Fri reassured Foreign Minister Park Jin of the US’s “ironclad commitment” to South Korea’s defense, the US State Department said on Sat. (here)

Pakistanis were singled out, only 12 of 400 survived Greece boat tragedy: Report

• At least 400 Pakistanis were on board a refugee boat that sank off Greece on June 14 and out of them only 12 survived.
• A report has now highlighted how Pakistanis were singled out and forced below deck where their chances of surviving a capsize were less.
• There were only 78 survivors only 12 are from Pakistan.
• Pakistanis were forced below deck, while others were allowed on the top deck, where they had a far greater chance of surviving a capsize.
• At least 298 Pakistani nationals were killed when the fishing boat sank near the Peloponnese peninsula, it added. (here)

Pakistan: Def Min Khawaja Asif cautious on US-India partnership

• Khawaja Asif has said that Pakistan did not have any issues with the partnership between the US and India ‘as long as it does not come at the expense of Pakistan’.
• The minister emphasized the importance of maintaining positive relationships with neighboring countries and regional partners, including India,
• According to Asif, Pakistan is eager to establish good relations with its neighbors and regional allies.
• With common borders shared with China, Afghanistan, Iran, and India, Pakistan recognizes the need to improve these relationships
• Asif called for an understanding from Washington regarding Pakistan’s situation, stressing the importance of not pushing ‘Pakistan into making difficult choices’.(here)