1. PM in US: India-US partnership to be driving engine for ‘sustainable and inclusive global growth’: Modi
2. Amit Shah to convene all-party meeting on June 24 to discuss situation in Manipur
3. ‘Don’t Treat Us as Illegal Immigrants’: Myanmar’s Displaced Mark World Refugee Day in Delhi
4. JD(U), RJD to propose seat-sharing formula based on last 3 poll results at Patna meeting
5. Centre to take over Ambedkar Museum in London

What Else

6. China restaurant gas tank blast kills 31, leaves 7 injured
7. China builds a new research port in the South China Sea
8. China Blasts ‘Absurd’ Biden Reference to Xi as Ill-Informed ‘Dictator’
9. US Coast Guard ship transited Taiwan Strait after Blinken’s China visit -US Navy
10. Exclusive-Taiwan on alert for Chinese-funded election interference
11. Pakistan: Imran Khan reveals peace plan with Kashmir ‘roadmap’
12. Pakistani court issues non-bailable arrest warrants for Imran Khan over May 9 violence

PM in US: India-US partnership to be driving engine for ‘sustainable and inclusive global growth’: Modi:

• PM Modi during his second day of state visit to the US, pitched India as the ‘world’s biggest youth factory’ consisting of a ‘pipeline of talent’ and hence India-US partnership will serve as the driving engine for ‘sustainable and inclusive global growth’. 
• Modi gave the remarks at National Science Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia earlier on June 22.
• First lady Jill Biden said that education is a cornerstone of the bond between India and the US, “one we hope to keep building and strengthening with this visit”, she added. (here)
• PM Modi accorded ceremonial welcome, guard of honor upon arriving at Washington
• Upon arriving at Joint Base Andrews in Washington, DC, PM Modi was greeted with a ceremonial welcome and guard of honor amidst the drizzling rain.
• The national anthems of both countries were played at the airbase to mark his arrival.
• PM Modi received a bouquet from two young children and he playfully pulled their cheeks. (here)
• Principal Deputy Spox for the US Department of State on Wed (local time) said that the partnership with India holds immense significance as one of the most crucial bilateral relationships for the US, adding that Washington is looking forward to deepening the relationship during PM Modi’s State visit to the US. (here)
• PM leads Yoga Day event at UN Headquarters in New York: PM Modi on Wed led the Yoga Day event at the UN HQ on the occasion of the 9^th International Day of Yoga.
• Visuals show people on the UN Headquarters lawns performing yoga along with PM Modi and other dignitaries.
• The event also saw participation from the President of the 77^th UNGA, Csaba Korosi, New York City Mayor Eric Adams (here)
• “Wonderful to see the entire world come together again for Yoga”: PM -“Yoga is free from copyrights, patents, and free from royalty payments. Yoga is adaptable to your age, gender, and fitness level. Yoga is portable and is truly universal,” he added. (here)
• PM Modi met with people from academia, think tanks, and business, Nobel laureate and economist Paul Romer, and author Nassim Nicholas Taleb.
• He also met with a group from academia including presidents and deans of U.S. universities and business schools as well as individuals in the health care sector.
• Significantly, he also met with Prof Robert Thurman, Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies at Columbia University as well as actor Richard Gere, both active and influential names in the cause of the preservation of Tibetan culture and freedom. (here)
• Not just jet engines & drones — during ongoing US visit: While India and the US are close to signing big-ticket deals on jet engine tech and purchase of high-altitude drones, several other key defense and security-related projects and pacts will be discussed.
• Both sides are seeing a much closer defense industry cooperation, greater integration, and sharing of not just tech but also info on key strategic interests.
• The US is keen on the fighter jet program for both the Indian Navy and the IAF.
• Two are seeing cooperating more on the issue of hypersonic tech, and materials to help India build on cutting-edge tech besides autonomous underwater capabilities
• Both are also likely to sign off on certain clauses of the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement, 1 of the 3 foundation agreements that were signed in 2020. (here)
• Joint development of the next-gen M777 lightweight howitzers, long-range specialized artillery munitions, and manufacturing Stryker armored personnel carriers in India.
• India has raised concerns about human rights and religiously motivated hate crimes in the US: US official– India has raised its concerns about human rights and religiously motivated hate crimes here in the US, a senior WH official said on Wed. (here)
• Raise ‘these facts’ with PM Modi: Bernie Sanders to US President Joe Biden: Bernie Sanders on Wed criticized the Modi government for allegedly cracking down on the press and civil society, and pushing “an aggressive Hindu nationalism”.
• He also said US President Joe Biden should raise the issues in his meeting with PM Modi, who landed in DC on Wed as part of a 3-day State visit to the US (here)

Amit Shah to convene all-party meeting on June 24 to discuss situation in Manipur

• Union Home Minister Amit Shah will convene an all-party meeting on June 24 in the national capital to discuss the situation in Manipur, Home Ministry said on Wed.
• This came hours after, Congress PP Chairperson Sonia Gandhi said that the exceptional violence that has devastated the lives of people in Manipur has “left a deep wound in the conscience of our nation” while appealing for peace and harmony in the state.
• As Manipur is still witnessing incidents like arson, the state govt has extended the ban on the internet by 5 more days till June 25 to prevent further disturbance to peace.
• The data services have also been banned given the persisting unrest in the state. (here)

‘Don’t Treat Us as Illegal Immigrants’: Myanmar’s Displaced Mark World Refugee Day in Delhi

• At least 200 displaced people from war-torn Myanmar marked WRD at the At New Delhi and pressed for better protection of their rights by the UN Agency and GOI
• This occurred against an advisory by the against gathering in front of its office citing police on Jun 20^th.
• ‘Home Away from Home’ was the 2023 theme set by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees for this year’s World Refugee Day.
• At the call of the MRDC, Myanmarese protesters came to the UNHCR office packed in at least 5 buses from Delhi’s Budela and Hatsal.
• Among those who attended the protest were noted rights activist and lawyer Nandita Haksar, who was in a wheelchair. (here)

JD(U), RJD to propose seat-sharing formula based on last 3 poll results at Patna meeting

• A seat-sharing formula based on the performance of a party in the past 3 elections — for assembly or Lok Sabha — is likely to be proposed by JD U and RJD during the crucial Opposition meeting scheduled in Patna on June 23.
• Emphasis will be laid on both seats won by the party and its vote share in the three previous elections.
• They added that this proposed formula would be part of discussion at the meeting of top leaders of various opposition and regional parties to firm up a broad outline for a united front to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. (here)

Centre to take over Ambedkar museum in London

• The MEA has written to the Maharashtra govt, seeking control over Dr BR Ambedkar’s museum in London to convert it into an autonomous unit to “prevent hijacking of the institution by forces inimical to the national interests”.
• The MEA’s letter to the state government, which was issued last month, says that after the museum becomes an autonomous body, a director rank officer from the Indian government will be in-charge of its functioning.
• The house on 10, King Henry Road in London was Ambedkar’s residence for two years between 1921 and 1922.
• It was acquired by the Maharashtra government in 2015 for £3.2 million and inaugurated the same year by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (here)

[NEIGHBORHOOD]

China restaurant gas tank blast kills 31, leaves 7 injured

• A gas explosion at a barbecue restaurant on Wed night has left 31 people dead in China’s northwestern Ningxia region, according to state news agency Xinhua.
• Firefighters recovered another seven people who were injured in the blast, which occurred at 8.40 pm in Ningxia’s capital Yinchuan when a tank of liquefied petroleum gas exploded.
• President Xi Jinping calls for ‘all-out efforts’ in treating victims and dealing with those responsible.
• According to the Yinchuan government’s official WeChat account, the explosion happened as the chef was replacing the valve on the gas tank, about an hour after staff reported smelling a leak. (here)

China builds a new research port in the South China Sea

• China has begun to build a dedicated port to support deep-sea research in the SCS, a move experts said on Sun will serve many ocean-related doings as well as defense.
• Construction work on the port of the China State Shipbuilding Corp’s SCS test support base started in Sanya, South China’s Hainan Province on Wed
• Aiming to build a world-class oceanic test capability, the base will serve deep sea tests for all industries in multiple fields and support the construction of an advanced national defense industry system, CSSC said.
• As a core and leading project in the South China Sea test support base, the new port will enable key test vessels to moor. (here)

China Blasts ‘Absurd’ Biden Reference to Xi as Ill-Informed ‘Dictator’

• President Xi Jingping’s govt on Wed professed outrage at President Biden’s dismissive reference to China’s leader as a “dictator” at a fundraising event late Tue – an apparent attempt to gain a rhetorical edge over Beijing.
• “It is a blatant provocation. China expresses strong dissatisfaction and opposition,” Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China’s Foreign Ministry, told early Wed.
• Biden mocked what he framed as Xi’s ignorance about the circumstances leading up to a potential international crisis earlier this year when a Chinese spy balloon drifted across North America before a fighter jet shot it down off the coast of South Carolina.
• “The reason why Xi Jinping got very upset in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two boxcars full of spy equipment in it is he didn’t know it was there,” Biden said. (here)

US Coast Guard ship transited Taiwan Strait after Blinken’s China visit -US Navy

• Reuters – A U.S. Coast Guard ship sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tue, the U.S. Navy’s 7^th Fleet said on Thu, transiting a day after Blinken completed a rare visit
• The strait, which separates China from the democratically governed island of Taiwan, is a frequent source of tension as Beijing steps up its political and military pressure to try to force Taipei to accept Chinese sovereignty
• The mission in which the two countries agreed to stabilise their intense rivalry so it does not veer into conflict, but failed to produce any major breakthrough. (here)

Exclusive-Taiwan on alert for Chinese-funded election interference

• Taiwan’s govt says China will try to interfere in key elections in Jan by illicitly funding Beijing-friendly candidates using communications apps or group tours.
• President Tsai Ing-wen’s govt has repeatedly warned of China’s attempts to influence public opinion on the democratically governed island
• Although senior Taiwan officials, including the head of the NSC have this year warned that China could try to sway the elections with influence campaigns including misinformation.
• Beijing could also offer free trips to China to hundreds of Taiwanese involved in election campaigns ahead of the vote to “influence voting decisions
• China could send money in via popular Chinese social networking and chat app WeChat, which allows direct transfers among users, and is available in Taiwan. (here)

Pakistan: Imran Khan reveals peace plan with Kashmir ‘roadmap’

• Former PM Imran Khan has said Pakistan was working on a peace proposal with India that would have seen New Delhi announce ‘some sort of roadmap’ for the Kashmir issue and Islamabad host a visit by the Indian premier in 2019.
• The proposal had the backing of then COAS, Gen Bajwa, and Pakistan moved ahead with it despite India’s decision to scrap the special status of J&K in Aug 2019
• Khan, whose relations with Bajwa have been estranged since the military stopped backing his govt and he was ousted in a parliamentary vote of confidence in Apr 2022,
• Khan also criticized Gen Bajwa for reportedly speaking to the media about Pakistan’s military not being equipped or prepared for war with India. (here)

Pakistani court issues non-bailable arrest warrants for Imran Khan over May 9 violence

• A Pakistani court on Tue issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of former PM Imran Khan in 2 cases related to arson attacks during the May 9.
• Lahore police on May 10 registered 2 FIRs against Khan and other PTI party leaders on charges of attacking and torching a ruling PML-N party office and a container.
• No direction had come from the “top” (military establishment) as yet to nab the former premier after the issuance of arrest warrants against him.
• Khan, in a tweet on Tuesday, questioned why no investigation of attacks on the military and state installations had been carried out yet. (here)