KABUL, 18 July 2021, (TON): Representatives of the Afghan government and the Taliban met in Doha for talks, as violence rages in the country with foreign forces almost entirely withdrawn.

The two sides have been meeting on and off for months in the Qatari capital, but the talks have lost momentum as the insurgents have made battlefield gains.

Several high-ranking officials, including former Afghan former chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, gathered in a luxury hotel after morning prayers.

They were joined by negotiators from the Taliban's political office in Doha.

According to a source “former president Hamid Karzai had also been due to travel to Doha but remained in Kabul.”

Najia Anwari, the spokeswoman for the Afghan government negotiating team in Doha said "the high-level delegation is here to talk to both sides, guide them and support the (government) negotiating team in terms of speeding up the talks and have progress."

TALLINN, 18 July 2021, (TON): Estonian Foreign Minister Eva-Maria Liimets said “Estonia will not send a new ambassador to Belarus, since it does not consider Alexander Lukashenko to be the legitimate president.”

The minister told the Estonian broadcasting portal ERR said “it would be extremely inappropriate, since Estonia, like Europe , does not recognize the results of the presidential elections in Belarus, which took place in August last year.”

Last week, Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid signed an order on the appointment of Jaak Lensment as the new ambassador to Minsk , who is to present his credentials to Lukashenka. The term of office of the current ambassador, Merike Kokayev, should end on July 31.

According to Liimets, Estonia has four options: to act as usual, lowering the level of Estonian representation, appointing a chargé d’affaires, not hand over credentials and leave the ambassador to work in Tallinn or not take any further steps at all and continue with the reduced staff at the embassy.

ISLAMABAD, 18 July 2021, (TON): Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director-General Major General Babar Iftikhar “the Pakistan Army has deployed regular troops at all border crossings with Afghanistan and all illegal crossing points have been sealed.”

Pakistan has been building a border fence along its porous border with Afghanistan. The initiative, which started a few years earlier, is at least 88 per cent complete. The objective is to stop the infiltration of terrorist elements from Afghanistan and control unchecked movement.

"The recent terrorist incident has linkage with the Afghanistan situation," the ISPR DG said during an interview, adding that the act was a desperation of terrorists."

Elaborating further, the military's spokesperson said that as many as 167 terror incidents had taken place since May 1, while security forces have conducted more than 7,000 IBOs and cordon and search operations.

Maj Gen Iftikhar said "Afghanistan's own stakeholders have to decide their future. We are not guarantors to Afghanistan peace process."

Previously, paramilitary troops and levies were used to guard the border crossings with the country's eastern neighbour.

BRUSSELS, 18 July 2021, (TON): Charles Michel, President of the European Council said “the European Union will provide Armenia with financial assistance in the amount of 2.6 billion euros.”

Michel said at a joint briefing with the acting, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan “we are next to you and confirm our readiness to provide Armenia with a financial package of 2.6 billion euros to promote Armenia’s priorities – infrastructure, digital agenda, climate, transport, democratic reforms,” ??.

He announced the intention of the European Union to be more actively involved in solving the problems of the South Caucasus, to strengthen ties with the region.

Michel said “the EU wants to show involvement in the region, strengthen ties with regional countries, carry out work to prepare for the Eastern Partnership summit. According to him, the EU assists the work of the OSCE Minsk Group on the settlement of the Karabakh conflict.”

On May 12-13, Azerbaijani army units entered the territory of Armenia in the Syunik and Gegharkunik regions. In this regard, Armenia applied to the CSTO, and the acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan asked Russian President Vladimir Putin for assistance.

On June 12, Pashinyan said that he was discussing with Moscow the issue of placing Russian border guards and international observers in the border line with Azerbaijan from east to south of Armenia.

DHAKA, 18 July 2021, (TON): Twenty Rohingya refugees who had fled Bhashan Char in Noakhali were arrested from Ichakhali Bangabandhu Economic Zone area under Jorarganj police station of Chittagong’ Mirsarai upazila.

Among the arrestees, 11 were children, five women and four men.

The arrestees are Md Abdur Rahman, 27, Setara Begum, 20, Md Sabbir 26, Sanchita begum, Rajiya Begum, 23, Nurul Karim, 20, Salma Khatun, 50, Jamal Hossain, 24, Nur Kayda, 25, Rumana, 6, Nur Fatema, 3, Md Ayaz,8, Jannat Ara, 4, Kismat Ara Begum, 2, Mariam, 8, Abul Kashem,7, Md Ayat, 4, Setara, 5, Jannat Ara,1, and Osman Gani aged eight months, reports UNB.

Jorarganj police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Nur Hossain Mamun said “Ansar members in charge of the economic zone apprehended them after seeing their suspicious movements around 5:30am morning.”

He added “during preliminary interrogation, they confessed to fleeing from Bhashan Char to head for the Rohingya camps in Teknaf, Cox's Bazar.”

Ansar member Borhan Uddin has filed a case against the arrested Rohingyas. They have been sent to court.

DHAKA, 18 July 2021, (TON): Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sent her beautiful gift of Bangladeshi mangoes as a goodwill gesture to Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Bangladesh High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Tareq Md Ariful Islam handed over the mangoes.

The Sri Lankan prime minister expressed his wholehearted gratitude and thanks to the Bangladesh prime minister for the gift.

He hoped that it symbolizes the fruitful relationship between the two countries.

DHAKA, 18 July 2021, (TON): Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sent her beautiful gift of Bangladeshi mangoes as a goodwill gesture to Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Bangladesh High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Tareq Md Ariful Islam handed over the mangoes.

The Sri Lankan prime minister expressed his wholehearted gratitude and thanks to the Bangladesh prime minister for the gift.

He hoped that it symbolizes the fruitful relationship between the two countries.

ABU DHABI, 18 July 2021, (TON): Two OPEC sources told media that the OPEC + countries are discussing a ministerial meeting on Sunday, July 18, as the main differences between the allies have already been settled.

The meeting with a high probability will take place tomorrow. We are now awaiting official confirmation.

Answering the question whether the main issues that previously prevented the ministers from completing the consultations with agreements have been settled said, they still need to be discussed with other parties to the agreement.

Another high-ranking delegate confirmed that it was the differences between Saudi Arabia and the UAE that had been settled, but did not disclose details.

According to the interlocutors, the agenda for the next OPEC + meeting will include a discussion of oil production levels until the end of this year, as well as the issue of extending the OPEC + deal until the end of 2022.

In early July, OPEC + ministers could not agree on these two issues for five days. The UAE was not happy that the agreement on the reduction of oil production is proposed to be extended after April 2022, when it expires, under the same conditions on which it is operating now.

According to the Ministry of Energy of the Emirates, the basic cut-off, from which production quotas are calculated, is not relevant for them, and does not take into account the real production capacity. Saudi Arabia rejected the opportunity to adjust this parameter on an individual basis.

By Usman                                                                                                                                         

Two-days 'Central-South Asia conference ‘was held at Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan on July 15^th and 16^th, 2021. Around 250 participants and 40 delegates from different countries have taken part in the conference titled as "The International Conference on Central and South Asia Regional Connectivity, Challenges and Opportunities". During the conference the accusations of Afghan president on Pakistan were highly disappointing. He said “the influx of ten thousands jihads fighters plunged into Afghanistan” have come to Afghanistan in the past month. Afghan government, instead of admitting their failures on the Afghan home-front and correcting their policy loop holes, Afghan government is busy in blaming Pakistan from the last decade. The Afghan president adopted an old rhetoric to put the responsibility of its blunders on the shoulders of Pakistan which is not more than disgusting.

Despite the fact, it is Pakistan which, hosted millions of Afghans on its land from more than two decades and seriously concerned at the deteriorating political situation in the war-torn country, where the Taliban are taking sweeping advances. Those participated sought a common pathway toward finishing the country’s escalating violence. The Chinese and Russian envoys criticized America’s hasty retreat and withdrawal of the US and NATO contingents from Afghanistan that has left power vacuum and destabilized the region, all this tilted in favor of Taliban practically. Taliban forces have captured dozens of districts and key border regions from the irresolute Afghan security forces and military as the US and NATO completing their withdrawal. The conference had originally been intended to deliberate on making better transportation relations across Central and South Asia, but that agenda was outplayed by the Taliban advances.

All the participants’ countries including the Pakistan, US, Russia, China and Afghanistan’s neighbors want to solve the Afghan conflict but it is difficult for them to find common solution to how salvage a peaceful settlement. The crisis in Afghanistan has led to complete chaos, civil war and the problem of illegal drug trafficking has reached an unprecedented scale and the real risks of instability spilling into neighboring countries also. During the conference the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman ridiculed and wrote on her channel on a messaging app a call by EU foreign policy Chief for collective efforts to help a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan. The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman truly said that “First, they create a problem and then search for those responsible and call for collective efforts.”

In recent weeks, the Taliban have captured dozens of strategic places and now hold key border crossings with Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. Speaking to the conference, Pakistani Prime Minister said his country wants a peace settlement. He pointed out the Pakistan already hosts more than 2 million refugees from decades of war in Afghanistan and cannot handle a new flow that is likely if violence escalates.

“We will always be against a military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan.” He also rejected allegations of Pakistan’s support for the Taliban as “extremely unfair,” said “Pakistan has done more than any other country to help put the Taliban at the negotiations table.” The relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan are inundated by deep, long-time misgivings. Kabul continually accused Islamabad of providing safe havens for the Taliban. It is also irony of the fact, that why the peace deal was not brokered and happened by Us-led American forces and Afghan warring groups  with Taliban at that time when the American forces were fully operational during the last decades. Now when the Taliban has an edge over all his opponents, it looks ridicules that they are talking about peace at the time.

Pakistan PM expressed concern over the worsening situation in Afghanistan and its negative impact on the security situation of Pakistan. Pakistan has also blamed Afghanistan of harboring the Pakistani Taliban, known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), who has attacked in Pakistan, killing several army personnel. The Central Asian states, Russia and the US all have expressed a hope for a peaceful Afghanistan that included working with the Taliban. The Governments of C5 (five Central Asian countries) the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan have reiterated their stance for a durable peace in Afghanistan and also want to cooperate on regional security.

However, at the moment, the urgency of substantive negotiations on a political settlement to Create stable and prosperous conditions favorable to the Afghan peace process and formation of the next mutual government is foremost important thing. That should be acceptable to all Afghan groups, which is the only way out path to a lasting peace through a negotiated political settlement that would results in an inclusive political system and fundamental rights of all Afghans and to address challenges and threats to security, prosperity, and stability of not only Afghanistan but other regional countries as well.

ISLAMABAD, 18 July 2021, (TON): The Chinese firm, working on the Dasu hydropower project, would continue carrying out work on the project, the company announced, as a visiting Chinese investigation team inspected the site where nine Chinese workers died in a bus tragedy in Upper Kohistan district earlier this week.

The China Gezhouba Group Corporation (CGGC), which had announced to discontinue work on the project and ended the employment contract with the Pakistani staffers, said that the higher authorities had rejected its decision.

Nine Chinese nationals and four Pakistani citizens were killed and more than two-dozen others sustained injuries morning, when a shuttle bus, they were travelling in, plunged into a deep ravine after an explosion on board.

The bus was ferrying the Chinese and Pakistani workers to an under-construction tunnel site of the Dasu hydropower project in the remote Upper Kohistan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, when it hit the tragedy.

Initially, the Foreign Office had said the incident was an accident, but the government later said that traces of explosives had been found at the site of the incident. Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Thursday that “terrorism could not be ruled out”.