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News Section

NEW DELHI, 18 July 2021, (TON): Defence ministry said “the Indian Navy has received the first two of its 24 multi-role helicopters from the US Navy.”

A statement issued by the ministry said that the navy received MH-60R helicopters in a ceremony held at the US Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego.

The statement said "MH-60R helicopters manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corporation, USA is an all-weather helicopter designed to support multiple missions with state of the art avionics/sensors."

It said “the Indian Navy is buying 24 of these helicopters from the US government through foreign military sales. The helicopters would also be modified with several India Unique Equipment and weapons."

The first batch of Indian personnel is currently receiving training in the US to exploit these potent helicopters.

These helicopters are a replacement for the Sea King 42/ 42A helicopters, which were decommissioned in the 1990s, and are "envisioned to operate from frontline ships and aircraft carriers, providing them the critical attributes of the flexibility of operation, enhanced surveillance, and attacking capability.

The navy said "the delivery of the helicopters comes at a time when the Indian Ocean Region is witnessing increasing security threats due to the proliferation of submarines."

BEIRUT, 17 July 2021, (TON): Riots left more than two dozen people injured in Tripoli, including 10 soldiers, as tensions continued to rise in Lebanon.

Lebanese Armed Forces Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun said “the situation seems to be getting worse, and things are about to escalate because we are facing a difficult political and social fate.”

Meanwhile the international community continued to call for progress in the country’s stalled political process. France, the EU and the US have urged Lebanese politicians to form a new government as a matter of urgency, and an international conference is being planned to support the efforts.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said “all concerned parties need to work with urgency to put in place a government that’s able to implement reforms immediately.”

The Arab League said its secretary-general, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, and his UN counterpart, Antonio Guterres, had agreed during a meeting in New York that the situation in Lebanon is going from “bad to worse.”

COLOMBO, 17 July 2021, (TON): Minister of Public Security Sarath Weerasekera said said that the discipline in the country has deteriorated lately and that in order to create a disciplined society, people over the age of 18 should be given a training in military camps.

He made these remarks while attending an event to declare open the Panadura Alubomulla and Hirana Police Stations.

He said that discipline in our country is becoming worse and there can be no extortionists, rapists, underworld and child extortionists in such a society to live without fear and suspicion.

He added "when I said in Parliament that those above 18 years of age should be given military training," I was insulted. Some criticized that military training as of becoming a militant.”

Minister Weerasekera said “if they could give any training to the youth above 18 years of age, the best place to give that training is the army camp, because it has discipline and facilities.”

KHARTOUM, 17 July 2021, (TON): Creditor countries have agreed to cancel $14.1bn of Sudan’s international debts, praising its economic reforms and efforts to fight poverty.

In a statement, the Paris Club of creditor nations also announced that it rescheduled Sudan’s remaining $9.4bn in debt to the group, and held out the possibility of more debt relief in the future.

Sudan’s overall foreign debt is estimated at $70bn. The Paris Club, a group of 22 nations that lend to governments in need, urged other lenders to provide similar debt forgiveness.

On his Facebook page, Sudan’s Finance Minister Gebriel Ibrahim congratulated the Sudanese people on this development, vowing to work on reaching similar or even better agreements with other creditors from outside the Paris Club.

Friday’s announcement came after the International Monetary Fund announced a $1.4bn debt relief package for Sudan last month, and France cancelled Sudan’s $5bn debt in an effort to support the country’s transitional leadership and help its crippled economy.

Sudan’s joint military-civilian government, which has ruled the African country since a popular uprising, has taken a series of bold steps to try to revive a battered and distorted economy where smuggling is rife. That’s included floating its currency, starting to address heavy government subsidies, particularly on fuel, and seeking investment from international donors.

But some measures also threaten to further impoverish some of the country’s poorest, and have faced opposition from pro-democracy activists who led the popular uprising against autocratic President Omar al-Bashir, who ruled the country for nearly 30 years.

DHAKA, 17 July 2021, (TON): Dr Shamsul Alam, a member of Planning Commission's General Economy Division and a senior secretary in the government, is scheduled will take oath as the state minister for planning.

When contacted, Dr Alam told UNB that he had been asked to be present at Bangabhaban, the president’s official residence, at 7:30pm on Sunday.

He said “asked whether he was going to take oath as a state minister, a  summary in this regard was sent to the prime minister from the Cabinet Division yesterday, and she signed it. That’s what I know so far."

Sources at the Cabinet Division said he is likely to be the state minister for planning under technocrat quota.

COLOMBO, 17 July 2021, (TON): Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila said that Sri Lanka has identified oil and gas deposits currently valued US 240 billion.

The Minister told media that Sri Lanka could well tide over the issue related to its foreign debt sustainability if it harnessed the full potential of these offshore oil and gas resources.

He said “our foreign debt amount is around US $ 45 billion. But, we have oil and gas deposits valued US$ 240 billion.”

He also said the new piece of legislation which, if enacted by Parliament, would provide for the upstream of oil and gas industry, would be presented to the Cabinet next Monday for approval.

GENEVA, 17 July 2021, (TON): The UN human rights experts called on India to halt mass evictions that threaten to leave 100,000 people homeless in the northern state of Haryana.

Special rapporteurs of the UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner said in a statement “we appeal to the Indian government to respect its own laws and its own goal of eliminating homelessness by 2022 and to spare homes of 100,000 people who mostly come from minority and marginalized communities.”

They added “it is particularly important that residents be kept safe during the pandemic.”

The statement said demolition of homes began last Wednesday in a village in Haryana state built on protected forest land, even though the forest was actually destroyed decades ago by heavy mining.

A move like this would put 100,000 people, including 20,000 children, at risk of becoming homeless.

Residents have already been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the eviction order would put them at greater risk and bring even more hardship to some 20,000 children – many of whom may remain out of school – and 5,000 pregnant or breastfeeding women.

The statement said the villagers live in Khori Gaon (village) in Faridabad on land that was designated as a protected forest in 1992, “despite there being no forests on it.”

DHAKA, 17 July 2021, (TON): Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen laid emphasis on establishing ‘good connectivity’ between Central and South Asian nations through road and air connections with trade facilitation for betterment of both the regions. 

He said “trade facilitation, avoidance of double taxation, visa support and other trade favorable measures would be the ground to ease and expedite the cooperation among our countries.”

Momen made the remarks while delivering his speech at the plenary session of the ongoing international conference on ‘Central and South Asia, Regional connectivity, Challenges and Opportunities’ at Congress Hall in Tashkent in Uzbekistan, a foreign ministry’s press release said here.

The Bangladesh foreign minister said that long-standing common cultural and civil bonds of the Central and South Asian regions serve as the foundation for people-to-people relations through education, tourism and cultural exchange and it can be established both by road and air.

Momen said “through combined efforts, all states will be able to establish a good connectivity between two regions opening new avenues of cooperation for the benefits.

NAYPYITAW, 17 July 2021, (TON):  Japanese business entities should stop their participation in a commercial real estate project involving Myanmar’s abusive military, Human Rights Now, Human Rights Watch, Japan International Volunteer Center, Justice For Myanmar, and Mekong Watch said today.

The proposed Y-Complex in Yangon is being constructed on land leased from the country’s armed forces, the Tatmadaw, whose long record of abuses has worsened since the February 1, 2021, military coup.

One participating company, Tokyo Tatemono, stated that they have suspended operation of the Y-Complex project since the coup. However, project participants, including publicly-funded Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport and Urban Development (JOIN), Fujita Corporation, and Tokyo Tatemono, have not publicly disclosed the duration of the suspension or the conditions for resuming operations.

“The Japanese government and businesses failed to appropriately assess the risk associated with doing business in Myanmar,” said Ryutaro Ogawa, Vice Secretary General at Human Rights Now.

They should admit their own shortcomings and act responsibly, otherwise, they will risk financing the military.

The Y-Complex, which includes a shopping mall, hotel, and office rental space, is being built on “military-owned Military Museum land” leased by Myanmar’s Quartermaster General’s office, according to a copy of the Build, Operate, Transfer (B.O.T) Land Lease Agreement” dated October 15, 2013.

WASHINGTON, 17 July 2021, (TON): President Biden will pick a former ambassador to France, Jane Hartley, as his ambassador to Britain.

A White House spokesperson declined to confirm the nomination to The Hill and said nothing is final until it is announced.

The Post cited two people in the know about the decision. Among the positions that a president chooses, the ambassadorships in London and Paris are considered two of the most prestigious.

The news outlet noted the British ambassador position is considered more important due to the close diplomatic, military and historical relationship between the two countries.

The ambassadorship is usually one of the first to be announced and is often given to an important donor or close friend of the president’s, but the news outlet reported that the president had difficulty finding the right candidate for the job and had considered former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg for the role.

The Post noted that some close to the president are surprised by his decision to nominate Hartley but also acknowledged that she remained a loyal donor to Biden even when his campaign was struggling.

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