Daily News Brief
February 21, 2024 (Wednesday)
Asia Pacific
1. Australia to
Build Biggest Navy Since World War II. Australia outlined a decade-long plan to double its fleet of major
warships and boost defense spending by an additional $7 billion, in the face of
a quickening Asia-Pacific arms race.
2. Taiwan Calls
on China to ‘Be Rational’ after Deadly Boat Incident. Taiwan called on Beijing to “be rational”
following a deadly incident involving a Chinese boat and the Taiwanese coast
guard, with the island’s premier insisting it would protect its waters.
Russia/Europe/West
3. Russia
Places US Senator Lindsey Graham on ‘Terrorist and Extremist’ List. Russia’s financial monitoring agency,
Rosfinmonitoring, has included US Senator Lindsey Graham on its “list of
terrorists and extremists,” the Russian state-owned TASS news agency reported.
4. Ecuador Backtracks on Plan to Send Weapons to Ukraine. Ecuador’s foreign minister said the country did not plan to send Soviet-era weapons to Ukraine after the president’s vow to do so sparked a spat with Moscow over banana and flower exports.
India/South Asia
5. Protesting
Farmers Reject Modi Govt’s Proposal. The agitating Indian farmers have rejected the Modi
led BJP government’s proposal to buy five crops at minimum support price for
five years, stating that it is not in farmer’s interest and announced to resume
their ‘Delhi Chalo’.
6. Indian Army
to Set Up New Corps for Operations along LAC. The Indian Army is converting its Headquarters
Uttar Bharat (HQ UB) area into a full-fledged operational corps, a move that
will shift its focus towards operations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC)
from its current responsibility of peacetime duties, The Indian Express has
learnt.
7. India Wants to Elevate Defence Ties with Bangladesh. Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma said that New Delhi is willing to share with Bangladesh wide-spectrum capabilities in defence manufacturing, including the most sophisticated technologies.
IIOJK
8. 700 More
Paramilitary Companies to Be Deployed in IIOJK. According to the
Kashmir Media Service, in addition to over 11 lakh Indian Army troops, Border
Security Force and other paramilitary forces, India plans to deploy more than
700 additional paramilitary companies in the Kashmir valley, Jammu region and
Ladakh region in the pretext of smooth conduct of Lok Sabha electons scheduled
for April–May this year.
9. APHC Denounces Deprivation of Social Rights in IIOJK. According to Kashmir Media Service,
the APHC in a statement issued on the “World Day of Social Justice,” in
Srinagar said, the people of the territory, along with minorities including
Muslims in India, have been denied social justice.
Afghanistan
10. Second Doha
Meeting on Afghanistan Ends in Qatar. In
the press conference, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the Islamic
Emirate did not participate because they did not want the UN to talk with
representatives of Afghanistan’s civil society and demanded treatment that
would be similar to recognition.
11. Officials
Discuss Facilitating TAPI Project.
Shahabuddin Delawar, the acting Afghan Minister
of Mines and Petroleum, in a meeting with Mohammad Murad Amanov, the chief of
the TAPI company, discussed accelerating the process of starting the TAPI
project.
Middle
East/Africa
12. Hamas Chief in Cairo for Gaza Truce Talks. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo
for talks with Egyptian officials, the group said, days after mediators said
prospects for a new truce with Israel had dimmed.
13. US Proposes UN Security Council Oppose Rafah
Assault, Back Temporary Gaza Ceasefire.
The United States has proposed an alternative
draft United Nations Security Council resolution calling for a temporary
ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and opposing a major Israeli ground offensive
in Rafah in southern Gaza, according to the text seen by Reuters.
Iran
14. IAEA Chief
Says Iran’s Nuclear Enrichment Activity Remains High. Iran
continues to enrich uranium well beyond the needs for commercial nuclear use
despite UN pressure to stop it, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Chief
Rafael Grossi said, adding he wanted to visit Tehran next month for the first
time in a year to end the “drifting apart”.
15. Middle East
Tensions Rooted in Palestine-Israel Conflict: Iranian Official. The current regional tensions in the Middle
East, including the Red Sea crisis, are all rooted in the Palestine-Israel
conflict, said Nasser Kanaani, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry,
at a press conference in the capital Tehran.
PAKISTAN
Security
16. CTD, Police
Conduct Massive Operation in Islamabad. The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Islamabad Capital Police
conducted a search and combing operation in the Secretariat police station
jurisdiction, following the directives of ICCPO Dr. Akbar Nasir Khan.
17. Terrorist
Killed in DI Khan Intelligence-Based Operation: ISPR. Security
forces killed a terrorist in an exchange of fire during an intelligence-based
operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail (DI) Khan district.
Economy
18. Roshan
Digital Account Inflow Dips.
Inflow through the Roshan Digital Account (RDA) clocked in at $142 million in
January 2024, down by 11% as compared to $160 million in December 2023, the
State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said.
19. Large Oil,
Gas Reserves Discovered in Sindh. In a major development for the country’s economy, large
reserves of oil and gas have been discovered in the Khairpur district of Sindh.
Politics
20. Bilawal Says PPP Adamant on Govt Formation Stance. Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that the party is adamant on its stance regarding formation of a government, adding that it will not be changed at any cost.
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