Latest news with #BilateralRelations
Arab News
6 hours ago
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan defense minister says Simla Agreement with India ‘has no worth' after conflict
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said on Thursday that Islamabad's Simla Agreement with New Delhi, which formalized the de facto border separating the disputed Kashmir territory with its neighbor, 'has no worth' after the recent standoff between them. India and Pakistan signed the Simla Agreement in 1972 after the 1971 war between the two countries, which New Delhi won and led to the creation of Bangladesh. One of its main clauses was that India and Pakistan both agreed to bilaterally discuss and resolve the issue of the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir. Another clause of the agreement was that both countries renamed the Ceasefire Line, the de facto border separating Pakistan-administered Kashmir from the one governed by India, to the 'Line of Control' (LoC). Both India and Pakistan agreed not to change it unilaterally. After India suspended a decades-old water-sharing treaty with Pakistan following an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir in April, Pakistan announced a raft of tit-for-tat measures against Delhi. Islamabad said it had the right to hold all bilateral agreements with India, including the Simla Agreement, in abeyance. 'Because of India's steps I think the sanctity of the Simla Agreement has ended,' Asif told Geo News. 'All the status before the Simla Agreement, that we will resolve problems bilaterally, all of its provisions, is not applicable. That agreement as a whole, I think after this war and episode, has no worth or value,' he added. He reiterated Pakistan's position that India's move to hold the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) in abeyance was illegal as the terms dictated that neither of the two parties can alter its status unilaterally. Signed in 1960, the treaty allocates the six Indus Basin rivers between India and Pakistan, with the World Bank acting as its guarantor. Pakistan has rights to the western rivers — Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab — for irrigation, drinking, and non-consumptive uses like hydropower. India controls the eastern rivers — Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej — for unrestricted use but must not significantly alter their flow. India can use the western rivers for limited purposes such as power generation and irrigation, without storing or diverting large volumes Asif said neither the World Bank nor any other institution had any 'interference or patronage' in the Simla Agreement when it was signed in 1972. 'So then, the Control Line will once again shift to its original status of Ceasefire Line,' the minister said. While the fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan announced on May 10 by US President Donald Trump -persists, tensions remain high as delegations by both nuclear-armed neighbors head to world capitals and blame each other for the May conflict. Kashmir has always remained the root cause of conflict between India and Pakistan. The two countries claim the region in full but administer only parts of it. They have fought two out of three wars since 1947 over the territory. Delhi blames Islamabad for fomenting militancy in the part of Kashmir it administers. Pakistan denies the allegations and says it only extends diplomatic support to the people of Kashmir it says are living under 'occupation.'
Al Arabiya
a day ago
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Lukashenko says China, Belarus facing western ‘pressure'
President Alexander Lukashenko said Belarus and China are both facing a pressure campaign from the West, as he met with Xi Jinping in Beijing on Wednesday. Lukashenko told his Chinese counterpart that their nations are up against 'unprecedented pressure' from the West, according to the Belarusian state news agency Belta. 'China will not allow the world order to be broken,' Lukashenko added. 'Many, many nations are convinced of this.' The Belarusian leader, who in January won a seventh consecutive term after a widely criticized election, has ruled ex-Soviet Belarus for more than 30 years. He is in China for a three-day state visit this week after last visiting in December 2023. According to state broadcaster CCTV, Xi told Lukashenko that China has 'always viewed and developed its relations with Belarus from a strategic and long-term perspective.' Xi added that China is 'willing to work with Belarus to promote stable and far-reaching bilateral relations and mutually beneficial cooperation', CCTV said.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China says US is ‘provoking frictions' as tensions flare despite trade truce
China has accused the United States of 'provoking new economic and trade frictions' as it responded to US President Donald Trump's claims that Beijing had violated a trade truce agreed by the two nations last month, which paused their blistering tariff war. China was 'strictly implementing' the consensus of those trade talks, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement Monday, while blaming the US for taking steps that 'seriously undermine' the agreement. 'The United States has been unilaterally provoking new economic and trade frictions, exacerbating the uncertainty and instability of bilateral economic and trade relations,' the statement said. 'If the United States insists on its own way and continues to undermine China's interests, China will continue to take resolute and forceful measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,' it added. The comments come after Trump on Friday said China had 'TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US.' In a post on Truth Social, the US president said that he made a fast deal with China to 'save them from what I thought was going to be a very bad situation.' He added: 'So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!' The back and forth spotlights a ratcheting up of tensions between the US and China just weeks after the two sides reached the surprise trade truce in Geneva, which significantly dialed down the hefty tariffs that each imposed on the other in April. That agreement gave the two sides a 90-day window to hash out a broader deal, an effort that now appears imperiled as each side accuses the other of working against the spirit of that agreement. US officials have described talks as 'stalled' and suggested that the involvement of Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping is needed to jumpstart progress. A key point of contention has been Beijing's export controls on rare earth minerals and associated products, which were imposed as part of its retaliation against Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs on Chinese goods. Following the talks, US officials had expected China to ease export restrictions of those minerals, which are an essential part of everything from iPhones and electric vehicles to big-ticket weapons like F-35 fighter jets and missile systems. But the restrictions haven't been lifted, causing intense displeasure inside the Trump administration and prompting a recent series of measures imposed on China, three administration officials told CNN last week. Meanwhile, Beijing accused the US last month of 'undermining' the consensus reached in Geneva, after Washington warned companies against using AI chips made by its national tech champion Huawei. In a further escalation of tensions, the US then last week also moved to limit critical technology sales to China and restrict the number of Chinese students studying in the US –spotlighting how the scope of their competition is much broader than just trade. In the Monday statement, China's Commerce Ministry hit out at these measures, saying the US has 'successively introduced a number of discriminatory restrictive measures against China after the Geneva Economic and Trade Talks, including issuing AI chip export control guidelines, stopping the sale of chip design software to China, and announcing the revocation of Chinese student visas.' Beijing, as well as other Asian capitals, is also feeling the pressure of trade frictions at home. China's manufacturing activity shrank for a second month in May, an official survey showed on Saturday. Tariffs imposed this year on Chinese goods entering the US, its largest export market, currently stand at 30%, not including any pre-existing duties. Trump administration officials have homed in on China's controls on exports of rare earths in their assessments of China's compliance with the agreement reached in Geneva. The deal saw the two sides dial back during the 90-day grace period mutual tariffs that had soared to well over 100%. It also included an agreement from China to 'suspend or remove' non-tariff countermeasures taken against the US since April 2. China on April 4 imposed export controls on seven rare earth minerals and associated products in what was seen as a retaliation against Trump's duties on its goods. Its export control regime does not ban exports outright but requires government approval for each shipment regardless of destination, enabling greater control over a supply chain that China has come to dominate globally. That system appeared to remain in place last month following the talks, CNN reporting showed. During an interview that aired Sunday with CBS' Face the Nation, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China was 'withholding some of the products that they agreed to release' in Geneva, referring to critical minerals. 'Maybe it's a glitch in the Chinese system, maybe it's intentional,' he added, noting that the issue would be 'ironed out' when Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have a call, which Bessent said he believes will happen 'very soon.' The two leaders are known to have last spoken on January 17, days before Trump's inauguration. China has defended its export control regime, describing it last week as 'in line with international practices' and 'not targeted at specific countries.' When asked about its export controls on rare earth minerals, part of a wider category of critical minerals, during a regular press briefing Friday, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Beijing was 'willing to strengthen dialogue and cooperation in the field of export controls with relevant countries and regions.'
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Indonesia, China agree to bolster ties ahead of ASEAN summit
Chinese Premier Li Qiang reaffirmed Beijing's ties with Jakarta on Sunday during his visit to Indonesia ahead of a regional summit in Kuala Lumpur. Beijing and Jakarta are key economic allies, with Chinese companies pouring capital into extracting Indonesian natural resources in recent years, particularly in the nickel sector. But the two countries' disputed claims into the strategic waterways of the South China Sea and its nearby territories have weighed on their relationship in recent years. In a meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto Sunday,Li said Beijing was keen to further advance cooperation with Southeast Asia's largest economy. "China is willing to work together with Indonesia... to carry forward our tradition of friendship, and to strengthen solidarity and cooperation," Li said. Prabowo also echoed Indonesia's "close and good" friendship with China. "Indonesia is ready to create a safe and prosperous region. Indonesia is ready to strengthen cooperation with China for us to create a peaceful region, which is safe for all," Prabowo said. The Chinese premier is headed next to Malaysia for an ASEAN summit between members of the 10-country bloc, China and oil-producing countries. Prabowo had visited Beijing last year, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping told him that he hoped for a "new chapter" in bilateral relations. The two countries have in the past sparred verbally over disputed claims in the South China Sea -- which China claims almost entirely. Beijing has for years sought to expand its presence in the contested waters, brushing aside an international ruling that its claim has no legal basis. Chinese vessels have occasionally entered Indonesia-claimed areas of the North Natuna Sea at the southern edge of the South China Sea, drawing protests from Jakarta. In October, Indonesia said it drove Chinese coast guard ships from contested waters in the South China Sea on three separate occasions. bur-mrc/dhc
Times of Oman
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Times of Oman
PM Modi congratulates Friedrich Merz on becoming German Chancellor, vows to strengthen strategic ties
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday congratulated Friedrich Merz on assuming office as the new Federal Chancellor of Germany and reaffirmed India's commitment to enhancing the bilateral Strategic Partnership. Sharing the update on X (formerly Twitter), PM Modi wrote: "Spoke to Chancellor Friedrich Merz and congratulated him on assuming office. Reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the Strategic Partnership between India and Germany. Exchanged views on regional and global developments. We stand united in the fight against terrorism." Earlier on May 6, PM Modi also extended his greetings in a separate post on X, expressing his intent to work with Chancellor Merz closely. He wrote, "Heartiest congratulations to @_FriedrichMerz on assuming office as the Federal Chancellor of Germany. I look forward to working together to further cement the India-Germany Strategic Partnership." PM Modi's outreach to Merz signals the continuity and further deepening of India-Germany relations, which have gained strategic momentum in recent years across sectors such as trade, green energy, defence, and education. India and Germany have consistently shared views on multilateralism, rules-based international order, and combating terrorism--an area PM Modi again highlighted in his message. Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who officially took office on May 6, responded to his election by expressing gratitude and resolve. "I accept my election as Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany with gratitude and respect for the task. I approach my work with courage and confidence. Because we are a strong country, and our country can do more!" Merz said. According to The New York Times, Merz secured the chancellorship after winning a second-chance vote in Parliament, recovering from an earlier defeat that had raised concerns about political instability. Deutsche Welle (DW) reported that he received 325 votes, with 289 lawmakers opposing his appointment. Born on November 11, 1955, in Brilon, Merz has been active in politics since the 1970s as a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). After completing law and political science studies in Bonn and Marburg, Merz launched his political career in 1989 as a Member of the European Parliament. He later served in the German Bundestag from 1994 to 2009 and again from 2021 onward. Over the years, he has held significant positions including Chair of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group and leader of the CDU in Germany since 2022.
