Latest news with #OperationSindoorIndia
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First Post
a day ago
- General
- First Post
Scorching irony: Pakistan to be vice-chair of UN's counter-terror panel, head Taliban sanctions body
As an scorching irony unfolds in New York, Pakistan, often labelled as the 'global exporter of terror', will chair the UN Security Council's Taliban Sanctions Committee in 2025 and will also serve as vice-chair of the Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee. read more A strange irony has unfolded in New York: Pakistan – often referred to as the 'global exporter of terror' – is set to chair the United Nations Security Council's Taliban Sanctions Committee in 2025. It will also serve as vice-chair of the Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee. The Taliban Sanctions Committee, also known as the 1988 Committee, is responsible for measures such as freezing assets, imposing travel bans, and enforcing arms embargoes on individuals and groups linked to the Taliban that pose a threat to peace and security in Afghanistan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Guyana and Russia are set serve as vice-chairs of this committee, which will be headed by Pakistan. Pakistan to vice-chair counter-terror committee Algeria will chair the 1373 Counter-Terrorism Committee, with France, Pakistan, and Russia acting as vice-chairs. According to the official UN list, Denmark will lead the 1267 ISIL and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee in 2025, with Russia and Sierra Leone as vice-chairs. A non-permanent member Pakistan, a non-permanent member of the 15-nation UN Security Council for the 2025–26 term, will also co-chair two informal working groups — one focused on documentation and procedural matters, and the other on general sanctions issues. India previously chaired the UN Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee in 2022 during its 2021–22 term as a non-permanent member. India has repeatedly highlighted that Pakistan harbours the highest number of UN-designated terrorists and terror outfits. Osama-bin Laden was killed in Pak's Abbottabad Al Qaeda leader Osama-bin Laden, for instance, was found hiding in Pakistan's Abbottabad and was killed in a US Navy SEAL operation in 2011. The Security Council comprises five permanent members – China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US. Apart from Pakistan, the current non-permanent members are Algeria, Denmark, Greece, Guyana, Panama, South Korea, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, and Somalia. Pahalgam terrorists were backed by Pakistan Recently, Pakistan-backed terrorists killed 26 innocent civilians in Pahalgam on 22 April, triggering a fierce response from New Delhi. India alleged ' cross-border terror links ' and took strong diplomatic measures against Islamabad, including suspending the Indus Waters Treaty and expelling Pakistani diplomats. India's Operation Sindoor India responded with precision strikes targeting nine terror locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir under. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stated that nearly 100 terrorists were neutralised in these strikes. 'Pakistan is Global exporter of terror' Experts have long labelled Pakistan a 'global exporter of terror' due to its continued support for extremist groups. This support includes providing safe havens, funding, and training to organisations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, which have carried out attacks across South Asia and beyond. Terrorism is means of survival for Rawalpindi-based Pak army These groups often operate with backing from Pakistan's military and intelligence services, who use them as tools for strategic influence. In return, these outfits serve to justify the military's dominance within Pakistan's power structure. Pakistan uses these groups to spread terror and target civilians. When India retaliates in self-defence, the Pakistani military – headquartered in Rawalpindi and effectively the real power centre – uses Indian action to stoke fear among the public, thereby consolidating its authority. Pak military's same tactics in Kargil war Similar tactics were seen during the Kargil War, when Pakistani forces occupied Indian positions and falsely portrayed it as a local insurgency. After a strong Indian counter-offensive, Pakistani forces were forced to withdraw. Harbouring terror since birth India, Afghanistan, Iran, and Western nations have consistently criticised Pakistan for harbouring terrorists and using them as instruments of foreign policy. Incidents like the 2008 Mumbai attacks and the discovery of bin Laden on Pakistani soil have only reinforced these concerns. Despite international pressure – including scrutiny from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) – Pakistan's military and intelligence networks continue to face serious allegations of supporting terrorism, jeopardising both regional and global stability.
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First Post
18-05-2025
- Business
- First Post
Op Sindoor effect: IMF slaps 11 new conditions on Pakistan, warns of risks to reform goals, reveals report
The IMF has reportedly slapped 11 more conditions on Pakistan after Operation Sindoor, taking the total number to 50 read more Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army chief General Asim Munir attend the funeral of a person killed in an Indian airstrike on a terrorist facility conducted on May 7, 2025, under Operation Sindoor. (Photo: Pakistan ISPR) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reportedly imposed 11 new conditions on Pakistan for the release of the next tranche of its bailout programme following the recent standoff with India. The Express Tribune newspaper reported Sunday (May 18) that new conditions include the parliamentary approval of a new Rs 17.6 trillion budget, an increase in the debt servicing surcharge on electricity bills and lifting restrictions on the import of more than three-year-old used cars. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The IMF reportedly released its Staff Level report on Saturday, in which the institution said that 'rising tensions between India and Pakistan, if sustained or deteriorate further, could heighten risks to the fiscal, external and reform goals of the programme'. It also warned that increasing tensions with India could expose the IMF bailout programme's fiscal, external, and reform goals to external risks. Markets calm after period of deep uncertainty The IMF report noted that despite a significant escalation in India-Pakistan tensions over the past two weeks, market response remained subdued, with Pakistan's stock market holding most recent gains and bond spreads widening only slightly. The report projected Pakistan's defence budget for the next fiscal year at Rs 2.414 trillion ($8.5 bn), a 12 per cent increase (Rs 252 billion) over the previous year. However, following recent confrontations with India in early May, the Pakistani government signalled a defence allocation exceeding Rs 2.5 trillion, 18 per cent above the IMF's estimate. India's Operation Sindoor India carried out precision strikes under ' Operation Sindoor ' on terror infrastructure early on May 7 in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Following the Indian action, Pakistan attempted to attack Indian military bases on May 8, 9 and 10. India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes. The Express Tribune report said that the IMF slapped 11 more conditions on Pakistan, taking the total conditions to 50. It has imposed the new condition of securing 'parliamentary approval of the fiscal year 2026 budget in line with the IMF staff agreement to meet programme targets by end-June 2025'. The IMF report has shown the total size of the federal budget at Rs 17.6 trillion, including Rs 1.07 trillion for development spending. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD A new condition has also been imposed on the provinces where the four federating units will implement the new Agriculture Income Tax laws through a comprehensive plan, including the establishment of an operational platform for processing returns, taxpayer identification and registration, a communication campaign, and a compliance improvement plan. The deadline for the provinces is June this year. According to the third new condition, the government will publish a governance action plan based on the recommendations of the Governance Diagnostic Assessment by the IMF.
Economic Times
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Economic Times
PM Modi proven no enemy of Bharat can go unpunished: Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah lauded Prime Minister Modi's address following Operation Sindoor, emphasizing India's firm resolve to retaliate against any enemy aggression. Modi sternly warned Pakistan against nuclear blackmail, asserting that terror and trade cannot coexist. Shah highlighted the armed forces' success in dismantling terrorism in Pakistan, establishing a zero-tolerance policy. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation, saying he made clear the country's resolve to strike back the very moment its enemies dared to make a mistake. In his first address to the nation after Operation Sindoor , the prime minister sternly warned Pakistan that India would not succumb to "nuclear blackmail" and sent a clear message to the world that terror and trade, terror and talks could not go together."Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji today demarcated the boundary for Bharat's enemies through the example of Operation Sindoor, in which our armed forces razed the very edifice of terrorism in Pakistan's backyard," Shah said in a post on country's armed forces made Pakistan shudder with their might and set a new normal of zero tolerance for terrorism, he added."Modi ji has reiterated our resolve that Bharat will strike back the very moment our enemies dare to make a mistake," Shah nation salutes the unparalleled valour of the armed forces, the home minister said in a separate post, describing them as "destroyers of the country's enemies and the shield of Bharat"."We also salute our first line of defence, the courageous personnel of the BSF ( Border Security Force ). The bravery of our forces will forever be etched in our glorious history," he prime minister has proven, time and again, that no enemy of Bharat can go unpunished, Shah said as he congratulated Modi for his exemplary leadership in delivering justice to the "departed souls of our innocent brothers".In his address, the prime minister called Operation Sindoor India's new policy against terrorism."It is the new normal. We have only kept in abeyance our operations against Pakistan and the future will depend on their behaviour," Modi said.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
PM Modi proven no enemy of Bharat can go unpunished: Amit Shah
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation, saying he made clear the country's resolve to strike back the very moment its enemies dared to make a mistake. In his first address to the nation after Operation Sindoor , the prime minister sternly warned Pakistan that India would not succumb to "nuclear blackmail" and sent a clear message to the world that terror and trade, terror and talks could not go together. #Operation Sindoor The damage done at Pak bases as India strikes to avenge Pahalgam Why Pakistan pleaded to end hostilities Kashmir's Pahalgam sparks Karachi's nightmare "Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji today demarcated the boundary for Bharat's enemies through the example of Operation Sindoor, in which our armed forces razed the very edifice of terrorism in Pakistan's backyard," Shah said in a post on X. The country's armed forces made Pakistan shudder with their might and set a new normal of zero tolerance for terrorism, he added. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Write Better, Work Smarter With This Desktop App Grammarly Install Now Undo "Modi ji has reiterated our resolve that Bharat will strike back the very moment our enemies dare to make a mistake," Shah said. The nation salutes the unparalleled valour of the armed forces, the home minister said in a separate post, describing them as "destroyers of the country's enemies and the shield of Bharat". Live Events "We also salute our first line of defence, the courageous personnel of the BSF ( Border Security Force ). The bravery of our forces will forever be etched in our glorious history," he said. The prime minister has proven, time and again, that no enemy of Bharat can go unpunished, Shah said as he congratulated Modi for his exemplary leadership in delivering justice to the "departed souls of our innocent brothers". In his address, the prime minister called Operation Sindoor India's new policy against terrorism. "It is the new normal. We have only kept in abeyance our operations against Pakistan and the future will depend on their behaviour," Modi said.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India has 5 Years to Build on China+1 Supply Chain Change: Ajay Banga
The worldwide churn due to tariffs is a chance for developing countries to look at their barriers and consider how to change them so as to benefit from an evolving trade environment, World Bank Group president Ajay Banga told Vinay Pandey in an interview. Edited excerpts. How do you see the world economy, given the context of tariffs and geopolitical turmoil? #Operation Sindoor India responds to Pak's ceasefire violation; All that happened India-Pakistan ceasefire reactions: Who said what Punjab's hopes for normalcy dimmed by fresh violations The global economy is still doing pretty well. The real problem is that conversations around geopolitics and tariffs have created a degree of uncertainty and volatility in the markets. The stock market bounced around, although it is now doing pretty well. The bond market bounced, though that too has settled down. The dollar has declined a little. There is this feeling — if you have uncertainty, will that delay investment decisions; will consumers delay purchasing decisions? If that happens, then yes, you will see a slowdown in the global economy, including in developing countries, and that is not good because growth is important. How do you see this playing out in terms of countries' positioning? What does it mean for globalisation? If you look at the last 10 years, more than 100 bilateral and regional deals have been signed, (including) CPTPPs (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnerships) and RCEPs (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnerships). So, what is going on is a change in the pattern of trade, not globalisation going away. The bilateral deals are not just with your neighbours (but also) with people two continents away. So, it is still globalisation, just done differently. Second is supply chain, and I have said this in your paper actually, some years ago: India has five years to take advantage of the changes in the supply chain that are happening because of China+1. I don't think you have 10-15 years to fix it. You have to think about a few things that will help you get the full benefit of supply chains. One is the logistics cost. India still has a relatively high cost of logistics compared to the East Asian economies. You are doing a lot of things there. Ports, bridges and reducing the friction in trade. But there is more work to be done. A zero-for-zero kind of tariff might be very helpful. In a global supply chain, nobody wants to deal with tariffs coming in, getting VAT (value-added tax) back — it's too much work. India has manpower, but skilling needs to be focused on. Is there a big opportunity? Yes, but work on logistics. Work on continuing regulatory reform, and skilling. And I think there is a real chance there. What kind of impact can US tariffs have on India? The US has had the lowest trade tariff barriers forever. Even with a 10% base, it will still be one of the lowest. The developing world tends to have much more tariff and non-tariff barriers, and there are economically proven facts that lower barriers improve trade and growth. So, this is a chance for the developing world to look at its own barriers and think about how to change those so they can benefit from a changed trading environment. India is very well placed to do things that could benefit it. Global trade has doubled in nominal terms over the last 20 years. If you look at the share of that coming from developing countries, that has also doubled, from 20% to 40%. Within that 40%, the share coming from developing countries trading among themselves has also doubled to half (50%). But the problem is inside that half. The share of regions such as South Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean is much lesser — low double digits, high single digits kinds of numbers — whereas east and central Asia, the Pacific and Europe are much higher. There is also an opportunity for India to look at intra-regional trade. You've signed a deal with the UK and maybe you will do one with the European Union. Maybe, you will do some more with your neighbours, and that could be very helpful. India has one big plus, which is that the economy is much more dependent on domestic consumption than it is on trading. So, if the world export system does take some uncertainty for a while, India will be impacted less than other countries. India, if anything, is in a better way through this coming period. There was a G20 expert group set up by India with NK Singh and Larry Summers. You have talked about making the World Bank bigger and better. How are we placed on the recommendations? There are 29 recommendations, of which 16 are done. The others are all on the way. For instance, one recommendation was to get things done faster. It used to take us 19 months to get a project from conversation to board approval. We are now down to 14 months. I set an arbitrary target of 12 for the end of June. I think we will get pretty close to it. Some projects are being approved in 30 days, such as a healthcare clinic, but some things, like a hydroelectric dam, take three years. They are more complicated, and they should take longer. Another was if we can raise more capital from squeezing the balance sheet. We raised almost $100 billion from loan to equity ratios and hybrid capital portfolio guarantees. A third recommendation was to work better with other MDBs (multilateral development banks) and multinational banks. So, we have agreements with a number of them. We have launched a digital platform, where all banks are now putting projects they are financing—175 projects have come in and 10 have already been co-financed, totalling $14 billion. What's the second phase of the private sector lab? The private sector lab is deeply connected to the jobs council now—you know, those five sectors we are trying to work in. The lab had five work streams, the first (being)… why is it that trillions of dollars are not flowing into the emerging markets, given the obvious opportunity for investing? We found five things. One, they don't have enough regulatory policy clarity. Second, they need political risk insurance because governments change their minds. We have put all our insurances together under one part of the bank called MIGA (Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency), and now we are simplifying them and making it easier to access. The insurance business is up 30% and we think we can double it in the next two to three years. Third was (the World Bank) taking junior equity positions. That will make it more certain for investors to follow. So, we have set up the Frontier Opportunities Fund with $100 billion of our own retained earnings. The plan is to keep adding money, maybe raise money from some philanthropies. Fourth was foreign exchange. The best way to build local currency lending is local capital markets. India has a pretty good capital market in width and depth… but in other countries, we are doing swaps with local commercial banks. We are taking their excess liquidity every night, giving them more than they would get from the central bank, lending it in local currency and then hedging the currency. We do a rolling hedge and take some of that risk on to ourselves, rather than the project. Today, IFC (International Finance Corp) is (about) 40% of our lending in local currency, and a few years ago, that was (about) 20%, but it won't get to 80% this way. You need to find more things to do. The last item is the idea of creating an asset class. If you go back to the logic of getting trillions in pension funds— you ask a pension fund, would you like exposure to water and projects in India. They will say yes, it's a great project, it makes sense. But if I go with one project in one state and another elsewhere, with different legal agreements and covenants, it will not work. You have to incentivise the government to agree to standardisation on pricing and liquidity, which you can package with a rating agency sticker. Doug Peterson, who used to run Standard and Poor's, is doing this for us. So, progress on all five. What are your plans for India? A new country partnership framework is going to be drawn up for India. It's going to focus on what I believe is the right thing for India at this stage—private sector-led growth, fiscal prudence in the government, domestic resource mobilisation and, hence, digitisation. But you'll see us focusing even more on IFC and MIGA for private sector-led growth. Our country partnership framework for India will be private sector-led with some knowledge, a little bit of public financing, rural prosperity, urban development, skilling, MSMEs and growth — all oriented towards jobs, jobs and jobs.
