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PM Modi meets Theresa May for bilateral talks on immigration, counter-terrorism

Agencies
April 18, 2018

London, Apr 18; Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday arrived at 10 Downing Street for a breakfast meeting with his British counterpart Theresa May during which the two leaders are expected to discuss wide range of issues of mutual interest, including cross-border terrorism, visas and immigration.

Modi was greeted with the customary handshake by May.

"Very welcome to London, Prime Minister," May said as she greeted Modi, who arrived in a Tata Motors' Range Rover.

The two leaders will hold talks over a breakfast meeting on a wide range of issues of mutual interest, including cross-border terrorism, visas and immigration.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the return of illegal immigrants, which had expired in 2014, will be officially renewed to take into account biometric and other developments in the field, along with a range of nearly a dozen MoUs across different sectors.

"A slew of agreements will be signed between India and the UK during the bilateral leg of the visit today. This is a relationship that cuts across all sectors and has reached a very mature level. The prime minister's visit is about what more we can do to build on that," a senior Indian official said.

A "flash mob" of sari-clad women from Indian Ladies in UK, accompanied by dhols, had gathered outside Downing Street to welcome the Indian PM with banners such as "In India, Peace is always in Fashion".

Modi had landed in Britain from Stockholm overnight for bilateral engagements as well as multilateral discussions as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

He was received at the airport by UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson, who said he was "excited" that India-UK bilateral trade is growing at 15 per cent a year and the visit will help build on "huge economic advantages". Both leaders held a late night meeting at Heathrow airport.

"A real pleasure to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the UK. Lots to discuss on UK-India bilateral issues - tech collaboration, trade, healthcare opportunities and more," Johnson said.

"Another chapter in modern partnership bound by strong historical ties," added the ministry of external affairs (MEA).

Modi is set for a packed day of official engagements today.

After his meeting with the British PM, he arrives at the Science Museum in London to explore the '5000 Years of Science and Innovation' exhibition and interact with Indian-origin and other scientists and innovators based in the UK.

The event, hosted by Prince Charles, will include the launch of a new Ayurvedic Centre of Excellence, aimed at creating a first-of-its-kind global network for evidence-based research on yoga and Ayurveda.

A brief stop to garland the Basaveshwara statue on the banks of the river Thames, which Modi had inaugurated during his last visit to the UK in 2015, will be followed by his second meeting with Theresa May at an event hosted by the British prime minister at the Francis Crick Institute.

Following an interaction with Indian-origin scientists working on cancer research, malaria and other tropical diseases, both leaders will initiate the India-UK CEOs Forum. An India-UK Tech Alliance is also expected to be among the announcements during the day.

Modi is scheduled for a private audience with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace before the Bharat Ki Baat, Sabke Saath diaspora event, to be telecast live from the iconic Central Hall Westminster in London.

The event, billed as the centrepiece of the "Living Bridge" theme of the India-UK bilateral visit, will involve the PM addressing questions from across the world which have already been received via social media.

An estimated 1,700 people, mostly from the Indian diaspora in the UK, successful in a ballot of free online registrations will attend the event organised by the Europe India Forum.

"It will be a no-holds-barred interaction with Prime Minister Modi, in a manner and format never witnessed before," said Vijay Chauthaiwale, in charge of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Foreign Affairs Department.

At the end of the live telecast, Modi will join Heads of Government from 52 other Commonwealth countries at a dinner hosted by May as a formal welcome to the CHOGM.

According to official estimates, India-UK bilateral trade stands at USD 13 billion, with the UK among the largest G20 investors into India. Modi's UK visit this week will have a particular focus on the India-UK technological partnership as well as an enhanced role in the Commonwealth.

A series of demonstrations, including a silent protest to condemn the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district, have been planned by various groups at Parliament Square here his visit.

Comments

rameeztk
 - 
Thursday, 19 Apr 2018

Hamare pyaare PM ji...   What kind of terrorism are you going to counter? end?  End the terrorism from OUR OWN GOONS in India.  

Bring some laws so that....

 

 

01. Let’s think of saving our mothers, sisters and daughters from OUR OWN GOONS.  

 

 

02. Let’s create a safe environment for our mother sisters and daughters.

 

 

03. Put the criminals behind the bar and punish them. 

 

 

04. According to me Politician is a respected word/degree/profession (In actual it’s not at present scenario) Choose candidates with some degree in political science, economy etc. to become MLA MP. Don’t let criminals enter the politics.

 

 

05. We are on high performance rate when it comes to voting, we start visiting each and every homes, constituencies to meet and greet the people. Hope using same method/strategy we can reach each and every common man when it comes to his/her safety issues.

 

 

06. Let’s derive some good methods to counter the terrorism within our own country by OUR OWN GOONS.

 

 

07. For rapists, bring a strict law (Hang to death) to punish them.

 

 

As a law abiding citizen of India I’m ready to cooperate with you Mr. Pyaare PM.

You still have one year time to do all these stuffs.

 

 

Don’t work for NAME and FAME,

 

We may have to face SHAME..

 

I don’t want anyone to BLAME,

 

Taking our Indian PM NAME..

 

 

JAI HO… JAI HIND..

 

 

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News Network
May 6,2020

Washington, May 6: The Chinese Army is indulging in aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea and the Chinese Communist Party has ramped up its disinformation campaign to try to shift the blame on coronavirus and burnish its image, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Tuesday.

"While the Chinese Communist Party ramps up its disinformation campaign to try to shift blame and burnish its image, we continue to see aggressive behaviour by the PLA in the South China Sea, from threatening a Philippine Navy ship to sinking a Vietnamese fishing boat and intimidating other nations from engaging in offshore oil and gas development," Esper told reporters at a Pentagon news conference.

Last week, two US Navy ships conducted freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea to send a clear message to Beijing that America will continue to protect the freedom of navigation and commerce for all nations large and small, he said.

Many countries, Esper said, have turned inward to recover from the pandemic and in the meantime, America's strategic competitors are attempting to exploit this crisis to their benefit at the expense of others.

Responding to a question, he said the Chinese have not been transparent from the beginning on the coronavirus pandemic.

"If they had been more transparent, more open, upfront in terms of giving us access, the reporting, giving us access not to the people on the ground but to the virus they had so we could understand it, we would probably be in a far different place right now. But where we are now is this," Esper said.

China needs to allow the United States in to talk to early patients, Chinese researchers and scientists, and to have access, he added.

Instead, Esper alleged that the Chinese are trying to capitalise on this by promoting their own image that somehow, China is the good guy here.

"Despite everything they did or, more importantly, failed to do, now they want to go out and say well, here's masks. We will give you masks, provide this, or provide that, we will provide you funding. Look at all the good things we are doing," he said.

"Yet, what we know is that they provide masks, they provide supplies. In many cases, it is not good. It does not do what it is supposed to do. It is broken equipment. Also, the strings attached are enormous in many cases. So, they are telling a country you can take these masks, but please, put out publicly how good China is, how great we are doing, et cetera, et cetera," Esper said.

"So there is a number of things they are doing to try and burnish their image. That is just two of them right there," he said.

The Chinese are also doing a lot of strong-arming behind the scenes, Esper said and referred to the war of words between China and Australia. He said he plans to talk to his Australian counterpart later in the day.

"All these activities are going on. It is straight from the Chinese playbook. Once again, it is just a little bit more obvious this time with what they are doing and how they are using a combination of compelling and coercion and everything else to try and shape the narrative and burnish the image of the Chinese Communist Party," Esper said.

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Agencies
August 7,2020

Colombo, Aug 7: Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's party and its allies won an overwhelming two-thirds majority in a parliament election, results showed on Friday, giving him the power to enact sweeping changes to the constitution.

The governing Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and its allies had won 150 seats in the 225-member parliament, according to the tally published by the election commission from Wednesday's vote.

Rajapaksa had sought a two-thirds majority in parliament to be able to restore full executive powers to the presidency, which he says are necessary to implement his agenda to make the tiny island economically and militarily secure.

He is likely to install his older brother and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the next prime minister. The brothers are best known for crushing the Tamil Tiger rebels fighting for a separate homeland for minority Tamils during the elder Rajapaksa's presidency in 2009.

On a congratulatory phone call from Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, which is keen to check Chinese influence on its southern neighbour, Mahinda Rajapaksa vowed to deepen ties between the two countries.

"With the strong support of the people of Sri Lanka, I look forward to working with you closely to further enhance the long-standing cooperation between our two countries," he told Modi. "Sri Lanka and India are friends and relations."

The tourism-dependent nation of 21 million people has been struggling economically since deadly Islamist militant attacks on hotels and churches last year followed by lockdowns to slow the spread of the coronavirus. 

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Agencies
January 4,2020

Tel Aviv, Jan 4: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday came out in the support of Trump administration for carrying out the strike near Baghdad's international airport which led to the killing of Iran's elite IRGC Qassem Soleimani, saying that "The US has the right of self-defence."

"Just as Israel has the right of self-defence, the United States has exactly the same right. Qassem Soleimani is responsible for the death of American citizens and many other innocent people. He was planning more such attacks," PM Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on Twitter.

In another tweet, Netanyahu also credited US President Donald Trump for acting decisively in the operation of Iraq that led to the killing of Qassem Soleimani -- a US-designated terrorist, along with six others.

"President Donald Trump deserves all the credit for acting swiftly, forcefully and decisively. Israel stands with the United States in its just struggle for peace, security and self-defence," he added.

Meanwhile, Iran on Friday vowed to take a "vigorous revenge" over the killing of General Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite IRGC.

The US had accused Soleimani of orchestrating several attacks on coalition bases in Iraq including the December 27 attack in which American and Iraqi personnel were killed. 

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