Islamabad Police personnel standing outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. — AFP/File
ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office (FO) on Wednesday rejected India's purported closure of a "highly irresponsible incident" during which a supersonic missile was fired into Pakistan's territory this year on March 9.
According to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pakistan has reiterated demand for a joint probe.
"We have seen India’s announcement of the findings of an internal Court of Inquiry regarding the incident of firing of a rogue supersonic missile into Pakistani territory on 9 March, and the decision to terminate the services of three Indian Air Force (IAF) officers reportedly found responsible for the reckless incident," statement by the FO read.
FO further stated that the measures taken by India in the aftermath of the incident, in addition to the subsequent findings and punishments handed by the "so-called internal Court of Inquiry" are totally "unsatisfactory, deficient and inadequate".
The ministry's statement added that India has not only failed to respond to Pakistan's demand for a joint inquiry, but has also evaded the questions raised by Pakistan regarding its command and control system, safety and security protocols, and the reason for India’s delayed admission of the Missile launch.
"Systemic loopholes and technical lapses of serious nature in handling of strategic weapons cannot be covered up beneath the veneer of individual human error," the statement read, demanding India for a joint probe in the spirit of transparency — particularly if it has "nothing to hide".
The FO asserted that the imprudent Indian action of March 9, jeopardized regional peace and security, and that Pakistan’s demonstration of exemplary restraint is a testament of the country's systemic maturity and abiding commitment to peace as a responsible nuclear state.
"Pakistan reiterates its demand that the Indian Government must immediately provide specific responses to the queries raised by Pakistan after the incident and accedes to its call for a joint probe," the statement read.
In a veiled dig at China, India on Monday underlined that the principles behind “common security” lie in upholding rules-based international order and when countries respect each other’s sovereignty. During a meeting on international peace and security at the UN Security Council, India’s envoy to the United Nations Ruchira Kamboj stressed that “coercive” action to change the status quo by force is an “affront to common security”.
“Any coercive or unilateral action that seeks to change the status quo by force is an affront to common security. Further, common security is only possible when countries respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as they would expect their own sovereignty to be respected,” she said.
Underscoring the importance of upholding rules-based international order, Kamboj said that it must be “underpinned by international law, premised upon respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all Member States, resolution of international disputes through peaceful negotiations.”
India also called for reforms at the UN with Kamboj saying that the “fundamentally flawed premise of ‘to the victors belong the spoils’ will continue to be confronted with a crisis of confidence and credibility”.
“Challenges the world is confronted with cannot be dealt with through outdated systems and governing structures,” the Indian envoy said at the meeting organised at the behest of China, which was the president of the UNSC for August.
Though Kamboj didn’t take China’s name, her statements carry weight as India and China have accused each other of breaching border protocols several times in the past since 2020. The bitter standoff over the Line of Actual Control has plunged the bilateral ties between the two neighbours to their worst.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said that China has disregarded the border pacts with India, casting a shadow on the bilateral ties as he asserted that a lasting relationship couldn’t be a one-way street and there has to be mutual respect.
Jaishankar said India and China have agreements going back to the 1990s which prohibit bringing troops to the border area. “They (Chinese) have disregarded that. You know what happened in the Galwan Valley a few years ago. That problem has not been resolved and that is clearly casting a shadow,” he said.
Since the Galwan Valley clash in eastern Ladakh in 2020, which led to the killing of 20 Indian soldiers, India and China have had several rounds of Corps Commander Level talks to resolve the standoff, with the latest being held in July. The meetings have led to disengagement in some areas on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso, but friction points still remain.
(With PTI inputs)
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FIFA and the Asian football body dispatched a team to create a roadmap for the AIFF that includes the conclusion of elections at the latest by September 15.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino and All India Football Federation (AIFF) President Praful Patel pose at a news conference after a FIFA Council meeting in Kolkata, India, October 27, 2017.
(Reuters)
FIFA has suspended the All India Football Federation (AIFF) with immediate effect because of "undue influence from third parties", world soccer's governing body said.
Monday's suspension also means that the Under-17 women's World Cup, which was scheduled to take place in India from October 11-30, cannot be held in the country as planned.
India's highest court had disbanded the AIFF in May and appointed a three-member committee to govern the sport, amend the AIFF's constitution and conduct elections that have been pending for 18 months.
In response, FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation sent a team led by AFC general secretary Windsor John to meet Indian football stakeholders and laid down a roadmap for the AIFF to amend its statutes by the end of July and subsequently conclude elections at the latest by September 15.
"The suspension will be lifted once an order to set up a committee of administrators to assume the powers of the AIFF Executive Committee has been repealed and the AIFF administration regains full control of the AIFF's daily affairs," FIFA said in Monday's statement.
Political interference
Earlier this month, the Indian court ordered elections to be held promptly and said the elected committee would be an interim body for a period of three months.
The elections of the AIFF, formerly led by FIFA Council member Praful Patel, were to be held by December 2020 but were delayed due to an impasse over amendments to its constitution.
"FIFA is in constant constructive contact with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in India and is hopeful that a positive outcome to the case may still be achieved," FIFA added.
According to FIFA statutes, member federations must be free from legal and political interference in their respective countries.
FIFA has previously suspended other national associations over similar cases.
Pakistan on Wednesday strongly denounced the Modi-led BJP government's move to mark August 14 -- Pakistan's independence day -- as ‘Partition Horrors Remembrance Day’.
The Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson said that the “revisionist” BJP-RSS regime “sought to hypocritically and one-sidedly invoke the tragic events and mass migration that occurred in the wake of Independence in 1947”.
According to the foreign ministry, the BJP’s “deplorable” aim, as part of its divisive political agenda, was “wantonly attempting to play with the sentiments of the people through distorted interpretation of history”.
“If the Indian leaders genuinely care about agony, suffering and pain, they must work to improve the conditions of the Muslims and other minorities in India,” said the statement.
The MoFA stated that the last seven decades were replete with “undeniable proof that India’s espousal of secularism was a sham”.
“The fact is that today’s India is an undeclared ‘Hindu Rashtra’ that has no place or tolerance for other religious minorities, especially Muslims who are faced with discrimination, persecution and political and socio-economic exclusion.”
The FO advised New Delhi to desist from politicising events related to Independence and instead sincerely honour the memories of those who made sacrifices for a better future for all.
Backchannel contacts between Pakistan and India met a dead end as both sides have struggled to agree on the moves that may pave the way for slow but gradual improvement in the relationship.
“Talks have been going on but have reached a point where things aren’t moving anywhere,” a source familiar with the development said.
There has been a desire from both sides to break the impasse but the issue is how to move forward from this point onwards, the source explained.
What slowed down the process was the political uncertainty in Pakistan.
New Delhi fears its bigger and more powerful rival China will use Sri Lanka's Hambantota port as a military base in India's backyard.
The Pentagon says Yuan Wang ships are operated by the Strategic Support Force of the People’s Liberation Army.
(brisl.org)
Sri Lanka has said it had asked China to defer the planned visit of a Chinese ship to the island country after initially approving its arrival this week, yielding to diplomatic pressure from neighbour India to keep the military vessel out.
The Yuan Wang 5 was due to arrive on Thursday at the Chinese-built and leased Hambantota port in Sri Lanka's south for five days for replenishment.
It is currently sailing in the east Indian Ocean, according to Refinitiv Eikon.
Foreign security analysts describe the Yuan Wang 5 as one of China’s latest generation space-tracking ships, used to monitor satellite, rocket and intercontinental ballistic missile launches.
The Pentagon says Yuan Wang ships are operated by the Strategic Support Force of the People’s Liberation Army.
New Delhi fears its bigger and more powerful rival China will use Hambantota as a military base in India's backyard. The $1.5 billion port is near the main shipping route from Asia to Europe.
Sri Lanka's foreign ministry said that on July 12 it had approved the ship's arrival for this month.
"Subsequently in light of the need for further consultations, the ministry has communicated to the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Colombo to defer the visit of the said vessel to the Hambantota port," the ministry said in a statement on Monday.
India said late last month it was monitoring the planned visit of the ship, adding that New Delhi would protect its security and economic interests. India also lodged a verbal protest with the Sri Lankan government.
Asked about the controversy over the ship, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a regular news briefing that China's relations with Sri Lanka were "not targeted at third parties."
Relations between India and China have been strained since armed clashes on their Himalayan border two years ago killed at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers.
Both China and India have tried to expand their influence in Sri Lanka, which is facing its worst economic crisis in its independent history, though India has provided more help to it this year than any other nation.
Lawmakers chose India’s first president from the country’s tribal communities on Thursday, which could boost the appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party among marginalised groups ahead of the 2024 general election.
Droupadi Murmu, a 64-year-old teacher turned politician, will be the second woman to hold the largely ceremonial role as head of the republic when she takes office on July 25 at the start of a five-year term.
More than 4,500 state and federal lawmakers voted in the presidential election on Monday and ballots were counted on Thursday. Murmu’s victory was assured as she was backed by Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which dominates federal and state politics.
Born into a family of the Santhal tribe from the state of Odisha, Murmu started her career as a school teacher and actively participated in community issues.
She later joined mainstream politics and served as a BJP state lawmaker in Odisha before becoming governor of the eastern state of Jharkhand.
Her election is seen as the BJP’s outreach to India’s tribal communities, which comprise more than 8 per cent of its 1.4 billion people.
“The BJP will want to offset any anti-incumbency of the last 10 years in 2024, and one of the ways to do that is to go for a new vote-base,” political columnist Neerja Choudhary told Reuters.
Murmu beat the opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha, a former BJP finance minister and now a fierce critic of Modi, winning nearly twice as many votes.
The Indian president acts as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces but the prime minister holds executive powers. Murmu will take over from Ram Nath Kovind.
The president, nevertheless, has a key role during political crises, such as when a general election is inconclusive, by deciding which party is in the best position to form a government.
