Diplomacy Archives - Page 117 of 120

04 Jan

Need to change course of negotiations for reforms: UNSC president Japan

United Nations, Jan 4 (IANS) Japan has called for a change in direction of the negotiations for UN Security Council reforms to move it out of the rut of repetitive discussion it has been stuck in. Permanent Representative Ishikane Kimihiro, who took over the presidency of the Council on Tuesday, said the discussion in the negotiations process "is not really moving forward, it's just repeating the same discussion year after year". Therefore, "we need to change the course so that we can have we can make steps forward in terms of regarding this Council reform", he said. "This reform discussion should…

01 Jan

‘S.Korea, Japan considering sharing radar information on North Korea missiles in real time’

Seoul/Tokyo, Jan 1 (IANS) South Korea and Japan are considering sharing radar information on North Korean missile launches in real time, a Japanese newspaper reported on Sunday, as Pyongyang stepped up missile launches in recent months. Connecting parts of the two countries' radar systems via the US Indo-Pacific Command is under consideration to share such information, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported, citing officials in Seoul and Tokyo. The move could supplement each other's tracking systems, Yonhap news agency reported. South Korea is better positioned than Japan to detect North Korean missiles because it is closer to North Korea while Japan is…

01 Jan

India-Pakistan exchange lists of nuclear installations

New Delhi, Jan 1 (IANS) India and Pakistan on Sunday exchanged the list of nuclear installations and facilities, covered under the Agreement on the Prohibition of Attack against Nuclear Installations and Facilities between both the nations. The details of nuclear installations were exchanged through diplomatic channels simultaneously at New Delhi and Islamabad. The agreement, which was signed on December 31, 1988 and came into force on January 27, 1991, provides that India and Pakistan inform each other of the nuclear installations and facilities to be covered under the agreement on the 1st of January of every calendar year. This is…

30 Dec

Netanyahu’s new hardline Israeli govt sworn in

Tel Aviv, Dec 30 (IANS) Benjamin Netanyahu, the longest-serving Israeli leader, has returned to power as the country's Prime Minister at the helm of an extreme-right coalition. In an official inauguration ceremony at Parliament on Thursday, lawmakers voted by 63-54 in favour of approving the new government, reports Xinhua news agency. The new government is made up of an alliance of Netanyahu's conservative Likud party; the pro-settler Religious Zionism which calls for annexation of the West Bank; the Jewish Power party whose leader was convicted of supporting "Jewish terrorism and inciting racism"; and the Noam party, an extreme-right party that opposes…

28 Dec

Washington-Moscow relationship at its lowest point: Russian FM

Moscow, Dec 28 (IANS) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that the Washington-Moscow relationship is at its lowest point. "Indeed, Russia-US relations are in an extremely poor state. They have become practically frozen through the fault of Washington. Its confrontational anti-Russia policy is becoming increasingly exacerbated and comprehensive. It is objectively impossible to maintain any kind of normal communication with the Biden administration...," Lavrov told TASS news agency in an interview. "Undoubtedly, our relations with the European Union have deteriorated to a historic low. The reasons for this are well known. Since the beginning of the special military operation, Brussels,…

23 Dec

China sanctions two U.S. individuals

Beijing, Dec 23 (IANS) China decided to take countermeasures and sanction two US individuals in response to the US sanctions against two Chinese officials on December 9 over alleged human rights issues related to Tibet. In accordance with China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, the Chinese side has decided to take reciprocal sanctions against Miles Maochun Yu and Todd Stein, according to the Foreign Ministry on Friday. All kinds of their assets in China will be frozen. Any organisation or individual within China is prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. The two people and their immediate family members are banned from visas…

22 Dec

S.Korea, US mulling live-fire drills to mark 70th yr of alliance

Seoul, Dec 22 (IANS) South Korea and the US are considering staging their first large-scale combined live-fire demonstration in six years in 2023 to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of their alliance, Seoul's Defence Ministry said on Thursday. Such an exercise usually involves thousands of troops as well as artillery pieces and other formidable weapons systems to highlight the allies' combined firepower, reports Yonhap News Agency. It did not take place during the preceding Moon Jae-in administration keen on inter-Korean engagement. "Next year, the allies mark the 70th anniversary of the alliance's founding and on that occasion, we are…

22 Dec

Biden approves more military aid as Zelensky visits Washington

Washington, Dec 22 (IANS) US President Joe Biden pledged to his visiting Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky to offer military aid, mentioning in particular the Patriot surface-to-air missile battery he just approved for Ukraine in a new tranche of security assistance totaling $1.85 billion. The weapons package approved by Biden, according to a list from the Pentagon, also included "precision aerial munitions", which it didn't explain in detail regarding the type and quantity, reports Xinhua news agency. According to US media reports, they might be the so-called "Joint Direct Attack Munitions," which would transform the unguided "dumb" bombs into "smart" bombs by…

21 Dec

Stronger support urged for Iraq to maintain stability, achieve comprehensive development

Baghdad, Dec 21 (IANS) Participants attending the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership have called for stronger support for Iraq to help it maintain security and stability, and achieve comprehensive development. The conference, which was held in the Jordanian town of Sweimeh by the Dead Sea shore, was attended by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani and French President Emmanuel Macron, as well as leaders and officials from Arab states, the UN, Arab League, Gulf Cooperation Council, Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and European Union, reports Xinhua news agency. In the conference's final declaration, participants stressed the need for more support for…

19 Dec

Imran had been asking Gen Bajwa to get oppn politicians arrested: Report

Islamabad, Dec 19 (IANS) Pakistan's former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen (R) Qamar Javed Bajwa has a lot to tell about PTI Chairman Imran Khan, his rise in politics and how he ran his government, a media report said. Sources close to Gen Bajwa said that the recently retired former Army Chief could not respond in public to what Khan alleges against him because of some codal limitations but it is insisted what the former premier mostly says about Bajwa is untrue, the News report said. Bajwa is now the focused target of Khan who not only sees the former…