Author: Javier Ramirez

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe will visit China in the upcoming week as the crisis-hit country makes progress on debt restructuring talks with its biggest lender. Wickremesinghe took office in July last year, after a popular uprising, brought on by an economic meltdown, had forced his predecessor out of power. His Oct. 15-19 visit to Beijing will be his first to China since then. Wickremesinghe, who is also finance minister, has been leading Sri Lanka’s push to manage its heavy debt and keep funds flowing from a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme. He will attend a Belt and…

The United States has said they are “closely monitoring” developments in Bangladesh leading up to the elections. “It’s important for free and fair elections that all stakeholders are able to participate peacefully,” Spokesperson at the US Department of State, Mathew Miller, told reporters during a regular briefing in Washington on Monday. That includes, he said, government officials, law enforcement, political parties, the Election Commission, the media, and of course voters themselves. “And we will continue to call on all stakeholders to respect the rule of law and to refrain from violence, harassment, and intimidation,” said the US State Department spokesperson.…

Israel has not only been the victim of a vicious and despicable terrorist attack. It is also the victim of a brazenly cynical move to disrupt the international stage and subvert tranquility in the Middle East. The Israeli-Palestinian powder keg conveniently served to add yet another full scale crisis putting even further pressure on a global order already strained to breaking point. Although no concrete evidence exists of any involvement in the attacks, Russia stands to gain the most from this extra flash point on the world map, as violence and war in the Middle East distracts from Putin’s unjustified…

Supreme leader Xi Jinping’s failure to attend the G20 summit in New Delhi this weekend (September 9-10) — thus nullifying the possibility of a meeting with top Western leaders including American counterpart President Joe Biden — is symptomatic of the isolation that China is facing on the international stage. Instead, Xi is sending Premier Li Qiang, not only to New Delhi but also to a series of meetings between Western and Asian powerhouses, including between the United States, Japan, and the ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta, Indonesia. ASEAN members seem eager to seize…

Shoaib Akhtar expressed admiration for the young Pakistan pacer, Zaman Khan, who was brought into the squad due to injuries to Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah. Former Pakistan pacer, Shoaib Akhtar, shared his sentiments after Pakistan was knocked out of the 2023 Asia Cup after their defeat to Sri Lanka in the Super Four stage in Colombo on Thursday. However, Akhtar expressed admiration for the young Pakistan pacer, Zaman Khan, who was brought into the squad due to injuries to Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah. Akhtar couldn’t help but laud the budding talent. “You’ve seen the match. Pakistan is out…

Islamabad, Pakistan – A key border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan has been reopened for pedestrian and vehicular traffic after remaining closed for nine days, following an exchange of fire between the security forces of the two countries. Muhammad Anas, an official in Khyber district of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the Torkham border crossing is located, confirmed the development to Al Jazeera on Friday. “We opened the border gates after 7.30am today [Friday]. Immigration and custom officials arrived to resume their duties as normal, and both pedestrian and vehicular traffic was allowed to pass through,” he said. Afghan officials in Nangarhar…

Ahead of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, Bangladesh Deputy High Commissioner, Andalib Elias said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will attend the G20 Summit on September 9 and 10. Mr Elias further said, “We are also hoping that there will also be a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and PM Sheikh Hasina.” The G20 Summit is scheduled to be held in the national capital for two days–September 9 and September 10–at the state-of-the-art Bharat Mandapam Convention Centre at Pragati Maidan. Many heads of state and diplomats, including US President Joe Biden, Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, Canadian Prime…

Brussels (21/08 – 62.50) The theatrical performance, 40 Days of Miracles was shown in the main concert hall of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea by the Republican State Academic Korean Theater of Musical Comedy of Kazakhstan, which is on tour in South Korea. In total, more than 500 spectators attended the event, including the Chairman of the Korea-Kazakhstan Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, Woo Won Shik, deputies, politicians, the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Korea, cultural and art figures, businessmen, as well as representatives of the…

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project since its launch on April 20, 2015, by President Xi Jinping during his visit to Islamabad has become a topic of much discussion and debate. China initially had earmarked $46 billion investment for the project with its target completion date by 2030. Since the initial announcement, the amount has increased few times already and as of 2022, Chinese total investment has reached $65 billion. After its completion, CPEC will contribute 20% to Pakistan’s GDP. Since its debut, the CPEC has become the framework and platform for comprehensive and substantive cooperation between China & Pakistan.…

On Thursday last week, July 20th, there was yet another anti-Muslim protest in Sweden in which an Iraqi-born refugee, Salwan Momika, kicked and stomped on the Holy Quran outside the Iraq Embassy. Following this, the Muslim population in countries like Iraq and Pakistan came out in crowds to voice their anger, and influential political leaders went so far as to urge Pakistan to cut all ties with Sweden. Pakistani Prime Minster Shehbaz Sharif declared that the desecration of sacred texts and rituals should not be regarded as a form of free speech, and pledged to initiate a campaign to end…