Canberra,  (PTI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday that the Ukraine conflict does not serve the interests of anybody, as he stressed that India was against such hostilities as it can have a "very profound impact" on everybody across the world.
During a joint press meet with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong here, Jaishankar also declined to predict India's vote in advance on the upcoming draft resolution against Russia in the UN General Assembly.

 "As a matter of prudence and policy, we don't predict our votes in advance… We have been very clearly against the conflict in Ukraine,” the minister said when asked about India’s stance during the upcoming UN General Assembly debate about not recognising the recent annexation of four Ukrainian territories by Russia.
 "We believe that this conflict does not serve the interests of anybody neither the participants nor indeed of the international community. And as a country of the Global South, we have been seeing first-hand how much it has impacted low-income countries, the challenges that they are facing in terms of fuel and food and fertilisers.
 "So, my Prime Minister said a few weeks ago at a summit contact, "this is not an era of war". And, you know, a conflict today in some corner of the world can have a very profound impact on everybody across the world. And I think that continues to guide our thinking," said Jaishankar, who arrived in Canberra on Sunday from Wellington in New Zealand.

Russia President Vladimir Putin recently signed treaties to annex the four regions of Ukraine, saying they were now part of his country and would be defended by Moscow.
India had abstained on a draft resolution tabled in the UN Security Council earlier this month which condemned Russia’s "illegal referenda" and annexation of four Ukrainian territories and called for an immediate cessation of violence while underlining the need to find pathways for a return to the negotiating table.
 India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and it has been maintaining that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.
 Australian foreign minister Penny Wong said reiterated Canberra's condemnation of Russia's invasion and said that the annexations, so-called sham annexations, or sham referenda, are illegal. PTI 

 

Washington, (PTI) It’s the sovereign right of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to decide on the oil production capacities, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said Friday.

Refraining from commenting on the controversial decision of OPEC on cutting oil production by two million barrels a day, which has taken the world by surprise, Puri said it is likely to be scrutinized very carefully.

During an interaction with a group of Indian reporters, he said that India as one of the major consumers of oil and gas also has a major say in the global oil market.

“India is not a part of OPEC. India is at the receiving end of OPEC decisions…,” he said in response to a question.

“I have always traditionally taken the view, it is their sovereign right to decide what they wish to do, how much oil they want to produce and how much they want to put into the market,” Puri said when asked about the decision of OPEC countries to cut oil production.

“But I always say that all of this is subject to the doctrine of consequences intended and unintended,” he said.

“That’s why I’m deliberately exercising not just calm, but also restraint in commenting on what has happened, because I’m told that there were assurances given, don’t ask me whom, etc., that in fact they were not planning to do this,” Puri said.

“In our interaction with the oil price producers in the grouping that you call OPEC, or OPEC, plus, our understanding, my understanding, based on what we were told last year that this was a temporary adjustment and what you would see is that by February the amount of crude which is released into the market would be sufficient to cater to the increasing demand,” Puri said.

Obviously from March 2020, when the global economy was in a virtual lockdown state there has been a calibrated opening. But now most of the economies are slowly firing on all cylinders, and therefore there’s an increase in demand, he said.

But the fact of the matter is that large parts of the world today are either in recession or are experiencing conditions (like) recession, he added.

Observing that OPEC’s decisions have been widely commented upon, both here and in other parts of the world, he said, “How much of the proposed 2 million barrels which has been curtailed absorbs less production earlier and how much are going to be fresh cuts is something that will be very carefully studied.” The market was already preparing for having a million barrels cut. So, the announcement of a two-million-barrel cuts, has taken large parts of the world by some surprise and questions are bring asked because it stands to reason if there is a large shortfall in the amounts of energy which are released into the global market, then prices will escalate, the minister said.

And prices escalating would in turn exacerbate the movement towards recession which in turn will lead to loss of demand. “So, it becomes a vicious cycle.” “Whether that has been fully taken into account or not, it’s not for me to comment on the decision has been taken. But I believe that all decisions which are taken and which have global ramifications have both intended and unintended consequences. How these play out we will see,” he said. PTI 

United Nations, (PTI) A key meeting of the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee in Mumbai later this month will be a "tribute and statement" to the “horrific” 26/11 terror attacks and members of the powerful UN organ will place a wreath in memory of the victims of the attack, Committee Chair Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj has said.

India is currently Chair of the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee for the year 2022 and will host diplomats of the 15-nation UN body along with other member states for a special meeting in Mumbai and New Delhi on October 28-29 focus on new and emerging technologies.

 

India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Kamboj, in her capacity as Chair of the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee, told reporters at a press briefing on Friday that the “very fact that the Special Committee is also meeting in Mumbai, that in itself will be a tribute and a statement to the horrific incident that happened in Mumbai,” referring to the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks carried out by Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba that killed more than 160 people.

She said Committee members will also place a memorial wreath at the “very spot where this incident happened in tribute and in memorial.”

India’s two-year tenure as an elected non-permanent member of the 15-nation UN Security Council will end in December this year. India will also preside as President of the powerful UN organ in December.

Current members of the Security Council are Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, Norway and UAE, along with five permanent members China, France, Russia, the UK and the US. When asked at the press briefing about participation from other UN member states in the special meeting, Kamboj said "there's a very sizable number.”

“It's going to be a very healthy corpus because... terrorism is no longer an issue faced by any particular country. It is a transnational issue," she said, adding that it needs joint efforts and "that is precisely why I think this special meeting is evincing a huge amount of interest.”

Kamboj was joined by the Director and Chief of Technical Expertise and Research Branch of the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) David Scharia and Legal Officer and the CTED Coordinator for Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Jennifer Bramlette at the briefing.  

  
Kamboj said an outcome document is expected after the special meeting of the Counter-Terrorism Committee.

 

 

She stressed that terrorist threats persist and despite efforts by the international community, the “threat has survived and indeed evolved. With the growing prevalence of technology and the rapid rise in digitisation, addressing the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes is of increasing concern to all of us,” she said, adding that the meeting will bring together a “wealth of knowledge” and real-world expertise on the subject matter with the participation of member states, relevant operational partners and key stakeholders.

She reaffirmed that terrorism in all forms, in all manifestations, constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security and any act of terrorism is criminal and unjustifiable regardless of motivation, whenever wherever and by whomsoever committed.

The Special Meeting of the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee on “Countering the Use of New and Emerging Technologies for Terrorist Purposes” will begin with a soft opening and associated events in Mumbai, India on October 28 and continue with a full-day meeting in New Delhi, India on October 29, according to information on the UN website.

The Special Meeting will specifically focus on three significant areas where emerging technologies are experiencing rapid development, growing used by Member States (including for security and counter-terrorism purposes), and the increasing threat of abuse for terrorism purposes, namely the Internet and social media, terrorism financing, and unmanned aerial systems (UAS).

It will provide opportunities to discuss existing and evolving threats, the deployment of new and emerging technology to counter those threats, continuing challenges and good practices, and a range of related human rights and gender considerations.

 “With the prevalence of technology and the rapid rise in digitisation, the use of new and emerging technologies to counter-terrorism is a topic of growing interest among the member states, policymakers and researchers, particularly in the context of the increasing role played by technology in terrorism and counter-terrorism.

This is addressed by the Security Council in a number of counter-terrorism-related resolutions, most recently resolution 2617 (2021), which explicitly cited “emerging technologies”. Mindful of the increasing threat posed by the misuse of new and emerging technologies, the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee has decided to hold a Special Meeting on this theme, with the support of its Executive Directorate (CTED),” it said.

It is not very frequent that the Counter-Terrorism Committee meets outside of New York but the meeting in India will be the seventh time that this is happening. The most recent special meeting of the CTC outside of the United Nations headquarters took place in Madrid, Spain, in July 2015, focusing on foreign terrorist fighters. PTI

 

 

Militants demanding the release of their jailed accomplices set up blockades on one of the major arteries linking Pakistan's restive provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) with Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), leaving a senior minister and several tourists stranded, a media report said on Saturday.

A voice clip shared on social media on Friday purportedly features Senior GB Minister Abaidullah Baig as saying that he was on his way from Islamabad to Gilgit when militants blocked the road to press authorities for the release of their accomplices from jail.

Habibur Rahman, GB’s most wanted militant commander who was accused of killing 10 foreigners in Nanga Parbat, and his accomplices blocked the road in Thak village of Chilas in Diamer on Friday around 4 pm, leaving travellers on both sides stranded, the Dawn newspaper quoted a source as saying.

Sources said the militants were demanding the release of their accomplices, including those involved in the gruesome murder of foreigners in the Nanga Parbat area and other terrorist incidents in Diamer.

Sources said political leaders and officials from the district were enga­ged in negotiations with the militants. There was no response from the police so far.

Later, an audio clip said to be of the GB minister that surfaced on social media showed a man saying that negotiations with the commanders were underway who had two basic demands.

“They have sought the release of their accomplices from jails and imposition of Islamic laws, with no women sports activities,” he said.

The incident surfaced as Pakistan senators from both sides of the aisle on Friday sounded an alarm over the surge in terrorist activities by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), while a senator sought a briefing over a recent threat alert issued by the interior ministry about the heightened risk of terrorist attacks by the banned outfit.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani, on a point of public concern, asked Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani to direct the interior minister to take parliament and the public at large into confidence about the present status of peace talks with the TTP.

The interior ministry had recently issued an alert over the increasing threat of terrorist attacks by the group or its factions after talks with the TTP broke down.

Rabbani pointed out that a call had been made to take parliament on board when the disclosure about dialogue with the TTP was made for the first time.

He, however, regretted that the demand about a matter linked with the future of coming generations fell on deaf ears.

Rabbani said nobody knew about the conditions of the ceasefire with the group and the status of the talks.

“It is the right of the people to know under what conditions dialogue with the group was held and on which point it ended and what threats the country is facing that the ministry is forced to issue the alert,” he said.

He said increasing terrorist activities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) were claiming the lives of army personnel and other law enforcement agencies for the last couple of months.

“Today, the state itself is saying that terrorism is increasing,” he deplored.

Earlier, during the question hour, Senators Seemee Ezdi and Azam Swati from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf expressed concern over the increase in terrorist attacks and said terrorists had reached Swat.

Senator Swati called for an in-camera briefing to the house on the issue.

 

State Minister for Law Shahadat Hussain conceded that terror activities had witnessed a sharp increase, but members of security forces were geared up to curb the menace and they were laying down their lives for the purpose, according to Dawn.

 Washington, (PTI) The US has urged its citizens to reconsider travel to Pakistan, especially its restive provinces, due to terrorism and sectarian violence.

In a travel advisory issued on Thursday, the US State Department urged its citizens not to travel to Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) provinces, including the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), due to terrorism and kidnapping.

"Reconsider travel to Pakistan due to terrorism and sectarian violence. Some areas have increased risk," it said, putting the advisory to Level 3.

Level 3 travel warning is issued when a long-term or serious situation puts travellers and visitors at risk, and non-essential travel to the destination should be avoided.

The advisory also recommended Americans not to travel in the immediate vicinity of the Line of Control (LoC) due to terrorism and the potential for armed conflict.

Noting that terrorist groups continue plotting attacks in Pakistan, it said a local history of terrorism and ongoing ideological aspirations of violence by extremist elements have led to indiscriminate attacks on civilian as well as local military and police targets.

“Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls, military installations, airports, universities, tourist locations, schools, hospitals, places of worship, and government facilities. Terrorists have targeted US diplomats and diplomatic facilities in the past,” the advisory said.

Terrorist attacks continue to happen across Pakistan, with most occurring in Balochistan and KPK, including the former FATA. Large-scale terrorist attacks have resulted in numerous casualties, it said. PTI

 FRANKFURT: Major oil-producing countries led by Saudi Arabia and Russia have decided to slash the amount of oil they deliver to the global economy.

And the law of supply and demand suggests that can only mean one thing: higher prices are on the way for crude, and for the diesel fuel, gasoline and heating oil that are produced from oil.

 

The decision by the OPEC+ alliance to cut 2 million barrels a day starting next month comes as the Western allies are trying to cap the oil money flowing into Moscow's war chest after it invaded Ukraine.

Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman says that the alliance is being proactive in adjusting supply ahead of a possible downturn in demand because a slowing global economy needs less fuel for travel and industry.

"We are going through a period of diverse uncertainties which could come our way, it's a brewing cloud," he said, and OPEC+ sought to remain --ahead of the curve.

"He described the group's role as a moderating force, to bring about stability."

Oil prices have fallen after a summer of highs. International benchmark Brent crude is down 24% from mid-June, when it traded at over $123 per barrel. Now it's at $93.50.

One big reason for the slide is fears that large parts of the global economy are slipping into recession as high energy prices -- for oil, natural gas and electricity -- drive inflation and rob consumers of spending power.

Another reason: 

The summer highs came about because of fears that much of Russia's oil production would be lost to the market over the war in Ukraine.

As Western traders shunned Russian oil even without sanctions, customers in India and China bought those barrels at a steep discount, so the hit to supply wasn't as bad as expected.

Oil producers are wary of a sudden collapse in prices if the global economy goes downhill faster than expected.

That's what happened during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and during the global financial crisis in 2008-2009.

HOW IS THE WEST TARGETING RUSSIAN OIL?

The US and Britain imposed bans that were mostly symbolic because neither country imported much Russia oil.

The White House held off pressing the European Union for an import ban because EU countries got a quarter of their oil from Russia.

In the end, the 27-nation bloc decided to cut off Russian oil that comes by ship on Dec.5, while keeping a small amount of pipeline supplies that some Eastern European countries rely on.

Beyond that, the US and other Group of Seven major democracies are working out the details on a price cap on Russian oil.

It would target insurers and other service providers that facilitate oil shipments from Russia to other countries.

The EU approved a measure along those lines this week.

Many of those providers are based in Europe and would be barred from dealing with Russian oil if the price is above the cap.

HOW WILL OIL CUTS, PRICE CAPS AND EMBARGOES CLASH? 

The idea behind the price cap is to keep Russian oil flowing to the global market, just at lower prices.

Russia, however, has threatened to simply stop deliveries to a country or companies that observe the cap.

That could take more Russian oil off the market and push prices higher. That could push costs at the pump higher, too.

US gasoline prices that soared to record highs of $5.02 a gallon in mid-June had been falling recently, but they have been on the rise again, posing political problems for President Joe Biden a month before midterm elections.

Biden, facing inflation at near 40-year highs, had touted the falling pump prices. Over the past week, the national average price for a gallon rose 9 cents, to $3.87.

That's 65 cents more than Americans were paying a year ago.

"It's a disappointment, and we're looking at what alternatives we may have," he told reporters about the OPEC+ decision.

WILL THE OPEC PRODUCTION CUT MAKE INFLATION WORSE?

Likely yes.

Brent crude should reach $100 per barrel by December, says Jorge Leon, senior vice president at Rystad Energy. That is up from an earlier prediction of $89.

Part of the 2 million-barrel-per-day cut is only on paper as some OPEC+ countries aren't able to produce their quota.

So the group can deliver only about 1.2 million barrels a day in actual cuts.

That's still going to have a "significant" effect on prices, Leon said.

"Higher oil prices will inevitably add to the inflation headache that global central banks are fighting, and higher oil prices will factor into the calculus of further increasing interest rates to cool down the economy," he wrote in a note.

That would exacerbate an energy crisis in Europe largely tied to Russian cutbacks of natural gas supplies used for heating, electricity and in factories and would send gasoline prices up worldwide.

As that fuels inflation, people have less money to spend on other things like food and rent.

Other factors also could affect oil prices, including the depth of any possible recession in the US or Europe and the duration of China's COVID-19 restrictions, which have sapped demand for fuel.

WHAT WILL THIS MEAN FOR RUSSIA?

Analysts say that Russia, the biggest producer among the non-OPEC members in the alliance, would benefit from higher oil prices ahead of a price cap.

If Russia has to sell oil at a discount, at least the reduction starts at a higher price level. High oil prices earlier this year offset much of Russia's sales lost from Western buyers avoiding its supply.

The country also has managed to reroute some two-thirds of its typical Western sales to customers in places like India.

But then Moscow saw its take from oil slip from $21 billion in June to $19 billion in July to $17.7 billion in August as prices and sales volumes fell, according to the International Energy Agency.

A third of Russia's state budget comes from oil and gas revenue, so the price caps would further erode a key source of revenue.

Meanwhile, the rest of Russia's economy is shrinking due to sanctions and the withdrawal of foreign businesses and investors.

LONDON: India has countered UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman's claim that the Migration and Mobility Partnership (MMP) had not "worked very well" to say that India had initiated action on all cases raised with it under the agreement.

 

In response to a PTI query about Braverman's interview in 'The Spectator' that branded Indians as the 'largest group of people who overstay' their visas in the UK, the Indian High Commission here said that India awaits "demonstrable progress" on certain commitments undertaken by the UK government under the MMP that was signed last year.

"As part of our wider discussions under Migration and Mobility, the government of India is committed to working with the government of the UK to facilitate the return of Indian citizens who have overstayed their visa period here in the UK," the High Commission of India statement said on Thursday.

"As per the data shared with the Home Office, as of date, action has been initiated on all of the cases referred to the High Commission. Further, the UK has also undertaken to fulfil certain commitments as part of the Migration and Mobility Protocol, on which we await demonstrable progress," it said.

With reference to Braverman's controversial comments about having visa-related "reservations" over the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) being negotiated between the two sides, the High Commission noted that any future arrangements would be of mutual benefit.

"While certain issues pertaining to Mobility and Migration are currently under discussion as part of these negotiations, any comment on these matters may not be appropriate given that the negotiations are underway, and that any arrangement will include issues of interest to both sides," the High Commission said.

Braverman, the Indian-origin minister who took charge at the Home Office last month, said she had "concerns" over the FTA with India fearing what she termed as an 'open borders' migration policy.

"I have concerns about having an open borders migration policy with India because I don't think that's what people voted for with Brexit," Braverman told the British weekly news magazine.

Asked about visa flexibility for students and entrepreneurs under an India-UK FTA, she said, "But I do have some reservations. Look at migration in this country, the largest group of people who overstay are Indian migrants."

"We even reached an agreement with the Indian government last year to encourage and facilitate better cooperation in this regard. It has not necessarily worked very well."

Braverman's contention that the MMP has not worked very well is seen as a clear indication that she is likely to withhold Cabinet backing for any visa concessions for India as part of an FTA.

This would put her on a collision course with her boss, Liz Truss, who is keen to stick to the Diwali deadline for an FTA with India as one of her highlight trade deals since taking over as the British Prime Minister.

Diwali falls on October 24 this year.

On the Indian side, the ease of mobility for students and professionals has always been a key aspect of any trade agreement.

A judge has delayed a looming trial between Twitter and Elon Musk, giving the Tesla CEO more time to close his $44 billion deal to buy the company after months spent fighting to get out of it.

Musk had asked to halt the upcoming Delaware court trial, where the Tesla billionaire was expected to fare poorly against Twitter's lawsuit to force him to complete his April merger agreement. Musk revived the takeover offer on Monday but said he needed time to get the financing in order.

Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, head of the Delaware Chancery Court, said Thursday that Musk and Twitter now have until Oct. 28 to close the deal. A trial originally set for Oct. 17 will happen in November if they don’t, she said.

 

Twitter had asked McCormick earlier Thursday to proceed with the trial, saying the billionaire refuses to accept the “contractual obligations” of his April agreement to buy the social media company and take it private.

Twitter disputed Musk’s claim that the San Francisco-based company is refusing to accept his renewed bid. Musk told Twitter earlier this week he’s ready to buy the company once again after trying to back out of the deal over the summer, accusing it of refusing to give him information about “spam bot” accounts on the service.

Twitter described Musk’s move to delay the trial as “an invitation to further mischief and delay” after his arguments for terminating the agreement haven't had merit.

But after the judge's ruling, Twitter reiterated in a statement that it was ready to close the deal on the share price agreed upon in April: “We look forward to closing the transaction at $54.20 by October 28th,” referring to the price Musk originally offered for each Twitter share.

Brooklyn Law School professor Andrew Jennings said Twitter wants to be certain that the deal will get done and not allow “wiggle room for Musk to walk away again.”

Musk attorneys argued that Twitter was disagreeing with the trial delay “based on the theoretical possibility” of Musk not coming up with the financing, which they called “baseless speculation.”

They said Musk’s financial backers “have indicated that they are prepared to honor their commitments” and are working to close the deal by Oct. 28.

Musk attorney Alex Spiro said in a statement Thursday that “Twitter offered Mr. Musk billions off the transaction price” but Musk “refused because Twitter attempted to put certain self-serving conditions on the deal.” He didn’t elaborate on what those conditions were. Twitter hasn’t described the talks beyond what its attorneys have said in court.

Twitter’s shares fell $1.91, or 3.7%, to close at $49.39 on Thursday. It was the stock's second day of declines following a surge of more than 22% on Tuesday after Musk made his renewed offer to buy the company.

 Washington, (PTI) An asteroid which was deliberately smashed by NASA’s Dart spacecraft has left a trail of debris stretching thousands of kilometres, a new image captured by a telescope in Chile shows.

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft intentionally crashed into Dimorphos, the asteroid moonlet in the double-asteroid system of Didymos, on September 26.

This was the first planetary defence test in which an impact of a spacecraft attempted to modify the orbit of an asteroid.

Two days after DART’s impact, astronomers used the 4.1-meter Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) Telescope in Chile to capture the vast plume of dust and debris blasted from the asteroid’s surface.

The new image shows the dust trail — the ejecta that has been pushed away by the Sun’s radiation pressure, like the tail of a comet — stretching from the centre to the right-hand edge of the field of view.

At Didymos’s distance from Earth at the time of the observation that would equate to at least 10,000 kilometers from the point of impact, the researchers said.

“It is amazing how clearly we were able to capture the structure and extent of the aftermath in the days following the impact,” said Teddy Kareta from Lowell Observatory.

“Now begins the next phase of work for the DART team as they analyse their data and observations by our team and other observers around the world who shared in studying this exciting event,” Matthew Knight from the US Naval Academy added.

The team plans to use SOAR to monitor the ejecta in the coming weeks and months.

These observations will allow scientists to gain knowledge about the nature of the surface of Dimorphos, how much material was ejected by the collision, how fast it was ejected, and the distribution of particle sizes in the expanding dust cloud.

For example, whether the impact caused the moonlet to throw off big chunks of material or mostly fine dust, the researchers said.

Analysing this information will help scientists protect Earth and its inhabitants by better understanding the amount and nature of the ejecta resulting from an impact, and how that might modify an asteroid’s orbit. PTI

 

The Pakistan government has issued a nationwide alert to authorities to maintain ''extreme vigilance'' amid a heightened risk of terrorist attacks by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) after peace talks with the dreaded terror group have stalled, a media report said on Thursday.