External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the G20 grouping as well as the situation in Myanmar with Foreign Minister of Indonesia Retno Marsudi.

"So nice to meet my friend, Retno in New York. Discussed our commitment to make the Indonesian G20 Presidency successful. Also exchanged views on Myanmar, Jaishankar tweeted Monday.

Jaishankar, in New York for the high-level UN General Assembly session, began his hectic diplomatic week with a series of bilateral and multilateral engagements on the sidelines of the high-level session.

Indonesia is currently President of the G20 and will hand over the baton to India, which will assume the Presidency of the G20 for one year from December 1, 2022 to November 20 2023.

Official sources here described the meeting with the Indonesian leader as good and particularly important during which the two sides exchanged notes on the G20, its challenges and the path forward.

 In a first, Google CEO Sunder Pichai visited the Indian Embassy in Washington and held discussions with India's Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, on various aspects of the tech company's activities in the country, particularly its aggressive push towards digitization.

“Thank you” Ambassador Sandhu for the great conversation, Mr Pichai said in a tweet after his visit to the Indian Embassy in downtown Washington DC late last week. This is for the first time that a top Indian American tech CEO has visited the embassy in Washington.

“Appreciated the chance to discuss Google's commitment to India and look forward to continuing our support for India's digital future,” said Mr Pichai, who in January this year was named among the 17 awardees to receive Padma Bhushan.

Technology that transforms; ideas that enable! tweeted Sandhu. Delighted to receive Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai at the Embassy, he said.

Exchanged thoughts on expanding India-US commercial, knowledge & tech partnership with Google, the Indian envoy said.

Google's investments in India

Google under Pichai has made massive investment in India and phenomenally expanded its footprint in a wide range of sectors including its training to the younger generation.

It has announced an investment of about USD10 billion under Google for India digitization. It also has partnerships with Reliance's Jeo as well as with Bharti Airtel. In addition, it is partnering with India on workforce development and skill development. They are working with the government on Digital India Program, and national digital literacy mission.

During the meeting with the Indian Ambassador, Pichai was very appreciative of the very initiatives that have been taken by India and underscored how Google is looking at India in a very positive framework. The Ambassador highlighted the knowledge and education partnership.

'Google an important partner for India'

The Google CEO, during the conversation, is also believed to have discussed various ways in which its partnership with India forward in particular in the education sector. They also discussed digitization efforts in India in which Google is involved including digital payments and infrastructure digitization.

The Indian Ambassador noted that Google is an important partner in India's digital transformation, which is a priority for the government.

Notably Google and its parent company Alphabet played an important role in the COVID-19 crisis last year. They put a lot of money in terms of supporting India, and they were part of the global task force of American CEOs set up in this regard.

The Indian government has intensified its engagement with American CEOs. The Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal had a meeting with a number of CEOs from the Silicon Valley during his trip to California early this month.

Sandhu himself met several CEOs during his recent trips there. He also visited the universities in the Silicon Valley which are considered to be the hub of such innovation.

They also had a number of venture capitalists and start up entrepreneurs in San Francisco as part of India's latest push to have greater engagement with the American tech sector.

New York,(PTI) India, the UAE and France have held their first trilateral ministerial meeting here on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly session and exchanged ideas on a new and more contemporary way of doing diplomacy with a focus on “active exchange” of ideas between strategic partners and UNSC members.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in New York on Sunday to participate in the high-level 77th session of the UN General Assembly, which kick-starts September 20 with the opening of the General Debate.

“A productive first trilateral Ministerial meeting of India-UAE-France. Active exchange of ideas between strategic partners and UNSC members,” Jaishankar tweeted after the meeting, hosted by the UAE on Monday, with UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna.

Jaishankar began his hectic diplomatic week with a series of bilateral and multilateral engagements on the sidelines of the high-level session.

This was the first ministerial-level meeting of the India, the UAE and France trilateral.

The three countries, while different, are strategic partners to one another and discussions focussed on areas of commonalities and on working out how to specify and concretise these commonalities going forward, official sources said.

They said the three countries are very comfortable with each other and there are many areas where potentially they could be working in a more coordinated way.

Such plurilateral meetings signify a new and more contemporary way of doing diplomacy, they said, citing the example of Quad (Australia, India, Japan, the US), I2U2 (India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the United States), trilateral between India, France and Australia as forums emerging as effective ways of finding a common agenda.

They added that typically, groupings were regional and contiguous in nature such as SAARC, BIMSTEC, ASEAN, and the EU with the exception of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).

The official sources added that diplomacy is now changing and there are countries which are not neighbours or next to each other in a region but which have certain common interests and are working with each other.

Following his bilateral meeting with the UAE Foreign Minister, Jaishankar tweeted: “Reviewed the continuing progress of our partnership. Appreciated his assessments and insights on the global situation.” Official sources said that for India, things are moving very well on multiple fronts with the UAE, against the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Gulf country in June this year and Jaishankar’s visit two weeks ago for the 14th India-UAE Joint Commission Meeting.

Jaishankar also met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.

“Our bilateral ties are growing strongly in the areas of defence, trade and investments. Cooperation in new initiatives like green hydrogen & ammonia and education sectors will further bolster them. Discussed our close cooperation at the UN and NAM. Recognised the value Egypt’s participation in G20 will bring next year,” he tweeted.

Official sources said that the meeting with the Egyptian leadership was important, asserting that Egypt is absolutely on the same page as India when it comes to issues such as refocusing the world on development concerns, Global South.

Describing the relationship as a big meeting of the minds, sources added that India’s economic relationship with Egypt is doing well, trade is at an all-time high and there are very strong investment interests.

Egypt is also chairing COP27 and they are big players in areas of renewables, especially green hydrogen and ammonia.

During a “useful exchange of views” with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, Jaishankar said he was looking forward to “working together in the G-77 and other multilateral formats.” “Spoke about rice supplies and development projects. Welcomed his appreciation of the Panchakarma Centre in Havana,” he said.

India has given Cuba a 100-million-euro line of credit for buying rice. Cuba is also expected to take over as the Chair of G77, the global south grouping which permeates through the UN processes.

In his meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia Demeke Mekonnen Hassen, Jaishankar appreciated his briefing on the latest developments in the African country.

“Discussed greater cooperation in education and trade,” he said.

In his meeting with Olta Xhaçka, Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania, Jaishankar said: “Valued our close cooperation in the UN Security Council. Discussed strengthening our bilateral relationship. Exchanged views on Ukraine and energy security.” Sources said that India and Albania working together in the UN Security Council has been a good experience and the two sides want to see whether they can build on the Security Council experience and take it into the bilateral relationship. PTI 

 London,  (PTI) India on Monday strongly condemned violence against the Indian community and vandalisation of Hindu premises in the eastern England city of Leicester as it sought immediate action against those involved in these attacks.

In a statement, the High Commission of India here said it had “strongly” taken up the issue and called for protection for those affected from the UK authorities following reports of clashes over the weekend in the city, described as “serious disorder” by the local police.

There have been reports of clashes between Hindu and Muslim groups in the city since fans clashed following an India-Pakistan Asia Cup cricket match at the end of last month.

“We strongly condemn the violence perpetrated against the Indian community in Leicester and vandalisation of premises and symbols of Hindu religion,” the High Commission statement read.

“We have strongly taken up this matter with the UK authorities and have sought immediate action against those involved in these attacks. We call on the authorities to provide protection to the affected people,” the statement said.

Leicestershire Police said its operation in the east Leicester area affected by the disorder continues to prevent any further disorder, with 15 people arrested.

“The impact this disorder is having on our local communities is not acceptable,” the police said in a statement.

“We will not tolerate violence, disorder or intimidation in Leicester, and we continue to call for calm and dialogue. Our police operations and investigations continue with rigour and at scale,” it said.

The force said a number of neighbouring police forces, including the mounted police unit, had been deployed to bring matters under control. Dispersal and stop and search powers were also used to restore calm.

“Officers became aware of groups of young men gathering on Sunday afternoon in the North Evington area of the city. Officers spoke to them and took steps, including putting in place a temporary police cordon, to minimise harm and disturbance to communities,” the police said.

It followed clashes on Saturday evening, when the police said it became aware of a video circulating showing a man pulling down a flag outside a religious building on Melton Road, Leicester, and said the incident would be investigated. Videos circulating on social media showed a temple flag being ripped out.

Police had imposed similar dispersal orders earlier this month after a few days of unrest in the wake of the India versus Pakistan match in Dubai on August 28. The police and community leaders have been calling for calm over the past few weeks, amid reports of men coming in from other cities of the UK to stoke disorder in Leicester.

“It’s mostly young men in their late teens and early 20s and I have heard suggestions people have come in (to the city) from outside looking for an opportunity to have a set to. It’s very worrying for people in the areas where this has happened,” said Sir Peter Soulsby, Leicester city mayor. PTI

 LONDON: King Charles III of England has delivered a message of gratitude for his late mother’s ‘lifelong service’. Queen Elizabeth IIthe funeral of Westminster Abbey Monday morning in London.

 Toronto, (PTI) A 28-year-old Indian student has succumbed to the injuries sustained during a shooting rampage in Canada’s Ontario province that also claimed two other lives, including that of a police constable, police said.

Satwinder Singh, who was injured in the shooting last Monday in Milton, died at the Hamilton General Hospital with his family and friends by his side, the Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) said in a statement on Saturday.

Singh was an international student from India who was working part-time at MK Auto Repairs at the time of the shooting, the statement said on Saturday.

“The HRPS would like to express heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the victim, and the communities impacted by this horrible tragedy,” it said.

Monday’s shooting resulted in the deaths of Toronto Police Constable Andrew Hong, 48, and Shakeel Ashraf, 38, a mechanic who owned MK Auto Repairs.

The gunman was identified as 40-year-old Sean Petrie. He was later shot dead by police in Hamilton.

At the Oakville home of a relative, Singh’s grieving father was surrounded by relatives and friends after giving staff at the Hamilton General Hospital permission to pull his son off life support Saturday afternoon, said Sarabjot Kaur, a cousin who grew up with Singh told Toronto Star newspaper.

The father, who had not seen his son since before the pandemic, had just arrived earlier from Dubai, where he works as a truck driver, Kaur said.

Tanner had previously confirmed that Petrie had worked briefly at MK Auto Repairs.

According to an online GoFundMe page honouring Singh, the former international student had been on life support and had been declared brain-dead.

He is described in the post as a “loving son, brother and grandson who will be missed daily.” He had a passion for reading and writing poetry.

Singh, who obtained an MBA in marketing in India, was a student at Conestoga College. He had been working part-time at MK Collision Centre in Milton.

The violence erupted in Mississauga shortly after 2 pm, when Constable Hong, who was in the city for a training session and on his lunch break at a Tim Hortons, was shot and killed at close range.

Investigators believe the killing was unprovoked and that the suspect was on the lookout for an officer, The Globe and Mail newspaper reported.

As of Sunday afternoon, the GoFundMe had raised more than 35,000 dollars to help support Singh’s family and return his body to India.

“He will leave us with a dent in our hearts for a lifetime,” the post said. “It is a tough time for our family, and we need prayers from all of you.” PTI 

 United Nations, (PTI) Counter-terrorism, peacekeeping, reformed multilateralism, climate action and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines will be among the key focus areas for India during the high-level UN General Assembly session that begins this week here.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will arrive in New York on Sunday to participate in the high-level 77th session of the UN General Assembly, which kicks off on September 20 with the opening of the General Debate.

Jaishankar will address world leaders from the UNGA podium on September 24, after a packed week of more than 50 official engagements including bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral meetings at the high-level session and on the sidelines.

The General Debate, during which world leaders deliver national statements from the UNGA podium, begins on September 20.

The US is traditionally the second speaker after Brazil on the opening day of the General Debate but since President Joe Biden is attending the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in London on September 19, he will address world leaders on the second day of the high-level session on September 21.

The session comes after two years of disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the high-level week, the Transforming Education Summit, SDG Moment, and a High-Level Meeting as part of the year-long commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious, and Linguistic Minorities will be among the highlights. India’s Permanent Mission to the UN said in a video posted on Twitter that the five S’s - Samman (Respect), Samvad (Dialogue), Sahyog (Cooperation), Shanti (Peace) and Samriddhi (Prosperity) - set out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be India’s “guiding light” in its approach to the 77th session of the General Assembly.

It said India will continue to showcase commitments and achievements in women-led development, particularly women’s leadership and political participation at the grassroots level, and attach greater prominence to issues relating to counter-terrorism.

India will engage substantively in matters relating to peacekeeping as a major troop-contributing country, reformed multilateralism, commitment to climate action and sustain equitable, affordable access to vaccines and strengthen engagement with fellow developing countries through the India-UN Development Partnership Fund and IBSA (India, Brazil and South Africa) Fund in the spirit of South-South cooperation.

“India's priorities during the 77th UNGA will also be guided by its core foreign policy objectives, including supporting and enhancing overall domestic socio-economic growth and strengthening security in its immediate neighborhood, and leading collective global action, in line with the vision” of Modi, the video said.

Jaishankar’s US visit from September 18-28 will also include a trip to Washington DC after the UNGA session. While in New York, he will meet with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and President of the 77th UNGA Session Csaba Korosi.

The Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement that in keeping with India’s strong commitment to reformed multilateralism, Jaishankar will be hosting a Ministerial meeting of the G4 (India, Brazil, Japan, Germany), as well as participate at the High-Level Meeting of the L.69 Group on "Reinvigorating Multilateralism and Achieving Comprehensive Reform of the UN Security Council”.

The L.69 Group consists of developing countries from Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and Small Island Developing States, focused on reforms of the UN Security Council.

During the visit, he would also participate in plurilateral meetings of the Quad, IBSA, BRICS, India – Presidency Pro Tempore CELAC, India-CARICOM and other trilateral formats, such as India-France-Australia, India-France-UAE and India-Indonesia-Australia. He will also have bilateral meetings with Foreign Ministers of the G20 and UNSC member states, amongst others.

The BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) has emerged as a key grouping.

Commemorating and showcasing ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, he would address a special event "India@75: Showcasing India UN Partnership in Action” on September 24, which would highlight India’s development journey and its contributions to South-South Cooperation.

The event is expected to be addressed by the President of the 77th UNGA, along with Foreign Ministers of several member states, and UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner.

In Washington DC from September 25-28 for bilateral meetings with US interlocutors, Jaishankar will hold discussions with his counterpart Secretary of State Antony Blinken; senior members of the US Administration, US business leaders, a round-table focused on S&T (Science & Technology ) and interaction with the Indian Diaspora.

The “visit would enable a high-level review of the multifaceted bilateral agenda and strengthen cooperation on regional and global issues to further consolidate the India-US strategic partnership.” India’s current two-year tenure at the UN Security Council ends in December this year, when India will be President of the Council.

 Jerusalem  2010 Pushing the agenda to take Indo-Israeli cooperation in the agricultural sector to the “next level”, the third high-level delegation of 19 agriculture officers from seven different Indian states concluded two weeks ago. Training program on horticulture management.

The program “Horticulture Management: Israel’s Value Chain” was organized by the Mashav Agricultural Training Center (MATC) in Shefaim and the course focused on the possibility of replicating the “Israeli Value Chain”.

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MASHAV, Israel’s international development cooperation agency, works with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to provide developing countries with good experience in Israeli development and planning, and has served as an important arm of the ministry’s diplomatic outreach program.

The delegation visited several Israeli nurseries to explore the potential of importing Israeli species of planting material suitable for India in the horticulture sector. Field visits to various orchards, vegetable farms, packinghouses and more have become an essential part of the management course. Local experts made a presentation on horticulture by listing important activities based on Israeli knowledge.

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“Our partnership with Israel has been constantly strengthened and this visit has been helpful in many ways. It will help improve the fruit seedling protocol, canopy management of orchards, post-harvest production management and loss reduction, increasing productivity. Dr. Manoj Kumar Kundu Haryana Govt. Joint Director of Horticulture told PTI.

“Israel is at the forefront of drip irrigation fertilization techniques, and the local methods used here can play an important role in improving the yield per unit,” added Kundu.

The Haryana government officer, who pointed out the consensus between the two governments on developing 75 villages of excellence, said that 75 more have been identified to increase the number to 150 and the government has committed to create 1500 villages of excellence by 2025.

Most of the villages are coming up around centers of excellence in Israeli agricultural technology. Nearby villages are being made to adopt the techniques being taught in these centres.

Dr. Kundu pointed out that 29 centers of excellence in different regions are already providing services and 13 others are in the development stage.

The delegation participated in the 31st annual Agro-Mashov International Agri-Business Exhibition on September 6 at the International Convention Center in Jerusalem as part of a two-week program. The program started on September 4th and ended on September 17th.

“Avocado and pomegranate cultivation in Israel has attracted the attention of many people around the world and the pomegranate cultivation has attracted the special attention of the visitors,” Yair Eshel, Agricultural Adviser at the Israeli Embassy in New Delhi, told PTI along with the delegation.

Eighteen agriculture officials from seven different states of India, engaged with the Indo-Israel Center of Excellence, visited Israel earlier in April to learn new approaches and technologies in the sector. Price for farmers.

Agriculture officials from the Indo-Israel Centers of Excellence (CoE) then participated in a state-wide course on “Managing Centers of Excellence: Developing Value for Farmers”, also organized by the Mashav Agricultural Training Center (MATC).

Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar visited Israel in May and talked about taking Indo-Israeli cooperation in the field of agriculture to the “next level” and emphasized the importance of developing villages of excellence.

This is an unedited story from the Syndicated News feed

 Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Sep 8, is lying-in-state at Westminster Hall before the funeral at Westminster Abbey on the morning of Sep 19- by PTI

President Draupadi Murmu arrived in London on Saturday evening to attend the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and to offer condolences on behalf of the Indian government.

Queen Elizabeth II, who died aged 96 at her summer residence of Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8, is lying-in-state at Westminster Hall before the funeral at Westminster Abbey on the morning of September 19.

President Murmu is on a three-day visit to the UK, during which she will attend Monday's funeral service and is also invited to a reception for world leaders hosted at Buckingham Palace by King Charles III on Sunday evening.

"President Draupadi Murmu emplanes for London, United Kingdom, to attend the state funeral of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II and offer condolences on behalf of the Government of India," the Rashtrapati Bhavan tweeted as the plane departed from Delhi earlier.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had visited the British High Commission in New Delhi on September 12 to convey the country's condolences, a day after India observed a day of national mourning.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed earlier this week that the President will be travelling to London to offer condolences on behalf of the government of India.

"In the 70 years of reign of HM Queen Elizabeth II, India-UK ties have evolved, flourished and strengthened immensely. She played an important role in the welfare of millions of people around the world as Head of the Commonwealth," the MEA statement read.

 Americans are remembering 9/11 with moments of silence, readings of victims' names, volunteer work and other tributes 21 years after the deadliest terror attack on US soil.
Victims' relatives and dignitaries will convene Sunday at the places where hijacked jets crashed on Sept 11, 2001 the World Trade Centre in New York, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania.

Other communities around the country are marking the day with candlelight vigils, interfaith services and other commemorations. Some Americans are joining in volunteer projects on a day that is federally recognised as both Patriot Day and a National Day of Service and Remembrance.

The observances follow a fraught milestone anniversary last year. It came weeks after the chaotic and humbling end of the Afghanistan war that the US launched in response to the attacks.

But if this Sept 11 may be less of an inflection point, it remains a point for reflection on the attack that killed nearly 3,000 people, spurred a US war on terror worldwide and reconfigured national security policy.

It also stirred for a time a sense of national pride and unity for many, while subjecting Muslim Americans to years of suspicion and bigotry and engendering debate over the balance between safety and civil liberties. In ways both subtle and plain, the aftermath of 9/11 ripples through American politics and public life to this day.

And the attacks have cast a long shadow into the personal lives of thousands of people who survived, responded or lost loved ones, friends and colleagues.

More than 70 of Sekou Siby's co-workers perished at Windows on the World, the restaurant atop the trade centre's north tower. Siby had been scheduled to work that morning until another cook asked him to switch shifts.

Siby never took a restaurant job again; it would have brought back too many memories. The Ivorian immigrant wrestled with how to comprehend such horror in a country where he'd come looking for a better life.

He found it difficult to form the type of close, family-like friendships he and his Windows on the World co-workers had shared. It was too painful, he had learned, to become attached to people when you have no control over what's going to happen to them next .

Every 9/11 is a reminder of what I lost that I can never recover, says Siby, who is now president and CEO of ROC United. The restaurant workers' advocacy group evolved from a relief centre for Windows on the World workers who lost their jobs when the twin towers fell.

On Sunday, President Joe Biden plans to speak and lay a wreath at the Pentagon, while first lady Jill Biden is scheduled to speak in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where one of the hijacked planes went down after passengers and crew members tried to storm the cockpit as the hijackers headed for Washington. Al-Qaida conspirators had seized control of the jets to use them as passenger-filled missiles.

Vice President Kamala Harris and husband Doug Emhoff are due at the National Sept 11 Memorial in New York, but by tradition, no political figures speak at the ground zero ceremony. It centres instead on victims' relatives reading aloud the names of the dead.

Readers often add personal remarks that form an alloy of American sentiments about Sept 11 grief, anger, toughness, appreciation for first responders and the military, appeals to patriotism, hopes for peace, occasional political barbs, and a poignant accounting of the graduations, weddings, births and daily lives that victims have missed.

Some relatives also lament that a nation which came together to some extent after the attacks has since splintered apart. So much so that federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies, which were reshaped to focus on international terrorism after 9/11, now see the threat of domestic violent extremism as equally urgent.