News

Bambawale appointment comes at a time when India and China are trying to put behind the Dokalam stand-off Seasoned diplomat  Gautam Bambawale , India's high commissioner to Pakistan, was today appointed as the country's next envoy to China. This was announced tonight by the external affairs ministry. A 1984 India Foreign Service (IFS) officer, Bambawale is expected to take up the assignment shortly, the ministry said. He will replace Vijay Gokhale. A deft hand in Sino-India relations, Bambawale opted to learn Mandarin Chinese as his foreign language and served in Hong Kong and Beijing between 1985 and 1991. He was first the desk officer for China in the Ministry of External Affairs and served as director in the Americas Division of the ministry, responsible for relations with the US and Canada (1993-94). He has also functioned as the Deputy Chief of Mission of the Indian Embassy in Beijing. His appointment comes at a time when India and China are t...

United States President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday said the US will quit the   TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP   ( TPP ) trade deal on his first day in the   WHITE HOUSE . The mega trade deal involves 12 Pacific rim nations including major economies like Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. With a collective population of about 800 million, almost double that of the European Union’s single   MARKET , the bloc currently accounts for 40 per cent of world trade. While the free trade deal will see tariffs slashed between member nations to boost falling trade, sections within the US has argued it will further accelerate the slide in American jobs and production. Guessing that Trump does not go back on his decision, something he is known to do, India stands to benefit in a plethora of ways if TPP does not materialise. HERE ARE A FEW OF THEM:- 1) Access to lucrative US market to be cut for India’s export competitors: 2) The Regional Comprehensive Economic Part...

China opens South China Sea website China   on Wednesday opened a website on the South China Sea, complete with historical maps, articles and research, according to the State Oceanic Administration (SOA). Run by the National Marine Data & Information Service, the Chinese language site has 10 sections that cover basic information, news, historical archives, development and management, expert opinion, law and regulations, a timeline of major events, pictures and videos and Q&A. "The   South China Sea   has drawn huge attention, but some information online is not accurate,"   Xinhua   news agency quoted Zhang Haiwen,   SOA   official in charge of international cooperation, as saying. "We hope that this website will enable domestic and overseas people to better understand it and learn about the truth behind the 'dispute' over it." The website has now six domain names, including   中国南海网   and   中国南海网 , due to "informatio...

Uber set to merge Chinese business with Didi Chuxing: Report In a move that marks the end of intense rivalry in the ride-hailing market in China,   Uber Technologies will merge its Chinese business with   Didi Chuxing , news agency   Bloomberg reported on Monday. Didi is the dominant app-based taxi aggregator in the country. The valuation of the combined entity is $35 billion, the report added, citing people familiar with the development. As per the new structure, investors in   Uber China   — a company owned by Uber and other investors — will have 20% stake in the merged firm. Meanwhile, Didi will be making an investment of $1 billion in Uber at a valuation of $68 billion. “As an entrepreneur, I’ve learned that being successful is about listening to your head as well as following your heart,” Travis Kalanick, chief executive officer of Uber, wrote in a blog post What happens next? (Read More)

China's LeEco to buy Vizio for $2 billion China's Le Holdings, also known as LeEco, said on Tuesday it would buy US consumer electronics company   Vizio   for $2 billion. Irvine, California-based Vizio makes affordable flat screen televisions, soundbars and LCD monitors. Founded in 2002, the company is now one of the largest manufacturers of TV sets in the United States. Vizio, which filed for an initial public offering last year, generated sales of $1.3 billion in the first six months of 2015, according to IPO documents. Vizio's hardware and software units will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of LeEco. The company's Inscape TV viewership data business will be spun out as a privately owned company,   LeEco   said. Founded in 2004, LeEco started selling smartphones in   China   in April last year. Earlier this year, the company unveiled an all-electric battery concept car. Bank of America Merrill Lynch advised Vizio on the deal, whil...

Chinese fury continues against South China Sea judgement China   continues to resolutely oppose the Permanent   Court   of Arbitration's (PCA) landmark decision handed down on July 12 against its maritime claims in the South China Sea. Indeed,   Beijing   has redoubled its months-long campaign to invalidate the 2013 case that The Philippines   brought against it. The PCA gave a comprehensive verdict in Manila's favour. In its 501-page report the tribunal found Beijing violated no fewer than 14 United Nations Convention on the   Law   of the Sea (UNCLOS) provisions, six international regulations preventing collisions at sea and one general rule of international law. China's recalcitrance was highly visible during the Public International Law Colloquium on Maritime Disputes Settlement held in   Hong Kong   on July 15 and 16, jointly organised by the Chinese Society of International Law (CSIL).   Read More

Humanity beats curfew in Kashmir as locals rush to help Amarnath bus accident victims One more youth was killed on Wednesday in a clash between a stone-pelting mob and security forces in   Kashmir , taking the toll in the five-day unrest to 35, even as Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed "great sadness and sorrow" over the deaths and promised a "healing touch". Zakir Naik cancels conference for third time Controversial Mumbai-based Islamic preacher   Zakir Naik   has cancelled his media interaction on Thursday for the third time. "It is very difficult to do a press conference. We will announce another conference soon. Naik himself is willing to come and share information with people," official spokesperson of Naik's Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) told on Thursday. South China Sea ruling must be respected: Philippines The ruling by the Hague's Permanent Court of Arbitration(PCA) in favour of Manila over its South China Sea...

Philippines wins South China Sea case against China The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on Tuesday rejected China's controversial claims in the disputed South China Sea, the Guardian reported. "The   Philippines   welcomes the issuance today... On the arbitration proceedings initiated by the Philippines with regard to the South China Sea," Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay told reporters minutes after the court in The Hague released its verdict. The case at the international tribunal was brought by the Philippines, which argues that Chinese activity in the region was against international law. Besides accusing China of taking control of the area around 140 miles from its coast, the Philippines' petition asked the international tribunal to reject China's claim to sovereignty over waters within a 'nine-dash line' that appears on official Chinese maps. The U-shaped line represents China's claims to as much as 90% of the   South Ch...

AirAsia eyes Hong Kong listing as it expands in North Asia AirAsia   is studying a dual listing in Hong Kong, part of plans to become a pan-Asian low-cost airline player as it also moves towards setting up a joint venture in China, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The Malaysia-based group is simultaneously looking for more   aircraft   to meet strong demand in North Asia and elsewhere, the people said on the eve of Britain's Farnborough Airshow. Asia's largest low-cost airline group, which already has affiliates across Southeast Asia, aims to form the venture with the backing of a Chinese state-owned enterprise (SOE) to help capture traffic from fast-growing secondary and tertiary cities. Co-founder and Chief Executive Tony Fernandes referred to the potential dual listing without naming a location and hinted at a potential new aircraft order in remarks posted on his   Twitter   account on Sunday. "Looking at more ancillary (rev...

China pulls up chief negotiator for limited global support for anti-India position at NSG The Chinese leadership has pulled up Wang Qun, its lead negotiator and Director General of the Arms Control Division at the Foreign Ministry, for failing to drum up significant global support for China's position in Seoul which blocked India's entry into the   NSG . Highly placed Western and Chinese sources said that Wang Qun had told   Beijing   that at least one third of the NSG nations would endorse China's position. However, the position was totally in the reverse, with as many as 44 nations backing   India   and   China   only having the support of four nations. Beijing now fears that the fallout of the NSG outcome could have an impact on a crucial verdict expected soon from the Permanent Court   of Arbitration in The Hague in a case brought by the   Philippines   concerning China's territorial reclamation activities in the South Chin...

PM Modi to meet Chinese president; will attempt to win support for NSG membership Prime Minister  Narendra Modi  will be meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday in the Uzbekistan capital Tashkent in an attempt to win Beijing's support for India's membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). Modi will be meeting President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit meeting that is currently on in Tashkent. The SCO is a Eurasian political, economic, and military organisation which was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Highly placed sources said that the meeting between PM Modi and President Xi Jinping would be an exclusive one-on-one discussion, where the top agenda would be to seek China's support for India's membership in the NSG. China, till now, has been playing the role of a dampener on the issue of clearing the way for India's admission to...