Govt launches Operation Ganga to rescue Indians stuck in Ukraine

 The International Council of the Red Cross (ICRC), which deals with conflict-torn regions, will start operations from Monday and India is in close touch with it

To quicken the process of rescuing the Indians stranded in Ukraine, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, as part of Operation Ganga, on Sunday outlined new steps, including opening fresh exit points judged safe for them to leave the country. The government will pay for the operation entirely. Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to this in Varanasi during an election campaign meeting, where he said India was making every effort to get its citizens out of Ukraine.

However, India continued to stay neutral on the conflict and suspended judgement on who was responsible for the war. Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has been in touch with his equivalent in Moldova, which has a border with Ukraine. He has also spoken to ministers in neighbouring countries.

The exit route from Moldova is less choked than the ones from Poland, which are jammed by Ukrainians seeking to flee from the war. Shringla said around 4,000 Indians were in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions in East Ukraine, as well as Odessa and the Crimea, where fighting is most intense. These regions are also close to the Russian border, just at a distance of 70 km, and teams from the Indian embassy are at the border points, ready to evacuate Indians as soon as a window opens and there is respite from the fighting….

India elected non-permanent member of UN Security Council for 2-year term

Along with India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway also won the Security Council elections held Wednesday

India was elected as non-permanent member of the powerful UN Security Council for a two-year term on Wednesday, winning 184 votes in the 193-member General Assembly. Along with India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway also won the Security Council elections held Wednesday. India was a candidate for a non-permanent seat from the Asia-Pacific category for the 2021-22 term. Its victory was a given since it was the sole candidate vying for the lone seat from the grouping.

New Delhi’s candidature was unanimously endorsed by the 55-member Asia-Pacific grouping, including China and Pakistan, in June last year. Previously, India has been elected as a non-permanent member of the Council for the years 1950 1951, 1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978, 1984-1985, 1991-1992 and most recently in 2011-2012.

The UN General Assembly on Wednesday conducted elections for President of the 75th session of the Assembly, five non-permanent members of the Security Council and members of the Economic and Social Council under special voting arrangements put in place here due to Covid-19 related restrictions…Read More

China-backed Pakistan bid to raise Kashmir issue at UNSC fails yet again

The attempt failed as other member countries felt Kashmir is a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan

India on Wednesday slammed Pakistan for again trying to raise the Kashmir issue in the UN Security Council where it failed yet again to find any support, with New Delhi asserting that Islamabad needs to focus on the hard tasks it has to address in order to ensure normal relations with India. China, Pakistan’s ‘all-weather ally’, stood alone in the Pakistani corner to get the Security Council to focus on the Kashmir issue.

The attempt failed as other member countries felt Kashmir is a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan. Earlier on Wednesday, China made the fresh pitch to raise the Kashmir issue under “other matters” during closed consultations in the Security Council Consultations Room. India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said: “We once again saw an effort made by one member state of the UN, fail in plain view of all others”.

“We are happy that neither alarmist scenario painted by the representatives of Pakistan nor any of the baseless allegations made repeatedly by representatives of Pakistan in the UN fora were found to be credible today,” Akbaruddin told PTI. “We are glad that the effort was viewed as a distraction and it was pointed by many friends that bilateral mechanisms are available to raise and address issues that Pakistan may have in its ties with India,” he said…

Keep reading: Kashmir Crisis

Will JeM’s Azhar be designated as global terrorist? UNSC to decide today

The proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, UK and the US on February 27

The fate of the proposal to designate Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed’s chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN Security Council will be known in less than 24 hours when the deadline to raise objections to the bid expires.

The proposal to designate Masood Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, UK and the US on February 27.It was under the no-objection period and Committee members had a period of 10 working days to raise any objections to the proposal.  The no-objection period deadline ends 3 pm Wednesday (12:30am IST). The Committee makes its decisions by consensus of its members. All eyes are on China, which has in the past blocked India’s bids to get Azhar listed as a UN-designated global terrorist.

According to the listing rules of the Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee, if no objection is received by the end of the no-objection period, the decision will be deemed adopted, meaning that Azhar will become a UN-designated global terrorist. The proposal is the fourth such bid at the UN in the last 10 years to list Azhar as a global terrorist.

Read Full Story: India Pakistan Conflicts