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New sanctions against UNITED NATIONS, Dec 20: The UN Security Council has imposed new sanctions on Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers until they surrender Saudi-born.....more
Indo-Pak to be a priority WASHINGTON, Dec 20: Indo-Pak stand-off will be among the main foreign policy priorities.....more India financially BERLIN, Dec 20: India today said it faced financial constraints in tackling desertification even as....more |
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Poorer half of world WASHINGTON, Dec 20: Developing countries, including India and Sri Lanka, can expect better health and prosperity....more
Tough UN sanctions UNITED NATIONS, Dec 20: The UN has decided to slap fresh tough sanctions against......more Austria, India for closer BERLIN, Dec 20: Austria today said India’s economic sector held the greatest potential for....more |
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New sanctions against Taliban split UN UNITED NATIONS, Dec 20: The UN Security Council has imposed new sanctions on Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers until they surrender Saudi-born militant Osama Bin Laden and close "terrorist" camps, dividing the United Nations on the impact of embargoes on the impoverished nation. The resolution was initiated by the United States and Russia in a rare show of unity by the former cold war rivals and was adopted yesterday by a vote of 13-0 despite strong misgivings by aid officials and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. China and Malaysia abstained, voicing concern that the sanctions would only further harm and isolate ordinary Afghanis, caught in a 20-year-old war and the worst drought in a generation. The resolution imposes an arms embargo against the Taliban, including foreign military assistance that UN officials say comes mainly from Pakistan. It limits travel by the senior Taliban authorities, freezes any assets of Bin Laden and orders the closure of Afghan Ariana Airlines offices abroad. The measures aim to pressure the Taliban to close "terrorist" training camps within 30 days and expel Bin Laden, charged by the United States with plotting the 1998 bombings of US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Some 225 people died and 4,000 more were wounded in those attacks. For Russia, the Taliban are alleged to be behind Chechen, Uzbek, Tajik, Uighur and other rebellions of "extremists," according to Russia’s UN Ambassador, Sergei Lavrov. The embargoes would go into effect one month from now if the Taliban does not comply. They lapse in a year after which the Council would have to vote to reimpose them. In anticipation of the Council’s actions, the United Nations withdrew its relief staff from Afghanistan, fearing a backlash to the sanctions. "It is not going to facilitate peace efforts, nor is it going to facilitate our humanitarian work," Annan said at an end-of-the-year news conference hours before the vote. But US diplomat Nancy Soderberg said that "with this important action today, this Council sends an unequivocal message to the taliban: ‘End your support for terrorism.’ Let us hope that they will at last heed our gall." An unusual provision in the resolution is the one-sided weapons ban on the Taliban but not on the opposition northern alliance, supported by Russia, Iran and India, among others. Challenging doubters, Lavrov said the one-sided arms embargo was "fully justified" because the Taliban were banking on a military solution and ignoring the peace process. "The major reason for the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, aside from the drought, is the war from which hundreds of thousands of Afghans are fleeing and the most flagrant violations of human rights are practiced," he said. Human rights watch urged the Security Council not to impose a one-sided arms embargo when both sides were guilty of abuses. While the Taliban was blamed for scorched-earth policies and gross discrimination against women, the New York-based rights group also called attention to atrocities committed by the northern alliance. (REUTERS) |
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Indo-Pak to be a priority of Bush administration WASHINGTON, Dec 20: Indo-Pak stand-off will be among the main foreign policy priorities of the George W Bush administration which will also have to engage with other world issues such as West Asia, North Korea, Iraq and Russia, according to an adviser of the next President. The adviser, outlining the contours of the Bush foreign policy approach and priorities, said the early months would be dictated by concern over west asia and the calendar of events already fixed — a conference on the americas in Quebec city in April; an economic summit in Genoa, Italy, next summer; and an Asian Summit in Shanghai (China) in November. "He will have to bring himself up to speed on potential flash points such as Indonesia and South Asia, where India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed, are locked in a tense stand-off on Kashmir," the official told Washington Post. The adviser did not elaborate on the approach on Kashmir but it is believed that the new administration will follow the policy adopted by the Clinton administration. This includes stress on four ‘R’s — restraint, respect for the Line of Control, renunciation of violence and reconciliation and dialogue. (PTI) |
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Poorer half of world can
expect better WASHINGTON, Dec 20: Developing countries, including India and Sri Lanka, can expect better health and prosperity in the next decade as diseases that cause and perpetuate poverty are being successfully controlled, says a new health report. "The prospects of intervening to prevent death in developing countries have never been better," said Dr. Groharlem Brundtland, Director General, World Health Organisation, which has taken part in the study. Based on success stories from 20 countries, the joint report by the World Bank, who, UNICEF and UNESCO says that India, China and Peru have cut the mortality rate by half while Sri Lanka has drastically reduced maternal mortality rate. Senegal, Uganda and Thailand have developed strategies that can successfully reduce HIV/AIDS, the report says. World Bank President James D Wolfensohn said that the success stories described demonstrate that success is possible even when resources are scarce. (PTI) |
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Tough UN sanctions against Taliban UNITED NATIONS, Dec 20: The UN has decided to slap fresh tough sanctions against Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban and ban arms sale to them unless they close terrorist training camps and surrender Saudi terrorist Osama Bin Laden within a month even as the milita condemned the move saying it would wreak havoc on the Afghan people. The 15-member Council last night voted a joint American-Russian resolution imposing sanctions over objections openly voiced by Secretary General Kofi Annan only a few hours earlier at a press conference. Thirteen members voted in favour of the resolution, a rare joint effort by two former rivals, and China and Malaysia abstained, arguing that the new measures would only harm the people already burdened with two decades of civil war and a crushing drought. The resolution also calls for withdrawal of all foreign military and security advisers who, diplomats says, are mostly Pakistanis. A report from Islamabad said that the Taliban immediately denounced the new sanctions, threatening to walk out of the UN sponsored peace talks. The new measures would lead to further deterioration in the situation. "America takes a whole Afghan nation hostage for one person Osama Bin Laden. Under which law is it justifiable to victimise 18 mn people of Afghanistan using the excuse of one person," Taliban Ambassador to Pakistan Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef said. Zaeef claimed that the "Taliban had made several offers to solve the Osama issue through peaceful means of negotiations". "Sanctions are starvation tactics used for selfish political goals," he said. Pakistani diplomats and Taliban representative expressed distress that the arms embargo is sought to be imposed only against Taliban while leaving the Northern alliance untouched. "The UN is playing politics because the arms sanctions are only on the Taliban and not on the opposition alliance. The UN is trying to interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs and siding with one party which hold little territory and has no popular support," Director General of the state-run Institute of Strategic Studies Shireen Mazari said. The resolution says if Taliban does not comply with twin demand of closing terrorist training camps and surrendering Bin Laden, the sale of arms, ammunition and military vehicles and equipment will be banned. Besides, it calls for immediate closure of all offices of Taliban worldwide, limit travel by Taliban officials and freezes all funds and other financial assets of Bin Laden, his associates and his Qaida group. Diplomats say that it would be difficult to monitor the ban but assert it would send a strong message to Taliban as the resolution clearly says they are not only harbouring Bin Laden but other terrorists also. The United Nations has already withdrawn all foreign aid workers, fearing reprisals against them. (PTI) |
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Austria, India for closer bilateral economic ties BERLIN, Dec 20: Austria today said India’s economic sector held the greatest potential for intensified bilateral cooperation while New Delhi sought increased investments from Vienna in the infrastructure sector. Nd Vienna should work for closer collaboration to match the "considerable upswing" in bilateral trade and visible presence of Austrian companies in India, Austrian President Thomas Klestil said accepting the credentials of the new Indian Ambassador T P Sreenivsan. Klestil said President K R Narayanan’s visit to the country last year had in a very special way contributed to deepening the excellent and friendly ties between the two countries. Sreenivasan, until recently Deputy Chief of Mission in Washington, called for Austrian participation in the development of India’s infrastructure sector. Investment needs in the power, telecom, roads, port, housing and other sectors are huge, over 400 billion dollars in the next ten years, and a large part of it will be abroad, he said. The new Ambassador said Austria had excellent infrastructure and expertise in key areas of technology. He said the increased number of direct flights connecting New Delhi and Vienna had contributed to the promotion of trade, tourism and people-to-people contacts.(PTI) berlin, dec 20 (pti) austria today said india’s economic sector held the greatest potential for intensified bilateral cooperation while new delhi sought increased investments from vienna in the infrastructure sector. Nd vienna should work for closer collaboration to match the "considerable upswing" in bilateral trade and visible presence of austrian companies in india, austrian president thomas klestil said accepting the credentials of the new indian ambassador t p sreenivsan. Klestil said president k r narayanan’s visit to the country last year had in a very special way contributed to deepening the excellent and friendly ties between the two countries. Sreenivasan, until recently deputy chief of mission in washington, called for austrian participation in the development of india’s infrastructure sector. Investment needs in the power, telecom, roads, port, housing and other sectors are huge, over 400 billion dollars in the next ten years, and a large part of it will h abroad, he said. The new ambassador said austria had excellent infrastructure and expertise in key areas of technology. He said the increased number of direct flights connecting new delhi and vienna had contributed to the promotion of trade, tourism and people-to-people contacts.(PTI) |
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India financially constrained to tackle desertification BERLIN, Dec 20: India today said it faced financial constraints in tackling desertification even as Governments at a U.N conference debated ways to fund projects to combat the problem. "We have excellent technical and institutional network and human resource capabilities to tackle problems related to desertification but are financially constrained," said Dr A K Kundra, Special Secretary in the Environment Ministry. "India’s limited resources are committed to priority areas such as education, health and sanitation and provision of clean drinking water," Dr Kundra said reading out Environment Minister T R Baalu’s statement at the fourth conference of parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The conference was told that the most important priority for India was to ensure that food, fuel, fodder and water needs of the people were adequately met before tackling the problem of progressive decline of the per capital availability of arable land. Nearly 33 per cent of India’s total geographical area of 326 million hectares is degraded in some form or other. On the funding aspect, U.N Secretary General Kofi Annan said the "desert fight" should have separate financing like the U.N climate convention. But a French official representing the European Union Presidency, Charles Josseli said the question of funding could wait for the time being because the work to stop desertification needed to start now. 12201338 d India, on its part, said it would be looking closely at the ‘new window’ for land degradation under Global Environment Fund (GEF) as a means for availing assistance to combat desertification. Dr Kundra said India was currently engaged in the formulation of national action programme for combating desertification, which is under active discussion, adding that the world community would have to took towards new developments in biotechnology that have the potential to raise land productivity. India was looking at path-breaking technological developments like the lab-induced‘ green revolution’to ensure the continuance of food security, he said. India has also embarked on an exercise for preparing a national biodiversity strategy and an action plan has been initiated at various levels to conserve biological resources. India is one of the 12 mega biodiversity countries of the world and with only 2.5 per cent of world land area.(PTI) |
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