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Budapest Times
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Budapest Times
PM's political director: War rhetoric has taken over issue of competitiveness in European politics
Balázs Orbán, the prime minister's political director, said on Wednesday that war rhetoric and the financing of Ukraine have taken over from the issue of competitiveness in European politics. Speaking at a panel discussion of the Budapest Global Dialogue conference organised by the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs and the Observer Research Foundation, Orbán said nobody in Europe was talking about restoring the continent's competitiveness any longer. He said the focus was now on 'rearming Europe, and that through Ukraine'. 'The war machine and the war propaganda are becoming more and more obvious, and the Brussels elite are desperately trying to convince the European public that they are under existential threat,' he said. Thereby, they want to get people to accept the decline in their living standards, arguing that Ukraine needs to be financed, he added. The threat is used to centralise power in Brussels, Orbán said, since in the event of war, national sovereignty and subsidiarity are pushed into the background, and the goal is to establish a centralised 'superstate' preparing for war. He said Hungary had been saying for ten years that Europe must be able to defend itself. He acknowledged that NATO was of key importance, but warned that if Europe was unable to defend itself on its own, it would be completely dependent on the United States. The Hungarian position is that Europe should primarily develop its own defence capabilities and competitiveness rather than arming Ukraine and admitting it as a member of the EU, Orbán said. At the same time, this cannot serve as the basis for bringing a country at war into Europe's security system, he added. In Hungarian foreign policy thinking, morality is not based on abstract ideals but on loyalty to the national community, Orbán said. He said realism was the only viable way today to avoid wars, arguing that liberal ideology was based on the simplified opposition of good and evil, and was therefore incapable of applying solutions that require compromise. 'For us, Hungarians, peace is not a political, but an existential issue,' he said, adding that 'if anything similar to Chernobyl happened, that would have an immediate effect on our everyday lives.'
The Print
3 days ago
- Business
- The Print
Egyptian Foreign Minister Abdelatty in India next week. Focus on joint defence production, exports
He added, 'You do not have the top notch technologies, and we do not have it either. However, we can reach the top notch capabilities (in defence platforms) together. The focus is reaching that together. We can have joint programmes of joint production. Joint exercises and joint research is another component of our potential cooperation.' 'Defence cooperation is one of the low hanging fruits. I see an opportunity and a challenge. The challenge is that we should not look at selling to each other's markets. I should not try and come to sell to you (India) and you should not try and come to sell to me. The opportunity is joint production,' Ambassador Galal said while speaking at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) here. New Delhi: Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty will visit India next week and a major part of the agenda will involve pushing for a potential plan for joint defence production between New Delhi and Cairo, with a view of exporting to third countries, Egypt's Ambassador to India Kamel Galal said Wednesday. The Egyptian Ambassador highlighted that Cairo has roughly a 'network' of 110 or more free trade agreements across the globe, including with West Asia, Africa, Europe and MERCOSUR (South America). This network of free trade deals would open the door for the jointly produced goods between Indian and Egyptian firms to a market of nearly '2.5 billion customers'. Galal's comments came at a session moderated by Harsh V. Pant, the vice president for studies and foreign policy at ORF. In 2022, after a visit by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, New Delhi and Cairo signed a memorandum of understanding in defence cooperation. Both countries have held 10 meetings of the Joint Defence Committee (JDC), which determines the cooperation in this sector between New Delhi and Cairo. The last JDC was held in New Delhi last year. While both nations maintained close defence ties in the late 1950s and 1960s, the ties 'eased' starting from the 1970s due to the two countries own pressing 'domestic challenges', said Galal. However, the Egyptian ambassador said that since 2014, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi coming to power in India and President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi entering office in Cairo, the two countries have seen revived strategic cooperation. In 2023, the ties between India and Egypt were elevated to a Strategic Partnership during Modi's State visit to the North African nation, while Sisi was the chief guest at India's Republic Day parade that same year. Egypt has been touted as an evacuation route for Indians currently in Israel, especially as Tel Aviv's conflict with Iran continues to escalate following the start of Operation Rising Lion on 13 June. On Egypt aiding the evacuating Indians from Israel, Galal said, 'I am sure the Indian embassy in Cairo is in touch with the foreign ministry and I'm sure we will give all assistance for this.' Also Read: Egypt out military shopping, eyes Tejas and Dhruv as high-level delegation visits HAL 'More potential for trade, people-to-people ties' Galal stressed that the current economic engagement between India and Egypt, which is between $3-$4 billion, is far below the potential, given the comparative sizes of the two economies. The Egyptian Ambassador said that the 'minimum' it should be at is between '$30 billion to $40 billion'. However, currently New Delhi and Cairo have agreed to hit a goal of $12 billion in trade as soon as possible. As a part of deepening economic cooperation, Galal pointed out that Egypt has 'offered' India a 'specific zone' in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), which is a special economic zone in the country to attract foreign investment. 'India is studying this issue. For the incentive we are going to offer. No taxes, no customs duty, nothing you would imagine as a part of the zone. Everything is zero. This is a huge opportunity for Indian investments to come,' Galal said. However, the Egyptian ambassador pointed out that as old civilisations, with 'historic' ties, New Delhi and Cairo must not look at one another solely within the lens of markets or potential investors, rather with a sense of deeper ties. 'The key to unlock India-Egypt ties is the people-to-people connect.' The Egyptian ambassador said he would like to see the North African country as India's preferred destination in the region for tourism and potentially see greater ties between youth forums. (Edited by Ajeet Tiwari) Also Read: Understaffed MEA slowing down India's sprint towards 'Vishwa Guru' status, but needle may be moving
Hans India
4 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
Trump-Modi G7 meet off as US Prez cuts short his trip
Toronto: Prime Minister Narendra Modi had no opportunity to push for a US trade deal with Donald Trump after the American President left the G7 leaders' summit early, a potential setback for New Delhi as recent tariff negotiations hit hurdles. Modi was expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Trump on the sidelines of the G-7 meeting in Canada this week. Trump said on Monday that he was leaving the summit a day early because of the unfolding tensions in the Middle East. A Trump-Modi meeting was widely expected to take place this week to give much-needed political direction to trade negotiators as they race to conclude a deal ahead of a July 9 deadline when higher US tariffs take effect. US and Indian trade officials have hardened their positions in recent talks, with India's restrictions on genetically modified crops emerging as one of the key sticking points. 'A meeting would have been helpful' to clarify the trade deal, said Harsh Pant, a lecturer in international relations at King's College London and vice president of the New Delhi-based think tank Observer Research Foundation. Negotiating with Trump is difficult, especially now when the president has other pressing concerns, he said. It's unclear if India is a priority for the US given the latest developments, he added.
India Gazette
12-06-2025
- Business
- India Gazette
ORF and CMA CGM Group to host First Raisina Mediterranean Forum
Marseille [France], June 12 (ANI): The inaugural edition of Raisina Mediterranean is set to take place in Marseille on June 12 and 13. Hosted by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and the CMA CGM Group through its center of excellence dedicated to learning and innovation, TANGRAM, in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs, India, and the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France, the event will bring together more than 250 distinguished participants from 38 countries. This high-level convening will include ministers, former heads of state and government, parliamentarians, senior officials, and leading subject matter experts, an official statement from the Observer Research Foundation noted. As per the statement, Raisina Mediterranean is envisioned as a platform for meaningful dialogue on issues of regional and global significance. It seeks to explore how the Mediterranean's evolving ties with India and the Indo-Pacific will shape shared futures. With the support of key partners, including Airbus, ORF Middle East, and the Gates Foundation, the forum aims to chart a new course for Mediterranean cooperation, one that reflects the region's strategic centrality in the emerging global order. Over two days, participants will engage in conversations on critical issues including regional and inter-regional partnerships in trade, connectivity, maritime cooperation, energy, defence technology, blue growth, and innovation. The goal is to build the foundations of a resilient and interconnected Mediterranean community that can influence global conversations around governance, sustainability, and prosperity. A key highlight of the forum is the Deep Tech Network at Raisina Mediterranean--a closed-door roundtable connecting deep tech founders, investors, and global partners to tackle urgent challenges such as AI safety, drone defence, climate resilience, and biosecurity. The session will explore solutions across secure infrastructure, sovereign capabilities, and dual-use innovation, creating space to share insights, propose new alliances, and identify immediate opportunities for cross-sector collaboration. The forum will also feature a series of studio sessions, offering deeper insights into niche but consequential themes. These will explore India-Europe defence technology cooperation, the role of the Mediterranean in larger Indo-Pacific connectivity and infrastructure ambitions, the future of maritime trade and investment, evolving trade relationships, and the need for a more equitable dialogue between Africa and the West. Welcomed by Rodolphe Saade, Chairman and CEO of the CMA CGM Group, and Samir Saran, President, Observer Research Foundation, India, several distinguished leaders from across the region and beyond will take part in this landmark gathering. Among them are S. Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, India; Jean-Noel Barrot, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France; Ararat Mirzoyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Armenia; Michael Falzon, Minister for Social Policy and Children's Rights, Malta; Giorgos Papanastasiou, Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry, Cyprus; Athanasios Ntokos, National Security Advisor, Greece; Edoardo Rixi, Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Italy; Stefanos Gkikas, Deputy Minister for Shipping and Insular Policy, Greece; and Davit Karapetyan, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Armenia. Other prominent figures participating in the discussions include Marcos Perestrello de Vasconcellos, Member of Parliament, Portugal; Fernando Gutierrez, Member of Parliament, Spain; Natalia Pouzyreff, Member of Parliament, France; Anurag Thakur, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, and former Minister for Information and Broadcasting, India; Priyanka Chaturvedi, Member of Parliament, India; Manish Tewari, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, India; Sanjeev Sanyal, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India; Francesco M. Talo, Special Envoy for IMEC, Italy; and Gerard Mestrallet, Special Envoy of the French President for IMEC. From the industry and diplomatic sectors, the gathering will also hear from Tanya Saade Zeenny, Executive Officer of the CMA CGM Group and President of the CMA CGM Foundation; Tristan Aureau, Head of the Policy Planning Department at the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs; and Sanjeev Singla, Ambassador of India to France and Monaco. Taking place for the first time in this part of the world, Raisina Mediterranean extends the legacy of the Raisina Dialogue--India's flagship platform on geopolitics and geoeconomics, organised annually by the Observer Research Foundation in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. Over the years, Raisina has successfully travelled to cities including Sydney, Washington, Berlin, Tokyo, Abu Dhabi, and Canberra, engaging global thought leaders in meaningful exchange. As per the statement, certain open-door sessions at the Raisina Mediterranean will be streamed live on the official Raisina Dialogue X handle (@raisinadialogue) and the Observer Research Foundation YouTube channel. The Observer Research Foundation (ORF) is a leading Indian think tank with global outreach through its offices in Washington DC and Dubai. ORF provides non-partisan, research-based analysis to policymakers, businesses, and civil society, and plays a vital role in shaping global conversations on key issues. The CMA CGM Group is a global player in sea, land, air and logistics solutions, true to its corporate purpose, 'We imagine better ways to serve a world in motion.' The world's 3rd largest shipping company, CMA CGM, serves more than 420 ports across 5 continents with a fleet of over 650 vessels. In 2024, CMA CGM carried over 23 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) containers. The CMA CGM Foundation provides humanitarian aid in crises and is committed to education for all and equal opportunities throughout the world. To date, the CMA CGM Foundation has transported 63,000 tons of humanitarian aid to 97 countries and supported over 550 educational projects. (ANI)
India Today
08-06-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Can China turn off India's tap, hit land formation?
It's impossible that anyone who has taken a train to Guwahati and crossed the Saraighat Bridge hasn't been left amazed by the width of the Brahmaputra. It looks like a sea. Just to imagine that the mighty Brahmaputra gushes as a stream, called Yarlung Tsangpo, in Tibet is unimaginable for millions of Indians. But that's the fact and the visual answer to the question -- can China turn the Brahmaputra tap off for India?advertisementThe idea that China, being the upper riparian country, might be capable of controlling the flow of the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra river system was brought up by Pakistan after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT).That scare-mongering was promptly addressed by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. But what do research data and experts suggest? Can China block or divert the flow of Yarlung Tsangpo and hit India's water supply? Diverting the flow of a high-sediment river like the Brahmaputra won't be just about the water, it would also hit soil formation downstream."If India does something like this that they stop the flow [of rivers] to Pakistan, then China can also do the same thing," Rana Ihsaan Afzal, a senior aide to Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, told Geo News on May remarks caused some consternation given the fact that China is constructing the 60,000-MW Medong Dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo at the Great Bend, near the India-China rule out any possibility of China blocking or diverting water, and say a bigger worry should be that the massive dam -- one of the biggest in the world -- is coming up in a calamity-prone area in China-controlled Nilanjan Ghosh, who has studied the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra River System for close to two decades, says that it has never been China's position to block the flow of the Brahmaputra, albeit it aims to build run-of-the-river dams."Any attempt to divert the flow would be counterproductive as it would result in upstream floods because of sediment accumulation," Ghosh, Vice President, Development Studies at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), tells India Today expert says China won't be able to "turn off the tap" as the Brahmaputra is primarily a rain- and tributary-fed river, and the Yarlung Tsangpo contributes just 10-15% of the entire volume of the Brahmaputra's water."The Brahmaputra gets fatter and fatter as it moves downstream," says Ghosh. China contributes only a small portion of the Brahmaputra's total water. As the river flows through India, its volume increases more than six times due to several tributaries joining in. (Image: Arun Uniyal/India Today) In January this year, Ghosh and fellow researcher, Sayanangshu Modak, published a research paper in the peer-reviewed International Journal of Water Resources Development where they used hydrological data to junk the rhetoric around China being capable of turning the Brahmaputra tap collated over the years show that the discharge of the Yarlung Tsangpo, measured at Nuxia in Tibet, to be at 31.2 billion cubic meters (BCM) annually, which then swells to an estimated 78.1 BCM as it passes through the Great Bend and exits the measuring station at Pandu in Guwahati, the Brahmaputra's annual discharge is 526 BCM, showing a six-fold volume increase. At Bahadurabad, in Bangladesh, which is just across the border with India, the annual discharge is 606 shows that since the river's entry into India, the Brahmaputra has been fed by its tributaries to grow Brahmaputra has shaped Assam for centuries by carving out banks and creating shape-shifting islands. It has caused flooding woes, but has also left behind life-sustaining fertile Majuli island on the Brahmaputra is the world's biggest riverine island, and has been at the heart of neo-Vaishnavism, spearheaded by Srimanta Sankaradeva. The Vaishnavite satras (monastries) in Majuli have been centres of cultural and art for the one-horned rhino, the twin-leaf tea buds and the xorai and gamusa, the Brahmaputra has become a marker for Assam's civilisational identity."Mahabahu Brahmaputra" is how legendary Assamese singer Bhupen Hazarika refers to the mighty river in one of his ever-popular songs, which tells the story of the land it BRAHMAPUTRA FLOODS SUGGESTOriginating in the Angsi Glacier in western Tibet, the Yarlung Tsangpo travels 1,625 km in the China-controlled territory of Tibet and enters India after the Great Bend near the Namcha Barwa peak. Then, as the Brahmaputra, it flows for 918 km within India and another 337 km in Bangladesh, where it is called Jamuna, and empties into the Bay of length of the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra system in Tibet gives the perception that it is a major river with a huge water volume in agrees with Himanta Biswa Sarma's analysis of the Brahmaputra but calculates the Tsangpo's water contribution to the Brahmaputra at much lower than the 30-35% pegged by the Assam chief expert says though the river system completes 56% of its run in China, it contributes just 15% of the water in its boundary."That is why some literature suggests the Yarlung Tsangpo to be a tributary of the Brahmaputra," Ghosh tells India Today is believed that the Brahmaputra was actually formed at Sadia in eastern Assam after the merger of three rivers -- the Dihang (Siang), Lohit and Dibang."So, I don't think that, given these hydrological facts, there will be any substantial impact on India, even if China blocks the flow of Tsangpo," says Ghosh. The Brahmaputra in Assam gains significant volume of water as it flows parallel to the Himalayan foothills and is fed by many snowmelt tributaries such as the Subansiri, Kameng, and Kameng rivers.(Image: Arun Uniyal/India Today) advertisementDerek J Grossman, a national security and Indo-Pacific analyst with Rand Corporation, says Pakistan cannot count on China to turn off the tap as monsoons feed the Brahmaputra."China has little control over the water flow of the Brahmaputra River, according to Indian government officials. One reason is that monsoons are the primary source of water. Another is that Beijing can only halt roughly 30 percent of the flow. Pakistan can't count on China," says one should remember, is a cold desert with very little precipitation. It is the glaciers that give birth to the rivers India, the Brahmaputra has been linked with devastating annual floods, which are a result of the water drained into it by over two dozen tributaries in the monsoon – the town where experts argue that the Brahmaputra is formed – is the town where Bhupen Hazarika was born, and a good part of it was engulfed by the Brahmaputra as it changed course after the earthquake in rebukes the Brahmaputra, referring to it as Burha Luit, in one of his songs, for flowing silently, deaf to the wails of the numerous people on its banks. "...Burha Luit tumi boa kiyo (Why do you flow)," he BLOCKING OF BRAHMAPUTRA FLOW WON'T HIT SOIL FORMATIONExperts have suggested that the Brahmaputra is an antecedent river that is older than the the Brahmaputra, in its age-old wisdom, flows silently, taking away land, like in Sadia, the sediment it carries is crucial to soil from the perspective of soil formation and fertility, China's blocking of the Yarlung-Tsangpo wouldn't impact to the 2016 book -- River morphodynamics and stream ecology of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau -- by Chinese experts, the annual suspended sediment load of the Yarlung-Tsangpo near Nuxia in Tibet is around 30 million metric tonnes (mmt), much lower than the 735 mmt of sediment load at Bahadurabad in stream-like Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet cannot carry the sediment load, and it is the powerful Brahmaputra that does the heavy-lifting of the sediment load not just in India but to form the fertile Jamuna floodplain in average width of the Brahmaputra is 5.46 km, according to the Assam Water Resources website. In areas where it forms a braided system due to sediment deposition, the width extends to up to 18 km. Satellite images show the Yarlung Tsangpo (top) in Tibet as a narrow, fast-flowing river cutting through the plateau, while in the Assam plains the Brahmaputra (bottom) spreads out and swells into braided channels, often accommodating islands as large as Majuli and the one with the Dibru-Saikhowa National The scale of the two images is not uniform, and they are presented only for visual comparison, not to exact proportions. (Image: Google Maps) INDUS WATERS TREATY SUSPENSION AND CHINA'S DAMSThe Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) that India kept in abeyance after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack is very different from the treaty that India has with China on the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra the IWT is a water-sharing treaty under which India gave the rights to water use of the western rivers of the Indus Rivers System to India, the pact with China on Yarlung-Brahmaputra is just for sharing of information, and not China could do worst is stop sharing hydrological data with India, but even that won't matter much, according to Ghosh."India has an MoU with China for hydrological data from three stations [in China]. Even if China stops sharing data, it won't matter because the information isn't helping much anyway due to the wrong choice of stations [agreed on] by the Indian government at the beginning of the millennia," he tells India Today says no one should draw parallels between the Indus Water System and the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra River System because of the difference in the nature of the two."The Indus System is largely fed by glacial and ice melt. It has around 45% to 55% normalised melting index (NMI). While the contribution of glacial and ice melt of the Brahmaputra is barely 10-12%," says this means is that the bulk of the water in the Indus River System is added upstream, which isn't true in the case of the Yarlung-Brahmaputra. While India has the advantage of being the upper riparian state in the case of the Indus system, China doesn't enjoy that in the case of the Pakistan, an agrarian economy, is completely dependent on the Indus River System for its agriculture and power generation, India, according to Ghosh, barely taps 25% of the renewable water flow of the while Pakistan might love to believe that its "all-weather friend" China might be able to turn the tap off on India and hurt it, this isn't true going by the hydrological and meteorological Brahmaputra has historically been associated with Assam's resilience. The Saraighat rail bridge that one uses to travel to Guwahati is a reminder of was the crucial Battle of Saraighat, led by legendary Ahom general Lachit Borphukan, on the Brahmaputra that led to the defeat of the Mughal forces and the end of the siege of Brahmaputra nurtures Assam. It is formed in Sadia and China cannot weaponise its waters against India.
