Accusations that Pakistan helped a militant group bomb India’s embassy in Afghanistan cast a cloud yesterday over the start of an eight-nation South Asian summit aimed at fostering regional cooperation.
India, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, all fighting decades-old insurgencies, exhorted South Asian nations yesterday to pool efforts to fight terrorism, which they said posed the biggest threat to the region’s stability.
PHOTO: AFP
‘GREATER GRIP’
“Terrorism and its sanctuaries are gaining a greater grip in Pakistan,” Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a speech at the start of the two-day summit.
He said terrorists in Pakistan were getting “institutionalized nurturing and support.”
Afghanistan was the worst victim of international terrorism, Karzai said.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the recent attack on his country’s embassy in Kabul and a string of bombings in Indian cities “are gruesome reminders of the barbarity that still finds a place in South Asia.”
“It remains the single biggest threat to our stability,” he said.
ACCORD
The summit is expected to approve an accord on fighting terror, including freezing funds used for attacks and agreements on the creation of a regional development fund and a food bank aimed at coping with skyrocketing food prices.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have heightened amid accusations that members of Pakistan’s intelligence service have aided Islamic militants fighting in Afghanistan and the Indian portion of Kashmir.
The New York Times reported on Friday that US intelligence agencies had intercepted communications between Pakistani intelligence officials and Islamic militants implicating the intelligence service in the July 7 attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul, which left at least 41 people dead.
Pakistan dismissed the accusation as “rubbish” and promised to cooperate with neighboring countries to combat terror.
WORST OFF
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said yesterday that his country had suffered the most from terrorism, though it was afflicting all countries of the region.
The summit is being attended by leaders from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The region, home to one-fifth of the world’s population and many of its most impoverished people, has been plagued by terror attacks.
Pakistan is grappling with restive tribal regions along its border with Afghanistan, where fighting between insurgents and government troops intensified this week.
TALIBAN
The Afghan government is facing a resurgent Taliban and a spate of bombings has hit India in recent weeks.
Afghan officials have repeatedly said Pakistan is not doing enough to crack down on militants, an allegation which Pakistan denies.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation was set up in 1985 to promote economic cooperation, but progress in most areas has been slow, mainly because of the rivalry between India and Pakistan, and the organization has often been derided as little more than a talk shop.
Also See: Fighting breaks out ahead of regional summit in Colombo
ANNOUNCEMENT: People who do not comply with the ban after a spoken warning would be reported to the police, the airport company said on Friday Taoyuan International Airport Corp on Friday announced that riding on vehicles, including scooter-suitcases (also known as “scootcases”), bicycles, scooters and skateboards, is prohibited in the airport’s terminals. Those using such vehicles should manually pull them or place them on luggage trolleys, the company said in a Facebook post. The ban intends to maintain order and protect travelers’ safety, as the airport often sees large crowds of people, it said, adding that it has stepped up publicity for the regulation, and those who do not comply after a spoken warning would be reported to the police. The company yesterday said that
QUIET START: Nearly a week after applications opened, agencies did not announce or promote the program, nor did they explain how it differed from other visitor visas Taiwan has launched a six-month “digital nomad visitor visa” program for foreign nationals from its list of visa-exempt countries who meet financial eligibility criteria and provide proof of work contracts. To apply, foreign nationals must either provide proof that they have obtained a digital nomad visa issued by another country or demonstrate earnings based on age brackets, the Bureau of Consular Affairs said. Applicants aged 20 to 29 must show they earned an annual salary of at least US$20,000 or its equivalent in one of the past two years, while those aged 30 or older must provide proof they earned US$40,000 in
SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS: The suspects formed spy networks and paramilitary groups to kill government officials during a possible Chinese invasion, prosecutors said Prosecutors have indicted seven retired military officers, members of the Rehabilitation Alliance Party, for allegedly obtaining funds from China, and forming paramilitary groups and assassination squads in Taiwan to collaborate with Chinese troops in a possible war. The suspects contravened the National Security Act (國家安全法) by taking photos and drawing maps of key radar stations, missile installations and the American Institute in Taiwan’s headquarters in Taipei, prosecutors said. They allegedly prepared to collaborate with China during a possible invasion of Taiwan, prosecutors said. Retired military officer Chu Hung-i (屈宏義), 62, a Republic of China Army Academy graduate, went to China
UNITY MESSAGE: Rather than focusing on what Trump said on the campaign trail about Taiwan, Taipei should be willing to engage with the US, Pompeo said Taiwan plays a key role in Washington’s model of deterrence against China, former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said in a speech in Taipei yesterday. During US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term, “we had developed what we believe was a pretty effective model of deterrence against adversaries who wanted to undermine the set of rules and values that the people of Taiwan and the people of the US hold dear,” Pompeo said at a forum organized by the Formosa Republican Association. “Succeeding in continuing to build this model will not solely rest at the feet of president Trump and his team,
RSS