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Source:- ‘More to Lose Than Gain, You Can’t Afford More Shocks’: Beijing Threatens India to Stay Away from US-China Rivalry Warning India to be “careful”, China on Sunday asked New Delhi not to get involved in the Washington-Beijing rivalry even as some predict that the world’s two largest economies are “about to enter a new Cold War”. In an article in The Global Times, China said that there have been some voices calling for the Indian government to join the new Cold War and exploit its position for more gains. “Such irrational voices are nothing but misleading, which should not represent the mainstream voices and sway the Indian government’s stance. Fundamentally speaking, India has little to gain from engaging in a US-China conflict over any topic, with more to lose than gain, which is why the Modi government needs to face the new geopolitical development objectively and rationally,” Beijing said. Several areas along the Line of Actual Control or LAC in Ladakh and North Sikkim ha

Source:- Indian Army prepared for the long haul in Ladakh, resources along LAC upped India has “substantially” reinforced its border areas and has prepared itself for the long haul at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in East Ladakh region where it is engaged in a military stand-off with China, official sources based in South Block told The Sunday Guardian. These sources said that “everything that is needed, will be needed and even more than that” has already reached the region in the last two weeks to face any eventuality that might arise in case China decides to up the ante and adopt an aggressive stand. “When we say we are ready, it is not a statement that we are making in thin air. Our ground situation, military wise, is very formidable now, something which China too has realised,” an official source said. According to these officials, who have first-hand knowledge of the ground situation, the tension on the ground is still there, but it has not “increased”, while adding that ther

Source:- Chinese military sends Lights tanks and vehicle-mounted howitzer to address threat on China-India border : Chinese Mouthpiece Since the Doklam standoff with India in 2017, the Chinese military has expanded its arsenal with weapons like the Type 15 tank, Z-20 helicopter and GJ-2 drone that should give China the advantage in high-altitude conflicts should they arise, Chinese analysts said on Sunday. China’s Type 15 tank made its public debut at the National Day military parade on October 1 last year. With a powerful engine, the Type 15 lightweight main battle tank can effectively operate in plateau regions difficult for heavier tanks, and with its advanced fire control systems and 105 millimeter caliber armor-piercing main gun, it can outgun any other light armored vehicles at high elevations, the experts told the Global Times on Sunday. China’s most advanced vehicle-mounted howitzer, the PCL-181, also debuted at the parade. At 25 tons, the PCL-181 is lighter, faster and can

🇳🇿 New Zealand Post will issue 2 new definitives in 3 June 2020 which are part of its ongoing Scenic series. The designs feature Island Bay at Wellington ($4) in the North Island and Mount Cook in the South Island ($10). The $4 will be issued to take notice of the rise in the ‘domestic oversized letter’ rate. The stamps were designed by New Zealand Post and lithographed by Southern Colour Print. Rating:- ***. 🇲🇺 Who doesn’t like nice covers from small obscure islands? I recently obtained a cover dating back to 2011 from the dealer Steven Zirinsky originating from the pair of small and remote islands, which together are described by the Encyclopaedia Britannica  as a ‘dependency’ of Mauritius , the Agaléga Islands , 1000km from Mauritius and populated by just 300 people.    Agaléga has two main settlements - Vingt Cinq On North Island, which rather unnervingly is named after the number of whip strokes the island’s French copra industry overseer would administer to slaves

The European Union's cautious response to China's clampdown on Hong Kong on Friday will not much trouble Beijing and underscores Brussels' dilemma when dealing with the increasingly confident great power. After a video conference with 27 foreign ministers, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell expressed "grave concern" but he could threaten no sanctions and said planning for an EU-China summit would continue. In fact, Borrell said, only one of the European countries even raised the possibly of sanctions -- a diplomatic source told AFP this was Sweden -- and he said European investment in China was not in question. He did warn that the security law that China plans to impose on Hong Kong is not in line with Beijing's international commitments and that "we will have to raise the issue in our continued dialogue with China." But his comments drew a scathing response from at least one senior official from the United States, which along with its Englis

Acquisition of F-35 fighter planes will be less expensive, with development and procurement costs down 7.1 percent, a Defense Department assessment indicates. The Select Acquisition Report, circulating on Friday but not yet released by the Pentagon, estimates that developing and maintaining the fleet of the planes, built by Lockheed Martin, will cost $1.182 trillion over the planes' expected 66-year useful lifespan. It is a 7.8 percent increase from last year's cost estimate of the Defense Department's costliest program.The assessment also projects that 809 F-35s will be built for the U.S. military and its allies, compared to 764 projected in 2019. The Pentagon also projects largely flat budgets,with minimal increases, through 2025, and 2,456 F-35s by 2025. The assessment was prepared prior to the coronavirus pandemic, which has slowed production of the plane. The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole combat aircr

Britain, France and Germany on Saturday strongly condemned a US decision to end sanctions waivers for companies from nations that remain in a nuclear accord with Iran. The waivers were part of the landmark agreement signed with Tehran in 2015 that sought to limit Iran's nuclear ambitions in return for lifting crippling economic sanctions. They allowed European, Chinese and Russian companies to work on the conversion of a heavy water reactor in Arak, a major industrial city in western Iran. "We deeply regret the US decision to end the three waivers covering key JCPOA nuclear projects in Iran," read a joint statement from the three European powers. "These projects, endorsed by U.N. Security Council Resolution 2231, serve the non-proliferation interests of all and provide the international community with assurances of the exclusively peaceful and safe nature of Iranian nuclear activities." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the decision to end the wai

Referring to his own Spectator article and Charles Moore's piece in the Daily Telegraph , former ITV newsreader Alastair Stewart's Twitter feed yesterday evolved into an interesting conversation. It sounds as if Alastair has been having some interesting conversations with people high up in the BBC. (The one slight snag with this thread is that it is unusually full of people called Alastair.)  Alastair Stewart : Charles Moore is a high-Tory & former Editor of the Telegraph. That said, this is powerful: "The best thing for Boris Johnson to do right now is to let the BBC stew in its own existential juice & strike when Covid-19 has passed". Agree or disagree with Mr Moore's analysis, his suggestion to Boris Johnson about dealing with the BBC, post-Covid19, will not fall on deaf ears. Those who have brought this upon themselves might well reflect how they have played into their enemies' hands. Alastair Bruce : The British Army has Values and Standards

Twitter-happy Lewis The Sunday Times quotes a number of former BBC figures today on the subject of the Maitlis affair, of which the most damning comes from an old-school BBC legend: Sir John Tusa, founding Newsnight presenter : "No editor of Newsnight that I worked with would have allowed that to go through. No presenter would have written anything like that. It is self-indulgence and it does no service to viewers. You can either choose to be a celebrity or you can choose to be a journalist. You can’t be both."  The paper summarises that into a striking headline: Emily Maitlis was chasing fame, not the story, says BBC veteran Other blasts-from-the-past focus on a particular problem with Newsnight, though one that was  ultimately first set in train by BBC management: Roger Mosey, former editorial director of the BBC : “The BBC’s traditional restraint has been swept away in the age of social media. On-air staff have been actively encouraged to engage

I didn't know, until Sue informed me yesterday, that the famous John Sweeney now co-hosts a podcast called 'Last Call'.  He presents it with an American journalist called Michael Weiss, and the pair of them call their double act 'Two Boozy Hacks'. (As far as John Sweeney is concerned, I think we can all guess why !)  Their latest episode is called 'Labour Pains' and features former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson as a special guest. It last about an hour. Unexpectedly, I must say that I enjoyed it. They all came across as rather charming. John was on the pinot grigio, if you're wondering. (In fairness, I did once write , "Do you know who I'd really like a night-out with? Yes, Panorama/Newsnight star reporter John Sweeney. He sounds great fun. I'd specifically like to be his all-expenses-paid-for guest", and I stand by that.) The serious bit comes in the last quarter of an hour when they turn to Labour antisemit

Iran is exerting its regional influence in the Middle East and Gaza is not an exception. Social welfare programs and charities throughout the Gaza Strip have been established by Iran to influence the hearts and minds of its residents. Iran financially and militarily supports a number of its proxies in the Middle East including militant organizations in Gaza such as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees. However, Iran’s support does not solely go to Gaza’s militant groups. During the first week of Ramadan, Harakat al Nujaba, an Iranian-backed Iraqi paramilitary group, distributed food baskets and other Ramadan gifts to the families of prisoners and those who have been killed fighting against Israel. “A gift on the occasion of the blessed month of Ramadan, presented by al Nujaba for the families of the martyrs and captives in Palestine,” a message in the food basket read. Furthermore, al Nujaba’s Information and Relations office stated “The staff of al

There's quite a striking revelation from Anita Singh in today's Daily Telegraph .  She quotes a letter to a complainant from the head of the BBC's complaints unit, Jeremy Hayes, in which Mr Hayes objects to Emily Maitlis's interviewing style during a March 2019 interview with Jacob Rees-Mogg.  Mr Hayes writes that the interview "cast more heat than light" and describes Ms Maitlis's "failure to cast light on matters" as "regrettable", doing " li ttle to aid audience understanding of the issues discussed".   He even appears to sympathise with the complainant's description of Emily's laughter as "mocking" (a hallmark of her style we've commented on quite a few times before).  The same article also notes that the Newsnight presenter remains unabashed about her behaviour, sharing the following tweet demanding that her employers show her more respect: Such brazen behaviour su