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Bangladesh proposes India’s observer status at OIC

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Bangladesh proposes India’s observer status at OIC

Bangladesh has sounded the first official call to induct India and other countries with large Muslim populations as observers to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) during 45th meeting of the council of foreign ministers in Dhaka on Saturday.

According to reports, Bangladesh minister of foreign affairs Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali called for reforms in the organisation to pave the way for countries like India, which are not Muslim majority, to get an observer status in the organisation. The organisation is presently having only Muslim majority countries as its members.

Ali said, “A number of countries, not OIC members, have a large number of Muslims as their citizens. The Muslims may be minority in those countries, but in terms of number they often exceed the total population of many OIC member countries.”

Egypt, with a population of 92 million, is 5% of the global Muslim population. In terms of Muslims as a percentage of the global population, India ranks third after Indonesia and Pakistan.

Pakistan uses the forum to regularly target India. Bangladesh has supported India’s case for “inclusion” arguing that large Muslim populations should not be denied a say at the OIC as India constitute 10% of the global Muslim population.

Read More: India rejects OIC statement at UN, asserts J&K an integral part of the country

Supporting for reforms at OIC, Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali said, “There is a need to build bridges with those non-OIC countries so that a large number of Muslim populations do not remain untouched by the good work of OIC. That is why reforms and restructuring is critical for OIC.”

Ali said, “We need to rethink our work, method and process of functioning to cater to the needs of the current era and beyond.”

Bangladesh’s suggestion received support of the OIC secretary general. This is not the first time there has been a call to bring countries like India into the ambit of the OIC, but Pakistan has always held a veto position.Bangladesh proposes India’s observer status at OIC

This has prevented India from engaging more meaningfully with the organisation even though India has fairly robust relations with most OIC member states.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation is an international organisation, founded in 1969, consists of 57 member states, with a collective population over 1.6 billion as of 2008.

It claims of being “the collective voice of the Muslim world” working to “safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony.

During first OIC summit at Rabat, Morocco, in 1969 Pakistan’s President Gen Yahya Khan had boycotted the proposal for India’s inclusion in the organisation put forwarded by Saudi Arabia’s King Faisal and Jordan’s King Hussein. India’s subsequent efforts could not reverse the situation till date.

Again in 2006, Saudi King Abdullah had proposed that India become an observer. In the 1990s, Pakistan had used forum to criticise India on Jammu and Kashmir situation.

In September 2017, India refuted egregious comments on Jammu and Kashmir byPakistan at the UN when it was speaking on behalf of the OIC.

At that time India said, “The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation has no locus- standi on India’s internal affairs, we strongly advise the OIC to refrain from making such references in future.”

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Kremlin denies US media reports on Donald Trump’s phone call with Vladimir Putin

Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he could end the fighting within hours and has indicated he would talk directly with Russian President Putin.

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Kremlin denies US media reports on Donald Trump’s phone call with Vladimir Putin

The Kremlin today denied a US media report that Russian President Vladimir Putin and US president-elect Donald Trump had spoken on the phone last week about the Ukraine conflict.

Earlier on Sunday, The Washington Post reported that Donald Trump spoke to Vladimir Pution on call, urging him not to inflame the conflict. Speaking on the matter, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media that the report was completely false information, and denied any phone call took place.

It was reported that US President-elect Donald Trump has spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin and urged him not to escalate the war in Ukraine. It said that Donald Trump held the call from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Thursday, just days after his stunning election victory over Democratic rival Kamala Harris. The report also mentioned that both the leaders expressed an interest in further conversations to discuss the resolution of Ukraine’s war soon.

Notably, Donald Trump said on the campaign trail that he could end the fighting within hours and has indicated he would talk directly with Russian President Putin. However, the US President elect has not said how he intends to strike a peace deal or what terms he is proposing.

Donald Trump’s election is seen as carrying the potential to upend the almost three-year Ukraine conflict, as he insists on a quick end to the fighting and casts doubt on Washington’s multi-billion dollar support for Kyiv.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with Trump on Wednesday, with the Republican’s billionaire backer Elon Musk also notably joining them on the call. Volodymyr Zelensky described the call as excellent, adding that he and Trump had agreed to maintain close dialogue and advance our cooperation.

Additionally, the outgoing Democratic administration of President Joe Biden has confirmed that it will send as much aid as possible to Ukraine before Trump’s inauguration on January 20.

Joe Biden’s National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the White House aims to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position on the battlefield so that it is ultimately in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table.

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India calls out Canada’s move to ban Australia Today for airing S Jaishankar’s press conference

The MEA said that these actions yet again highlight the hypocrisy of Canada towards freedom of speech.

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India calls out Canada’s move to ban Australia Today for airing S Jaishankar's press conference

A few hours after Australia Today aired External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s press conference in Australia, Canada banned the outlet. The External Affairs Minister gave remarks on the India-Canada diplomatic standoff. 

Reacting to this, India on Thursday said it was surprised by Canada’s move to ban the outlet and emphasized that it highlighted Ottawa’s hypocrisy towards freedom of speech. Australia Today, which is an important outlet for the Indian community in the country, had aired the joint press conference of S Jaishankar and his Australian counterpart Penny Wong in Canberra.

In a weekly media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that they understand that the social media handles, pages of this particular outlet, which is an important diaspora outlet, have been blocked and are not available for viewers in Canada. He continued that this happened just an hour or a few hours after this particular handle carried the press conference of S Jaishankar with Penny Wong. He called out the incident, mentioning that they are surprised, and the matter looks strange to them.

He further underlined that these are the actions which yet again highlight the hypocrisy of Canada towards freedom of speech. He noted that the External Affairs Minister spoke about three things: Canada making allegations and a pattern had developed without any specific evidence, surveillance of Indian diplomats in Canada, which he termed as unacceptable, and  the political space which has been given in Canada to anti-India elements. 

With this one can draw conclusions, why Australia Today channel was blocked by Canada, the spokesperson said. Australia Today focuses on news and analytical pieces related to the Indian community in Australia and elsewhere across the world.

This incident follows days after devotees were attacked by pro-Khalistani at a Hindu temple in Canada’s Brampton, with S Jaishankar calling it deeply concerning. Furthermore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condemned the attack and said that there were cowardly attempts to intimidate Indian diplomats.

The diplomatic standoff between India and Canada began in September last year when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that Indian government agents might have been involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a claim outrightly rejected by New Delhi.

Later in October 2024, ties between both the countries nosedived when Canada termed the Indian High Commissioner a person of interest in its investigation into Nijjar’s murder. Issuing a strongly worded statement, India dismissed the fresh charge and recalled the envoy and some diplomats, while expelling six Canadian officials, including Canada’s acting High Commissioner.

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PM Modi congratulates Donald Trump on winning US President election

The Prime Minister urged Trump to work for the betterment of the people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday congratulated Donald Trump on winning the 2024 US Presidential election and said he is looking forward to renewing their collaboration to further strengthen the India-US partnership.

The Prime Minister urged Trump to work for the betterment of the people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity.

“Heartiest congratulations my friend @realDonaldTrump on your historic election victory. As you build on the successes of your previous term, I look forward to renewing our collaboration to further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership. Together, let’s work for the betterment of our people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity,” PM Modi posted on his X handle.

With the results being announced for the 2024 US election on November 6, Trump became the 47th President of the United States.

Former US President Trump appeared to be on track for a remarkable political comeback in the White House race. Projections suggested that he was poised to secure the necessary 270 electoral college votes, effectively blocking Democratic candidate Kamala Harris from winning the election.

The relationship between Trump and Modi has been characterised by robust diplomatic ties, strategic collaboration, and a noticeable personal rapport. Their friendship was prominently displayed during major events such as “Howdy, Modi” in Houston in 2019 and “Namaste Trump” in Ahmedabad in 2020, where they addressed large audiences and expressed their mutual respect.

On a strategic level, Trump and Modi found common ground in matters of defense and security, both adopting a strong stance against terrorism, which reinforced their alliance, particularly concerning threats from Pakistan.

As he approaches a notable victory in the US election, Republican Presidential candidate Trump expressed gratitude to his supporters today, calling it a magnificent victory for the American people. He also referenced the assassination attempt on July 13, stating, “God spared my life for a reason.”

The 78-year-old candidate is currently projected to secure 267 electoral college votes, just three shy of the decisive 270, while his opponent, incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris, holds 224 electoral votes.

Trump described the Republican campaign as the greatest political movement of all time, asserting, “We are going to help our country heal, secure our borders, and we made history for a reason tonight. This is an incredible political victory. I want to thank the American people. I will fight for you and your family with every breath I have.”

He noted that Democrats are now looking at a projected total of 315 electoral votes.

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