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India and China

MekongGanga sixth

Cooperation meeting was held in

New Delhi on 3-4 September

2012.Senior officials meeting was

held on September 3 whereas the

Foreign Ministers meet was held on

September 4 2012. The Mekong-

Ganga Cooperation (MGC) was

established on November 10, 2000

in Vientiane, Lao Peoples Democratic

Republic with a purpose of

cooperation amongst India and the

five Mekong region countries -

Cambodia, Lao Peoples Democratic

Republic, Myanmar, Vietnam and

Thailand.

It was basically established to

emphasize on four areas ofcooperation, which are tourism,

culture, education, and

transportation linkage, in order to

build strong foundation for future

trade and investment cooperation

among the region. This is the first time

that the Mekong Ganga Cooperation

meeting was hosted by India. India

had earlier chaired the 5th MGC

Ministerial Meeting on the sidelines

of the ASEAN-India Meetings. Five

Mekong Ganga Cooperation

ministerial meetings has held so far,

In Vientiane, Lao Peoples Democratic

Rebuplic on November 10, 2000; In

Hanoi, Vietnam on July 28, 2001; In

Phnom Penh, Cambodia June 20,

2003; In Cebu, Philippines on January

12, 2007 and in Manila, Philippines

on August 1, 2007.

India China agreed to set

up Joint Working Group on

Trade and Investments

India and China agreed to set

up a joint working group (JWG) to

look into issues related to trade and

investments. The decision to set up

the JWG was taken at the meeting of

India-China Joint Group on Economic

Relations, Trade, Science and

India and The WorldIndia and The WorldIndia and The WorldIndia and The WorldIndia and The World


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Technology in New Delhi on 27

August 2012. Besides the two nations

also agreed to adopt a five-year plan

on economic cooperation. The

ministerial level meeting was

attended by Indian Commerce

Minister Anand Sharma and his

Chinese counterpart Chen Deaming.

The working group will submit

its report within three months. The

working group is set up even as India

has expressed serious concerns over

the widening trade deficit with its

neighbour and sought a correction.

On its part, China expressed serious

concern over the imposition of duty

on import of power equipment by

New Delhi.The total bilateral trade

between India and China for 2011-

12, stood at 75457.42 million dollar

as compared with 59000.36 million

dollar in 2010-11. During 2011-12,

the exports were 17902.98 million

dollar while the imports stood at

57554.44 million dollar. The

provisional trade deficit for 2011-12

was 39651.46 million dollar.

The Joint Group on Economic

Relations, Trade, Science &

Technology was formed in 1988

when then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi

visited Beijing.

India, China discussed

Border security and

Bilateral Defence ties

For expanding defence

cooperation, India and China on

September 4 2012, agreed to resume

joint military exercises that were

postponed since 2010 due the denial

of visa to the then Northern ArmyCommander Lt Gen BS Jaswal by

China in 2010, resulting to which New

Delhi had suspended all bilateral

defence exchanges with Beijing.

Chinese Defence Minister General

Liang Guanglie and his delegation,

including high-ranking members of

the defence and military

establishment met Indian Defence

Minister A. K. Antony on 4 September

2012 to discuss measures to help

avoid flares along the border

between the nuclear-armed Asian

giants. Both the two sides reached

on an agreement on a wide range of

issues relating to defence and military.This is the first visit after eight

years by a Chinese defence minister

to India. The last time a Chinese

defence minister visited India was in

2004. A growing competition

between the two emerging powers

was highlighted as they are pushing

up for influence and resources across

Asia. Both the two sides went ahead

on a wide range of issues relating to

defence and military. The result of the

meeting happened so that the both

sides agreed to strengthen border

security cooperation between the

troops in order to maintain peace in

the border areas. The Chinese

delegation has also invited Antony to

visit China, which he accepted and

he will be visiting China next year.

India and Iran

India and Iran 28 August 2012

decided to expand Trade and

Economic Cooperation. The two

nations agreed to expand trade and

economic cooperation through the

Chahbahar port. The port will act as

an important trade and transit pointfor Afghanistan and central Asia. On

the nuclear issue, India expressed

hope that progress will be on the P5

plus one dialogue in the interest of

peace and stability in the region. Both

the nations agreed to set up an Indian

cultural centre in Tehran. India also

discussed the issue of global

governance confronting the

developing world.


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India and Pakistan

The Union Cabinet on 17

August 2012 approved the

Commerce Ministrys proposal to cut

down the list of sensitive items under

South Asian Free Trade Agreement

(SAFTA) for Pakistan by 30 percent.

Besides, India will also cut import

duties on about 234 items from

Pakistan under the bilateral trade

normalisation programme.The

cabinet, however, made it clear that

the India will follow these measures

only when Pakistan reciprocates with

the same gesture and allows goods

to be traded through the land routes

Pakistan permits only 137 itemsto be imported through the Attari

land route, while the rest goods are

imported through sea route, making

exports largely unviable for Indian

traders. Indian authorities have been

consistently demanding Pakistan to

allow all goods to be traded through

land, but the demand has not

received any positive response as

ye t.

India and Pakistan initiated the

trade normalisation programme in

early 2011 which subsequentlypaved the way for fastpaced

liberalisation of trade and

investments. The process, however,

slackened over the past few months

due to the political turmoil in Pakistan.

Indian government on 1August 2012 decided to al low

investment from Pakistan with the

objective of boosting bilateral

economic relations. However, India

kept out strategic sectors of defence,

space and atomic energy from

Pakistan. Pakistan can explore sectors

like cement, textiles and sports for

investments in India. Besides, the FDI

proposals from Pakistan need to be

cleared from the Foreign Investment

Promotion Board (FIPB).

It is important to note that India

had granted the MFN status to

Pakistan in 1996. Although Pakistan

had notified granting the MFN status

to India in March 2012, it is yet to

implement it fully.

However, Pakistan had partially

liberalised its trade regime with India

in March 2012 by shifting from

positive list rules to negative. It meansthat barring 1209 items Pakistan will

allow import of all other Indian goods.

can explore sectors like cement,

textiles and sports for investments in

the country.

India and Sri Lanka

Af ter embarrassing delays

caused because of inter-

governmental coordination issues

and contractor truancies, the pilot

project of the $270- million Indian

Housing project for displaced Tamils

in Sri Lanka is complete. The pilot

phase of the project for construction

of 1,000 houses has been completed.

The next phase of the Indian Housing

project for 43,000 housing units

under the owner-driven mode in the

Northern and Eastern provinces has

been launched, said Ashok K.

Kantha, High Commissioner of India

in Sri Lanka in an Independence Day

message. The pilot project for the

construction of 1,000 houses in thefive districts of Northern Province was

launched in November 2010. Till July

13, as many as 950 houses were

completed under the pilot phase,

and handed over to beneficiaries.

The remaining 50 houses were

completed by end-July. The

remaining houses will be handed in

the presence of a visiting Indian

Minister next week. The next phase

has already begun, and, having learnt

from the experience of the pilot

project, India is plugging the gaps to

ensure that the next phase gets

completed at an early date.

The Indian High Commission hassigned agreements to award work to

four Implementing Agencies UN-

HABITAT; International Federation of

Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies

in partnership with Sri Lanka Red

Cross; National Housing

Development Agency (NHDA) of the

Government of Sri Lanka; and Habitat

for Humanity, Sri Lanka signalling

the launch of the next phase of the

Indian Housing Project for 43,000

housing units in Northern and Eastern

Provinces. In the owner-drivenmodel, beneficiaries will be selected

through a transparent and norm-

based process on the basis of clearly

defined and objective criteria. These

beneficiaries will undertake the

construction/repair of their houses

with technical assistance and support

provided by the Implementing

Agencies . The money wi ll be

released directly by the High

Commission of India into bank

accounts of beneficiaries based on

certification of progress of work. This

phase is expected to meet bulk of

the housing needs in these areas.

India and Tajikistan

India and Tajikistan on 3

September 2012 signed six


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agreements in the field of sports,

health, culture, education, labour,

textiles and energy. India and the

central Asian country of Tajikistan

agreed to advance their ties to a

strategic partnership in order to

impart greater strength to the

relationship through all-round co-

operation and engagement. The

President of the Republic of

Tajikistan, Mr. Emomali Rahmon, was

on a State Visit to India from 1 to 4

September 2012 at the invitation ofthe President of the Republic of

India. This was the fifth visit to India

by President Mr. Emomali Rahmon.

The visiting dignitary also

attended a business meetingorganized jointly by ASSOCHAM, CII

and FICCI. Both the countries

identified information technology,bio-technology, mining, tourism,

pharmaceuticals among other sectorsas high potential area. After the

agreements it was decided that India

wi ll increase tr aining slots forTajikistan from 100 to 150 under India

Technology and Eco Training

Programme.

India and Israel

India and Israel signed a

memorandum of understanding

(MoU) on 2 August 2012 for starting

a collaborative academic research

programme. Under the Research

programme both the countries will

together work in areas such as

medical, information technology,

social sciences, humanities and arts.

The MoU was signed by

Professor Benjamin Geiger, Chairman

of the Israel Science Foundation and

Ved Prakash, Chairman of University

Grants Commission. The agreement

will exist for next five years, providingsupport up to 100000 dollar a

research project for three years

The idea of collaborative

academic research programme came

into being during a recent visit of

Minister for Human Resource

Development Kapil Sibal to Israel.

Sibal during the course of her visit

had conducted dialogue with Israels

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz,

Education Minister Gideon Saar and

Chairman of Planning and BudgetingCommittee Manuel Trajtenberg.

India and Belgium

India on 1 August 2012 signed

an agreement with Belgium for the

modernisation of the Indian Railways

and make some of the major railway

stations in the country of global

standard. Under the agreement the

two countries would share design

and current practices in railway

infrastructure and deputation of

experts in areas of mutual interest.

The countries will also explore the

new avenues of co-operation in the

Railway sector.

Belgian state run companies

such as Euro Station and Euro

Immostar have vast experience in

developing stations. The companies

have extensive expertise in

transforming historical railway stations

into the modern international

terminals. Numerous Belgium or

Belgium-based companies arealready operating in India and have

been involved in activities such as

fastening and coating of rails to

delivery of parts for train construction

and software for safety and network

management.

First India-CELAC Troika

Foreign Ministers Meeting

The first meeting of the India-

CELAC Troika Foreign Ministers was

held on 7 August 2012 in New Delhi.

The Indian delegation was led by theExternal Affairs Minister of India, Shri

S.M Krishna, whilst the CELAC Troika

was led by the Minister of Foreign

Affairs of Chile Mr. Alfredo Moreno

Charme, the pro-tempore President

of CELAC. Apart from both the

nations, the Foreign Minister of

Venezuela Mr. Nicolas Maduro and

the Vice Foreign Minister of Cuba, Mr.

Rogelio Sierra participated in the

meeting as members of the Troika.

Objective of the meet

To discuss the regional and

multilateral issues of mutual

interest, to strengthen the

multifaceted bilateral

cooperation between India and

CELAC.


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To co ordinate responses toregional issues and address

international challenges

including the UN reform, the

international financial crisis,

climate change and

international terrorism.

To enhance the exchange of

visits at all levels including at the

Summit level leading towards a

Strategic Partnership between

India and CELAC.

To expand relations between

India and countries in the Latin

America and the Caribbean

region and make it possible for

them to work together bearing

in mind each sides respective

development priorities based

on the common shared values

of democracy, freedom,

equality and justice.

Collective Discussions

The two nations expressed

satisfaction over the growth ofcommercial, economic and

investment relations between

India and CELAC, that has

crossed US$ 25 billion in 2012.

The nations agreed to set up an

Energy Forum to discuss energy

security issues.

Both the countries agreed towork towards providing value

addition in the exchange of

commodities through direct

trading and by setting up of

manufacturing units.

Both sides agreed to work

towards providing for food

security for their people

Both the countries agreed to

initiate various projects related

to tele-education, e-

governance and tele-medicine

that would cover the entire Latin

America and Caribbean region.

The Foreign Ministers of India

and the CELAC Troika ended the First

Meeting of the India-CELAC Troika

Foreign Ministerial Dialogue at a good

note after the commencement of

CELAC in December 2011. The pro-

Tempore President and Troika

Foreign Ministers of CELAC will

present this Joint Statement in next

meeting of the Foreign Ministers of

the Community that will be held inSeptember 2012 in New York.

India and Mozambique

India and Mozambique signed

an agreement on Bilateral Security

Cooperation on 14 July 2012. The

Minister of State for Home Affairs,

India Shri Mullappally Ramachandran

signed the Agreement with Jose

Mandra, Minister of Interior, Govt of

Mozambique at Maputo,

Mozambique. The objective of the

agreement was to discuss

cooperation and both the countries

decided to develop the relationship

further in various fields for mutual

benefit. Amongst the key highlights

of the meet was that, Mullappally

Ramachandran was on a three day

visit to Mozambique.

There is an estimation of almost

twenty five thousand people of

Indian origin living in Mozambique for

generations. The relations between

both the countries have remained

warm and friendly. India was amongst

the first countries to extend

recognition to Mozambique after the

later achieved independence in the

year 1975. India and Mozambiquehave mutually rendered and

benefited in the fields of industry,

trade, mineral resources and culture.

India and Monaco

India signed Tax Information

Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with

Monaco on 31 July 2012 in New

Delhi. It will allow the two countries

to check tax evasion and money

laundering. This was the ninth TIEA

signed by India.

Key features of this agreement

are as following;

It is based on international

standard of transparency and

exchange of information.

Information must be

foreseeably relevant to the


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administration and enforcement

of the domestic laws of the

Contracting Parties concerning

taxes and tax matters covered

by the agreement.

The requesting State has to

provide some minimum details

about the information

requested in order to justify the

foreseeably relevance criteria.

Information is to be treated as

secret and can be disclosed to

only specified person or

authorities, which are tax

authorities or the authorities

concerned with the

determination of tax appeal.

It also provides for disclosure ofinformation to any other person

or entity or authority or any

other jurisdiction (including

foreign Governments) with the

wr it te n co nsen t of th e

competent authority of the

requested Party.

There is a specific provision that

the requested Party shall

provide upon request the

information even though that

Party may not need such

information for its own tax

purposes.

There is a specific provision for

providing banking and

ownership information.

There is a specific provision for

Tax Examination Abroad where

authorities of one State can

present in the tax examination

of taxpayer in the other State.

Upon entry into force, the

Agreement allows exchange of

information forthwith.

India and Niue

Minister of State for External

Affairs of India E Ahamed and Prime

Minister of Niue H. E. Toke Talagi

signed a Joint Communiqu on the

establishment of Diplomatic Relations

between India and Niue, at Cook

Islands, on 30 August 2012. Niue is a

Pacific island country, which is a

member of regional bodies such as

the Pacific Island Forum and the

Pacific Community and also of

UNESCO, WTO and FAO. It is an

island of 1400 inhabitants, which is

also known as the worlds first Wi-Fi

nation, in which free wireless

Internet access is provided

throughout the country.

Niue is also known as the Rock

of Polynesia, and is situated 2400 km

northeast of New Zealand in a triangle

between Tonga to the southwest, the

Samoas to the northwest and the

Cook Islands to the southeast. Since

2002, India has intensified its

cooperative relations with allcountries in pacific island region.

India always actively participated as

a Dialogue Partner of the Pacific

Island Forum, a regional group of

Pacific Island countries. The country

has always been engaged in assisting

in the development of the island

countries of the Pacific.

1. Consider the following

statements:

1. U.S.A is number one in terms

of power generation.

2. Indias ranking in power

generation is 3rd

Which of the above statements is/

are correct?

(a) Both 1 & 2 (b) Only 1

(c) 2 and 3

(d) None of these

2. Recently with which country India

signed a mou (memorandum of

understanding) for launching a

programme that would promotecollaborative research across a

wide range of discipline from

medical & IT to Social Science.

(a) Japan (b) Israel

(c) France (d) Germany

3. Recently which group has chose

India as its first dialogue partner

because of its size & Political

Situation. ?

(a) CELAC (b) NAFTA

(c) MERCOSUR (d) EV

3. In March 2012 where the Fourth

BRICS Summit held

(a) China (b) India

(c) South Africa (d) Russia

4. S.M. Krishnas Pakistani

Counterpart is

(a) Hina Rabbani Khar(b) Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri

(c) Rehman Mallik

(d) None of these

5. Consider the following statements

about Jaitapur Project:

1. It will be Indias largest Atomic

Reactor in terms of power

generation.

2. Areva which is going to

establish this project is an

South Korean giant.

Which of the above statement are/

is true ?

(a) Both 1 & 2 (b) Only 2

(c) Neither 1 nor 2

(d) Only 1

Answers

1. (d) 2. (b)

3. (a) 4. (b)

5. (a) 6. (d)

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Objective QuestionsObjective QuestionsObjective QuestionsObjective QuestionsObjective Questions


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