One of the most uncivilised characteristics of this war has been the total disregard for international law and the laws of armed conflict, asserts Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has called on Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) to defend the multilateral trading system amid increasing protectionism and tariff volatility during a meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session.
World Trade Organization Chief Pascal Lamy wants to have second term in office. He has now decided to throw his hat in the race in which he will be the first candidate to file papers.
The BRICS nations have expressed concern over the proliferation of trade-restrictive actions in the form of 'indiscriminate rising' of tariffs, particularly measures used as a means of 'coercion', cautioning that such practices risk marginalising the Global South countries.
According to the final draft of the negotiating texts, seen by Business Standard, there are a few binding commitments in the chapter on TFA, under Article 13, which talks of Customs cooperation.
Around 75 tariff lines or products from Pakistan would get concessional access to European markets for three years.
'We may see even more restrictive policies during 2.0.'
'No respite from economic pain is worth the loss of dignity and self-respect,' asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
Direct contacts between Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi this month helped to end a deadlock that had prevented the WTO from implementing a $1 trillion package of reforms.
The government may roll out a new foreign trade policy (FTP) of a shorter term of two-three years in a bid to keep pace with the fast-evolving scenarios in international trade which have been triggered by recent disruptions, such as the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war. An FTP is an elaborate policy guideline and strategy to promote the export of goods and services, with a duration of five years usually. The existing policy came into force on April 1, 2015, and was valid for five years, before multiple extensions.
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If India does not wish to continually violate the WTO rules, it must also continue to push the WTO to either revisit the reference point of 1986-88 prices for calculating subsidies and pitch it at a recent period, or raise the ceiling on subsidies to enable countries like India to stay within the envisaged cap.
The decision preceded long hours of tense negotiations and last minute hiccups from Argentina and Pakistan
The November 26 meeting, the first of its kind, will also take up trade facilitation agreement.
Subdued demand from developed countries and blocs like the US and EU is impacting exports of key sectors including engineering, gems and jewellery and may have implications on India's exports in case the global situation does not improve in coming months. Global inflation, Russia-Ukraine war, simmering China-Taiwan crisis and supply disruptions are hurting economic growth worldwide, leading to poor demand, experts say. The world merchandise trade volume is expected to grow 3 per cent in 2022 against the earlier forecast of 4.7 per cent, mainly due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, according to the World Trade Organization forecast, released in April.
Next week, US Secretary of State John Kerry travels to India for the fourth annual US-India Strategic Dialogue
For the first time in the last eight years, India would not have any representative for the post of deputy director general.
According to Ajai Sahai, director-general and CEO of Federation of Indian Export Organisations, rising cases are a cause for concern as it adds to the uncertainty and may impact exports.
Commerce minister makes strong case for food subsidy to poor.
Earlier this year, the US accused India and China of exceeding the WTO limits on farm subsidies, saying these caused trade distortion.
In days of smart, networked technology and no shame over collateral damage, what will blow up next -- cars, mobile phones, TV sets, refrigerators? And where?, asks Shyam G Menon.
At the World Bank Banga will be replacing David Malpass, a former Trump treasury official, reports axios.com. Malpass had already announced that he will resign by July, months ahead of his term expired. "Ajay is uniquely equipped to lead the World Bank at this critical moment in history," President Biden said in a statement. Banga, 63, currently serves as vice chairman at General Atlantic.
India is in no danger of crossing the 10 per cent threshold of food subsidies under the WTO's agreement on agriculture and it will not breach the level in the near future.
The 10th ministerial conference, will be held at Nairobi, Kenya.
The National Security Strategy document should flag all major issues concerning security strategy and provide guidelines to concerned departments to work out suitable action plans. Since the global and regional geopolitical canvas is dynamic, the NSS document should be deliberated at length before formulation and should be reviewed periodically, recommends Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
While an official in the Commerce Department indicated a trade war was in the offing, till now the government has been in wait-and-watch mode.
The world needs to wake up to this new dimension of war at sea and be prepared to face the 'unknown enemy' who have the advantage of attacking at their choice of location and time, cautions Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The US attacked China for its aggressive moves against its neighbours, including "instigating" a deadly confrontation with India in eastern Ladakh
The five-nation grouping BRICS on Tuesday resolved to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, and vowed to step up joint efforts in building support for an India-backed global framework to effectively deal with the menace.
Emphasising that various issues are on agenda at the G20 under India's leadership.
Biden has reiterated America's support for India's permanent membership on a reformed UNSC and its entry into the NSG during his first in-person bilateral meeting with Modi at the White House.
US congressional leaders on trade and finance wrote to the US International Trade Commission calling for a second investigation into India's 'unfair' trade practices, detailing any changes under Modi.
"Only one of the five permanent members, China, openly favours Pakistan," the Dawn report noted.
Neutrality and jurisdiction in international trade need to be discussed threadbare before GST is implemented in India.
The rules, the first ever for software applications in the country, were recently issued by the patent office and mandate each new software to be 'machine-specific' and packaged with 'new hardware' to qualify for a licence.
Panagariya has advocated a more liberalised spending, arguing that greater capital expenditure could relax some of the infrastructure bottlenecks facing the country.
Bharat Krishak Samaj demanded that the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana should be replaced with a new crop insurance and compensation scheme.
Sushma in her address at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Council of Foreign Ministers meeting said that terrorism is an enemy of basic human rights.
Amid souring ties, the president visited Beijing for three days. On his return to India, a hope of better ties has arisen, says senior correspondent R Rajagopalan, who travelled with Pranab Mukherjee to the Asian superpower.
PM Modi seems to be gradually ending India's strategic ambiguity
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