India has lodged a strong protest with Bangladesh over a now-deleted social media post by a key aide of Bangladesh's interim government that claimed certain areas of Indian territory should be part of that country. The post, which included a map showing parts of West Bengal, Tripura, and Assam as belonging to Bangladesh, was made by Mahfuz Alam, a de facto minister in the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government. The post sparked backlash and was subsequently deleted. India's External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reminded all concerned to be "mindful" of their public comments and emphasized the need for responsibility in public articulation.
The external affairs minister said the SAARC is in trouble as one of its members has been supporting terrorism.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani are expected to meet in Thimphu on the margins of the South Asian Association Regional Cooperation Summit, during which the Indian leader is likely to seek an update on the probe and trial in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks case being conducted in Pakistan.
Pakistan will not engage with India 'until and unless they lift the siege' in Kashmir, it said.
Apart from India, Bangladesh and Bhutan have also pulled out of the SAARC Summit in Islamabad in November, saying the environment is not right for the successful holding of the meet.
'Militants are taking over the administration. Fundamentalists have been released from jail.'
The SAARC nations have been more pragmatic than their peers in the ASEAN and EU, indicated an official source on the eve of the 17th SAARC Summit to be held in Male on November 10-11, even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh left for Maldives for the SAARC Summit on Wednesday.
Jaishankar was among the first ministers to arrive for the SAARC ministerial meeting. He was in the meeting for over 45 minutes and then left.
The national capital, which will host the summit on April 3 and 4, will be dotted by crack commandos of Delhi Police and the paramilitary forces.
The postponement came after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed his inability to attend owing to situation in neighbouring Nepal and Bangladesh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held bilateral talks with all Heads of Government and State attending the 18th SAARC Summit in Kathmandu with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif the only conspicuous exemption.
Nepal said it 'has received communications' from four member-states -- Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan and India -- in which they conveyed their inability to participate in the 19th SAARC summit.
The highlights of the Declaration adopted at the 14th SAARC Summit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned to the national capital on Thursday after a successful three-day visit to Nepal capital Kathmandu, where he attended the 18th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit.
Connectivity is what SAARC needs the most but Pakistan is not interested, says Rajeev Sharma.
The SAARC has not lived up to its potential, the White House said.
Modi said the coming together of SAARC leaders will lead to effective outcomes and benefit citizens in the fight against coronavirus. The PM on Friday had proposed formulation of a joint strategy by the SAARC nations to fight coronavirus, a suggestion that was backed by all the member states.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation has "survived" but not "triumphed" as had been envisaged, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said while lamenting the postponement of the eight-member grouping's Islamabad summit.
Persisting ambiguity over the possibility of an Indo-Pak dialogue taking place on the sidelines of next week's SAARC summit in Bhutan, has once again hijacked attention from broader and more complex issues involving this nearly 25-year-old regional grouping.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the first time addressed the leaders of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Kathmandu in Nepal. Here are the top quotes from his speech:
During the SAARC Summit in Colombo in 2008, the Navy had deployed three warships along with helicopters to provide security to the meeting.
In unusual comments at the SAARC forum, Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed on Wednesday talked about strained relations between India and Pakistan, saying that he hoped that tomorrow's meeting between the two countries' Prime Ministers will lead to resolution of their differences.
The first thing that struck Sheela Bhatt, in Thimphu to cover the summit, was that whiff of fresh air -- opulent and serene. Here are her first impressions on the eve of the summit.
Koirala is currently busy in hectic consultations with his party colleagues as well as top leaders of the major political parties to form a new Interim government inclusive of the Maoists.
'As long as India and Pakistan remain at loggerheads, SAARC\n\nis dead in the water. So why go through with this charade?' asks Ramananda Sengupta.
In a move to open up the sky in South Asia, India on Saturday unilaterally offered all Saarc nations the facility of daily air services to six metros and an unlimited number to 18 to other major destinations on a reciprocal basis.
Bangladesh is awaiting a fresh date to host the SAARC summit postponed due to the devastating tidal wave disaster that hit Asia and said priority would be given to India, Sri Lanka and Maldives in setting the new schedule.
India will provide immediate medical visa for patient and an attendant coming for treatment as well as business visa for 3-5 years for SAARC nations.
Leaders from the seven South Asian nations might come up with more concrete steps in forming an Economic Union in the Dhaka SAARC summit set for January, according to officials.
Pakistan has played a spoiler in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation's efforts to firm up agreements on developing intra-regional connectivity and establishing a common response to disasters.A Motor Vehicles Agreement, providing for connectivity between Kabul and Dhaka criss-crossing the region, and a pact on Rapid Response to Natural Disasters, were scheduled to be signed during the upcoming 16th SAARC Summit in Thimphu on April 28-29.
She also said the Kartarpur corridor initiative was not linked to the dialogue process with Pakistan.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh leaves New Delhi on Wednesday on a 4-day visit to Maldives to attend the SAARC Summit on the margins of which he will meet his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani.
India on Tuesday said the inclusion of Afghanistan in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation would go a long way in establishing lasting peace and stability in the region.
The challenge before us is to translate institutions into activities, conventions into programmes, official statements into popular sentiments. Declarations at summits and official level meetings do not amount to regional cooperation or integration. Regional cooperation should enable freer movement of people, of goods, of services and of ideas. It should help us re-discover our shared heritage and build our common future.
No reservation on China, Japan joining SAARC as observers: PM
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to seek the cooperation of India's neighbours to check extremist violence and to adopt an approach of zero tolerance towards terrorism at the two-day South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Summit which begins on Wednesday in Kathmandu.
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