'Das is friendly, but he finally does what he does. The quality of engagement is very good.'
In an address at the Council of Heads of Government meeting of the eight-member SCO, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu said the most important challenge faced by the region is terrorism, particularly cross-border terrorism, and that India remained concerned about threats emerging from ungoverned spaces as well.
Concerned over disturbing trends in global economy, India and African nations on Wednesday called for increasing economic cooperation to combat the menace of rising food and energy prices.
India and the US on Friday said they have started talks to put in place a strategic framework for human space flight by year-end as they plan to send an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station in 2024.
Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis said Russia would be asked to join the peace plan discussions at some point in time but to bring Russia on the table would require mediation by some countries.
Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the city state is a major partner in almost every area of India's transformation.
In a statement ahead of his visit to the Indonesian city for the G20 leaders' summit, Modi said he will also highlight India's achievements and its 'unwavering commitment' to collectively address key global issues.
At present, India is only a member of various committees of the 34-member organisation.
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma is expected to visit Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur between February 14 and 18 for signing the pacts -- Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with Japan and Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement with Malaysia, an official told PTI.
In a boost to the embattled Adani Group, Mauritian Financial Services Minister Mahen Kumar Seeruttun has told the nation's Parliament that Hindenburg Research's allegations of the presence of 'shell' companies in the Island nation are 'false and baseless' and that Mauritius was in compliance with OECD-mandated tax rules. US short seller Hindenburg on January 24 alleged that billionaire Gautam Adani used shell companies based in Mauritius to manipulate stock prices of his Indian-listed companies.
India has already become the world's fifth largest economy in the 75th year of Independence and will reach the $3.5 trillion mark by end-March, said the Economic Survey tabled in Parliament on Tuesday. In real terms, the economy is expected to grow at 7 per cent for the year ending March 2023. This follows an 8.7 per cent growth in the previous financial year.
"The cost of economic crime in India is significant, which is also evident from some of the large frauds experienced by the country in the last two years," said PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Leader Ashwini Puri, adding, "Additionally, average cost to manage economic crime in India is close to double as compared to global averages."
Economic activities in Japan were expected to get a boost in 2012 due to extensive reconstruction works.
In his opening remarks at the virtual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), Modi also said that some countries use cross-border terrorism as an instrument of their policy and the grouping must not hesitate to criticise them.
President of the Kyrgyz Republic, who is the current Chair of the SCO, and the PM of Mauritius, who was the chief guest at this year's Pravasi Bhartiya Divas, have also been invited, the MEA said.
The USNS Salvor was welcomed with a ceremony at the shipyard on Monday, and it is the first ship to arrive after the signing of the MSRA.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday during which he reiterated India's long-standing position on the Ukraine situation, favouring dialogue and diplomacy.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday held wide-ranging talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov focusing on the Ukraine conflict, bilateral ties and issues relating to the G20 foreign ministers' meeting.
India and other Saarc countries have decided to work towards creation of a South Asian Economic Union and establishment of a regional food bank.
'The Americans want to have a good relationship with India. They see it as a counterweight to China. And also American businesses are all trying to get out of China and go to India and Vietnam as well, but India largely.'
India will sign trade pacts with Japan and Malaysia within a week.
This activity will allow us to identify those jurisdictions where either the legal framework is not good enough or practices are not good enough and, therefore, information is not flowing.
The landmark Air India-Boeing deal will create up to 1 million jobs across 44 states in the US and will further deepen bilateral ties, President Joe Biden has told Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Boeing and Air India announced a mega deal on Tuesday under which the Tata Group-owned airline will purchase 190 B737 MAX, 20 B787, and 10 B777X for a total of 220 firm orders valued at $34 billion at list price. The deal will also include customer options for an additional 50 Boeing 737 MAX and 20 Boeing 787, totalling 290 airplanes for a total of $45.9 billion at the list price.
In a global economic outlook, released Wednesday afternoon, the Paris-based grouping warned: "With inflation remaining elevated and the recovery appearing to have taken root, there is a risk that price increases for inputs will flow through to second-round increases and that inflationary expectations will become destabilised.
Indian banks operating there are required to meet very high qualifying standards in order to do business.
