Page 5 - External Affairs Ministry

PM, EAM 'quiet' on Indian students being affected by Trump's actions: Cong

Expressing concern over the US' decisions affecting foreign students, the Congress on Wednesday said China has reacted strongly regarding their students but Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar have remained "totally quiet" on how Indian students are being affected by the move. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh pointed out that according to the Ministry of External Affairs, approximately 3,37,630 Indian students went to the USA for higher studies in 2024 and about a third of the foreign students on American campuses are from India. This means that some three-and-a-half lakh Indian families invested their hard-earned savings or borrowed for the education of their children in the US, he said. "These students, plus those who went in earlier years, face an uncertain future. Large numbers of students planning to go in 2025 may never get to see their aspirations fulfilled," Ramesh said on X. "President Trump has made his

Rajasthan govt employee arrested for allegedly spying for Pakistan

A Rajasthan government employee who was earlier detained on suspicion of espionage for Pakistan has now been arrested, the police said on Tuesday. Shakur Khan, an Assistant Administrative Officer (AAO) posted at the Jaisalmer employment office had allegedly been passing sensitive, strategic information to Pakistan, they said. The government employee had been under surveillance for suspicious activities over an extended period. During monitoring, agencies discovered that he was in regular contact with individuals linked to the Pakistan High Commission, particularly Ahsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish and Sohail Qamar, Inspector General (CID-Security) Vishnu Kant Gupta said. "Khan was taken into custody for questioning a few days ago and was interrogated extensively at the central interrogation facility in Jaipur by multiple intelligence agencies," Gupta said in a statement. He further shared that Khan had obtained Pakistani visas on several occasions and travelled to Pakistan, allegedly wi

Jaishankar, Paraguay FM sign MoU to set up Joint Commission Mechanism

Earlier in the day, PM Modi held talks with Paraguayan President Santiago Pena at Hyderabad House

India will never give in to nuclear blackmail, says EAM Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday asserted that India will never give in to nuclear blackmail, and those who "sponsor, nurture and utilize" terrorism should be made to pay a heavy price. Speaking at a convocation ceremony of foreign students of Parul University, a private varsity here, he also commented that it has become a "fashion in some quarters to openly become transactional" in international relations. "In Pahalgam (terror attack) what we saw was an attempt to devastate the tourism economy of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir as well as an evil design to bring (about) religious discord," the minister said. "The barbarity of the killings required an exemplary response which was delivered by destroying terrorist command centers, especially in Bahawalpur and Muridke. It is imperative that those who sponsor, nurture and utilize terrorism for their ends are made to pay a high cost," he added. Times have changed, and epicentres of terrorism are no longer ...

Expecting US to consider visa requests of Indian students on merit: Govt

India on Thursday said it expects the US to consider visa applications of Indian students on merit amid growing concerns over the Trump administration halting new student visa interviews. The changes effected by the US in its visa regime have triggered widespread uncertainty among students world-wide including in India. "We saw some guidance coming from the United States on student visa matters," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing. "There we made a point that while it is a sovereign function, we expect and we hope that application of Indian students will be considered a merit, and they will be able to join their academic programs in the US on time," he said. Jaiswal said the welfare of Indian students abroad remains of "utmost priority" of the government of India. "While we note that issuance of visa is a sovereign function, we hope that the application of Indian students will be considered on merit," he said. There have been

India, Africa share deep solidarity and unshakeable friendship: Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said India and Africa have a "deep solidarity" and an "unshakeable friendship", and asserted that New Delhi stands fully committed to Africa's development, prosperity and progress. In his address at the Africa Day celebrations here, he also said that as Global South partners, India "strongly advocates a greater voice for Africa" in global institutions and discourse. "Delighted to attend #AfricaDay2025 Celebrations today in Delhi. India and Africa have a deep solidarity and an unshakeable friendship. India stands fully committed to Africa's development, prosperity and progress," he said in a post on X. In his post, Jaishankar also shared some photos of the celebrations and spoke of further boosting India-Africa partnership. "Our partnership continues to strengthen in trade, development cooperation, capacity building and security. And as Global South partners, India strongly advocates a greater voice for Africa in global institution

India's right to self-defence backed globally: S Jaishankar in Italy

S Jaishankar thanked Italy for backing India's right to self-defence. He highlighted growing India-Italy ties in trade, defence, and global cooperation

Kashmir's atmosphere of fear has reduced to large extent: Farooq Abdullah

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday asserted that the atmosphere of fear in Kashmir has significantly reduced and urged the tourists to visit the valley again to enjoy its beauty. The former chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir also urged the External Affairs Ministry to make efforts for getting revoked the negative travel advisories issued by some countries against visiting J-K. Tourism in Kashmir has been hit after the April 22 Pahalgam attack that left 26 people dead. "What happened here (Pahalgam attack) was very sad, it should not have happened. People were coming here happily. People were busy with their work, they were not asking for government jobs. The situation was such in Pahalgam that there were no rooms available here," Abdullah told PTI Videos here. The NC chief visited the tourist resort and played golf at the Pahalgam Golf Course along with some friends. He said while the attack created an atmosphere of fear, the governmen

Rahul takes swipe at Jaishankar, says India's foreign policy has collapsed

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday claimed that India's foreign policy has "collapsed" and asked External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to explain why has India been hyphenated with Pakistan and who asked US President Donald Trump to "mediate" between the two South Asian neighbours. Gandhi tagged a post by the Congress which carried a video clip of Jaishankar answering questions on the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent tensions between India and Pakistan, during an interview with Dutch broadcaster NOS "Will JJ explain: Why has India been hyphenated with Pakistan? Why didn't a single country back us in condemning Pakistan? Who asked Trump to mediate between India & Pakistan?" Gandhi said. "India's foreign policy has collapsed," the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha claimed. Gandhi on Thursday had accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of having compromised with India's prestige and asked him why he sacrificed the nation's interests by agreeing to halting of military ..

'There will be consequences': Jaishankar warns Pakistan over backing terror

India's External Affairs Minister accused Pakistan's state and army of being complicit in terror attacks and said Kashmir will only be resolved bilaterally, without third-party involvement

MEA rejects 'baseless' allegations, condoles loss of lives in Balochistan

At least six people, including children, were killed on Wednesday when a bomb exploded near a school bus in Khuzdar, a district in Pakistan's southwest province of Balochistan

India, Pak conflict was always in conventional domain: Misri to Parl panel

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told a parliamentary committee on Monday that the conflict between India and Pakistan was always in the conventional domain, and there was no nuclear signalling by the neighbouring country, sources said. The sources said Misri reiterated the government's stand that the decision to stop military actions was taken at a bilateral level, as some opposition members questioned US President Donald Trump's repeated assertions about his administration's role in stopping the conflict. Some MPs, the sources said, asked if Pakistan used Chinese platforms in the conflict. Misri said it did not matter as India hammered Pakistani air bases. The meeting of Parliament's Standing Committee on External Affairs, chaired by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, was attended by a number of lawmakers, including the TMC's Abhishek Banerjee, the Congress' Rajeev Shukla and Deepender Hooda, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, and the BJP's Aparajita Sarangi and Arun Govil. The meeting comes

India-Türkiye ties: Of Erdoğan's gambit, Kamikaze drones & diplomatic chill

India-Türkiye ties are strained over Ankara's Islamabad tilt, its arms links with Pakistan, and fallout from the Pahalgam terror attack

IIFT to open its first overseas campus in Dubai, receives govt approval

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, which comes under the Ministry of Commerce, has received final approval to open its first campus abroad, however, final permissions from the UAE are pending

India's retaliatory tariff proposal to feature in trade talks with US

India to discuss proposed retaliatory tariffs on US goods during trade talks starting May 17, amid efforts to finalise a broader bilateral trade agreement targeting $500 billion by 2030

Centre enhances EAM Jaishankar's security with 2 new bulletproof vehicles

The security cover of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has been strengthened with the addition of two bullet-resistant vehicles following a review of his Z category armed central protection recently, official sources said on Wednesday. The move comes days after a military conflict between India and Pakistan, and amid New Delhi's punitive diplomatic measures against Islamabad following the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack, which claimed 26 lives. Jaishankar, 70, has been helming the Ministry of External Affairs' (MEA) initiatives in this regard. He has been speaking to various world leaders and foreign ministers of various countries about Operation Sindoor carried out by India in response to the Pahalgam attack. The sources told PTI that a recent review of Jaishankar's armed security was undertaken by central intelligence agencies and they recommended the addition of bullet-resistant vehicles to his Z category convoy. The security requirements necessitated the addition of tw

Pakistan breached military agreement hours after it was reached, says MEA

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said Pakistan violated the military agreement reached earlier on May 10, adding Indian forces are responding and remain on high alert

US hails India-Pak understanding; House panel calls Trump 'Prez of peace'

India and Pakistan have reached an understanding after US mediation, says Marco Rubio. However, India has clarified that no broader talks are planned

Afghan defence ministry rejects Pak claims about Indian missile strikes

Afghanistan and India reject Pakistan's claims of Indian missile strikes on Afghan territory, calling them baseless and part of a broader misinformation campaign by Pakistani state agencies

Russia's Victory Day Parade: MEA backs multilateralism, flags terrorism

MoS Defence Sanjay Seth represented Russia's Victory Day in Moscow. The MEA statement highlighted India's WWII contributions, backed multilateralism, and flagged terrorism as a shared global threat