Page 7 - Mea

We call for peaceful resolution of Ukraine conflict via dialogue: MEA

India on Thursday said it continues to encourage a peaceful resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict through "dialogue and diplomacy". MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said this in response to a query during a press meet on India's stand on the inaugural Peace Summit in Switzerland. "We continue to encourage peaceful resolution of Russian-Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy," he said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 20 had separate conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and asserted that dialogue and diplomacy were the way forward for the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Modi had spoken to Putin over telephone to congratulate him for winning a fifth term in office in the recent elections and followed it up with a phone call to Zelenskyy to convey India's "consistent support" for all efforts for peace and bringing an early end to the ongoing conflict. During the telephone conversation, the Ukraini

Baltimore accident: Embassy in touch with Indians onboard ship, says MEA

There are 20 Indians onboard the cargo ship which hit a bridge in Baltimore in the US a few days ago and the Indian Embassy is in close touch with them and the local authorities, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday. The 2.6-km-long, four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore, came crashing down after the 984-foot ship 'Dali' collided against it in the early hours of Tuesday. "Our information is that there are 21 crew members, of which 20 are Indians. All of them are in good shape, good health. One of them got injured slightly, needed to have some stitches, and stitches have been given. And, he has gone back to the ship," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in response to a query during his weekly media briefing here. He also said the Indian Embassy in the US is in "close touch with the Indians onboard the ship and also local authorities".

EAM's Singapore visit boosted efforts to deepen strategic partnership: MEA

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's visit to Singapore and his meetings with the country's top leadership presented an opportunity to take stock of the progress in several areas of cooperation and further deepen the bilateral Strategic Partnership, an official statement said. Jaishankar was in Singapore from March 23 to 25 during which he called on Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong. They exchanged views on deepening engagement in the identified pillars of bilateral cooperation, including fintech, digitalisation, green economy, skills development and food security, India's Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement on Monday. Jaishankar also held discussions with his counterpart Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest. He had several bilateral engagements with the leadership and senior ministers of the Cabinet and discussed ways to further the strateg

PM Modi's Bhutan visit postponed due to inclement weather there: MEA

PM Modi was scheduled to visit the Himalayan nation over two days--on March 21 and 22

Panama becomes 97th member of International Solar Alliance: MEA

Panama has officially ratified the International Solar Alliance (ISA), marking its entry as the 97th member nation. The information was divulged by Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs.In a post on X, Randhir Jaiswal @MEAIndia tweets, "Panama becomes the 97th member to ratify the ISA. Panama handed over the Instrument of @isolaralliance Ratification, during the meeting of Ambassador Yasiel Burillo of Panama to India, with Joint Secretary (Economic Diplomacy) @Abhishekifs in New Delhi today."Panama's commitment to sustainable energy was underscored as Ambassador Yasiel Burillo presented the Instrument of Ratification to Joint Secretary (Economic Diplomacy) Abhishekifs during a meeting in New Delhi today.This formal act solidifies Panama's pledge to collaborate within the framework of the ISA, joining other nations in the pursuit of harnessing solar energy for a greener future.Joint Secretary (ED & MER), MEA Abhishek Singh expressed gratitude for ...

YouTube channel linked to Indians falsely drafted in Russian army: Details

The Centre said last week that several Indians hired as support staff to the Russian army were discharged following India's demand

Several Indians discharged from Russian army following govt's demand: MEA

Several Indians who worked as support staff to the Russian army were discharged following India's demand, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Monday. It said India remains committed, as a matter of "top priority", to actively pursuing with the Russian authorities all the relevant cases of Indian nationals for an early discharge from the Russian army. According to media reports, several Indians have been working as security helpers in the Russian military and they were forced to even fight with Russian soldiers in certain areas along Russia's border with Ukraine. "We have seen some inaccurate reports in the media regarding Indians with the Russian army seeking help for discharge," the MEA said in a statement. "Each and every such case brought to the attention of the Indian embassy in Moscow has been strongly taken up with the Russian authorities and those brought to the attention of the Ministry have been taken up with the Russian embassy in New Delhi," it said. The MEA

NBCC bags housing redevelopment project for MEA worth Rs 262 crore

State-owned NBCC Ltd on Thursday said it has bagged a Rs 262 crore project to redevelop Ministry of External Affairs Housing in the national capital. In a statement, NBCC said the "Bhoomi Poojan Ceremony" for the redevelopment of Ministry of External Affairs Housing at KG Marg took place on February 14, 2024. Y K Sailas Thangal, Joint Secretary in MEA; Nidhi Anand, Senior Architect, MEA and K P Mahadevaswamy, CMD, NBCC, among others attended the event. "With a project value of approximately Rs 261.70 crore, NBCC has been entrusted with the execution of this transformative endeavour. The scope of work includes construction of 54 Type-VI Quarters, 18 Type-IV Quarters, and 18 Transit Quarters...," NBCC said. This initiative reaffirms the commitment of both MEA and NBCC to enhance infrastructure and create conducive living environment for its residents. NBCC is into Project Management Consultancy (PMC) and real estate business.

Pakistan long been epicentre of terrorism: MEA junks assassination claims

Jaiswal stressed that India and many other nations have publicly warned Pakistan that it would be consumed by its own culture of terror and violence

'India seizes moment as WEF ends with call for cooperation to fight crises'

India seized its moment and presented itself as a 'trusted nation and resilient economy' here at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2024 that ended on Friday, with a call for cooperation for rebuilding trust, reviving economy, ending geopolitical conflicts and fighting risks emanating from climate change, societal fragmentation and AI-generated misinformation and disinformation. The five-day-long intense discussions over a long list of global and regional issues among nearly 3,000 global leaders in this Swiss ski resort town on Alps coincided with incessant snowfall and drizzles, pushing temperature down to as low as minus 20 degree celsius, but ended on a bright sunny afternoon, adding to hopes that the global economy and trade would do better in 2024 and there would be answers to multiple crises plaguing the world. Amid all the gloom, India stood out with a strong assertion by three Union ministers as also by its business leaders and several state delegations that it was the .

Randhir Jaiswal takes over as Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson

Jaiswal assumes the role as Arindam Bagchi, former spokesperson, begins assignment as India's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva

Most passengers back, consular help will be given to those in France: MEA

Bagchi noted that the chartered flight was heading from UAE to Nicaragua. He said that the cases are being dealt with by French authorities as per their local laws

Hope Canada will take action against separatists, anti-India elements: MEA

India on Thursday said its "core" issue with Canada remained that of the space given to anti-India elements operating from that country. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a media briefing that India also hoped that Canada will take action against the separatists and anti-India elements. The core issue remains the space being given to the separatists and anti-India elements, Bagchi said. The ties between India and Canada have been under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September linking Indian agents to the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June. India strongly rejected the charges.

Centre rejects OIC's comments on SC verdict on revocation of Art 370 in J-K

India on Wednesday strongly rejected the comments by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) expressing concern over the Supreme Court's verdict upholding the 2019 revocation of Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the OIC's action at the behest of a "serial violater of human rights and an unrepentant promoter of cross border terrorism" makes its action even more questionable. Though Bagchi did not name any country, it was clear that the reference was towards Pakistan. "India rejects the statement issued by the General Secretariat of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on a judgement of the Indian Supreme Court. It is both ill informed and ill intended," Bagchi said. "That OIC does so at the behest of a serial violater of human rights and an unrepentant promoter of cross border terrorism makes its action even more questionable. Such statements only undermine OIC's ..

Fake and fabricated: MEA on report claiming memo targeting Sikh separatists

India on Sunday night described as "fake" and "completely fabricated" a media report which claimed that a "secret memo" was issued by New Delhi in April to take "concrete" measures against certain Sikh separatists including Hardeep Singh Nijjar. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the report is part of a "sustained disinformation campaign" against India and the outlet that came out with it is known for propagating "fake narratives" peddled by Pakistani intelligence. Online American media outlet The Intercept came out with the report. "We strongly assert that such reports are fake and completely fabricated. There is no such memo," Bagchi said. "This is part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India. The outlet in question is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. The posts of the authors confirm this linkage," he said. "Those who amplify such fake news only do so at the cost of their own credibility," he said, ...

PM Modi will visit Dubai to attend World Climate Action Summit, says MEA

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a two-day visit to Dubai this week to attend the World Climate Action Summit, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced on Sunday. It said Modi is visiting Dubai from November 30 to December 1 at the invitation of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Abu Dhabi. The World Climate Action Summit is the high-level segment of the 28th Conference of Parties (COP-28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The COP-28 is being held in Dubai from November 28 to December 12 under the presidency of the UAE.

Qatar accepts India's appeal against death sentence to ex-Navy officers

On October 26, the eight personnel were given death sentence by Qatar's Court of First Instance

India takes security inputs from US seriously: MEA on plot to kill Pannun

India on Wednesday said it takes inputs on security matters from the US seriously since they impinge on its own national security concerns as well. The remarks from the Ministry of External Affairs came on a day British daily Financial Times said that the US had thwarted an attempt to kill Sikh extremist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil. "During the course of recent discussions on India-US security cooperation, the US side shared some inputs pertaining to nexus between organised criminals, gun runners, terrorists and others," Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Arindam Bagchi said in response to queries on the British media report. He said the inputs were a cause of concern for both countries and they decided to take necessary follow-up action. "On its part, India takes such inputs seriously since it impinges on our own national security interests as well," Bagchi said. The spokesman said issues in the context of US inputs are already being examined by relevant departme

Chinese Premier Li to attend virtual G20 leaders' summit convened by India

Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the virtual G20 Leaders' Summit at India's invitation on Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced here on Tuesday. The G20 virtual summit will take forward key outcomes and action points firmed up at the annual conclave of the grouping in September under India's presidency, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi said in a statement. The summit will also delve into the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israel-Hamas conflict. It is also expected to push for the effective implementation of various decisions taken at the bloc's annual summit in New Delhi over two months back, the statement said. Li will attend the meeting at the invitation of the Indian government, China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Leaders of all G20 Members, including the Chair of the African Union, as well as nine Guest countries, and Heads of 11 International Organisations, hav

Appeal process in case of 8 Indians on death row in Qatar underway: India

India on Thursday said the appeal process against the death sentence handed down to eight former Indian Navy personnel by a Qatari court is under process and it was hopeful of a positive outcome from it. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India is engaged with the Qatari authorities on the matter and that the government will continue to extend all legal and consular assistance to the Indian nationals. The eight Indians were on October 26 given death sentences by Qatar's Court of First Instance. India described the ruling as "deeply" shocking and vowed to explore all legal options in the case. Days later, an appeal was filed against the death sentence. "The case is currently in a legal process there. As we mentioned, an appeal has been filed in Qatar's Court of Appeal. We are also engaged with the Qatari authorities on the matter and we will continue to extend all legal and consular assistance (to them)," Bagchi said. "I would again urge everyone not to enga