India says no one except Dalai Lama can decide his successor, snubs China
The Union Minister's remarks came after the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader reaffirmed that the 600-year-old institution of the Dalai Lama would continue beyond his lifetime, and that the choice of the 15th Dalai Lama would rest entirely with the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the official office of the Dalai Lama."The process by which a future Dalai Lama is to be recognised has been clearly established in the 24 September 2011 statement, which states that responsibility for doing so will rest exclusively with members of the Gaden Phodrang Trust," the Dalai Lama's office said in a statement on Wednesday.advertisementChina, however, has insisted that any reincarnation must be approved by Beijing. "The Dalai Lama's succession must comply with Chinese laws and regulations as well as religious rituals and historical conventions," the country's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, reiterating Beijing's longstanding stance that the selection must happen within China's borders under its supervision.THE TIBETAN STRUGGLEThe Dalai Lama has lived in exile in India since 1959, when he fled Lhasa following a failed uprising against Chinese rule. While Beijing continues to label him a separatist bent on splitting Tibet from China, the Dalai Lama is seen worldwide as a symbol of non-violence, compassion and the Tibetan people's struggle to protect their cultural and religious identity.Many Tibetans in exile fear that China could attempt to appoint its own Dalai Lama in the future, a move critics say would tighten Beijing's grip over the region it occupied by sending in troops in 1950.In 2011, the Dalai Lama formally relinquished political authority to an elected government-in-exile representing around 1,30,000 Tibetans worldwide. Even then, he had cautioned that the spiritual institution of the Dalai Lama was at "obvious risk" of being exploited for political ends through manipulation of the centuries-old reincarnation process.- EndsTune In
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Indian Express
21 minutes ago
- Indian Express
‘Part of one family': PM Modi hails Indian community's journey during visit to Trinidad and Tobago
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is currently in Trinidad and Tobago as part of his five-nation diplomatic tour, hailed the journey of the Indian community in the country Thursday, saying that the 'diaspora is our pride'. Addressing a community event at the National Cycling Velodrome in Couva, the Prime Minister said: 'The journey of the Indian community in Trinidad and Tobago is about courage. The circumstances your ancestors faced could have broken even the strongest of spirits. But they faced hardships with hope. They met problems with persistence.' The Prime Minister added that it felt completely natural to him to be there as 'we are part of one family'. Trinidad and Tobago has a population of approximately 13 lakh, 45 per cent of whom are of Indian origin. Modi said that between the past and the present, the friendship between the two nations has 'grown even stronger'. 'Our bonds go well beyond geography and generations,' the PM said. Calling his counterpart, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, 'daughter of Bihar', he said, 'Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar's ancestors lived in Buxar, Bihar. Kamala ji herself has visited there. People consider her a daughter of Bihar. Many people present here have ancestors who came from Bihar itself. Bihar's heritage is a matter of pride not only for India but for the entire world.' In a post on social media platform X, the PM said, 'The community programme in Port of Spain was spectacular. The energy and warmth of the people made it truly unforgettable. Evidently, our cultural bonds shine brightly!' During his address, PM Modi also asserted that the Indian community members there have contributed to Trinidad and Tobago 'culturally, economically and spiritually'. PM Persad-Bissessar, who also addressed the community before Modi, said that the Indian leader will be conferred Friday with 'The Order of Trinidad and Tobago', the Caribbean nation's highest honour. (With inputs from PTI and ANI)
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First Post
24 minutes ago
- First Post
After Asim Munir, Pakistan Air Force chief in US amid doubts over Chinese equipment, first visit in a decade
After Asim Munir, Pakistan's Chief of the Air Staff, Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu, paid an official visit to the United States. Here's why both India and China should be concerned by the trip. read more Following Pakistan's Field Marshal Asim Munir, the country's Chief of the Air Staff, Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu, paid an official visit to the United States, indicating the warming ties between the two nations. The officials noted that Sidhu's purpose of visit was to further defence cooperation between the two nations as a follow-up to Munir's visit to the country. It is pertinent to note that this is the first US trip by a serving Pakistan Air Force (PAF) chief in over a decade, reflecting the re-hyphenisation of the US's outlook towards India and Pakistan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'This high-level visit is a strategic milestone in the Pak-US defence partnership. The visit will play a significant role in addressing key regional and global security issues as well as building institutional ties,' the PAF said in a statement on Wednesday. It further gave an insight into Sidhu's itinerary, mentioning several important meetings with the top military and political leadership of the US. During his visit to the Pentagon, he met US Secretary of the Air Force for International Affairs Kelly L. Seybolt and Air Force Chief of Staff General David W Allvin. As per the statement by PAF, the two sides agreed to forge avenues for bilateral military cooperation, mutual affairs, joint training and technology exchange. Is Pakistan losing trust in China? The visit comes amid Pakistani concerns about the reliability of Chinese military equipment after it received severe battering by Indian forces during Operation Sindoor. Pakistan is reportedly interested in acquiring advanced US platforms such as F-16 Block 70 fighter jets, air defence systems, and HIMARS artillery, as it looks to diversify away from Chinese suppliers. Meanwhile, China has remained tight-lipped over the performance of its weapons to Pakistan during its 4-day military escalation with India. During a presser on May 30, a Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson, Zhang Xiaogang, refused to provide any details on the effectiveness of Pakistan's weapons in the recent military confrontation. There were reports that India recovered an unexploded PL-15E missile, a Chinese-made beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. While speaking at the presser, Zhang Xiaogang emphasised China's hope that both sides will remain calm and restrained to avoid further complicating the situation, sidestepping questions of its defence weapon systems. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD When pressed further, the Chinese defence official simply said: 'Pakistan received support from China's air defence and satellite systems, but the performance of these systems was below average.' 'We would like to stress that India and Pakistan are neighbours that cannot be moved. We hope both sides will remain calm and restrained to avoid further complicating the situation,' he added. Why India should be concerned Meanwhile, Pakistan's air force chief's visit to the US can be a matter of concern for India as well. During the hunt for Al-Qaeda terrorist Osama Bin Laden following 9/11, there was de-hyphenisation of the American outlook towards India and Pakistan, i.e, the US stopped putting New Delhi and Islamabad on the same level. The discovery of Osama near a military training headquarters in Abbottabad further pushed the US towards India. With the second stint of US President Donald Trump in the office and following the military confrontation between India and Pakistan, a new pattern of re-hyphenation is emerging. When asked about the changing dynamic, former US National Security Adviser John Bolton reiterated the American outlook, emphasising that the US is concerned by China's influence on Pakistan. 'Well, I think much of the de-hyponization came after 9/11 and and I think Secretary Powell and President Bush worked hard to try and do that. And I think right now the common threat that we see, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, but really on a global basis, is the China-Russia axis. And so there's a lot to talk about there,' he told Firstpost's Bhagyasree Sengupta in May. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'It's distressing to me that Pakistan is so much under the influence of China now. Ultimately, that's not going to be to their benefit. Ultimately, I think peace on the subcontinent is going to have to require an understanding between India and Pakistan. They're the two biggest powers. That's the reality,' he added. Trump has been adamant about taking credit for the ceasefire, which India has made it clear was a bilateral decision. Meanwhile, Pakistan is serving the credit to America on a platter with Islamabad nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, earning more brownie points. Another factor which can be concerning for India is Pakistan's warm ties with both China and the US. Beijing have been a long-time ally of Islamabad and its feathers are less likely to be ruffled with Pak-US collaborations. Meanwhile, Turkey, another key power in Asia, have expressed its solidarity with Pakistan during India's Operation Sindoor. Hence, New Delhi will be looking for new allies in the region and reconsolidating its ties with the old ones. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
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Business Standard
25 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Trump's Vietnam deal signals China tariffs unlikely to ease further
Chinese goods face 55% tariffs, likely through August. Under the Vietnam deal, the US will impose 20% tariffs on Vietnamese exports and 40% on transshipped goods to curb Chinese tariff evasion Bloomberg President Donald Trump's new trade deal with Vietnam sends a clear signal about where US tariffs on Chinese goods might ultimately land, as talks between Washington and Beijing continue following their recent truce. Chinese goods currently face tariffs of around 55 per cent, a level expected to remain through August. But under the latest Vietnam agreement, the US will slap a 20 per cent tariff on Vietnamese exports to the US and a steeper 40 per cent levy on goods deemed to be transshipped — the latter targeting a well-worn backdoor used by Chinese exporters since the first China-US trade war to dodge American tariffs. By closing the loopholes, the Trump administration is signaling what any future deal with China might look like. The 40 per cent tariff on transshipped goods suggests that even if tariffs on China are eventually reduced, they're unlikely to fall significantly below that threshold. 'The 40 per cent figure in the Vietnam deal might reflect a broader conviction in the Trump administration about the appropriate tariff level on China, which would be similarly reflected in other bilateral deals,' said Gabriel Wildau, a managing director at Teneo focused on political risk analysis in China. 'However, I am skeptical that Trump has a specific red line for minimum tariffs on China.' Beijing and Washington reached a trade framework last month following talks in London, which remains in effect through mid-August. As part of the deal, China agreed to resume shipments of rare earths — key inputs for wind turbines, electric vehicles and military hardware. In return, the US offered to ease some export restrictions on ethane, chip-design software and jet engine components. US tariffs on Chinese goods have been cut back to around 55 per cent, down from as high as 145 per cent in early April. But 20 per cent tariffs tied to fentanyl remain in place. Beijing has since tightened controls on two precursor chemicals used to make the drug — one of the few obvious avenues it has to win further tariff relief. 'The 20 per cent is really the focal point where all the attention is centered right now,' said Christopher Beddor, deputy China research director at Gavekal Research. 'The thinking is that the Chinese government is very willing to do a deal on something related to fentanyl. They've been telegraphing that for months.'' Still, those efforts are unlikely to bring Chinese tariffs below the 40 per cent rate now applied to Vietnam. If China's duties were to fall to 35 per cent, for instance, it would restore a competitive edge to China and encourage firms to shift operations back, running counter to the Trump administration's broader objectives. 'If China ends up with a lower tariff level than Vietnam that would certainly shift the competitiveness calculations somewhat, but keep in mind that moving production facilities is not as easy as flipping a light switch on and off,' said Stephen Olson, a former US trade negotiator now with the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. 'From the perspective of Chinese companies, there is zero confidence that once Trump sets a tariff level that it will remain at that level.' For now, there are signs both sides are following through on the terms of the London agreement and displaying signs of goodwill. The Trump administration has lifted recent export license requirements for chip design software sales in China, and approved US ethane exports to China without additional approvals. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Chinese rare earth magnets are flowing, although they haven't yet bounced back to the levels seen before China imposed export curbs in early April. The US remains hopeful that China will further ease restrictions on those exports after their London deal, he said in an interview Tuesday on Fox News. Meanwhile, a senior Chinese official on Thursday delivered one of Beijing's most positive messages about his nation's ties with the US in weeks. Liu Jianchao, head of the Communist Party's International Department, said at the World Peace Forum that he was 'optimistic' about future relations. China is keenly aware of what it's gained from China-US cooperation,' Liu said 'Our cooperation is mutually beneficial. The act of putting up barriers will hurt the other and ourselves as well.' Other negotiations Apart from Vietnam, Beijing is growing increasingly cautious about US efforts to strike trade deals that could isolate China. With a July 9 deadline approaching, when Trump's higher 'reciprocal' tariffs are set to take effect, American officials are ramping up negotiations with key partners in Asia and Europe. What Bloomberg Economics says... 'The looming question now is how China will respond. Beijing has made clear that it would respond to deals that came at the expense of Chinese interests and the decision to agree to a higher tariff on goods deemed to be 'transshipped' through Vietnam may fall in that category. Given China's position as Vietnam's largest trading partner and key source of inputs for domestic production, any retaliatory steps could have an outsized impact on Vietnam's economy.' — Rana Sajedi and Adam Farrar. Click here to read the full report. Beijing on Thursday said it's taken note of the US-Vietnam trade deal and is currently assessing the situation. 'We're happy to see all parties resolve trade conflicts with the US through equal negotiations, but firmly oppose any party striking a deal at the expense of China's interests,' He Yongqian, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, said at a briefing. 'If such a situation arises, China will firmly strike back to protect its own legitimate rights and interests,' she added, repeating a familiar warning. Olson cautioned against relying too much on the US-Vietnam trade agreement as a blueprint for assessing Washington's approach to China. The stakes in US-China negotiations are significantly higher, shaped by strategic rivalry and a wider set of geopolitical considerations. There is also much less of a power discrepancy in the US-China discussions. 'One important takeaway for China from both the Vietnam deal and the previous deal with the UK is that the US intends to use these negotiations to apply pressure on China,' Olson said. 'This could lead China to a much more sober assessment of what it might be possible to achieve with the US in these negotiations.'
