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Sreemoy Talukdar brings you the essential cheat sheet on foreign affairs covering India and the world

We kick off this edition with visiting Australian PM Anthony Albanese's programs in India that included a trip to Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad for the Day 1 of India-Australia Test which he watched along with his host, prime minister Narendra Modi (pic above of the two PMs with cricketers). We also track US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo's current tour of India, Chinese Parliament's formal seal on a third presidential term for Xi Jinping, meeting of India and five central Asian states and developments in Nepal which just elected its new president.

TOP FIVE NEWS UPDATES

Cricket, Holi, visit on-board INS Vikrant, India turns on the charm for visiting Australian PM Anthony Albanese

No other international relationship has covered such a vast distance as swiftly as India-Australia bilateral ties. It is a relationship where strategic alignment is being complemented by people-to-people, trade and commerce, business and investment, defence and security ties at an equally fast clip. On Wednesday, Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrived in India with a strong delegation in tow including top business leaders, seeking to strengthen the new momentum in ties between the two countries through deeper trade, investment and defence relations. Addressing the India-Australia CEO forum in Mumbai Thursday, Albanese said "the Economic Co-operation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) signed between India and Australia is a transformative agreement which will unlock the next level of potential in trade and investment," reports Hindu Business Line. The visiting Australian PM's day in India, however, started with watching a Test cricket match between the two sides at Motera in Ahmedabad sitting alongside his host, prime minister Narendra Modi. Hindustan Times reports, "Albanese's presence at the Narendra Modi Stadium was an occasion to highlight the role of cricket in the burgeoning relations between India and Australia… Albanese was received at the stadium by Modi with a hug and a handshake. They took a round of the stadium in a chariot built on a golf cart, with several banners around the venue highlighting the theme '75 years of friendship through cricket'." The day before, the first day of his two-day stay in Gujarat, Albanese had visited Sabarmati Ashram, celebrated Holi at Raj Bhavan with the Governor, Acharya Devvrat, and chief minister Bhupendra Patel and had announced that Indian educational degrees will henceforth be recognized in Australia, according to an Indian Express report. On Thursday, while becoming the first foreign prime minister to visit on board indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant in Mumbai, where he received a guard of honour, the Australian PM said Australia will host the Malabar exercise involving Quad navies. He called India a "top-tier security partner" for Australia and announced that "India also for the first time will participate in Talisman Sabre exercise, a biennial combined Australian and US training activity," reports Hindustan Times. Albanese flew to New Delhi Friday where will hold extensive talks with Modi on Friday with a focus on boosting overall bilateral ties in areas of trade and investment, defence and critical minerals, says Economic Times.

US, India sign CHIPS pact but FTA is 'off the table'; Eric Garcetti a step closer to India ambassador's post

The United States and India will sign a memorandum of understanding on semiconductors as both countries discuss coordination of investment and continue dialogue around policies to spur private investment, US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo said on Thursday, reports Reuters. Raimondo, who is on a four-day trip to India, is accompanied by the chief executive officers of 10 US companies. On Friday, she met Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. A press release by Raimondo's department stated that "key areas of shared interest, including the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), semiconductors, and supply chain resilience" were discussed. "The US wants to coordinate with its allies, including India and Europe, so that a 'subsidy race' and 'glut' in the semiconductor space can be also avoided in the future. 'So the discussions that we've (India and the US) had are providing transparency in our initiatives, coordinating and collaborating on how we administer our semiconductor initiatives,' Raimondo was quoted, as saying by a report in Business Standard. She, however, said that a trade deal with India was "off the table." The Telegraph reports that "India and the US on Thursday decided to launch a strategic trade dialogue to address export controls, explore ways of enhancing high technology commerce, and facilitate technology transfers. The decision to launch the new framework of dialogue was taken at a meeting between India's external affairs minister S Jaishankar and Raimondo, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)." Meanwhile, in another development, the US Senate foreign relations committee has voted in favour of former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti becoming the ambassador of India. Garcetti, who is Joe Biden's choice for the key envoy post, will now face a vote on the floor of the US Senate. "US President Joe Biden nominated Garcetti for the job in July 2021, and the Senate committee initially cleared his name in January 2022. But the bid was stalled as Republicans and some democrats raised questions about his handling of a sexual harassment case from his time as mayor," reports Hindustan Times.

India hosts meeting of 5 central Asian states, New Delhi to supply wheat to Afghanistan through Iran

"India and five central Asian countries on Tuesday asserted that Afghanistan's soil must not be used for any terrorist activities and pressed for formation of a "truly inclusive" political structure in Kabul that respects rights of all Afghans including women. The situation in the war-ravaged country came up for extensive deliberations at the first meeting of the India-Central Asia joint working group on Afghanistan that took place in New Delhi," reports The Times of India. In a joint statement, officials "emphasized the importance of formation of a truly inclusive and representative political structure that respects the rights of all Afghans and ensures equal rights of women, girls and members of minority groups, including access to education." The meeting was attended by the Special Envoys/Senior Officials of India, the host, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Representatives of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and World Food Programme also participated in the meeting, states an MEA readout. The meeting also emphasized that "the territory of Afghanistan should not be used for sheltering, training, planning or financing any terrorist acts and reaffirmed that no terrorist organizations including those designated by the UNSC resolution 1267 should be provided sanctuary or allowed to use the territory of Afghanistan." Meanwhile, as part of providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan, India announced that "it would provide an additional 20,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan. The wheat will be supplied in partnership with the UN World Food Programme and will be sent through the Chabahar Port in Iran", bypassing Pakistan that had subjected an earlier Indian consignment to Afghanistan through its route to unnecessary delays.

China's puppet Parliament formally confirms third term for president Xi

China's puppet Parliament 'endorsed' Xi Jinping unprecedented third term as president at the annual meeting of National People's Congress (NPC) at a ceremonial vote on Friday, paving the way for him to become China's longest-serving head of state since Mao Zedong. CNN calls it "a highly choreographed exercise in political theater meant to demonstrate the legitimacy and unity of the ruling elite… Xi received a unanimous 2,952 votes followed by a standing ovation." The newspaper says Xi's reappointment "comes amid a broader reshuffle of leadership roles in the central government, or the State Council, and other state organizations that further increases Xi's already firm grasp on the levers of power." Wall Street Journal observes that "earlier this week, Xi issued an unusually blunt rebuke of American policy in remarks to a political advisory body that directly accused Washington of leading a containment campaign against China. The following day, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang warned in a news briefing that "there will surely be conflict and confrontation" if the US doesn't change course. New York Times has a handy rundown on the list of Xi's loyalists who are being elevated to key leadership roles. The premier's position is the second-most powerful in China, and it is set to go to Li Qiang, while executive vice premier's office is expected to go to Ding Xuexiang. Reuters quotes Willy Lam of Jamestown Foundation, as saying, "in his third term, Xi will need to focus on economic revival… But if he continues with what he has been doing — tighter party and state control over the private sector and confrontation with the West, his prospects for success won't be encouraging."

Ram Chandra Poudel of Nepali Congress is elected as Nepal's new President

Nepal on Thursday chose it new president. Ram Chandra Poudel of Nepali Congress was backed by an alliance of eight parties that included Nepali Congress and the CPN (Maoist Center). In its report, The Hindu says Poudel "received the vote of 214 lawmakers of Parliament and 352 Provincial Assembly members. The total number of voters for the election of the President is 882, consisting of 332 Members of the Parliament and 550 members of the Provincial Assemblies of the seven provinces." "Poudel's easy passage to the President's post was preceded by political turmoil — the Unified Marxist Leninist (UML) and the Maoist Centre, the two big Communist parties of Nepal that had come together just two months ago to form a coalition government, parted ways over the choice of presidential candidates. The Maoist Centre, headed by prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', decided to support Poudel, from the main opposition the Nepali Congress. The UML candidate was Nembang. Dahal's decision prompted the pro-monarchy Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) to pull out of the Cabinet and announce withdrawal of support to the government," adds Indian Express. The Kathmandu Post of Nepal points out that "president-elect Poudel has traversed a long political journey to make it to the country's highest state position. He spent over a decade in jail. He has, till now, become lawmaker six times, a minister five times, and Speaker for one term."

TOP ANALYSES OF THE WEEK

Delhi, Canberra must pay special attention to Indo-Pacific islands

India and Australia need to pay special attention to bilateral cooperation in the development and use of their island territories in the Indo-Pacific that occupy critical locations in the eastern Indian Ocean, write Asia Society Policy Institute senior fellows C Raja Mohan and Richard Maude in Indian Express.

China's new cabinet has no time to lose

Yu Jie of London's Chatham House think tank writes in Nikkei Asia that the composition of the incoming cabinet, known in China as the State Council, should shed light on how much Beijing will emphasize economic and scientific self-reliance for the next five years.

India can't replace China as world's factory any time soon

Professor Christopher Tang of the UCLA Anderson School of Management writes in South China Morning Post that India may be leading in software development, but China has prowess in developing both hardware and software.

US efforts to counter China's influence in Global South will fail

Kishore Mahbubani of Singapore's Asia Research Institute writes in Foreign Affairs that the vast majority of developing countries are clearly willing to work and cooperate with China. As a result, any US effort to reduce or counter Chinese influence in the global South is doomed to fail.

Italy's Indo-Pacific policy a radical change for the region

Professor Harsh V Pant and PhD candidate Mauro Bonavita of King's College, London, in their column for Hindustan Times call for Italy's inclusion in a minilateral formula that unleashes the potential that India and Italy may realise in the Indo-Pacific.

India's ties with Germany may shape a new global order

Writing for The Hindu, professor Harsh V Pant and Shairee Malhotra of Observer Research Foundation argue that against the backdrop of volatile geopolitical shifts, emerging multipolarity, and Europe's enhanced courtship of India, India's ties with Germany could be vital in shaping a new global order.

Western sanctions against Russia are missing the mark

Kenneth Rogoff, professor of economics and public policy at Harvard University, writes in Project Syndicate that sanctions against Russia are missing the mark.

Incrementalism is harming US support for Ukraine

Nadia Schadlow of Hudson Institute and a former US deputy national security advisor writes in Foreign Policy that persistent problem of incrementalism, as well as ad hoc, one-off decisions and lax implementation characterize the US and allied effort toward Ukraine.

India is witnessing a 'great leap forward'

Moonis Ahmar, former dean, faculty of Social Sciences, University of Karachi, writes in Pakistani newspaper The Express Tribune that a 'great leap forward' is being witnessed in India today in terms of its vibrant economy, modernisation of its infrastructure and leadership role in the realm of foreign policy.

Sri Lanka experiencing a new wave of protests

As Sri Lanka eagerly awaits a provisional IMF package to chart its path to economic stability, it is currently witnessing a new wave of protests, mainly by workers and professionals, as people's economic hardships increase, writes Colombo-based journalist Meera Srinivasan in The Hindu.

PODCAST

What did NSA Doval's meetings in US achieve?

We recommend this edition of Stratnews Global's 'Talking Point' podcast, where Arun K Singh, former Indian ambassador to the US, talks to host Amitabh P Revi on NSA Ajit Doval's recent meetings in the US with his counterpart Jake Sullivan, secretary of state Antony Blinken, and US military chief General Mark Milley, the outcomes of the meetings and other bilateral issues.