| TOP FIVE NEWS UPDATES |
| Pakistan slaps travel ban on beleaguered Imran as key PTI ministers flee the sinking ship |
| Pakistan has slapped a travel ban on its former prime minister Imran Khan, according to a report in Firstpost. The report says Khan on May 23 was granted bail by an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan in eight cases related to violence that erupted at the Judicial Complex in March. Imran, who was earlier in May arrested by Pakistani rangers and detained, was released after the Supreme Court called his arrest "invalid and unlawful". The report adds, "The news comes just days after a key aide of Imran announced he was quitting politics in a further blow to the embattled ex-premier's party as a standoff with the military intensified. Former Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry's resignation is the latest, and highest profile, in a string of departures from Imran's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which the civilian government on Wednesday threatened to ban." Meanwhile, Pakistan's civilian authorities have handed over 33 suspects to be tried in military courts following the attacks on army installations during violent protests in support of former prime minister Imran Khan, said another Firstpost report, quoting Pakistan's interior minister on Friday. "The accused who are being handed over to the military are those who trespassed and entered very sensitive defence installations," interior minister Rana Sanaullah told reporters. Khan has sought "immediate meetings" with Shehbaz Sharif government. "I would like to appeal for talks because what is currently happening is not a solution," Imran said in a live talk streamed on YouTube, warning that the country was headed towards anarchy. |
| Russia, China set to sign bilateral economic agreements amid intensifying western pressure |
| The Sino-Russian axis is tightening. According to a report in Firstpost, "even as the Western countries remain critical of Russia and China ties amid the Ukraine war, a series of bilateral pacts are expected to be signed between Moscow and Beijing on Wednesday during the Russian prime minister's trip to Beijing as the two giant neighbours pledge closer cooperation. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin – the highest-ranking Russian official to visit Beijing since Moscow sent thousands of its troops to Ukraine in February 2022 – was holding talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang", said the report. "As a result of the talks, a number of bilateral agreements is planned to be signed," the Russian news agency Interfax reported. "With sanctions against Russia providing new opportunities for China, it is hardly surprising that China would be happy to engage actively, if not proactively, with Russia economically, as long as whatever relationships they forge will not trigger secondary sanctions against China," Reuters quoted Steve Tsang, director of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) China Institute in London, as saying. |
| Biden, McCarthy says deal is 'very close' as US Treasury pushes default date to June 5 |
| While US president Joe Biden said Friday that a deal is "very close", both Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have failed to reach an agreement to avoid a looming US debt default with the catastrophic default pushed back to June 5. How does a US debt default matter for the world? Firstpost has an explainer for it. Earlier this week on Monday, McCarthy had said "Biden and I will talk every day until we get this done," he said. The debt ceiling is a spending limit set by Congress that determines how much money the government can borrow. Another Firstpost report says the two sides have been negotiating for weeks on an agreement to raise the federal government's self-imposed borrowing limit, with Republicans also pushing for sharp spending cuts. Without a deal, the United States could face a calamitous default. "Things are looking good," Biden told reporters. "I'm optimistic." Republican Representative Patrick McHenry said he concurred with Biden's comments while cautioning that negotiations had not yet concluded. |
| Ukraine shoots down 10 Russian missiles; Ukrainian forces attack southern Belgorod |
| Ukraine has shot down 10 missiles and over 20 drones fired by Russia in nocturnal strikes on the capital Kyiv, the city of Dnipro, and the eastern provinces, a Firstpost report has said, quoting president Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office. The report said a fire broke out on the outskirts of the northeastern city of Kharkiv after oil storage was hit twice, and pumping equipment for oil products was destroyed. This month, Russia has increased missile and drone strikes on Ukraine, mostly targeting logistical and infrastructure installations ahead of an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive. According to Associated Press, Russia's southern Belgorod region bordering Ukraine came under attack Friday from Ukrainian artillery fire, mortar shells and drones, authorities said, hours after two drones struck a Russian city in an area next to the annexed Crimea Peninsula. Moscow's forces, meanwhile, struck a building containing psychology and veterinary clinics in the city of Dnipro, in central Ukraine, killing two people and wounding 30, including two children, Ukrainian officials said. |
| US defense secretary Lloyd Austin to visit India next week, meet defence minister Rajnath Singh |
| The Pentagon on Thursday announced that US defence secretary Lloyd Austin will visit New Delhi next week to meet with his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh, reports Firtspost. The visit precedes prime minister Narendra Modi's official state visit to White House next month. Austin will meet Union defence minister Rajnath Singh and other leaders as the United States and India continue to modernise the US-India major defence partnership. A press readout by the US Department of Defense said Austin will travel to Tokyo to meet with Japanese defense minister Yasukazu Hamada and other senior leaders and visit US troops stationed in Japan. From there, the US defence secretary will travel to Singapore where he will deliver plenary remarks at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) 20th Shangri-La Dialogue. After Singapore, Austin will visit New Delhi where he will get the opportunity to accelerate new defense innovation and industrial cooperation initiatives and drive ongoing efforts to expand operational cooperation between the US and Indian militaries. |
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| TOP ANALYSES OF THE WEEK |
| India emerging as a major actor in Central Asia |
| Nalin Kumar Mohapatra of JNU writes in Firstpost that India is emerging as a major geopolitical actor in Central Asian geopolitics. |
| In tri-nation visit, Modi signalled the 'arrival' of Indian diplomacy |
| In his tri-nation visit to Japan, Pacific Islands and Australia, Narendra Modi showed why India's global stature has seen a meteoric rise, I write in Firstpost. |
| Khalistani tactics are common with Al Qaeda, Lashkar and ISIS |
| Abhinav Pandya of Usanas Foundation, a think tank, writes in Firstpost that the West has finally got its views on Khalistanis right by examining them through prism of terrorism. |
| Pakistan will continue to lurch from one crisis to another |
| Writer Probal DasGupta argues in Firstpost that as Pakistan lurches from one crisis to the other to decide who comes out on top, its system will continue to be defined by an inability to separate political governance from military hubris. |
| Internationalisation of Indian rupee is still a distant dream |
| Indian rupee is not a fully convertible and freely tradable currency yet and the country still remains an insignificant player in global trade, writes Sumeet Mehta in Firstpost. |
| G7, G20 frameworks should take the concerns of voiceless countries along |
| Professor Milindo Chakrabarti of OP Jindal Global University writes in Firstpost that limiting deliberations to tackle climate challenges to G7 or G20 groups reflect lack of global 'political will'. |
| India-US partnership needs critical tech-transfer boost |
| Chairman and co-founder of Primus Partners Davinder Sandhu writes in Firstpost that the US-India partnership requires long term investments and critical technology transfers to make an impact. |
| Pakistani politicians are shooting themselves in the foot |
| Tara Kartha of Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies writes in Firstpost that Pakistan's politicians are shooting themselves in the foot. |
| China and Russia know that trade and war are one |
| Russian columnist Dmitry Kosyrev writes in Firstpost that Russia and China need to lay down strategic business plans for the next several years at least, and they do it actively amid the rapidly changing landscape of the global economy. |
| Is the Biden administration going soft on China? |
| Danielle Pletka of Washington DC-based American Enterprise Institute writes in Foreign Policy that a policy shift toward economic engagement with Beijing seems to be underway in the White House. |
| PODCAST |
| Is Russia facing a revolution? |
| In this edition of Firstpost's Vantage, we explore the question whether war can break up Russia, based on Wagner group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's recent comment that a "revolution" could rock Russia if its stuttering war effort in Ukraine continues. |
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