Central News Hub

Month: September 2022

Iran Seeks Closure of Nuke Talks

Iran has warned that it has other options on the table if the Western side does not make an agreement, reports Asian Lite Newsdesk

A senior Iranian lawmaker has urged Western countries to refrain from delays in reaching a nuclear agreement, warning that otherwise, Iran would consider “other options”.

Mahmoud Abbaszadeh Meshkini, a member of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, told the official IRNA news agency on Sunday that a win-win agreement is important for securing Iran’s national interests.

“The Westerners need negotiations more than Iran … if the Western side does not make an agreement, we have other options on the table, and Iran’s hands are not empty in this regard,” he noted.

“Any agreement that deprives and limits Iran of the desired privileges will not be accepted by the Iranian nation,” he added.

In response to the question about safeguard issues, he said that solving the safeguards issues can “repair the damaged wall of trust between Iran and the West”.

Iran has repeatedly said that reports of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about traces of uranium in some of its nuclear sites in the past are “political” and this case should be closed simultaneously with the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Iran and the US are indirectly exchanging views about a recent EU proposal aimed at resolving the outstanding issues on the revival of the JCPOA, Xinhua news agency reported.

Iran signed the deal with world powers in July 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear programme in return for the removal of sanctions on the country. However, former US President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Tehran, prompting the latter to drop some of its commitments under the pact.

The talks on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal began in April 2021 in Vienna but were suspended in March this year because of political differences between Tehran and Washington.

The latest round of the nuclear talks was held in the Austrian capital in early August after a five-month hiatus. On August 8, the EU put forward a “final text” of the draft decision on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal.

‘No conditionality’

Last week, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre suggested that there should not be any conditionality between a revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and the conclusion of watchdog probes.

Addressing the media on Friday, Jean-Pierre made the remarks referring to the deal and investigations related to Iran’s obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

She said the investigations led by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) “are not political” and “are not leverage or bargaining chips”.

“We are unbending in our support for the IAEA’s independence… It would be preferable to return to the JCPOA without any open safeguard issues,” the Press Secretary added.

If the US makes the “right decision”, negotiations can be concluded quickly, Mohammad Marandi, an advisor to Iran’s nuclear negotiation team, said.

“Iran has responded as promised. It’s time for the (US President Joe) Biden team to make a serious decision,” Marandi tweeted hours after Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani said that Tehran had given answers to the Washington on the European Union’s draft of a potential nuclear agreement.

“The submitted text has a constructive approach with the aim of finalizing the negotiations,” Kanaani said in a statement.

The US State Department confirmed they have received Iran’s response through the European Union (EU).

“We are studying it and will respond through the EU, but unfortunately it is not constructive,” a Department spokesman was quoted by some Western media outlets as saying.

“For the US, ‘constructive’ usually means accepting US terms. For Iran, it means a deal that is balanced and protected,” Marandi said.

ALSO READ: US: No conditionality between Iran nuclear deal and IAEA probes

5 September 2022
Moscow vows tit for tat response to EU visa curbs

Foreign Ministers of the EU member states agreed to suspend a visa facilitation agreement the bloc has with Russia…reports Asian Lite News

Moscow will take serious retaliatory measures if the EU formally introduces visa restrictions on Russian citizens, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Russia is closely monitoring the EU decision and the retaliation, symmetrical or not will definitely meet Russia’s interests, Peskov told a local TV program on Sunday without disclosing what the retaliatory steps could be.

Foreign Ministers of the EU member states agreed to suspend a visa facilitation agreement the bloc has with Russia, EU top diplomat Josep Borrell said on Wednesday.

The decision, which has yet to be legalised, will significantly reduce the number of new visas issued by the EU member states to Russian citizens and make the process to get a visa longer and more difficult, Xinhua news agency reported.

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5 September 2022
Debt restructuring: China may disagree with Western creditors on Lanka

Notably, China has so far not agreed to debt restructuring which could include haircuts or reductions in interest rates…reports Asian Lite News

China, Colombo’s largest bilateral lender, may disagree with Western creditors on Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring.

A senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) official said that Sri Lanka’s ongoing economic crisis would deepen if China disagrees on debt restructuring, reported Sunday Islands Online.

“If one creditor or creditors are not willing to provide these assurances, that would indeed deepen the crisis here in Sri Lanka and would undermine the repayment capacity,” Peter Breuer, senior IMF mission chief told reporters in Colombo when asked what if China does not agree on a debt restructuring plan.

He said that China would not go along with Western creditors on debt restructuring on an equal footing.

“So a deepening crisis means that essentially the resources available to service the debt would become less,” said Breuer at the media briefing after concluding a nine-day visit to finalize the staff-level agreement and a loan package for Sri Lanka’s reforms.

All Sri Lankan creditors including China have to agree to restructure their existing loans to the island nation before the IMF starts disbursing a 2.9 billion US dollar loan on which preliminary agreement was announced on Thursday.

“So it is actually in the interest of all creditors to collaborate together and with Sri Lanka so that Sri Lanka can emerge from this crisis as quickly as possible and regain its repayment capacity and service this new debt that will come out of these debt negotiations,” added Breuer.

Notably, China has so far not agreed to debt restructuring which could include haircuts or reductions in interest rates. Instead, China has expressed its willingness to refinance Sri Lanka to repay its past loans without any changes, said Lankan officials, reported Sunday Islands Online.

Earlier, China had dodged the request for debt relief and said that the ball is in Sri Lanka’s court. A spokesman for the Chinese embassy said that the ball is in Sri Lanka’s court, not China’s, reported Sri Lankan publication Daily Mirror.

“We sent proposals to the Finance Ministry. But, there was no response from them. Also, Sri Lanka insisted that it should complete the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) first. The ball is in Sri Lanka’s court,” the spokesman said.

IMF urges Lebanon to implement ‘agreed-upon’ reforms

The spokesman told Daily Mirror China communicated to the Sri Lankan Finance Ministry three months ago about its readiness to discuss how to address the debt issue with the Chinese banks.

He said China encouraged its banks to discuss it. The Chinese position was also communicated during the telephone conversation between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and then Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Sri Lanka has already hired financial and legal advisory firms Lazard and Clifford Chance LLP to support its debt restructuring as the country is on the brink of bankruptcy. Lazard has been the legal adviser in Zambia’s debt restructuring where creditors included China, reported Sunday Islands Online.

The Paris Club of Western nations has a well-defined unified process for dealing with defaulted nations, which is familiar to the IMF.

“Sri Lanka is in a special situation that much of its official debt is outside of Paris Club creditors,” Breuer said.

“It is important to move expeditiously. We want to avoid the crisis from becoming worse,” he added. (ANI)

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5 September 2022
Lanka’s audit report seeks action against officials, Chinese firm

The audit has also claimed compensation from the Chinese company for attempting to unload a stock of unsterilized fertilizer that contained destructive bacteria….reports Asian Lite News

After the fertilizer deal between Sri Lanka and China caused the island nation’s exchequer a loss of USD 6.9 million as the stock of fertilizer was rejected in December 2021 over reports that it contained harmful bacteria, Sri Lanka’s audit report called for action against officials and a Chinese firm.

The report has recommended prosecuting officials, as well as a Chinese firm, Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group Co Ltd which was responsible for an unsupplied fertilizer stock, reported the Sunday Times.

The audit has also claimed compensation from the Chinese company for attempting to unload a stock of unsterilized fertilizer that contained destructive bacteria.

The special audit report compiled by the National Audit Office on the procurement of 96,000MT of organic fertilizer from the Chinese company, Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group Co. Ltd, also recommended blacklisting the company, as it has not performed in accordance with the laws and agreements of Sri Lanka, reported the Sunday Times.

“… proceed with the legal action against the supplier and obtain compensation for attempting to enter a stock of unsterilized fertilizer… containing the destructive bacteria — Erwinia and Bacillus which cause diseases called mild rot and blight for economically valuable crops in Sri Lanka that cannot be imported into Sri Lanka in accordance with the terms of the agreement and the Plant Protection Act No 35 of 1999, and there is no recommended agrochemical for control,” the report said.

The report also made many observations on the shortcomings in the procurement process and technical evaluation because no Technical Evaluation Committee members participated in the evaluation process and only the chairman of the committee had signed the documents related to the pre-qualification evaluation from each bidder.

After that, the relevant supplier company had been informed by Shipping Advice on September 23, 2021, that the 20,550MT of fertilizer was sent from the Qingdao Port in China to the Colombo Port, reported the Sunday Times.

Last September, a controversial situation arose when Hippo Spirit the ship that carried the fertilizer cargo was anchored off the Colombo port but could not unload the stock as it had not been sterilised in accordance with the Plant Quarantine Act and was found to be consisting of harmful bacteria in the samples.

By refusing to accept and pay for the shipment, the importers, the two state-owned companies Ceylon Fertilizer Company Limited and Colombo Commercial Fertilizer Company Limited, filed cases at the Colombo Commercial Court to secure payment injunction orders against the People’s Bank, reported the Sunday Times.

After the issue was raised through diplomatic channels, a Cabinet Memorandum was submitted to resolve the issue through mediation on the advice of the Attorney General.

Accordingly, approval was granted to pay an advance of USD 6.9 million for 75 per cent of the cost of the fertilizer stock. Later, the two cases had been settled and withdrawn with the condition that the fertilizer should be resupplied with the desired composition and quality in accordance with the court settlement.

“Nonetheless the expected standard of stock of fertilizer has not been obtained until now. Although the period of the letter of credit and the performance bond should be extended and kept valid as per the settlement terms, those documents expired on March 12 and on March 24 respectively. As a result, the ability to encash the money paid on settlement has been lost if the supplier will not provide standardised fertilizers. Resulting all of the above, the entire amount paid for fertilizers has become a loss to the government,” the report said. (ANI)

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5 September 2022
Imran planning Islamabad march after floods ease

Khan’s aide said that people are not able to pay electricity bills and buy petrol “and yet the government is planning to increase taxes”…reports Asian Lite News

Lashing out at the coalition government over soaring inflation and its alleged plan to impose further taxes worth Rs 608 billion on the masses, former Pak interior minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed on Sunday announced that PTI Chairman Imran Khan will give a call for a march on Islamabad once the floods recede, Geo News reported.

The statement by the Awami Muslim League (AML) chief comes a day after Imran Khan, at a public rally warned the PM Shehbaz Sharif-led government to stop the “persecution” of his party workers with court cases, saying that he will otherwise head for the federal capital once more with his supporters.

“The IMF struck yet another deal with the government for recovery of Rs 608 billion. First they robbed the national treasury and now they are looking to pick people’s pockets,” said the former interior minister, Geo News reported.

Referring to the flood situation in Sindh, Sheikh Rasheed said that the flash floods have “opened the eyes” of the people of Sindh. “The floods have destroyed the Pakistan Democratic Movement’s (PDM) reputation,” he said.

He asked how other countries will give aid to a nation where the people refuse to donate to “these money launderers?”

Khan’s aide said that people are not able to pay electricity bills and buy petrol “and yet the government is planning to increase taxes”.

A day earlier, former Pak prime minister Imran Khan warned the government to stop the “persecution” of his party workers otherwise he will again march on Islamabad.

He said the government would have “no place to hide” in the event he comes to Islamabad, Geo News reported.

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5 September 2022
India seeks deeper foothold in Mongolia during Rajnath’s visit

The defence minister will ride on two critical initiatives taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the country in 2015….reports Asian Lie News

India is seeking a deeper foothold in Mongolia with defence minister Rajnath Singh’s two-day visit to Mongolia on Monday.

Singh’s visit is part of India’s broader, East Asia strategy. With Mongolia sharing borders with Russia and China, India is looking for a firmer connect with Ulaanbaatar, as a third major player. Japan is also keen to forge better ties with Mongolia

The defence minister will ride on two critical initiatives taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the country in 2015.

Following PM Modi’s visit, India has emerged as a critical player for providing energy security to Mongolia. India has provided $1.2 billion credit to Mongolia, which is being used to build a large oil refinery. The refinery in Dornogobi province will cover 75 per cent of the country’s energy requirements once it is commissioned in 2025.

“The refinery will address 75 % of Mongolia’s requirements. The country sources its fossil fuel from its biggest neighbour and traditional ally, Russia. India is also assisting Mongolia to build its railway and power infrastructure to help transport Mongolia’s mineral wealth,” Mongolian news website, news.mn reported in early April.

India is also setting up a cyber security centre in Mongolia, which Singh will inaugurate during his visit.

India-Mongolia ties are based on a strong cultural foundation as both countries are leveraging their shared heritage of Buddhism.

In June a 25-member delegation led by Law minister Kiren Rijiju visited Ulaanbaatar with the ceremonial casket of Buddhist holy relics. The visit was timed with Mongolian Buddh Purnima celebrations held on June 14.

The holy Buddha relics, which were housed in New Delhi’s National Museum, are known as the ‘Kapilvastu Relics’ since they are from a site in Bihar first discovered in 1898 which is believed to be the ancient city of Kapilvastu.

Flown to the Mongolian capital in a special Indian Air Force C-17 Globe Master, the relics were accorded the status of a State Guest. The two relics were housed in bullet-proof casings.

A government press statement said that the defence minister will hold talks with Mongolia’s Minister of Defence, Lt Gen. Saikhanbayar. He shall call on the President of Mongolia, U. Khurelsukh and Chairman of the State Great Khural of Mongolia, . G Zandanshatar. “The two democracies have a common interest in fostering peace and prosperity in the entire region,” the statement said.

(India Narrative)

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5 September 2022
Tharoor lauds Rahul’s speech

Tharoor, who is seen as a member of the G-23, seeking wide-ranging reforms in the party, is seen as a possible candidate in the elections to the Congress President’s post next month…reports Asian Lite News

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor commended the “strong speech” by party leader Rahul Gandhi, who attacked the Narendra Modi government’s failure to control inflation, at the party rally here on Sunday.

A strong speech by @RahulGandhi at @INCIndia’s #MehengaiParHallaBol rally roused the huge crowds thronging the Ram Lila Maidan. Now to take the message across the country in the #BharatJodoYatra!” he said in a tweet.

Tharoor, who is seen as a member of the G-23, seeking wide-ranging reforms in the party, is seen as a possible candidate in the elections to the Congress President’s post next month.

In his speech at the rally, Rahul Gandhi attacked the BJP-led Central government, saying said fear and hate were on the rise in the country since the party came into power.

“Hate is the incarnation of fear. The hate takes shape in those who fear something. Those who don’t fear have no sense of hate,” he said.

Gandhi identified the fears that were rising in India as “the fear for future, fear of rising prices, and the fear of rising unemployment”.

“The hate divides the society leading to weakening of the country. The BJP and RSS are involved in dividing the society, deliberately creating hate and fear in the country,” he said.

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5 September 2022
Rahul tears into BJP over hate, fear in India

Rahul Gandhi was addressing the ‘Mehngai Par Halla bol rally’ at Ramlila Maidan….reports Asian Lite News

Addressing the ‘Mehngai Par Halla bol rally’ at Ramlila Maidan on Sunday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi attacked the BJP-led Central government and said fear and hate were on the rise in the country since the party came into power.

“The condition of the country is known to all. Since the BJP came to power, hate, violence and fear are on the rise in the country.

“Hate is the incarnation of fear. The hate takes shape in those who fear something. Those who don’t fear have no sense of hate,” Rahul Gandhi said.

Elaborating further, he asked about the types of fears that were rising in India — “The fear for future, fear of rising prices and the fear of rising unemployment,” the Congress leader said.

“The hate divides the society leading to weakening of the country. The BJP and RSS are involved in dividing the society, deliberately creating hate and fear in the country.

“In the last 8 years since when the saffron party came into the power, the farmers, Dalit, poor, small scale industries, labourers, have got nothing. Only two industrialists are getting all the advantage.

“If you ask the rest of India’s industrialists, they will also say the same thing that only two industrialists are getting the whole advantage,” Gandhi said.

The Congress leader also hit out at the media, alleging that the whole media belongs to only those two industrialists and they show what they like. “Media scares the country which creates the sense of hatred among the countrymen. That gives the advantage to the BJP and later the party returns it to them,” he alleged.

Talking about unemployment in the country, Gandhi said that even these two industrialists can not give employment to the whole youth of the country. It is small scale industry and agriculture that gives employment in the country, but unfortunately the Modi government has broken their backbones and the spirit.

“The credit for what the country faces today on the economic and other front goes to the irresponsible Modi government. But we will not step back from our responsibility. We will work together with the poor and deprived people of the country and will be their voice.

“Unemployment will rise in the coming days. On the one hand, India faces the highest unemployment and on the other hand the sky rocketing prices are touching every Indian,” said Gandhi.

Talking about the Congress Bharat Jodo Yatra, he said, “Media doesn’t listen to us. Even in Parliament we are not allowed to speak on any issues. So we have left with just one option to go directly among the public to connect with them and raise their concerns.”

“The Congress party has always stood with citizens of the country, raised their voice and fought their fight and will continue to do so till the tyrannical forces ruling the nation today get defeated,” Rahul Gandhi said.

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5 September 2022
Reliance gears up for FMCG war

In its AGM held on August 29, 2022, Reliance Retail announced its foray into the FMCG business, by developing and delivering high quality products at affordable pricing…reports Asian Lite News

Reliance Retail (RR) has begun appointing super-stockists to distribute its private label products in multiple FMCG categories, Kotak Securities said in a report.

Reliance Retail already has a wide range of private labels across several entry-level food and non-food FMCG categories and will likely acquire more brands. “We believe own FMCG sales can add a margin layer to the overall Jiomart business”, the report said.

In its AGM held on August 29, 2022, Reliance Retail announced its foray into the FMCG business, by developing and delivering high quality products at affordable pricing.

“We think this move is logical given RR already has a private label portfolio of food (pulses, packaged foods and beverages) and non-food FMCG (home, hygiene and personal care) brands that it has developed over a course of time to serve its widespread own store footprint of 1,713 stores (Fresh + Smart stores as of March 31, 2022,” Kotak Securities said.

Jiomart has stepped up merchant partnerships and has onboarded 2 mn merchants. With Jiomart having built up significant reach, we believe Reliance Retail will use this network to retail its own products as well. It has started with entry-level products across food and non-food FMCG categories. Its strategy seems to be to price its own products a notch lower than the corresponding FMCG brand in order to drive shelf space gain.

The company is experimenting with both traditional distribution and e-B2B models hand-in-hand to aggressively capture kiranas of all sizes and capture shelf space.

Among Reliance Retail’s new commerce businesses, the B2B model is well understood though the B2C model is undergoing iterations. As we understand, both these businesses are low-margin today due to structural reasons and high competitive intensity. FMCG business can add a margin layer over these existing businesses, making RR’s investment in B2B more worthwhile. Assuming RR begins distributing its products to 100,000 kiranas initially, it can garner FMCG sales to the tune of Rs2-5 bn within 1-2 years of launch, the report said.

Reliance Retail already has a large private label portfolio across categories. These brands have been hitherto available on RIL’s own sales channels (own stores, websites, etc.) but should now be available at third-party kiranas and stores as well.

RIL’s FY2022 Annual Report mentions that RR had 15 per cent share of own brands in hand wash and hygiene category (under Puric brand) in its stores/websites.

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5 September 2022
Nikon buys Germany’s SLM for $620 mn

By 2030, Nikon aims to become “a key technology solutions company in a global society where humans and machines co-create seamlessly”….reports Asian Lite News

Leading camera manufacturer Nikon has announced it is acquiring German 3D printer company SLM Solutions for $620 million (622 million euros).

With this transaction, Nikon aims to become a leading global player in metal additive manufacturing (AM), offering innovative manufacturing solutions, said Toshikazu Umatate, President of Nikon Corporation.

“SLM has supplied more than 750 metal AM that use a molding method called Laser Powder Bed Fusion to more than 150 leading companies around the world, including in the aerospace and automotive industries,” Umatate said in a statement.

By 2030, Nikon aims to become “a key technology solutions company in a global society where humans and machines co-create seamlessly”.

The company expects that by 2030, the space industry will require high-precision components in complex shapes, and that the automotive industry will focus on weight reduction for electric vehicles and other products.

“Nikon will address these various challenges and add value for our customers by providing additive processing and riblet processing for end products, components, and contract processing,” said the company president.

Aerospace and electric vehicles (EVs) have seen growing demand for printed metal components.

Compared to conventional molding methods, such as casting or forging, additive manufacturing offers several advantages including shorter development time, reduced costs, specialised modeling, and significant weight reduction.

Currently, the global metal processing market is worth 771 billion euros (104 trillion yen).

Of this, 119 billion euros (16 trillion yen) is in high-value metal parts area where additive manufacturing excels, and “we expect manufacturing in this area will gradually shift from conventional casting, forging, and die processing to additive manufacturing,” said Nikon.

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5 September 2022