Central News Hub

Month: September 2022

  • Federer bids adieu to tennis

    Federer bids adieu to tennis

    The defeat meant Team Europe were locked at 2-2 with Team World at the end of the opening day of the event. Team Europe has earlier won two singles match while Team World claimed one singles victory…reports Asian Lite News

    Tennis ace and one of the most revered sportspersons in the modern era, Roger Federer finally bid adieu to his tennis career and fans after losing a doubles match in the Laver Cup to Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe of the United States.

    The 41-year-old Swiss great, the winner of 20 Grand Slam singles titles, teamed up with his long-time friend and rival, Spanish stalwart Rafael Nadal in his last contest on Friday, losing a doubles match to the American duo 4-6, 7-6(2), 11-9.

    “It’s been a perfect journey,” Federer said. “I would do it all over again,” in his farewell address.

    The former world No. 1 looked sharp around the net and fired his seemingly effortless groundstrokes through the court throughout the two-hour, 16-minute clash, according to atptour.com. However, he was ultimately unable to earn his 1,382nd career win in singles and doubles, falling to the Team World pair of Sock and Tiafoe.

    “We’ll get through this somehow, will we? Right?” Federer said. “I’m happy, I’m not sad. It feels great to be here and I enjoyed tying my shoes one more time. Everything was the last time. The match was great, I couldn’t be happier. It’s been wonderful.”

    Federer, who has not played since the 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinals, had announced last Thursday that he would retire from Grand Slams and the ATP Tour after the Laver Cup here in London. Federer had decided before the start of the tournament that he would only play one doubles match at the Laver Cup held in London’s O2 Arena.

    The defeat meant Team Europe were locked at 2-2 with Team World at the end of the opening day of the event. Team Europe has earlier won two singles match while Team World claimed one singles victory.

    The Swiss is leaving the sport 19 years after winning his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003. Nadal (22) and Novak Djokovic (21) have both surpassed Federer’s tally of Grand Slam titles. Team Europe have won all four previous editions of the Laver Cup. Italian Matteo Berrettini will take Federer’s spot over the weekend as an alternate in this year’s edition.

    “Playing with Rafa on the same team, and having the guys, everybody here, all the legends — Rocket, Edberg, Stefan –thank you,” said Federer, who was joined on court by his parents, wife Mirka and their four children.

    “I didn’t want it to feel lonely out there. It felt lonely for a second when they told me to go out… but to be saying goodbye on a team, I always felt I was a team player at heart. Singles doesn’t really do that but I’ve had a team that travelled with me around the world. It’s been amazing with them, so thanks to everybody who made it work for so many years.

    “And then of course being on the team with Andy, Thomas, Novak, Matteo, Cam, Stefanos, Rafa and Casper… and also the other team, you guys are unbelievable. It’s been a pleasure playing all these Laver Cups.

    “It does feel like a celebration to me. I wanted to feel like this at the end, and it’s exactly what I hoped for, so thank you.”

    Federer won 103 tour-level titles and spent 310 weeks at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings. He first faced Nadal in 2004 at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami. They slugged it out a further 39 times over the years, competing against each other in 24 finals.

    Having built a special relationship, it was fitting for Federer to end his career alongside the Spaniard, with Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray cheering them on from the sidelines, according to atptour.com.

    “My wife’s been so supportive. She could have stopped me a long, long time ago, but she didn’t. She kept me going and allowed me to play. It’s amazing. Thank you.”

    ALSO READ-‘Dear Roger… I wish this day would have never come’

  • Eiffel Tower to go dark to fight energy crisis

    Eiffel Tower to go dark to fight energy crisis

    It’s fuelled inflation and raised fears about shrinking supplies as the heating season draws near, forcing countries to enact conservation measures and relief for consumers and businesses…reports Asian Lite News

    Lights on the Eiffel Tower will soon be turned off more than an hour earlier at night to save electricity, the Paris mayor announced, as Russia’s war in Ukraine deepens an energy crisis in Europe.

    Mayor Anne Hidalgo said the iconic tower that is normally illuminated until 1 a.m. is only one of the city’s monuments and municipal buildings that will be plunged into darkness earlier in the evening as the French capital — like the rest of France and Europe — faces risks of power shortages, rationing and blackouts when energy demand surges this winter.

    Russia has reduced natural gas supplies to several European countries as they support Ukraine, sending prices for gas and electricity surging.

    It’s fuelled inflation and raised fears about shrinking supplies as the heating season draws near, forcing countries to enact conservation measures and relief for consumers and businesses.

    While some European companies have reduced or halted production as energy prices surge, the European Union is looking to pass proposals to ease the crisis.

    Lights on the Eiffel Tower will be turned off after the last visitor leaves at 11:45 p.m., starting Sept. 23, Hidalgo said. Other landmarks operated by the city, such as Saint-Jacques tower and City Hall, will be turned off at 10 p.m.

    “It’s a symbolic, but an important step,” Hidalgo said, brushing off criticism that Paris authorities could do more to reduce energy consumption by 10% — the target set in July by President Emmanuel Macron as part of a nationwide “sobriety plan” to conserve energy.

    For safety reasons, streetlights will stay on across Paris and the ornate bridges over the Seine River also will remain illuminated at night, Hidalgo told reporters.

    To align with France’s savings plan, she said she will press the government to adjust the lighting on national monuments in Paris, such as the domed Pantheon and the Arc de Triomphe, the famous Napoleonic arch that dominates the Champs-Elysees Avenue.

    Paris authorities also aim to save energy by moving the start of heating season for a whole month, from mid-October to mid-November.

    They also plan to lower the temperature in public buildings by 1 degree, from 19 to 18 degrees Celsius during office hours, and to 16 C after hours and on weekends.

    Meanwhile, the facade at the Chateau de Versailles, southwest of Paris will switch off its lights an hour earlier, at 10:00 pm. “Symbols are very important to raise public awareness,” French Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak said, adding that symbolic measures alone will not be enough to bring down electricity usage.

    “Symbols are very important to raise public awareness,” she said, adding that symbolic measures alone will not be enough to bring down electricity usage.

    She urged French cultural institutions to take energy saving methods like those taken by the Orsay Museum in Paris, which “reduced its energy consumption by a third just by changing bulbs and switching to LED”, she said. She also said there were discussions ongoing with movie theatres to replace their projectors. “If they switch to laser projectors, they could divide their energy consumption by seven.”

    ALSO READ-Indian Realty Baron on Top of Eiffel Tower

  • China takes aim at Quad

    China takes aim at Quad

    He said, “We should stand against the drawing ideological lines and expand the common ground to promote world peace and development.”…reports Arul Louis

    China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi took aim at the Quad and other such initiatives, saying, “We should jointly oppose group politics and block confrontation.”

    “Pursuing one’s own absolute security can only undermine global strategic stability,” he said on Saturday at the high-level UN General Assembly meeting.

    The Quad, made up of India, the US, Japan and Australia, is committed to security in the Indo-Pacific region and cooperation on development and has been criticised by China, and India is entering into similar arrangements elsewhere also.

    Wang did not name the Quad or India in making the criticism that was implied.

    After a long confrontation with India that escalated in recent years, he said, “We must address differences by peaceful means and resolve disputes through dialogue and consultation.”

    “We must uphold peace and oppose war,” he added. “Turbulence and war can only open pandora’s box.”

    “No country is above others and no country should abuse this power to bully other sovereign countries,” Wang said.

    Those principles can also apply to the Ukraine war, about which he added, “We call on all parties concerned to keep the crisis from spilling over and to protect the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries.”

    Developing countries have been hit hard by the spillover effects of the invasion that have caused food shortages and resulted in high energy prices, the Chinese Foreign Minister said.

    “China supports efforts conducive to the peaceful resolution of the Ukraine crisis. The pressing priority is to facilitate talks for peace,” he added.

    “The fundamental solution is to address the legitimate security concerns of all parties and build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture,” he said, bringing up Russia’s objections to NATO expansion.

    His statement did not reflect any substantial change in Beijing’s approach to Russia’s invasion even though Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has admitted that China had “questions and concerns” about the war.

    Regarding the criticism from the West about China’s human rights record and its dictatorial system, Wang added, “A difference in systems should not be used as an excuse to create division. Still, as should democracy and human rights be used as tools or weapons to achieve political ends.”

    He said, “We should stand against the drawing ideological lines and expand the common ground to promote world peace and development.”

    Wang expressed concern over what he called protectionist trends and, by extension.

    “Protectionism can only build around and decoupling a supply chain disruption will hurt everyone. We should stay true to open this and candour, inclusiveness and tear down fences and barriers that hinder the free flow of factors of production.”

    On threats to cybersecurity, the Chinese Foreign Minister added, “We have launched a global initiative on data security as our contribution to formulating rules on global data security.”

    With tension rising between China and Taiwan and the US, especially after US Speaker’s visit to the island along with Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, Wang reiterated Beijing’s hardline “One China” policy on Taiwan, warning that anyone trying to change it would be “crushed under the wheel of history”.

    He said Taiwan issues were an internal matter of China and warned against anyone promoting the island’s independence.

    “Chinese have never ceased our efforts to realise reunification,” he added.

    ALSO READ-At UN, Jaishankar red flags China

  • Putin’s nuclear threat must be taken seriously: EU

    Putin’s nuclear threat must be taken seriously: EU

    Josep Borrell told the media that Putin’s assertion he was not bluffing had to be taken seriously, reports Asian Lite News

    The EU must not ignore Vladimir Putin’s threats that he could use nuclear weapons in the conflict in Ukraine, the bloc’s foreign policy chief has said, as per a media report.

    Josep Borrell told the media that Putin’s assertion he was not bluffing had to be taken seriously.

    His remarks come as Russia begins a partial mobilisation and moves to annex four regions of Ukraine.

    Putin has faced setbacks on the battlefield, with his forces pushed back by a Ukrainian counter-offensive.

    Josep Borrell, The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

    “Certainly it’s a dangerous moment because the Russian army has been pushed into a corner, and Putin’s reaction – threatening using nuclear arms – it’s very bad,” Borrell said.

    Seven months since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, analysts agree that President Putin’s forces are on the back foot, but he said a “diplomatic solution” must be reached, one that “preserves the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”.

    “Otherwise, we can finish the war, but we will not have peace, and we will have another war,” he said, BBC reported.

    Putin said his country had “various weapons of destruction” and would “use all the means available to us,” adding: “I’m not bluffing”.

    At the same time, the President announced the call-up of 300,000 Russians who have done compulsory military service, sparking protests and reports of people fleeing the country to avoid being sent to the front line.

    Borrell dismissed concerns that the EU’s arms supplies were running low, and said it must continue providing military support to Ukraine, as well as applying economic sanctions against President Putin and his allies and conducting diplomatic activity.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin with Minister of Defence Sergei Shoigu. (Photo: Twitter@mod_russia)

    He admitted that the rising cost of energy prices caused by the conflict was a matter of concern.

    “People in my country tell me the price of the gas means we cannot continue working, we cannot continue making my business run,” the Spanish politician said, adding he had heard similar concerns from leaders from Africa, South America and Southeast Asia.

    ALSO READ: ‘We won’t rest until Ukraine defeats Russia’

  • Musk activates Starlink in Iran amid internet shutdown

    Musk activates Starlink in Iran amid internet shutdown

    Protestors have been demanding basic rights of freedom and holding demonstrations against the mandatory dress codes including the compulsory wearing of the Hijab, reports Asian Lite News

    Tesla CEO Elon Musk has deployed his satellite-based ‘Starlink’ service in Iran amid widespread protests in the country following which authorities had restricted internet access.

    Iranian authorities had cut off internet access for many of its citizens on Wednesday amid widespread protests over the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in police custody, according to reports.

    On Friday, SpaceX founder Elon Musk had indicated that he will make Starlink available in Iran.

    US State Secretary Antony Blinken earlier announced on Twitter aboout advancing internet freedom and the free flow of information for the Iranian people by issuing a General License to provide them greater access to digital communications to counter, what he claimed, was the Iranian government’s censorship.

    Replying to Blinken’s tweet, Musk wrote, “Activating Starlink ….”

    Protestors have been demanding basic rights of freedom and holding demonstrations against the mandatory dress codes including the compulsory wearing of the Hijab.

    The protests in Iran erupted last weekend after Mahsa Amini died following her detainment by Iran’s morality police. She died a few days after falling into a coma while being detained on an accusation of violating a law related to hijabs.

    It is worth noting that earlier this week, lawmakers from New York and New Jersey had urged US Treasury Department to grant approval if SpaceX sought licensing permission to make internet service available in Iran.

    (Photo: Twitter – UN Special Procedures)

    Lawmakers, led by Claudia Tenney of New York and Tom Malinowski of New Jersey, reportedly made the appeal to the Treasury Department, Fox News had reported. The letter came after Musk tweeted Monday that SpaceX would seek exemptions from sanctions on the country.

    SpaceX has deployed Starlink in emergency situations in past, such as in Ukraine after Russia invaded and in the South Pacific islands of Tonga after a volcanic eruption. (ANI)

    ALSO READ: Anti-hijab protests grip Iran

  • Iraq keen on developing ties with GCC nations

    Iraq keen on developing ties with GCC nations

    Iraqi FM made the remarks when meeting with GCC Secretary-General Nayef bin Falah Al-Hajraf on the sidelines of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, reports Asian Lite News

    Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said ohis government is interested in developing relations with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries at all levels.

    Hussein made the remarks when meeting with GCC Secretary-General Nayef bin Falah Al-Hajraf on the sidelines of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, where “the two sides discussed ways to enhance cooperation”, the Foreign Ministry in Baghdad said in a statement.

    The Minister said the Iraqi government is interested in developing relations with the GCC countries at all levels and called on foreign companies to invest in Iraqi infrastructure.

    For his part, Al-Hajraf affirmed “GCC’s support for the security and stability of Iraq”, stressing the keenness of GCC countries to advance their relations with Iraq in the service of common interests, reports Xinhua news agency.

    The two sides also discussed some regional and international issues of common concern, especially the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on food security and the need to work collectively to confront the possible repercussions of the crisis.

    ALSO READ: UAE-Saudi non-oil foreign trade sees sharp growth

  • New York protest demands recognition of 1971 Bangladesh genocide

    New York protest demands recognition of 1971 Bangladesh genocide

    Led by activist Priya Saha, the group estimated that nearly three million people were killed in a span of nine months at that time, reports Asian Lite News

    Protesters representing ethnic and religious minorities on Friday protested outside the United Nations in New York, demanding recognition of the genocide committed by the Pakistani Army in 1971 in Bangladesh.

    Led by activist Priya Saha, the group estimated that nearly three million people were killed in a span of nine months at that time.

    On March 25, 1971, Pakistan Army launched ‘Operation Searchlight’, wherein a planned military operation was carried out by the Pakistani Army and its military deliberately harmed hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshi citizens.

    According to the rights groups, the horrors of 1971 are considered one of the worst mass atrocities in history.

    Protesters were also carrying placards “calling for help” for women from Hindu, Christian and Sikh communities in Pakistan.

    Religious minority women and girls are abducted, forcibly converted, forcibly married and abused, and their families are unsuccessful in their attempts to challenge these crimes using legal avenues.

    Representational Image

    A 2015 report by the South Asia Partnership-Pakistan in collaboration with Aurat Foundation found that at least 1,000 girls are forcibly converted to Islam in Pakistan every year. In a recent case in September 2022, Bhagwanti, a Hindu teenage flood victim girl from Shahadapur, Sanghar, Sindh, was raped for two days while she went out to get a paltry ration, reported IFFRAS.

    While the abductions, forced conversions, forced marriages and abuse are perpetrated by individuals, the fate of religious minority women and girls is often sealed as the existing laws or handling of such cases deem any legal recourse unavailable or ineffective.

    Human rights groups have documented the plight of Pakistan’s religious minorities for years, but it is only recently that these minorities have become the focus of popular discourse because of revelations on social media regarding their treatment, reported IFFRAS. (ANI)

    ALSO READ: Peace possible if Pakistan comes clean, ends terror: India

  • Need for ‘peace and stability’ in Taiwan Strait: Blinken to Wang Yi

    Need for ‘peace and stability’ in Taiwan Strait: Blinken to Wang Yi

    Over an hour-long meeting, Blinken emphasized that the United States is committed to maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, consistent with its longstanding one-China policy, reports Asian Lite News

    Amid the tension between US and China, Secretary of State Antony Blinken met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Friday and stressed for preserving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

    Blinken, who is in New York to attend the 77th sessions of UNGA, “stressed that preserving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is critical to regional and global security and prosperity,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement.

    Over an hour-long meeting, Blinken emphasized that the United States is committed to maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, consistent with its longstanding one-China policy.

    Both leaders discussed the need to maintain open lines of communication and responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship.

    “He also reiterated the United States’ condemnation of Russia’s war against Ukraine and highlighted the implications if the PRC were to provide support to Moscow’s invasion of a sovereign state. He underscored that the United States remains open to cooperating with the PRC where our interests intersect,” Ned Price said as quoted by the statement.

    US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and a US delegation meets with a delegation lef by his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

    Earlier also, the US had repeatedly raised their voice on China-Taiwan relations. On September 19, CBS released their interview with US President from its “60 minutes programme”, where Joe Biden said that American forces would defend Taiwan from a Chinese invasion.

    Responding to a query over defending Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, Biden said the US would defend Taiwan “if in fact there was an unprecedented attack,” according to The Washington Post.

    Scott Pelley, the interviewer in the 60-minute programme pressed Biden on whether the situation would be different in the event of an attack on Taiwan.

    “So unlike Ukraine, to be clear, sir, U.S. forces — U.S. men and women — would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion?” Pelley asked.

    “Yes,” Biden replied.

    The relations between China and US deteriorated after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan. That trip angered China’s ruling Communist Party — which views Taiwan as part of its territory, despite never having governed it — and it responded by launching unprecedented military drills around the island, sending warplanes across the Taiwan Strait and firing missiles over the main island. (ANI)

    ALSO READ: Blinken ramps up criticism of Russia for war in Ukraine

  • Quad FMs meet on UNGA sidelines

    Quad FMs meet on UNGA sidelines

    Quad Foreign Ministers will meet every year now, as they announced at their meeting on Friday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York, reports Yashwant Raj

    Foreign Ministers of the Quad countries — India, Australia, Japan and the US — met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings in New York on Friday and said they hoped to make it an annual affair, taking another major step towards further institutionalising the platform focused on keeping the Indo-Pacific free and open from Chinese influence.

    The four countries also signed Quad Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Partnership for the Indo-Pacific, which was discussed and agreed upon at the Tokyo summit of the Quad.

    The Quad — which started out in 2004 as the Australia-India-Japan-US Tsunami Core Group and later turned into the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue — has witnessed intense engagement in recent years after it was resurrected in 2017 by the Trump administration from its 2008 collapse.

    US President Joe Biden took it to the summit level with a virtual meeting in 2021, which was quickly followed by one in person. Their four summit — and second in person — took place in May this year in Tokyo.

    Though the leaders have had two in-person summits in the two years since their first in 2021, there has been no decision for them to meet every year. But Quad Foreign Ministers will meet every year now, as they announced at their meeting on Friday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.

    “This is the first time that the Foreign Ministers from the Quad countries have gotten together at the United Nations General Assembly, so my hope is that this will become a regular feature of these meetings,” said US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who called the meeting and hosted it, in public remarks ahead of the signing of the agreement and their meeting.

    Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar agreed.

    “I think it’s a great idea that we meet regularly on the sidelines of the UNGA but in our respective countries as well,” he said.

    The Minister then emphasised the importance of the Friday meeting, saying it has come at a time the world is passing through “a very difficult period” and mentioned the “global repercussions” of the Ukraine conflict and “climate events and emergencies”.

    “So given the turbulent times, I think it’s particularly important that we go further in the constructive agenda that we have set for ourselves, that we work together on the delivery of public goods, that our efforts and particularly what we are signing today, the HDR (humanitarian and disaster relief) Partnership, which we discussed and finalised in Tokyo is I think, extremely timely,” he concluded.

    Blinken, who called and hosted the meet, said, “We’re looking forward to continuing to explore the many ways that the Quad enables us to deepen our cooperation. Our leaders have set out a very significant agenda for us when they met. We are following through on a lot of that work. So are our colleagues today is one more manifestation of that.”

    Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said, “We do know our region is being reshaped, economically and strategically. And we are here because we want to work with the countries represented before you to better navigate this period of change together. So this is the heart of the Quad to create the region we all aspire to and it’s a great honour and privilege to be here with my counterparts today.”

    Finally, Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said, “Today the world is witnessing direct attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force. The free and open international order based on the rule of law is under threat.”

    He did not name China, but the reference barely concealed who he had meant.

    “So it’s extremely significant for us to demonstrate together to the international community, our firm commitment to the principles of the UN charter and free and open Indo-Pacific order,” he added.

    In a joint statement, the four countries welcomed progress in delivering on Quad commitments. In particular, they noted the signing of the disaster relief agreement and they look forward to the “counter-terrorism tabletop exercise” being hosted by Australia later in 2022. They also announced a statement on ransomware, calling on states to take reasonable steps to address ransomware operations emanating from their territory.

    “We reiterated the Quad’s commitment to supporting regional partners’ efforts to improve their maritime security and domain awareness,” they said further, and added, “We support the ongoing efforts, in close consultation with regional partners, to take forward the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness.”

    ALSO READ: New Delhi cautions Indians in Canada on rising hate crimes

  • Peace possible if Pakistan comes clean, ends terror: India

    Peace possible if Pakistan comes clean, ends terror: India

    Indian diplomat disputed Pak PM’s claims about wanting peace with New Delhi pointing out that Islamabad’s actions do not match his words, reports Arul Louis

     Indian diplomat Mijito Vinito said that peace is possible in the sub-continent only when Pakistan stops cross-border terrorism, “comes clean” and ends persecution of minorities.

    Replying to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s attacks on India at the high-level UN General Assembly meeting on Friday, Vinito disputed his claims about wanting peace with New Delhi pointing out that Islamabad’s actions do not match his words.

    He zoomed in on Islamabad’s history of terrorism and said: “A polity that claims it seeks peace with its neighbours would never sponsor cross-border terrorism, nor would it shelter planners of the horrific Mumbai terrorist attack, disclosing their existence only under pressure from the international community.”

    Hafiz Saeed, leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba who masterminded the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack in which about 175 people died, is living openly in Pakistan, as is another operative involved in the attack, Sajid Mir.

    A country that truly seeks peace “would not make unjustified and untenable territorial claims against neighbours, it would not covet their lands and seek to illegally integrate them with its own”, Vinito said referring to Pakistan’s continued occupation of parts of Kashmir in violation of Security Council Resolution 47 of 1948, which ordered it to withdraw its troops and nationals from there.

    Vinito, who is from the 2010 Indian Foreign Service batch and is a first secretary in India’s UN mission, drove his stinging responses home with a calm demeanour.

    Exercising India’s right of reply, he countered Sharif’s claims about the treatment of minorities in India and held a mirror to Pakistan’s own record.

    “It is not just about the neighbourhood that we have heard false claims today, it is about human rights, about minority rights and about basic decencies.

    “When young women in the thousands from the minority community are abducted as an SOP (Standard Operating Procedure), what can we conclude about the underlying mindset?” he asked.

    According to the Human Rights Council of Pakistan, Hindu and Christian girls are victims of kidnapping and forced marriages.

    “The desire for peace, security and progress in the Indian subcontinent is real. It is also widely shared and it can be realized,” Vinito said.

    “That will surely happen when cross-border terrorism ceases, when governments come clean with the international community and with their own people, when minorities are not persecuted, and not least when we recognize these realities before this Assembly.”

    In his speech at the Assembly, Sharif had claimed that he wanted peace and offered to speak to India’s leaders, but only after New Delhi gives in to his demands.

    The premier said he wanted to turn the page on the 20th century and take on the challenges of the 21st century but quickly went back 75 years raking up the Kashmir dispute, attacking the withdrawal of special constitutional status for that territory.

    He catalogued what he said were India’s actions against the Muslim minority.

    Saima Saleem, a counsellor in Pakistan’s UN mission, who responded to Vinito, repeated almost verbatim a lot from Sharif’s speech.

    She directed many of her remarks against the RSS and also strung together isolated incidents and remarks by fringe characters to make them appear as state policy.

    In a bid to stir up Muslims, she brought up the remarks made in a TV programme about Prophet Mohammed by a former BJP functionary but did not say that she is now facing criminal charges.

    READ MORE: ‘Looking for peace with neighbours’: Shehbaz rakes up Kashmir at UN