Representatives from the US, India, and Taiwan are meeting on 11-12 December for a joint workshop under the Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF) to deepen operational expertise and share best practices on cybersecurity issues. US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti, Taiwan’s Representative to India Baushuan Ger, former National Cyber Security Coordinator of India Lt. Gen Rajesh Pant, and the United Service Institution of India co-hosted the event. This was the first in-person GCTF program held in India.
An Indian Armed Forces contingent comprising 45 personnel reached Hanoi, Vietnam, to participate in the fourth edition of Joint Military Exercise VINBAX-2023. The exercise will be held from 11-21 December. The Indian contingent comprises 39 personnel from an Engineer Regiment of Bengal Engineer Group and six personnel from the Army Medical Corps. VINBAX is an annual training event conducted alternatively in India and Vietnam. It began in 2018, with the first edition conducted in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh.
On Monday, Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition politician, was removed from a penal colony where he had been imprisoned since the middle of last year, and his current whereabouts are still unknown, his allies said. Navalny’s spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, stated that the staff at the IK-6 facility in Melekhovo had informed his lawyer that the opposition leader was no longer among its inmates. Navalny’s aides have been preparing for his likely transfer to a “special regime” colony after he was sentenced to an additional 19 years in prison in August.
On Monday, Poland’s parliament voted for Donald Tusk to be the next Polish PM, putting the country on track for restoring relations with the EU. Tusk had the support of 248 lawmakers, while 201 voted against him. Poland witnessed billions of euros of EU funds frozen due to a disagreement with Brussels over democratic principles, but Tusk, a former European Council president, has vowed to mend relations and release the funds.
A study carried out by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) found that hunger remains a chronic problem in Asia, with 55 million more people undernourished in 2022 than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. It also found that most of those living without enough to eat are in South Asia, and women tend to be less food secure than men.
Taiwan’s new de facto ambassador to the US, Alexander Yui, arrived in Washington on Monday. The American Institute in Taiwan’s managing director, Ingrid Larson, welcomed Yui upon his arrival.