Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar visited Singapore from 23-25 March. During the visit, he met Singaporean PM Lee Hsien Loong and Deputy PM and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong. In addition to holding bilateral discussions with several dignitaries on various significant matters, the EAM met members of the Indian community and interacted with them.
At the 148th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Geneva, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh slammed Pakistan for raking up the Kashmir issue on the international platform. Rejecting the “absurd” allegations made by Pakistan, Singh asked the country to stop its “terror factories” and said that “lectures from a country with an abysmal record of democracy are laughable.” Furthermore, he asserted that Jammu and Kashmir has been and will always be an “inalienable” and “integral” part of India.
India summoned the German Deputy Chief of Mission in New Delhi, Georg Enzweiler, on Saturday to protest comments made by the German Foreign Office Spokesperson on the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. India emphasised its democratic credentials and rebuffed comments concerning its "internal affairs," stating that such remarks constitute interference with its judicial process. Saying that the law will take due course in the matter, India asserted that biased assumptions made in this regard are “unwarranted.”
The UK alleged on Monday that Chinese hackers made attempts to breach the email accounts of British lawmakers critical of China. Deputy PM Oliver Dowden informed parliament about these attacks, highlighting a consistent pattern of hostile behaviour from the Asian giant. He mentioned that the Foreign Office had summoned the Chinese ambassador to provide an explanation.
The US has accused hackers affiliated with China’s government intelligence agency of orchestrating a prolonged cyber-attack campaign spanning several years, with targets including politicians, journalists, and businesses. According to US authorities, this operation involved the use of sophisticated phishing tactics to target political dissidents and critics of China, resulting in the compromise of email systems and networks. On Monday, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control specifically targeted Wuhan Xiaoruizhi Science and Technology Company Ltd, which it claims serves as a front for the Chinese Ministry of State Security and has been involved in multiple malicious cyber operations.
On Monday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. It also demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. The US withheld its veto and abstained from the vote. This marked the first time that the UNSC passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza since the start of the war in October. Resolution 2728 is non-binding and is not expected to have an immediate impact on the ongoing fighting in Gaza.