Indian businesses engaged in diamond cutting and jewellery production will continue to work with Russian rough diamonds, a media source reported on Sunday, citing Indian sources in Surat. “We have not stopped working with Russian rough diamonds, despite the imposed restrictions, although purchase volumes have decreased,” the source informed. Russian diamonds accounted for 30% to 35% of the market in Surat, India’s diamond capital, the source said.
On Sunday, the Kerem Shalom crossing between Israel and Gaza opened for the first time since the beginning of the war. Officials noted that this would help boost the amount of medicine and food reaching the enclave. COGAT, an Israeli military division that coordinates humanitarian aid with the Palestinian territories, said, “Starting 17 December, UN aid trucks will undergo security checks and be transferred directly to Gaza via Kerem Shalom, to abide by our agreement with the US.”
Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria plan to sign an agreement in January on a joint initiative to clear mines floating in the Black Sea as a result of the Ukraine War, Turkish Defence Minister Yasar Guler said on Saturday. Guler told reporters at a meeting in Ankara that the “Trilateral Initiative” would initially only involve three countries and that their defence ministers planned to sign it in Istanbul on 11 January 2024.
Japan and members of ASEAN agreed to “strengthen dialogue and cooperation for the maintenance of maritime security and safety, maritime order based on the rule of law, including freedom and safety of navigation and overflight and unimpeded commerce,” their joint statement said after a summit in Tokyo.
North Korea test-launched another long-range ballistic missile on Monday with the potential capability of striking the US, South Korea, and Japan officials said. This came close on the heels of another shorter-range missile launch on Sunday night. Japanese PM Fumio Kishida described the two launches as a “threat to peace and stability,” while the US State Department condemned them.
China on Friday pressured Taiwan with a trade barrier probe and warplanes in the Taiwan Strait a month before the island holds key elections. Taipei called on Beijing to stop its “political operations.”
Indian Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said on Friday that the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations are on the last leg and being expedited to resolve the remaining issues. Barthwal noted that teams from both countries are conducting alternate visits and negotiating both physically and via videoconferencing on a fast-track basis to iron out the unresolved differences. He held that while timelines are in place concerning the FTA talks that started in January 2022, there are no deadlines set for concluding the agreement.
On Saturday, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma said that the spirit of the 1971 Liberation War is the bedrock of India-Bangladesh ties. Verma stated that the people’s victory is evidence of the time-tested friendship between Dhaka and New Delhi and embodies the joint sacrifices made by both nations for Bangladesh’s freedom. The High Commissioner highlighted that the scope of partnership and engagement between the two sides has seen immense growth in recent years. He mentioned that India is ready to walk with Bangladesh in realising its vision of a stable, progressive, and prosperous nation.
During Exercise Astrashakti 2023, India made history by becoming the first nation to show that it could use a single firing unit under command guidance to engage four targets at once at 25 km ranges. On 12 December, the Indian Air Force used the indigenous Akash Missile System against four unmanned aerial targets at the Suryalanka Air Force Station.