January 2011

Political Issues

Iran

1. Asian Caravan to Gaza welcomed by Ahmadinejad

Tehran, Tuesday, 14 December 2010

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today (13 December) went out of his way to greet an Indian contingent of peacemakers on an overland caravan to the Gaza Strip.

Source: The Telegraph, Kolkata

2. On U.S. request, India shuts payment route for Iran oil imports

New Delhi, Thursday, 30 December 2010

In a move that is being seen as an example of India succumbing to American pressure, the Reserve Bank of India has barred companies from using the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) to process current account transactions for oil and gas imports — a decision that directly hits at Indian energy imports from Iran.

Source: The Hindu, Chennai; See Also: The Telegraph Kolkata 

3. India, Iran to discuss oil payment crisis

New Delhi, Friday, 31 December 2010

Indian and Iranian representatives will meet in Mumbai on Friday (31 December) to put in place a new mechanism for Indian oil companies to make payments for the Iranian crude oil they buy. 

Source: The Hindu, Chennai; See Also: The Economic Times, New Delhi; Khaleej Times,  Dubai

Lebanon

4. Hamas Leader welcomes Asian Caravan to Gaza

Damascus, Friday, 24 December 2010

Asia 1, the first convoy to attempt to reach Gaza from Asia, began its journey from India and travelled through Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Syria before arriving in Lebanon on Thursday (23 December). According to Iran's Press TV, the mission was welcomed by Syrian-based Hamas leader Khalid Masha’al. A seven-member delegation of Iranian lawmakers joined the mission while it was in Damascus. 

Source: The Jerusalem Post

Saudi Arabia

5. Kingdom, India in talks over chemicals anti-dumping

Dubai, Tuesday, 7 December 2010

Saudi Arabia and India are in talks over anti-dumping measures taken by India on the imports of polyethylene from Saudi Arabia, the chief executive of Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) said on Monday (6 December). Anti-dumping measures against petrochemical exports taken by both countries last year interrupted trade flows and hurt businesses in the Gulf region. 

Source: Arab News, Riyadh

Yemen

6. Yemen: Commandos being sent to guard Indian Mission

New Delhi, Sunday, 19 December 2010

India has decided to send over 100 specially trained commandos to protect its mission in Yemen amid rising threats from terror groups including banned al-Qaeda in that country. 

Source: Outlook, New Delhi

Economic Issues

United Arab Emirates

7. Ashok Leyland's new vehicle factory inaugurated in UAE

Dubai, Friday, 17 December 2010

Sheikh Saud Bin Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of the Ras Al Khaimah Free Trade Zone inaugurated the new factory started by Ashok Leyland, the Indian commercial vehicle manufacturer and the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority in collaboration in Dubai. This is being seen as a boost for the local economy and a presence making step for the Hinduja group. 

Source: The Economic Times, New Delhi 

Multilateral

8. Air India to offer more flights from Middle East

Dubai, Monday, 13 December 2010

Air India decided to offer more flights from the Gulf Region to South East Asia, SAARC nations and so on to explore new avenues since Middle East is one of the largest and most important markets for Air India. Air India regional manager ~ Gulf, West Asia and Africa Abhay Pathak said “We are also offering Delhi hub for selling in this market where the passengers can travel from Gulf to South East Asia, Kathmandu, Sri Lanka, SAARC countries and West bound New York via India.” 

Source: The Hindu, Chennai;  See Also: The Statesman, Kolkata

9. BSE to launch Sharia-compliant index

Mumbai, Saturday, 25 December 2010

The Bombay Stock Exchange and Taqwaa Advisory and Sharia Investment Solutions (TASIS) plan to launch the BSE TASIS Sharia 50 index which will be the first of its kind created by following the guidelines listed by the Indian Sharia Advisory Board. This step is said to help the Muslim population as according to the Muslim Law, that is, Sharia, the Muslims are forbidden to invest in companies that have links with alcohol, firearms and so on and hence a list of 50 stocks which were safe. 

Source: The Hindu, Chennai

10. New India-Middle East-Europe submarine cable launched

IMEWE, a group of nine leading telecom players launched a new high capacity, state-of-the-art fibre-optic submarine cable between India and Europe via the Middle East. This would benefit broadband users along the route. The UAE-based telecom giant Etisalat said it is the most advanced cable connecting India in South Asia to Italy and France in Western Europe via the Middle East, traversing Pakistan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Lebanon along the way. 

Source: The Hindu, Chennai 

Miscellaneous

11. Al Jazeera English comes to India

New Delhi, Wednesday, 8 December 2010

On Tuesday (7 December) Al Jazeera, the international news network that has it’s headquarter in Doha, Qatar launched an English news channel in India after a four year wait for approval from the India government. 

Source: The Hindu, Chennai

Shubhra Chaturvedi is an Intern at MEI@ND. Email.

As part of its editorial policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spelling and date formats to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND: P R Kumaraswamy