BHUTAN’S ELECTIONS MAKE WAY FOR NEW PARTY
Bhutan’s parliamentary elections have resulted in the removal of the incumbent ruling Druk Pheunshum Tshogpa party (DPT), with the main opposition People Democratic Party winning 32 out of 47 seats. Relations between India and Bhutan, a virtual Indian protectorate, have been relatively strained over the past year after outgoing PM Jigme Y Thinley’s decision to meet former Chinese prime minister Wen Jiabao at a meeting in Rio de Janeiro last June. It was the first official contact between political leaders from Bhutan and China at that level. (The two countries are engaged in a series of negotiations over their relatively small border dispute). The meeting coincided with the reduction of gas and kerosene subsidies from India to Bhutan that have impacted Bhutan’s fragile economy. At the time, Indian officials accused “unscrupulous elements” of taking advantage of the special economic relationship between the two nations. Manmohan Singh has written to leader of the PDP and incoming Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay and assured him of “unflinching and steadfast” support from India, and insisted that India. (The Business Standard, July 18, 2013)
PAKISTANI TALIBAN SETS UP CELL IN SYRIA
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has reportedly set up a special operations cell in Syria to participate in the ongoing “jihad” against the Assad regime. “The cell has been established with the help of the Arab fighters who had fought in Afghanistan and have now moved to Syria to take part in the jihad,” a Taliban official told the BBC Urdu. “In the last two months, around 12 information technology experts have moved to Syria.” The coordinating official of the cell, Muhammad Amin, told the BBC that the cell was set up six months ago “in order to keep a watch on the ongoing jihad.” The cell shares information regarding the Syrian conflict with Pakistan-based militants. According to a Taliban official, many of the current militants in Syria affiliated with the TTP cell previously participated in the conflict in Afghanistan. Pakistani authorities have declined to comment on the development. (The Express Tribune, July 14, 2013)
PAK/US DISAGREE ON DRONES, NUCLEAR ENERGY
Last week two militants were killed in a US drone strike in the tribal province of Waziristan. Their identities were not clear thought a security source said they were foreign militants of Turkmen origin. Pakistan’s incoming prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, condemned the strike as a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty. This is the third time the U.S. has carried out a drone operation in Pakistan since Sharif was sworn in for his third term last month.
The same week the U.S. State Department issued a statement dispelling rumors that the U.S. and Pakistan were discussing the possibility of civil nuclear agreement. "We've seen those rumors, but I can confirm there was no discussion of civilian nuclear technology," State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters when asked about such reports from Islamabad. This contrasts with a statement by Pakistan’s Finance Minister, Ishaq Dar, who said that Pakistan and the U.S. had agreed in principle to continue dialogue on cooperation in civil nuclear technology. (Reuters, July 14, 2013; The Nation, July 17 2013)
INDIA TO SEND 50,000 TROOPS TO CHINA BORDER
Last week India’s Cabinet Committee on Security, the country’s top national security policymaking body headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, cleared a longstanding proposal to send 50,000 additional troops to its disputed border with China in India’s northeast. The offensive strike corps – the first of its kind for the China border – will be headquartered at Panagarh in West Bengal. The army had originally proposed the creation of the corps in 2010 but was delayed until now. The corps will include new armored and artillery divisions (Financial Express July 17, 2013)
SHARIF ACKNOWLEDGES PAKISTAN’S FRAGILITY
During his first few weeks in office, Pakistan’s new prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, has spent most of his time focused on the crippled economy and an energy crises that causes 18 hour daily blackouts across the country. He accepted a $5.3 billion bailout appropriated by the International Monetary Fund to help curb the energy shortage but has been told by a number of capitals and foreign investors that the lack of security in the country would continue to undermine its economic prospects. Already 170 people have been killed in terrorist attacks since Sharif came to power early last month. In an effort to take a more proactive stand on the security front, Sharif has held weekly meetings with the powerful military and intelligence agencies, and has signaled his intent to create a civilian-led national security strategy, and Pakistan’s first national security council reporting directly to the prime minister. (The Financial Times, July 18, 2013)