INDIA PONDERS LINK BETWEEN CHINA AND NORTHEAST REBELS
Recent rebel attacks by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang) or NSCN(K) along the India-Myanmar border ended a 14 year ceasefire between NSCN(K) and the Indian government. Indian officials and analysts have since drawn potential correlations between Northeastern insurgents and China, citing past military and intelligence cooperation, though concrete evidence remains scarce. (Foreign Policy, June 25, 2015)
ARMED GUARDS MAY BE REMOVED FROM COMMERCIAL SHIPS
Ship managers are considering doing away with armed guards to protect their commercial ships from pirates. Anywhere from 50,000 to 90,000 ships transit the Straits of Malacca and Singapore annually, but the probability of a successful armed robbery or piracy attack on a merchant vessel runs only between 0.012 and 0.07 percent. Daren Knight, managing director of security company Knight Associates, stresses alternate defense strategies that promote cost efficacy such as medical preparedness and revised policy. (Maritime Executive, June 24, 2015)
BURMA'S ARMY BLOCKS LEADER'S BID FOR PRESIDENCY
Burmese president Thein Sein, the country’s parliament, and its army have joined forces to block a bid by legendary political activist Aung San Suu Kyi to run for president on constitutional grounds. Subclause 59(f) of the constitution states that anyone with a foreign spouse or relative cannot become president. Ms. Suu Kyi’s sons hold British passports. A constitutional amendment to change the requirement would need a 75% majority, yet 25% of parliamentarians are serving soldiers under orders not to vote in favor of constitutional amendments that in any way could jeopardize the army’s control of Burma. (Independent, June 25, 2015)
PAK OFFICER ASSISTED TALIBAN IN KABUL ATTACK
According to HassibSediqqi of the Afghan intelligence service, a Pakistani intelligence officer named Bilalaided the Pakistani-based terrorist group the Haqqani network in a string of attacks last week in Kabul, Afghanistan. A suicide car bomb used was reportedly manufactured in Peshawar, Pakistan. Afghan authorities were also apparently made aware of the forthcoming attack several days prior and deployed extra security. Despite the warning, the attack still killed two people and wounded 30 others. (US News and World Report, June 24, 2015)
CHINA BLOCKS INDIA BID TO SANCTION PAK TERRORIST
During a United Nations sanctions committee meeting on June 23, India claimed that the release ofknown-terrorist Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi’s on bail in Pakistan violated resolution 1267. Lakhvi was involved in organizing the Mumbai attack of 2008 that claimed nearly 200 lives. China was the only P5 member to snub the proposal. The veto is China’s latest in a long line of political moves to block Indian proposals to counter Pakistan-based terrorism. (Diplomat , June 25, 2015)