S Jaishankar Indian External Affairs Minister‚ made a brief trip to Pakistan this week its the first time in about 9 years an Indian foreign minister has been there. He went for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit‚ but didnt have any one-on-one meetings with Pakistani officials.
This visit shows how India values the SCO and other groups that help it push for a multi-polar world. The SCO is extra important because it focuses on Central Asia - a region India wants to get closer to but cant easily reach because Pakistan wont let it use its land for trade.
Jaishankarʼs trip doesnt mean India-Pakistan ties are getting much better though. India still says it wont talk until Pakistan deals with terrorist groups on its soil. But things have been calmer since they agreed to a border truce about 3.5 years ago.
Meanwhile Canada kicked out six Indian diplomats saying they were involved in threats against Sikh activists there. India hit back by kicking out six Canadian diplomats. This is making things really tense between the two countries.
In other news Md Jashim Uddin Bangladeshʼs Foreign Secretary‚ had meetings with top US officials in Washington last week. This shows the US wants to support Bangladeshʼs temporary government.
Lastly‚ an Israeli strike hurt two Sri Lankan UN peacekeepers in Lebanon. This is tricky for countries like India and Sri Lanka that have good ties with Israel but also send peacekeepers to Lebanon
We can come out of our debt repayment crisis by realising exports potential of $15 billion to SCO countries
Indiaʼs economy has been growing well‚ but there are some warning signs - like car sales slowing down and factory output dropping. Bangladeshʼs top university is trying to work more with international schools and companies to improve its reputation