Author: Madhu Parki

ESA Chief urges actions against climate change as the Monster Fire in France consumes nearly 7,000 hectares. The Monster Fire: European countries sent firefighting teams for helping France to tackle the monster wildfire. Forest fires also raged in Portugal and Spain. The chief of the European Space Agency (ESA) called for immediate actions in combating climate change. Around 1,000 firefighters, accompanies by water-bombing planes, fought for a third-day fire. This fire has forced thousands to leave their homes. The monster fire consumes thousands of hectares of forest in the Gironde region, southwestern France. The emergency services struggled to get the…

India wants Sri Lanka to learn about the real purposes of the Ship’s visit to Hambantota Port. China’s naval ship, Yuan Wang 5 will be docked at the Hambantota Port of Sri Lanka. There are concerns, economic and strategic. India is wanting Sri Lanka to find out the reasons for the ship’s visit.   All the member nations of Cooperative Maritime Security are concerned over the ship’s visit. The cyber security cooperation and its commitment must be applied to the Chinese naval ship.  Against the present background scenario, Sri Lanka’s decision for allowing the Chinese Yuan Wang 5 to the Hambantota…

Ukraine accused Russia of a deadly rocket attack from a captured nuclear power plan, claiming 13 deaths. While the Russians are denying targeting civilians, China is blaming the US for the conflict. The attack: Russia targeted the town, Marhanets. Around 10 were wounded. According to Ukraine, it was risky to return fire. President Zelenskiy stated that the Ukrainian forces will respond to the Marhanets’ shelling. According to Ukraine’s military, Russia bombarded various places in the Zaporizhzhia region. Vuhledar, the coal-mining town was also attacked. The mayor of Nikopol said that Russian shelling are hitting the communities nearby every night for…

Bangladesh sought support from China for repatriating Rohingya refugees to Myanmar during a visit by Foreign Minister Wang Yi. He also gave a word for better trade relations, investments, and support for infrastructural development in this South Asian nation. China had made use of its influence in Myanmar to mediate a November 2017 agreement for the repatriation of about 700,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from Myanmar in August that year. Although attempts are being made to send them back, the refugees are refusing fearing danger in Myanmar. The military takeover of last year has only added to their fears. …

The countries in Asia must work together to address the Afghanistan issue and security concerns. Almost a year ago, the Taliban had taken over Afghanistan when the United States completed its botched withdrawal from the country. There onwards, various other global crises, especially Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have pushed the Afghan issue to the backstage of the world’s conscience. Afghan and the West: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a previous key player in the US-led intervention in Afghanistan, firmly left the country behind. The latest strategic concept statement mentioned Afghanistan only once and in the peripheral context of crisis prevention. …

South Asia’s nuclear dynamics are closely linked to global scenarios, characterized by two interlinked aspects of US-Russia arms control cooperation and prospects of nuclear disarmament. In June 2022, the annual global weapons arsenal inventory assessment was released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). It pointed out the marginal decrease in the inventories of nine nuclear-armed states.  Yet, over the coming decade, the inventory is expected to grow. According to estimations, there are 12,705 nuclear warheads in total, of which 9,440 are in military stockpiles for potential use. India, Pakistan, and China appear to be in the middle of…

In March, the sixth mass bleaching was confirmed. It raised grave concerns as Australia’s Great Barrier Reef did not witness beaching events so close together. The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) has pointed out grave concerns ahead of this year’s study. In the words of Paul Hardisty, the Chief Executive of AIMS, “In our 36 years of monitoring the condition of the Great Barrier Reef, we have not seen bleaching events so close together”  The Great Barrier Reef and Mass bleaching:  The Great Barrier Reef is home to around 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusks. Some…

If military rulers of Myanmar continue to execute more prisoners, ASEAN will be forced to reconsider a peace plan previously agreed with the nation. ASEAN and Myanmar: Peace Plan with Myanmar The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will be forced to reconsider a peace plan agreed with Myanmar. If its military rulers continue to execute more prisoners. The warning was given by Hun Sen, the Prime Minister of Cambodia. The 10-nation bloc will be hosting an important international gathering this week. It has pushed the Myanmar junta to follow a peace consensus that was agreed upon last year. ASEAN has…

The legend of buried treasures in ancient shipwrecks became reality when a 350-year-old sunken Spanish galleon was uncovered. The trove of artifacts included coins, priceless jewels, and gemstones of seafaring knights.  The History: The Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas (or Our Lady of Wonders) sank in 1656 after colliding with another boat from its fleet and crashing into a coral reef off the Bahamas. It was carrying a haul of treasure and contained more cargo than usual. It has some treasures reserved as royal tax for King Philip IV, from Cuba to Seville, Spain. It also had the task of…

The Afghani government is now looking forward to rebuilding the historic bazaar, which was destroyed in 1990. But the experts do not seem to be pleased with the news. The rebuilding of the Bazaar:  It has been more than two decades since the Bamiyan Buddha statues in Afghanistan were destroyed. The Taliban is now starting construction work near the cliff, where the giant statues once stood. It was in 1990, with the civil war at its peak in the background, when the historic bazaar was destroyed. This is being done to develop a tourism complex. The tourist complex is reported…