Welcome to World Brief. It is watching the collapse of India and Pakistan, the bombing of cars in Russia, and peace negotiations between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“Acts of war”
The United Nations urged India and Pakistan on Friday to “execute maximum restraint” as relations between the two nuclear-armed rivals rapidly deteriorate. “I believe that the issues between Pakistan and India should be resolved peacefully and peacefully through meaningful mutual involvement,” said UN spokesman Stephen Dujarik. The warning is reportedly that Indians and Pakistani soldiers temporarily fired a fire late Thursday across the much-patrol and contested borders of the Kashmir region.
Welcome to World Brief. It is watching the collapse of India and Pakistan, the bombing of cars in Russia, and peace negotiations between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“Acts of war”
The United Nations urged India and Pakistan on Friday to “execute maximum restraint” as relations between the two nuclear-armed rivals rapidly deteriorate. “I believe that the issues between Pakistan and India should be resolved peacefully and peacefully through meaningful mutual involvement,” said UN spokesman Stephen Dujarik. The warning is reportedly that Indians and Pakistani soldiers temporarily fired a fire late Thursday across the much-patrol and contested borders of the Kashmir region.
Historically tensions between the two countries flare on Tuesday, killing 26 people near the Kashmir resort town of Pahargam in the worst terrorist attacks against civilians in India-controlled territory in decades. India accused Pakistan of supporting extremists who are thought to be responsible for the attack, but Islamabad denied any involvement.
In response to Tuesday's attack, India has closed Atari Waga, the main land border that intersects with Pakistan. A revoked visa issued to Pakistani citizens for effective on Sunday. It has then suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, a key water sharing agreement with Pakistan. The treaty was signed in 1960 and endured two wars between the countries. Some experts say that if India decides to limit water flow, it could lead to severe water shortages in Pakistan, especially during the dry season. The country is already struggling with droughts and low rainfall. However, many experts say that such fear is exaggerated and India has no ability to contain such large amounts of water. There are also concerns that New Delhi could release excess water from some rivers without notifying Islamabad, causing flooding.
Pakistan warned on Thursday that India's attempts to stop or divert water flow under the Indus Water Treaty were considered a “act of war” and threatened to halt the 1972 Shimura Agreement. India effectively ended its semi-autonomous position in 2019 under the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.
On Thursday, Pakistan also cancelled special visas issued to Indian citizens, closing airspace to all airlines owned or operated by India, cutting diplomatic staff in New Delhi in Islamabad and halting all trade with India through third parties.
Kashmir has long been a flash point in India-Pakistan relations, but recent rise in extremist violence could potentially refer to a “feeling-looking” among the region's population, FP columnist Summit Ganguly wrote in November, following another attack on civilians.
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What we follow
Car bombing. An improvised explosive device killed Lieutenant General Jaroslav Moskarik in the city of Barashika near Moscow on Friday. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova called the blast a “terrorist attack” and Kremlin officials launched a criminal investigation into his murder. Zakharova's language, which Moscow used to explain past bombings targeting Russian soldiers, claims that Russia was made on behalf of Ukraine.
Moscarick's murder coincided with White House envoy Steve Witkov's trip to Moscow on Friday, during which US officials met with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the Russian-Ukraine peace talks. This was the fourth meeting in recent months, and after President Donald Trump, he told Time magazine that “Crimea will remain in Russia” as part of a future deal. Russia currently occupying Ukrainian territory, but Kiev claims it will not recognize the land.
Although details of Putin's three-hour meeting with Witkov have not been revealed, Putin's foreign policy advisor Yury Ushakov called the lecture “constructive.” Meanwhile, Trump said Friday that he could speak to Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky on the sidelines of Pope Francis' funeral in Vatican City on Saturday.
Hope for peace. Foreign ministers from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo were convened in Washington on Friday to discuss ways to promote peace and economic development. The conference was part of a diplomatic effort to end months of violence between the Congolese forces and the M23 rebels in eastern Congo. Many international communities, including the Congo and the United Nations, have accused Rwanda of funding rebel groups, but Kigali has denied the allegations.
Congolese President Felix Tsushisekedi repeatedly refused to negotiate directly with the M23. However, Kinshasa attended peace talks in Doha, Qatar this week, and on Wednesday the Congo and M23 agreed to suspend the battle. “The parties reaffirm their commitment to immediately halting hostilities, hate speech, categorical rejection of threats and calling on communities to support these commitments,” they said in a joint statement. The ceasefire will apply during the period of peace negotiations.
Customs duty exemption. China appeared quietly rewind 125% retaliatory tariffs on some US goods on Friday. According to three import agencies in Shenzhen City, Beijing has applied tariff exemptions to US semiconductors. Last year, China imported $11.7 billion worth of important technology from the United States.
The US-China trade war has escalated in recent weeks. On Friday, Trump told reporters he had spoken with Chinese President Xi Jinping “multiple times,” but it is unclear if any of these cases have been after Washington has assigned Beijing a 145% mission. “He's called, and I don't think that's a sign of weakness on his behalf,” Trump told Time Magazine in an interview published Friday.
However, Beijing refuses such calls. “China and the US have not discussed or negotiated the issue of tariffs,” Guo Zi-Kung, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, said on Friday. “The United States should not confuse the public.”
What in the world?
Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church, passed away Monday. How old was he?
A. 76
B. 81
C. 88
D. 93
Odds and the end
For the first time in history, anthropologists have revealed direct evidence of gladiator battles. In one PLOS paper published Wednesday, researchers cited physical evidence that the Roman Empire held a classic battle between men and beasts. Gladiator II Director Ridley Scott finally gets a big relief sigh.
And the answer is…
C. 88
During his tenure, Francis was known as the Champion of the Poor People and a progressive leader who sought to reconstruct the priorities of the Church, Christopher White wrote.
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