GS-II

China’s escalating trade war with the U.S. is drawing Beijing and Moscow closer to each other. China’s decision to curb soya bean imports from the U.S. as part of a tit-for-tat tariff spiral between the two countries is bringing Russia, especially its less developed but resource-rich ‘Far East’, into the …

The leader of Afghanistan’s Taliban said on Saturday there will be no peace in Afghanistan as long as the foreign “occupation” continues, reiterating the group’s position that the 17-year war can only be brought to an end through direct talks with the United States. In a message released in honour …

North Korean state media blamed U.S. President Donald Trump’s political opponents for the “deadlock” over denuclearisation on Saturday, urging him to act boldly to make progress on the thorny issue. Mr. Trump and Kim Jong-un held a summit in Singapore in June, which the U.S. leader touted as a historic …

Research by the Centre for Adivasi Research and Development has revealed that following the NITI Aayog recommendations in Jharkhand, 1,300 primary and middle schools were merged or closed and the government was targeting another 4,600 schools this year. In Karnataka, both government and aided schools located within 1 km from …

In an attempt to turn the alleged scam in the Rafale deal into the focal point of its campaign for the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the Congress has decided to hold demonstrations from the district to State levels demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation. This was decided at a meeting …

All the attention over the privacy aspects of Aadhaar has diverted the conversation from the legitimate uses of a biometric ID, such as weeding out multiple PAN cards linked to the same person, according to a number of lenders. The issue, they said, is that many unscrupulous people run up …

Kenneth Juster says you can’t attract investment and build industry by creating higher duties or more regulation Calling upon India to rethink trade barriers, tariffs and regulations in order to become a “hub” for innovation and production, U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Juster says that India and the U.S. need to see …

The Myanmar-based Shangnyu Shangwang Khaplang faction of the extremist National Socialist Council of Nagaland, or NSCN-K, has ousted the last of its ‘Indian’ leaders. Mr. Konyak, 70, is a Naga of Indian origin. A China-trained rebel, he had taken over as chairman of the NSCN-K after Khaplang died in June …

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attacked “hostile forces” over “brigandish” sanctions, state media reported on Friday, as Washington seeks to maintain pressure on Pyongyang over its nuclear programme. According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency, Mr. Kim did not name the U.S. but rebuked what he called …

Nepal introduced a new criminal code on Friday that makes sharing confidential information a jailable offence, sparking concerns among journalists that the laws could be used to muzzle the press. Media have warned that the Communist-led government, which has shown an increasing intolerance for dissent, could use the vaguely worded …