Link To Article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20n3x62rgjo This article covers the H-1B visa program which is designed to bring skilled foreign workers to the U.S.. It shows how the program has sparked debate as Donald Trump prepares for his second term as president. While Trump now supports the program, critics argue it undercuts American jobs, though proponents like Elon Musk say it ensures… Read more »
Link To Article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpdnwdz2dx8o This article covers the 8th of January 2025, where a coal mine in Assam, India, suffered a catastrophic flooding incident, trapping nine miners. Ravi Rai, a survivor from Nepal, recounted his narrow escape after being stranded in 50-60 feet of water for nearly an hour, clinging to a rope before being rescued. Illegal rat-hole mining, where… Read more »
Link To Article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8ke9e27dxo This article discusses India’s recent diplomatic meeting with the Taliban and how it marks a significant shift in India’s regional strategy. After losing its influence in Afghanistan when the Taliban took power in 2021, India is now re-engaging with the regime to rebuild connections. Discussions between India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Taliban Foreign Minister Amir… Read more »
https://eurasianet.org/russias-economic-woes-starting-to-overflow-into-kazakhstan The value of the tenge, Kazakhstan’s currency, has dropped dramatically in recent months, hovering around 520-530 tenge per US dollar since the beginning of December. For comparison, the exchange rate was around 450 tenge per one US dollar in the beginning of 2024—its value has decreased by 13% over the course of the year. Many Kazakhs, facing inflation of… Read more »
Link to Article: https://thediplomat.com/2025/01/sri-lankas-dilemmas-over-chinese-research-vessels/ Sri Lanka has found itself in the heat of a raging debate between India and China over the future of the allegiances of the same island nation, and who it will continue to pander to in years to come. In a public statement, the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Narendra Modi stated unequivocally that the government… Read more »
Link to article: https://apnews.com/article/india-navy-submarine-warships-launch-69c138048bb4202a1a409b0b2353a2f4 On Wednesday, January 15, 2024, India’s navy launched a submarine, a destroyer, to protect the Indian Ocean as it is were 95% of India’s trade moves. The cause for launching the submarine was due to the strong and growing Chinese presence; Rahul Bedi, India’s defence analyst says that the situation in the Indian Ocean is challenging… Read more »
Link to article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8j89k02py0o The Indian space agency, Isro, had for the first time conducted space docking by joining together two small crafts in space. On December 30, the mission called SpaDeX (Space Docking Experiment) blasted off from the Sriharikota launch pad in southern India. Two spacecraft launched on a single rocket which separated in space. The docking process, originally… Read more »
Link to article: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/un-says-dozens-women-900-people-iran-executed-2024-rcna186743 This year the U.N. has reported nine-hundred and one executions of Iranian citizens in 2024, over 30 of which were women and many others were their own Kurdish citizens. Political dissidents and people connected with the 2022 mass protests over a 22-year-old woman’s death in police custody were also among those who were hung by the… Read more »
Link to article: https://thediplomat.com/2025/01/afghanistan-continues-to-refine-its-extraction-strategy/ With the Taliban’s increased effort to crack down on NGOs and women’s rights in the country, they have started to invest more in resource extraction. This is because they know that they won’t be popular with Western countries, leading to sanctions and pressure. In November, they announced 3 large deals with firms worth over 1.2 billion… Read more »
Link to article:https://thediplomat.com/2025/01/india-reimposes-restrictions-on-foreign-nationals-visiting-three-northeastern-states/ India has reimposed the Protected Area Regime, which only allows foreigners to visit select states with a permit, on Manipur, Nagaland, and Mizoram. Permits would list place of residence, place of entry, and length of stay. This was done because of “growing security concerns” in the northeast part of the country, which has been historically sensitive. This… Read more »