Bangladesh under Yunus’ leadership: Challenges, opportunities
By Shafiqul Bashar DHAKA: As Bangladesh finds itself since 8 August 2024 in the interim leadership of Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, the nation stands at a crossroads of potential and peril. Following the ousting of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on 5 August, Dr Yunus’ administration has inherited a complex landscape marked by economic […]
Bahrain reiterates call for international peace conference
By Habib Toumi MANAMA: Bahrain has reiterated its call to hold an expanded and urgent international conference to revive hope in achieving peace. King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa renewed the call as he addressed the bi-cameral parliament convening at the start of its new session. On May 16, King Hamad, chairing the 33rd Arab […]
Pakistan: New version of old story of Ali Baba and 40 Thieves
By Nasir Aijaz The AsiaN Representative ISLAMABAD: ‘Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves’ is an Arabic folktale, the most popular and widely read and retold across the world including Pakistan, especially for children. According to the story, as I read in my childhood, Ali Baba was a poor woodcutter and an honest person who discovers […]
Gulf countries mark 20 years of NATO partnership: Looking back, moving forward
By Habib Toumi NEW YORK: Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the four member countries of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) partnership with NATO have celebrated 20 years of the initiative. An event hosted by the Crown Prince of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al Sabah, on the sideline of the UN General […]
Kyrgyzstan puts forward candidacy for non-permanent UN Security Council membership
By Kuban Andymen BISHKEK: Kyrgyzstan has put forward its candidacy for non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council for the 2027–2028 term. President Sadyr Japarov made the announcement during the general debate at the 79th session of the UN General Assembly. “In the event of election, Kyrgyzstan will work to improve the effectiveness and transparency […]
Saudi Arabia will not recognize Israel without independent Palestinian state: Crown Prince
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia will not recognize Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state, the kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud has said. “The Kingdom will not cease its tireless work toward the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and we affirm that the Kingdom will not […]
Zhaparov highlights Kyrgyzstan’s rich past, bright future
BISHKEK: Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov has paid rich homage to the heroism of all the people who have sacrificed their lives to build an independent and developed Kyrgyzstan, as he vowed to uphold the “sacred duty to continue the work of those fathers.” Marking the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Kara-Kyrgyz Autonomous Oblast, […]
2024 US President Election: The Portrait of Divided America
The 2024 U.S. presidential election campaign could be described as a paradox: both predictable and unpredictable. By Lee Jong-eun, Assistant Professor of Political Science, North Greenville University, U.S. SEOUL: Similar to recent US elections, this year’s presidential election was predicted to display increasingly polarized American politics. On one end of the spectrum, voters who […]
77 members make debut in new-look Saudi Shura Council
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s new-look Shura (Consultative) Council will start on September 6 and will last four years. More than half of the 150 members will mark their debut in the Council after 77 new faces joined and 71 members were re-appointed. The Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Assistant Speaker will remain unchanged in the new composition. […]
Kazakhstan urges Belarus to correctly assess Astana’s position
By Kuban Andymen ASTANA: Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Murat Nurtleu has summoned Belarus’ Ambassador Pavel Utyupin and emphasized the need for an objective assessment of Astana’s foreign policy position by Minsk. During the meeting, the diplomats discussed current issues of Kazakh-Belarusian cooperation at the bilateral and multilateral levels. “Our country is firmly convinced […]