International and Bilateral Issues

Afghanistan on Wednesday asked the Indian industrial houses to invest in sectors such as mining and manufacturing and construction activities.
Indian SMEs could explore areas such as plastics, poultry, packaging, food processing and preserving agri-products.
The bilateral trade between the two nations stood at $557.81 million in 2010-11.
We hope that the Transit Agreement which we have signed with Pakistan will enable India to export goods through Wagah
India was importing 75 tonnes of Afghan apples a week at the peak of the season last year.
The Indian Government had funded the construction of a hydro-electric plant in Herat province

A “radical takeover” of Pakistan, which possesses “approximately 90-110 nuclear warheads,” or a proliferation by radical sympathisers within Pakistan's “nuclear complex in case of a breakdown of controls,” could have an impact on the country's nuclear safeguards
Islamabad is producing fissile material, adding to related production facilities, and deploying additional delivery vehicles
Islamabad does not have a public, detailed nuclear doctrine, but its “minimum credible deterrent” is widely regarded as designed to dissuade India from taking military action against Pakistan

The U.S. Department of Justice has removed the veil of secrecy over the murky dealings of Kexue Huang, a Chinese national and permanent U.S. resident, who pleaded guilty on Tuesday to one count of economic espionage to benefit a component of the Chinese government and one count of theft of trade secrets.
the case of Kexue echoes another stunning case of a Chinese national, Xun Wang, who was indicted in August of exporting 360 gallons of high-performance nuclear reactor paint to Pakistan for use in its Chinese-made Chashma reactor.
A Dow Kexue was very much at the heart of the company's operations as a research scientist involved in agrochemical and biotechnology products.

Protests against the government's austerity measures turned violent in Greece
In the Athens' Parliament Square, police used tear gas canisters and arrested several young people, many of them hooded, who lobbed Molotov cocktails at them.
Life has been almost totally paralysed across the country with schools and colleges, public services, companies, shops and offices, transport services, hospitals, banks and government offices all observing the strike.
over 70,000 persons converged on Syntagma (Constitution) Square
Parliamentarians are scrambling to do the bidding of the “troika” composed of the European Union, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank who are monitoring the Greek response to its public debt management, and who have made these further cuts conditional to the next tranche of money that might slightly ease the noose around the Greeks.

One of the most acrimonious run-ups to the Man Booker Prize in recent years had a happy ending as British novelist Julian Barnes was on Tuesday declared the unanimous winner of this year's £50,000 prize for his novella, “The Sense of an Ending'', hailed as an “exquisite'' meditation on growing old, the nature of memory and relationships.
the Man Booker Prize in recent years had a happy ending as British novelist Julian Barnes was on Tuesday declared the unanimous winner of this year's £50,000 prize for his novella, “The Sense of an Ending'', hailed as an “exquisite''
Mr. Barnes, who had been shortlisted three times before without ever winning the prize, said he was “relieved'' that he had finally got it.
The other contenders were: Carol Birch (“Jamrach's Menagerie''); Patrick deWitt (“The Sisters Brothers''), Esi Edugyan (“Half Blood Blues''); and debut authors Stephen Kelman (“Pigeon English'') and AD Miller (“Snowdrops'').

Speaking at the United Nations, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad offered to stop all uranium enrichment beyond the five per cent level (used in civilian power plants), if Iran was able to purchase specialised fuel enriched at 20 per cent for use in its research reactor that produces medical isotopes for the treatment of cancer. The Obama administration could have seized the opportunity and at least moved forward to test whether Iran was indeed willing to do so. Instead, by launching a public offensive on the alleged assassination plot, it has not only squandered a chance but probably strengthened the position of the nuclear hawks within Iran.
Mr Ahmadinejad has evidently fallen out of favour with the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei(religious head).

Hillary Clinton, accompanied by a high-powered delegation, is headed to Pakistan this week to make yet another effort to find common ground in Afghanistan
Mullen’s comments were followed by more threats in the US Congress to cut off aid to Pakistan
US and Afghan forces have this week begun “Operation Knife Edge” against the Haqqani network

India’s strength lies in its relatively balanced economy, much more domestic demand driven than China. It has a high savings rate given its favourable demographics and an investment rate of about 35 per cent of GDP, which is what one should expect at this stage of a country’s development. Our consumption rate is also close to the normal trend line of almost 60 per cent. If there is an imbalance, it is in the unusually high contribution of the service sector to our GDP growth, estimated at 58 per cent against China’s 40 per cent. India’s manufacturing sector needs to grow much faster and so must exports of manufactured goods. These adjustments are well within the realm of possibility and are, in fact, beginning to happen. In the longer run, the resilience of the Indian economy will prove to be a far greater asset than its ability to deliver Chinese-style double-digit growth. And I believe Indians would any day accept two per cent less GDP growth if this is the price they must pay for the privilege of living in a plural, free-wheeling and liberal society

Shri Anand Sharma, offered to host the first annual trilateral meeting in New Delhi in early March 2012
The three nation’s trade is already close to USD 20 billion
target of 25 billion USD trade by 2015
The South African and Indian trade ministers also decided to enter into long term contracts for purchase of raw materials and commodities, and the recently opened office of MMTC in South Africa
trilateral FTA involving India SACU and MERCOSUR.