Experts react: EU and India clash on vaccines, make strides on trade New Atlanticist by South Asia Center
European Council President Charles Michel participates in an online summit with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the EU summit round table meeting at the Crystal Palace. Photo by Dario Pignatelli/European Council via Reuters.
On May 8, 2021, leaders from the European Union (EU) and India met virtually in Porto, Portugal, for the EU-India Leaders’ Meeting. With an emphasis on shared interests, democratic values, and respect for human rights a controversial issue given India’s recent democratic backslide the meeting culminated in the renewal of free-trade negotiations, the start of two additional trade agreements, and a new Connectivity Partnership. This represents a significant opportunity for India as the country is one of two with which the EU has concluded such a partn
Afghanistan: What now to avoid disaster? New Atlanticist by James Cunningham, Hugo Llorens, Ronald E. Neumann, Richard Olson, and Earl Anthony Wayne
Schoolchildren walk past an Afghan National Army soldier keeping watch at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, on April 21, 2021. Photo by Mohammad Ismail/Reuters.
Bitter fighting lies ahead in Afghanistan, with the coming withdrawal of all US and NATO forces from the country. The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) will go from doing most of the fighting to all of it, as well as all of the dying, which they have already been doing in recent months.
A taxi drives past a poster of Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal state, in Kolkata, India, February 9, 2019. Picture taken February 9, 2019. REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri
On April 28, 2021, India once again broke the world record of highest number of cases by registering 360,960 new COVID-19 infections. 3,293 covid deaths were recorded that day, almost certainly a gross undercount. This is a dramatic reversal of fortunes. A month ago, the Health Minister declared India was “in the endgame” of the coronavirus; the pathogen ignored his proclamation. April has seen India humbled on the world’s stage, its health system crippled to the brink of complete collapse by a dangerous uptick in the daily number of COVID-19 cases. The result is a devastating shortage of hospital beds and oxygen, particularly in New Delhi, the nation’s capital. The international news surrounding India has focused on Indian vaccine producers’ appeal to the Biden administration to end the ban o
Hope amid a ‘window of uncertainty’ for Afghanistan New Atlanticist by Larry Luxner
It’s not just “a road map, but a hope map.”
“While the announced withdrawal of all coalition forces [from Afghanistan] before September 11 certainly presents significant new challenges, our dialogues have focused on the full range of diplomatic, security, and financial levers that can be employed in partnership with the Afghan people to advance an integrated and durable peace and security framework,” said Stephen Heintz, president and CEO of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, in introducing the discussion. “The road ahead will certainly not be easy, but the challenges ahead are not insurmountable if the transatlantic community redefines its partnership with Afghanistan and commits to use the full array of non-military tools that remain available.”
A transatlantic charter for peace and security in Afghanistan atlanticcouncil.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from atlanticcouncil.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.