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India is keeping a “very close watch” at the large presence of Chinese vessels in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and other developments in the region to protect its national interests in the maritime domain, Navy Chief, Admiral R Hari Kumar.
During an interaction at The Chanakya Dialogue, organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Admiral Kumar said the Navy is aware that the Chinese PLA Navy is docking its ships at ports in Pakistan and at ports of other countries.
Stating that a certain amount of contest is taking place daily at sea, the Navy chief said while it is well below the threshold of conflict, the possibility of a full-fledged war cannot be ruled out.
On the pace of modernisation of Pakistan Navy or PLA Navy, he said the former is looking to become a 50-platform force in 10-15 years and adding new corvettes and frigates to their fleet, while the latter has commissioned many ships and submarines in the last decade.
He said a third aircraft carrier is under construction and the PLA Navy is working on much larger destroyers, but this could plateau in sometime.
We are keeping a very close watch in the Indian Ocean Region,” he said. The Navy chief said the effort is to know who is present there and what they are up to. He said it is monitored 24×7 and the Navy and we deploy aircraft, UAVs, ships, submarines towards that.
He said two to four Chinese research vessels are always present in the region, and there is a presence of Chinese fishing vessels as well here. “So we refine our plans, actions that are required to be taken, and this also feeds into our capability development.
World
Azerbaijan, Armenia to hold peace talks today in Washington (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Armenia and Azerbaijan will hold a new round of talks in Washington on Sunday to try to normalise relations, the spokesperson of Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said.
Tensions have been rising again between the two countries over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, where Russian peacekeepers were deployed in 2020 to end a war, the second that Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought over the enclave since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.
The mountain region is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated mainly by ethnic Armenians.
From April 30 Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan will be in Washington DC on a working visit. The next round of discussions on the agreement on normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan is scheduled,” the spokesperson, Ani Badalyan, said on her official Facebook page.
There was no immediate confirmation of the meeting by Azerbaijan. Despite years of attempted mediation between them, Armenia and Azerbaijan have yet to reach a peace agreement that would settle outstanding issues such as the demarcation of borders and return of prisoners.
China weighs IVF access for single women to fix population drop (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
As China tries to slow its demographic decline, women like Chen Luojin could be part of the solution.
The divorced 33-year-old lives in Chengdu, capital of the southwestern Sichuan province, which legalised registration of children by unmarried women in February, something China is considering implementing nationwide to address record low birth rates.
The changes mean unmarried women can take paid maternity leave and receive child subsidies previously only available to married couples. Crucially, Chen could access in-vitro fertility (IVF) treatment legally in a private clinic.
Becoming a single parent is not for everyone, but I’m happy with the decision,” said Chen, who works in logistics. Equally, getting married or not is for each individual to decide. We have liberalised the policies here and I know a lot of single women are doing IVF.
Concerned about China’s first population drop in six decades and its rapid ageing, the government’s political advisers proposed in March that single and unmarried women should have access to egg freezing and IVF treatment, among other services. China’s leaders have not commented publicly on the recommendations.
Liberalising IVF nationwide could unleash more demand for fertility treatment in what is already the world’s biggest market, straining limited fertility services. Some investors in the industry see an opportunity to expand.
If China changes their policy to allow single women to have children, this can result in an increase of IVF demand, which is awaiting regulatory approval to launch its IVF technology in China after signing a distribution agreement with Guangzhou-based Onesky Holdings last year.