Event: Ministry of External Affairs

EPATaliban security forces (file image)Yogita Limaye,South Asia and Afghanistan correspondentandGabriela Pomeroy,BBC NewsPakistani attacks on the east Afghan province of Kunar have killed at least seven people and injured 75, among whom are students and a professor at Kunar University, multiple sources have told the BBC. According to the Taliban government, 30 of the injured are university students. Pakistan's information ministry denied attacking the university and residential areas, saying the reports were fake. Reports of the Kunar attacks come several weeks after a Pakistani air strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in the Afghan capital Kabul which, according to the UN, is now known to have killed 269 people. The Taliban say mortars and rockets were fired in the attack on Kunar province, while other sources told the BBC that jets and drones had been used. An unnamed professor who was teaching at Kunar University told the BBC he had heard terrifying explosions across the university campus.Matiullah Shahab, a freelance journalist and human rights activist in the town of Asadabad, told the BBC he had been a kilometre away from the attack on the university and had heard the sound of a bombardment at around 14:00 (09:30 GMT). He said he had seen people running away from the town centre during the attack, and that he knew of several civilians who had been injured and sent to hospital for treatment. A statement from Afghanistan's higher education ministry said the university's buildings and surroundings had suffered extensive damage.Hundreds of people have been killed or injured in cross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan in recent months. Over the past few weeks, following Chinese mediation which resulted in talks between the two sides in Urumqi in early April, a fragile ceasefire had largely held.During this ceasefire, leaders of the Taliban government decided not to…

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.The two countries discussed long-term military cooperation, as they opened a memorial for North Korean troops killed in Russia’s war in Ukraine.A photograph provided by North Korean state media showed the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, at the opening ceremony of a memorial in Pyongyang on Sunday. Defense Minister Andrei R. Belousov and Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin of Russia sit behind him.Credit...Korean Central News Agency, via ReutersApril 27, 2026North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, hailed a “new history of friendship with Russia written in blood” as he presided over the opening of a memorial built for his troops killed fighting for Russia in its war against Ukraine. Moscow, in turn, pledged to sign a five-year plan for bilateral military cooperation.Mr. Kim and a high-level Russian delegation that included Defense Minister Andrei R. Belousov and Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin attended the unveiling of the memorial complex in Pyongyang on Sunday, state media of both countries reported on Monday. Photos showed Mr. Kim embracing North Korean veterans of the war, as well as Russian delegates, during a ceremony held before a white granite building. He also inspected rows of tombstones for fallen soldiers on the lawn in front of the structure.After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Mr. Kim provided desperately needed support, first sending large shipments of artillery rounds and missiles, then thousands of troops. South Korean intelligence officials believe at least hundreds of North Korean soldiers have been killed in the fighting.Since last summer, North Korea has publicly lionized the fallen, with Mr. Kim lauding them as loyal heroes sacrificed in what he called a “sacred war” in Ukraine and against the U.S.-led global order. He…

Kim Jong Un opens memorial for N Korean soldiers killed in Ukraine warKCNA via ReutersKim Jong Un opened the memorial accompanied by Russian Defence Minister Andrey BelousovNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov have unveiled a memorial in Pyongyang for North Koreans who have died fighting in the Ukraine war.Military jets flew overhead and white balloons were released into the air as Kim and Belousov unveiled a statue and opened a memorial museum.It is not known how many North Korean soldiers are fighting against Ukraine, but South Korean intelligence estimates that at least 15,000 have been sent to help Russia recapture parts of western Kursk.Seoul also estimates that about 2,000 North Koreans have died in the conflict - neither Pyongyang nor Russia have provided any official numbers.In return for providing soliders, it is believed North Korea has received food, money and technical help from Moscow.The opening of the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at the Overseas Military Operations on Sunday coincided with what Russia described as the first anniversary of its recovery of parts of Kursk.Kim assured Belousov that North Korea "will as ever fully support the policy of the Russian Federation to defend the national sovereignty, territorial integrity and security interests", according to state media.Russia will "surely win a victory in the just sacred war", Kim said.KCNA via ReutersMilitary jets flew overhead and white balloons were released into the airBelousov said he discussed long-term military co-operation with North Korean officials, according to Russian news agencies.Aside from Belousov, Kim also met with the speaker of Russia's parliament, Vyacheslav Volodin, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin."Your soldiers fought courageously and heroically," Putin told Kim.In June 2024, Putin and Kim signed a deal pledging that Russia and North Korea will help each other in the…

Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (South) Neena Malhotra poses for a group photograph during the BRICS MENA meeting, in New Delhi. Photo credit: @MEAIndia/X via PTI Extended late-night parleys and heated debates marked the meeting of the 11-nation BRICS Deputy Foreign Ministers and Special Envoys in New Delhi that ended without a joint statement on Friday (April 24, 2026), The Hindu has learnt, indicating more trouble for India’s BRICS Presidency this year.While delegates from the United Arab Emirates and Iran sparred over the war in West Asia, a number of diplomatic and official sources present or briefed about the discussions said that the meetings on April 23-24 also saw an unexpected attempt by India to “tone down” language on Israel and Palestine, which was opposed by almost all other members. Published - April 26, 2026 11:14 pm IST

The U.S. has allowed its waiver of sanctions on Iran’s Chabahar port to lapse on Sunday (April 26), indicating that India is now at a crossroads on how to proceed with the port as a key connectivity initiative. Barring a belated waiver renewal, New Delhi must choose between accepting sanctions and abandoning its $620 million investment, or proceeding with the project and risk strict U.S. sanctions. India’s “start-stop” engagement with Iran on developing a facility at the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar goes back decades, and Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee signed an MoU for the project in 2003. However, U.S. pressure on India to postpone plans aimed at stopping Iran’s nuclear programme led to construction delays. The Manmohan Singh government was unable to make much progress either, but continued work on the Zaranj-Delaram highway to connect the Iran-Afghanistan border crossing to Kabul. After the 2015 JCPOA, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government signed a trilateral agreement with Iran and Afghanistan to advance trade and aid via Chabahar port and a highway into Afghanistan. Chabahar’s importance grew as ties with Pakistan deteriorated and it restricted India’s transit access to Afghanistan. However, fate intervened again as U.S. President Donald Trump walked out of the JCPOA, and began a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran by re-implementing all sanctions. While India was forced by the U.S. to give up Iranian oil imports, and plans for the rail line, the U.S. built a “carve-out” for Chabahar, allowing India to send wheat and medical supplies to Afghanistan. That carve-out is now at an end, with the Trump administration giving Delhi until this month to “wind-down” its operations. Since November 2025, India has withdrawn personnel from Chabahar, prepaid its $120 million investment commitment, and is considering transferring its stake in the Shahid Beheshti Terminal to an Iranian company,…

President Donald Trump. | Photo Credit: AP U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday (April 26, 2026) made a fresh call for building a high-security ballroom within the White House complex, hours after he was evacuated from the annual dinner of journalists at a downtown hotel following a shooting incident.“This event would never have happened with the Militarily Top Secret Ballroom currently under construction at the White House,” Mr. Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday (April 26) morning, and called for dropping the court case in the matter. Published - April 26, 2026 11:59 pm IST

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said his country would continue to support Russia’s policies and he discussed the international political situation with Russia’s defence minister, state media KCNA reported on Monday.A Russian delegation including Defence Minister Andrei Belousov attended a completion ceremony for a ‌‌memorial honouring North Korean soldiers killed while fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces staged an incursion in 2024, KCNA said.Russia launched a full-scale invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022, and its troops are still fighting there, having occupied around a fifth of the country.“The North Korean government ⁠⁠would continue to fully support Russia’s policies of defending its sovereignty, territorial integrity and security interests,” Kim said, according to KCNA.Russian and North Korean leaders take part in an opening ceremony of a museum and memorial complex in Pyongyang on Sunday. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry/EPANorth Korea sent an estimated 14,000 troops to fight with Russian forces in Kursk after the ‌‌two countries agreed a mutual defence pact. South Korean, Ukrainian and ⁠⁠Western officials said more ⁠⁠than 6,000 North Korean soldiers were killed in the fighting.

Asked about NATO, Mr. Trump said he was “very, very disappointed” in the military alliance, which he has suggested the U.S. may consider leaving Published - April 27, 2026 12:30 am IST - Washington U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a press conference after the shooting incident at White House Correspondents' Dinner, in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Reuters President Donald Trump on Sunday (April 26, 2026) said the U.S. and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.In an interview on Fox News Channel, Mr. Trump said he made that decision rather than send a delegation on a 17-hour flight. Published - April 27, 2026 12:30 am IST

U.S. President Donald Trump with Russian President Vladimir Putin. File | Photo Credit: Reuters U.S. President Donald Trump ‌said on Sunday (April 26, 2026) he has “good ​conversations” with Russian President ⁠Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he aims to settle ‌the Russia-Ukraine war.“We’re working on the Russia ‌situation, Russia and Ukraine, and ‌hopefully ⁠we’re going to get ⁠it,” Mr. Trump said in an interview on Fox News’ “The Sunday Briefing.” Published - April 26, 2026 10:07 pm IST