West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | July 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Pan-Regional and Global Issues WANA and Ukraine Conflict: On June 29, Syria announced that it has recognised the independence and sovereignty of Donetsk and Luhansk republics, the two pro-Russia entities which have broken away from Ukraine. A Turkish military delegation travelled to Russia during the […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | June 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Pan-Regional and Global Issues Russian Invasion of Ukraine: On an Italian TV programme on May 2, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was asked how Russia can claim that it is fighting to “de-Nazify” Ukraine when President Volodymyr Zelensky is himself Jewish. His reply, “I could […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | May 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Pan-Regional and Global Issues WANA and Afghanistan: On April 11, Afghan protesters chanted slogans such as “death to Iran” outside the Iranian embassy in Kabul and pelted Iran’s consulate in Herat with rocks. These protests were reacting to the videos allegedly showing Iranian border guards […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | April 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Pan-Regional and Global Issues WANA and Ukraine Conflict: During the month under review, WANA countries had to contend with the Ukraine war in several ways. Turkey and Israeli leaders were engaged in containing the hostilities and negotiating a ceasefire. They were eventually unsuccessful. The major […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | March 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Regional and Global Issues Impact of Omicron Covid-19: While the Covid-19 Omicron wave seemed to be receding in most of the West Asia North Africa (WANA) region, it continued unabated in some pockets. The WHO reported on Feb 9 that infections and deaths were rising […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | February 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Regional Issues Impact of Omicron Covid-19: On Jan 25, IMF First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath put the total global economic losses from the pandemic at close to $13.8 trillion through 2024. Many parts of the West Asia and North Africa (WANA) region were ravaged […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | January 2022
HIGHLIGHTS • Political Developments • Economic Developments• Bilateral Developments IA) Political Developments: Regional Issues Impact of Omicron Covid-19: As Omicron strain of SARS-Coronavirus knocked on the doors of West Asian states, preventive steps were hurriedly put in place. The first such cases were reported in Saudi Arabia (Dec 1), the UAE (1/12), Kuwait (8/12), Qatar (17/12), Iran (19/12) […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | December 2021
IA) Political Developments: Regional Issues Impact of Omicron Covid-19: Discovery of a new and more virulent strain of the SARS-Coronavirus in South Africa and its designation of Variant of Concern by the WHO on November 26 sent a wave of panic throughout the world, including the WANA region. Apart from the renewed threat of infections, it […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | November 2021
IA) Political Developments: Covid-19 Pandemic Regional Impact of Covid-19: Even as the global death toll from the Covid-19 pandemic crossed the 5 mn mark by the month-end, there were signs of gradual improvement of the situation in the WANA region. While resurgence the pandemic continues to be a threat, higher vaccination and booster doses, herd immunity […]
West Asia & North Africa Digest by Ambassador Mahesh Sachdev | October 2021
IA) Political Developments: Covid-19 Pandemic Regional Impact of Covid-19: From Pandemic to Endemic? While there was an unmistakable decline in Covid-19 cases and deaths, given previous upturns it was still too early to say if it was the beginning of the end of the pandemic. The 28-day data showed fresh cases and deaths to be down by […]