The way the US President Donald Trump literally got enforced his one-man plan for the Gaza Ceasefire and the manner in which he is now trying to organise Peace Talks to get the Russia-Ukraine war ended, are pointers to the future of the American foreign policy.
Asad Mirza
By now the world should have strapped-up to witness a completely unpredictable and a more dictatorial American foreign policy, dictated by the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump.
Coming soon after the preposterous Gaza Ceasefire Plan, Trump who had promised to get the Russia-Ukraine conflict ended with-in a day of him assuming the American presidency, last week unveiled a controversial new Peace Plan to get the three-years old war ended, denying Ukraine any seat at the negotiating table.
After his telephonic call with the Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday last, he also said that he could meet Russian President Vladimir Putin “very soon” as officials from the countries prepare to meet in Saudi Arabia for talks on ending the war in Ukraine.
As expected, Ukraine immediately rejected these talks, apparently at which no Ukrainian negotiator would be present. Neither Ukrainian nor European officials are participating in the talks in Riyadh, though the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday stressed that Ukraine and Europe would both have to be involved in any “real negotiations” that result from the meeting.
In an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press programme, which aired on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he would “never accept” any agreement reached without his country’s involvement. “This is the war in Ukraine, against us, and it’s our human losses,” Zelenskyy had said earlier, while attending the Munich Security Conference on Friday.
Zelenskyy has called for the creation of a unified European army, arguing that the continent must strengthen its own military capabilities considering the ever-changing US foreign policy, bulldozing and destroying all set norms and precedents.
Similarly, addressing the Munich conference on Saturday, European foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas drew parallels between the Trump administration’s approach and the failure of appeasement in the run-up to World War II.
The choice by the Trump administration of Saudi Arabia as the location for key talks on Ukraine underscores how far the Kingdom has come diplomatically from the near pariah state it became after the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
The shadow that cast over the country and its de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in particular, appears to have been lifted by the new Trump administration apparently to influence MbS to invest $ One Trillion in the US economy.
Apparently, the whole plan seems to overshadow the European partners of the US, who had at America’s behest upped their monetary and military support to Ukraine. In addition, the whole mechanism seems to undermine the set diplomatic processes and will be led by one man and his cronies only.
Even the Republican lawmakers are grappling with an effective response to President Trump’s seeming readiness to bend to Russia’s demands on Ukraine’s future.
Their reactions – which range from outright alarm to careful soft-pedalling – signal the challenges GOP policymakers face as they try to make sense of the administration’s actions and justify them to European allies.
Moreover, the details of the proposed plan have been leaked by Trump’s own advisors. It involves the return of all territory seized illegally by Russia and security guarantees backed by the US, preferably through NATO.
Meanwhile, the new American defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, told his Nato counterparts that the US no longer saw European security as its main priority. He added that while Ukraine could expect its own security guarantees, these would be provided by Europeans.
Marina Hyde writing for The Guardian opines that Putin is no doubt delighted to be treated with respect by Trump. But he is only being offered a draw when he still wants a victory. The US is proposing an early ceasefire largely based on the current line of contact between the two sets of forces, to be followed by negotiations on a longer-term peace settlement.
To be sure, this would allow him to hold a large chunk of Ukrainian land, but there would also be the prospect of Ukraine reconstituting its forces with western support to return to the fight later. Russia would need to subsidise and police occupied territory, much of which has been ruined by a series of destructive battles, and defend a long border, Marina commented further.
In one stroke Trump has relegated the US’ European allies with complete disdain and Europe has reacted with barely concealed dismay. The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas reaffirmed her support for Ukraine, noting that the Europeans were “looking forward to discussing the way ahead together with our American allies.”
Apparently, Putin would relish a summit with Trump, preferably in Moscow, perhaps around the time of the 80th anniversary of Russia’s Victory Day celebrations in early May. He has long sought a direct engagement with Washington that would effectively sideline Europe and, crucially, Ukraine.
A summit would allow him to reassert Russia’s place as a global power on par with the US. It would be, in Putin’s mind, a return to the kind of recognition Russia enjoyed in 1945, when Josef Stalin parleyed with Franklin D Roosevelt in Yalta about the fate of nations and the shape of Europe.
Ann Kiernan writing for the Financial Times opines that Putin has demanded that a peace settlement that allows him to achieve his war aims of the subjugation of Ukraine be agreed prior to any ceasefire. His starting position is even more ambitious, as confirmed in his call with Trump. He wants to deal with what he considers the “root causes” of the situation – the development of a European security order unfavourable to Russia since the end of the cold war, Ann wrote further.
Finally, what emerges from this new seemingly preposterous Peace Plan suggests that Trump is least interested in the views and security of his European allies, whom he could chuck at any given moment, further he is also not enamoured about NATO and its expansion.
These two pointers are enough to predict a tumble ride of the US foreign policy in the coming months and years.
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(Asad Mirza is a New Delhi-based senior commentator on national, international, defence and strategic affairs, environmental issues, an interfaith practitioner, and a media consultant.)
Chennai – The cartoon that depicted Prime Minister Narendra Modi sitting handcuffed next to US President Donald Trump has stirred a hornet’s nest in Tamil Nadu since it appeared in Vikatan Plus, a Tamil magazine.
The cartoon was envisaged to showcase Prime Minister Modi sitting in a chained position as representative of India’s silence to the inhumane treatment meted out to its ‘illegal’ citizens deported to India.
On February 15, Tamil Nadu BJP President K. Annamalai filed a complaint with the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) and the Press Council of India complaining that the cartoon was ‘objectionable’. The central government immediately swung into action and blocked the Vikatan’s website.
The next day, February 16, some men from the Press Bureau of India visited Vikatan’s office to verify whether the cartoon was also available in the print format. They were informed that it was only for the digital publication. The PIB men did not explain why Vikatan’s website was blocked.
This is not the first time Indians were deported from the US. Under the Biden administration, this thing also took place but the key difference is, that earlier deportees were transported via chartered flights without being handcuffed.
The External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had called the returnees as ‘irregular migrants’ and not as ‘illegal immigrants.’ The question is, if that is the case, why India did not negotiate a dignified return of the deportees?
Here the question is raised, why the Vikatan cartoon was published while the PM was abroad? According to the publisher; “PM Modi’s official trip to the US started only on Feb 13, the cartoon was published on Feb 10. At that time PM Modi was still in India and by then two batches of Indians had ‘returned’ in chains.”
According to experts in Constitutional Law; “En masse deportation with restraints violates human dignity and is against international human rights laws. Handcuffing individuals during deportation, especially on a flight exceeding 10 hours, is inhumane and raises human rights concerns.”
Syeda Hena Rizvi, a Supreme Court lawyer, says, “Vikatan cartoon points that PM Modi preferred to remain quiet and did not raise any voice of protest of inhuman treatment of its citizens. This shows how helpless India is vis-a-vis the only superpower.”
“On the other hand the Trump administration by restraining individuals with handcuffs and leg chains during long-haul flights points to how complex is the India- US relationship,” she adds.
The magazine in a press note says; “Vikatan has a long history of political satire, having criticized leaders from Winston Churchill to the current leadership. Vikatan remains committed to upholding press freedom and journalistic integrity.”
The press release further says, “Vikatan has fought multiple defamation cases under various governments. The publication was shut down by the British in 1942. Its editor was jailed in 1987.”
Bhopal – After repeated demands by the survivors of one of the world’s worst industrial disaster in Bhopal in 1984, which claimed several thousand people’s life, it took 40 long years for the administration to remove the hazardous waste from the abandoned Union Carbide Corporation pesticide factory for disposal.
Trucks began transporting 377 tonnes of toxic waste to a disposal site in Pithampur, about 250 kilometers from Bhopal. The Bhopal gas tragedy, which occurred on December 2-3, 1984, caused at least 5,479 deaths and lifelong health issues due to the release of toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas. The waste remained a major concern for over four decades.
MP High Court criticized Govt.
Prompted by safety issues raised by workers in neighbouring factories, the Madhya Pradesh High Court criticized government inaction regarding the cleanup and set a four-week deadline for waste relocation, warning of possible contempt proceedings against officials. To ensure secure transportation, authorities established a “green corridor,” allowing the trucks to depart Bhopal around 9 pm, with an expected arrival in Pithampur within seven hours, maintaining an average speed of 50 kilometers per hour.
A 200-meter radius around the site was sealed off, with over 1,000 police officers deployed for security. Approximately 100 personnel in protective gear managed the waste packing and loading in shifts, ensuring safety protocols were met. The operation involved 12 sealed, leak-proof containers, with a convoy of 25 support vehicles, ensuring safe passage and monitoring throughout the journey.
Union Govt. sanctioned Rs. 126 cr. for clean-up
It may be pointed out here that it was a writ petition of Zehreeli Gas Kand Sangharsh Morcha (“Zehreeli”)’s Alok Pratap Singh Vs Union of India in Madhya Pradesh High Court, principal bench—WP2802/2004 which led to the waste to be transported for incineration in Ramky Enviro Engineers Limited (REEL), Pithampur. The HC directed the Principal Secretary of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Department to fulfil statutory obligations and warned that failure to comply would lead to contempt of court proceedings. The Union government has sanctioned Rs 126 crore for the clean-up.
The hazardous waste at Pithampur includes various materials like remnants of Sevin pesticide produced at the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, contaminated soil, pesticide residues, reactor waste and industrial chemicals. The total hazardous waste amounts to around 162 metric tonnes of soil, 92 metric tonnes of Sevin and naphthol residues, 54 metric tonnes of semi-processed pesticides, and 29 metric tonnes of reactor waste. It also contains methyl isocyanate (MIC), linked to the 1984 gas leak disaster.
The initial waste processing steps will involve incineration at a dedicated unit, where the resulting ash will undergo rigorous testing for harmful elements. To limit air pollution, a specialized four-layer filtration system will be used. Once deemed safe, the ash will be encapsulated in a two-layer membrane before being buried to avert water and soil contamination. This operation will be monitored by both the Central and State Pollution Control Boards. If testing is successful, incineration could begin within three months, delayed possibly up to nine months if issues arise.
Protests
Meanwhile, a protest was held against the decision to incinerate toxic waste from Bhopal’s Union Carbide plant in Pithampur. The protest was attended by Municipal Council president Sevanti Suresh Patel, BJP councillor Ashok Patel and other local residents. Congress leaders, including council president Patel and councillor Manisha Lalu Sharma, participated in the protest, wearing black bands on their hands.
The protesters demanded that the toxic waste not be incinerated in Pithampur and instead be disposed of at an alternative site. They expressed concerns over potential environmental and health hazards. The protesters vowed to stop the incineration of the toxic waste in Pithampur.
In response, a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), officer assured the community of implemented safety measures, including a leak-proof waste handling shed. Ramky Enviro Engineers manages Pithampur’s operations, which comply with CPCB standards, marking it as Madhya Pradesh’s only modern incineration facility.
A rally was organised by the Pithampur Raksha Manch, and a memorandum was submitted to the President. Earlier, 10 tons of the toxic waste was incinerated at the same facility in Pithampur in 2015 under the supervision of the Central Pollution Control Board and scientists. The results of the trial incineration were presented in court, which paved the way for the incineration of the remaining waste.
In a city buzzing with dreams, ideas, and ambition, Founders’ Fest stands as a powerful example to Hyderabad’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem. Designed for dreamers, doers, and innovators, it brings together those who are building something big or just starting out, creating a space to showcase ideas, connect with like-minded creators, and inspire growth.
The Essence of Founders’ Fest
More than just an event, Founders’ Fest is a celebration of the entrepreneurial spirit-one that runs deep in our city. It’s where stories of resilience, creativity, and impact come to life, creating a sense of belonging for every participant. From a vibrant Innovation Showcase to a thrilling Business Challenge, the Fest ensures that innovation and community remain at the forefront.
The highlight, undoubtedly, is The Great Hyderabad Business Challenge-a stage where startups pitch their solutions for a grand prize of ₹5,00,000, driving creativity and encouraging ideas. Beyond the competition, participants gain exclusive access to masterclasses led by industry leaders, expert mentors and a collaborative network that supports their journey long after the Fest ends.
A Look Back at Founders’ Fest 2023
The numbers alone tell a story of growth and impact.
151 businesses participated, showcasing ideas and solutions.
12,036+ attendees joined the celebration, creating unmatched energy and enthusiasm.
Over ₹1.2 crore in revenue was reported through dynamic stalls, proving the Fest as a platform for real business growth.
6 winning startups were recognized for their resilience and vision.
From endorsements by over 70+ well-known influencers to 25+ partnerships and masterclasses, Founders’ Fest 2023 demonstrated that it is more than just an event-it’s an ecosystem for nurturing ideas and encouraging collaborations.
More Than an Event, It’s a Movement
Participants aren’t just showcasing products, they are building connections, gaining insights, and finding pathways to scale their businesses. The Mentors’ Lounge provides an invaluable opportunity for personalized guidance, while FFest Awards recognize and celebrate exceptional startups that are driving change.
Founders’ Fest’s long-term impact is further amplified through initiatives like the Online Marketplace, where participants can continue showcasing and selling their products even after the event, ensuring sustained visibility and success.
Why Founders’ Fest Matters
At its heart, Founders’ Fest is about building a community-one that thrives on innovation, inclusivity, and collaboration. It’s where established leaders and emerging founders meet, share stories, and inspire the entrepreneur in each of us.
As we look forward to the next edition of Founders’ Fest on 31st December 2024 & 1st January 2025 at the Central Lawn, Public Gardens, Hyderabad, it’s clear that the stage is set once again for ideas and groundbreaking ventures.
Whether you are an entrepreneur looking to scale, a creator starting out, or simply someone who believes in the power of dreams, Founders’ Fest welcomes you to be a part of something truly extraordinary.
New Delhi, December 14, 2024: The valedictory function of the 4th Asian Congress for Alternatives to Animal Experiments held at Jamia Hamdard Convention Centre where Prof. (Dr.) M. Afshar Alam, Vice-Chancellor, Jamia Hamdard was the Chief Guest of the programme. Organizing secretary Prof. S. Raisuddin informed that this congress is being held for the first time in India. During this congress the founding members of the society and representatives from India, China, Japan, and South Korea signed a joint declaration to establish the Asian Federation of Societies for Alternatives to Animal Experiments (AFSAAE).
Well-wishers from societies working for alternatives from America, Europe, and Sri Lanka also wished good link to the foundation. All the representatives were felicitated by the Organizing Secretary. Prof. Y.K. Gupta and Dr. M. A. Akbarsha graced the occasion as Guest of Honour. Prof. Y. K. Gupta urged the scientists to understand the pain of Animals while using them for scientific experiments. Dr. Akbarsha announced the next meeting to be held at Hyderabad. Prof. Raisuddin presented a detailed report of 3 days deliberations during the conference. He also announced various awards for best presentations by young scientists. Dr. Christian Pellevoisin, Scientific Director, MatTek & CEO Urbilateria France sponsored best poster presentation awards and cash prizes to the budding scientists. Dr. Kristie Sullivan, Vice President, Education and Outreach, Institute for In Vitro Sciences, USA and Prof Winfried Neuhaus, member of the Austrian Commission for Animal Experimentation also appreciated the successful organization of the Congress.
Prof. (Dr.) M. Afshar Alam, Vice Chancellor congratulated the Organising committee members for the successful organisation of the conference. He appreciated the patronage of Janab Hammad Ahmed, Chancellor, Jamia Hamdard and financial support of Hamdard National Foundation along with other funding agencies for enabling Jamia Hamdard to develop alternative models of animal experiments. Programme ended with vote of thanks by the Organising Secretary and National Anthem.
