All eyes on Gilani’s visit to China   
  

All eyes in Pakistan are on the four-day visit to China from May 17, 2011, by Prime Minister Yousef Raza Gilani. The dates of the visit were finalized some weeks ago to enable him to participate in the year-long observance of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. It has since acquired special significance in the eyes of Pakistani analysts as it is taking place at a time when Pakistan has come under severe criticism in the US for failing to detect the presence of Osama  bin Laden for over five years at Abbottabad, the cradle of the Pakistan Army, where the Pakistan Military Academy is located. (South Asia Analysis Group)

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Comparing ASEAN and SAARC   
   

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) was founded in 1967 and it has just announced that by 2015 the states included in it will have become a single market like the European Union (EU). Asean already trades 25 per cent within itself, which means it is fairly set to become a regional trading bloc like the EU. One can see what has happened. Like the EU, the nation-state is being transformed to get rid of conflict.         (The Express Tribune)

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Russia helps Bangladesh join the South Asian nuclear gold rush   
   

Bangladesh’s recent announcement of a deal with Russia to construct its first nuclear reactor marks a broadening of the nuclear gold rush in South Asia. The latest deal is part of a big expansion of nuclear generation throughout the region. India plans to build some 25,000 MW of nuclear generating capacity using Russian, French and perhaps US and Japanese technology; Pakistan is building a second nuclear plant with Chinese assistance; and Sri Lanka is reportedly in talks with China to build nuclear capacity. (East Asia Forum)

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50th Anniversary of 1961 Tamil “Satyagraha” Campaign   

February 20th 1961 is a very important date in the history of the Sri Lankan Tamil political struggle to regain  lost rights . It was on this day,  fifty years ago that the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) known in English as the Federal Party (FP) led by SJV  Chelvanayakam commenced a non–violent direct action campaign against the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Government headed by the world’s first woman Prime minister Sirima Bandaranaike. (The Daily Mirror)

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Regional trade in South Asia   

South Asia also possesses a bright future due to the constant emergence of new entrepreneurial groups in the region. This new generation is more skillful, updated with new technology, with an aptitude for harnessing regional opportunities and better educated to address the challenges of increasing volatility in this globalized world. India being the biggest and fastest-growing economy in the region should help in tapping this potential in the region. (My Republica)

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