Belarusian President approves defence plan for 2026-2030

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Minsk, Dec 13 (IANS) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko approved the country’s defence plan for 2026-2030.

The military-political situation around Belarus has changed in recent years, Lukashenko said at the Security Council meeting on Thursday. Individual states continue to escalate the situation around Belarus, he added.

Lukashenko said that destructive rhetoric from European countries toward Belarus is growing, indicating ongoing attempts to destabilise the domestic political situation in the country, Xinhua news agency reported.

The president stressed the Belarusian army does not threaten anyone and is an instrument for preventing war, and in the event of aggression, the army must be able to repel it.

Belarusian Defence Minister Viktor Khrenin said the approved defence plan was developed on the basis of a deep analysis of the events of 2020 in Belarus and the Russian special military operation in Ukraine.

Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Belarus Pavel Muraveiko said one of the main directions of the plan for the next five years is reducing the level of military danger and preventing military conflicts.

“Also among the main directions of the plan is the preparation of the state for defence which covers all areas from the economy to the military sphere. These are options for armed defence of the country in various modern conflicts. The issues of preparing the economy of the state and the state as a whole for functioning in conditions of military action are also included in the plan,” Muraveiko said.

–IANS

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MP HC seeks report on construction of religious structures inside police stations

Bhopal, Dec 16 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday ordered the state government to submit a detailed report regarding the temples and other religious structures established or being established inside the police stations.

The court has granted seven days for the state government to submit a reply with the list of each construction (of religious structure with a particular date) inside the police stations, across the state.

The court passed the order after hearing a petition filed by advocate Satish Chandra Verma, challenging the construction of religious structures within police station premises.

The petitioner claimed that religious structures (temples) have been established at the premises of more than 800 police stations across Madhya Pradesh. The petition was filed contending that the religious establishment at a police station violates the principle of religious neutrality.

Hearing the matter on Monday, Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait observed that the report submitted by the state government earlier was inadequate and also lacking facts.

Subsequently, the court ordered the state government to submit only factual and specific information regarding the religious constructions at police station premises and sought the report by the next seven days.

The court has fixed the next hearing on January 6.

“The Court has clearly mentioned that the subject is serious and violates the core principles of the Constitution and secularism. We hope the High Court takes strict action,” advocate Sharma said.

Last month, hearing a similar petition challenging the construction of a temple at a police station in Jabalpur district, the high court ordered a stay and sought the government’s reply on the matter.

The high court also issued notices to the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary (Home), Director General of Police, Jabalpur District Collector and police superintendents, among others, directing them to file their replies.

–IANS

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Aisake Eke elected as Tonga’s new Prime Minister

Suva, Dec 24 (IANS) Aisake Valu Eke was elected as Prime Minister of Tonga on Tuesday, Radio Nukualofa reported.

He will replace Hu’akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni, who resigned on December 9.

Valu Eke, who will be officially sworn in as Prime Minister in February, was first elected to parliament in 2010 and served as minister of finance between 2014 and 2017. He will be in office for less than a year before the South Pacific island nation of 105,000 people holds its next election in November 2025.

Tonga’s Parliament consists of 17 lawmakers elected by the public and nine who are nobles, elected by a group of hereditary chiefs. Two members of Parliament were unable to vote.

Aisake Eke studied at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia, where he was awarded a PhD for his thesis “An exploratory study on the quality of service in the public sector in Tonga” completed in 2013.

A former Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, he was first elected to the Legislative Assembly at the November 2010 general election as MP for Tongatapu 5. Though close to the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands, and despite having considered running as a party member, he stood as an independent, taking the seat with 24.1 per cent of the vote and a 63-vote margin; Tongatapu 5 was thus the only constituency on Tongatapu (Tonga’s main island) not to be won by the party.

In October 2011, he was one of several MPs to protest against Parliament voting large allowances to any of its members on sick leave overseas. Stating that MPs should not be spending more public money on themselves at a time when the economy was weak, he was one of eight MPs to vote against the increased allowances (along with ʻAkilisi Pohiva, Semisi Sika, Sitiveni Halapua, Sangster Saulala, Sione Taione, Falisi Tupou and Moʻale Finau, all members of the Democratic Party). The motion was adopted by twelve votes to eight.

In January 2014, Prime Minister Lord Tuʻivakano appointed him Minister of Finance, following the sacking of Lisiate ‘Akolo over a disagreement concerning the budget. He subsequently kept that position in Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pohiva’s government. In March 2017, however, he abstained during a parliamentary vote on a motion of no confidence against the government he was part of, and was compelled to resign. He subsequently lost his seat at the 2017 election.

–IANS

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Indonesia gears up for year-end vacation travel season

Jakarta, Dec 19 (IANS) Indonesia is preparing to face an influx of travellers during the Christmas and New Year holidays as millions of people are expected to jam the roads and cities across the Southeast Asian archipelago.

According to a recent survey by the country’s transportation ministry, around 110 million people, or about 43 per cent of the country’s population, plan to travel during the Christmas and New Year holidays. The figure is higher than the number of travellers during the same period last year.

Some 45 per cent of the figure, according to the ministry’s estimation, travel for tourism, while around 32 per cent travel to celebrate Christmas and New Year with families in their hometowns. The ministry also mentioned that the outbound Christmas traffic is expected to peak on December 21, while outbound traffic for the New Year is projected to peak on December 28.

Authorities have ensured that transportation facilities and infrastructure are ready to serve the mobility of holidaymakers during the holiday period, Xinhua news agency reported.

“We hope that all the facilities and infrastructure which have been well-prepared can help and serve the people on their trips. We also call on all travellers to be cautious of weather conditions,” Transportation Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said recently.

The ministry has prepared measures to prevent traffic congestion, particularly in regions expected to see increasing travelers, such as imposing contraflow traffic schemes with the police on several toll roads. A travel ban for cargo trucks on national and toll roads in some days of the holiday period will also be enforced. However, it would not apply to trucks carrying food, fuel and other essential items.

Furthermore, security preparations for the year-end holiday season are now in full swing, with the police and military personnel already set up in various locations such as airports, seaports, and shopping malls, the country’s National Police Chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo told reporters recently.

During Christmas, the police will safeguard churches across the country.

–IANS

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