Troop movements in the Himalayas

Following the confrontations in last June in the Himalaya region, which is disputed between India and China, media reports state that India mobilized 35,000 additional troops to the region, with both countries transporting military assets to the region. The Indian navy also mobilized a large number of ships to the Indian Ocean, which would constitute sending a clear message to Beijing regarding its own positioning in the conflict.

These developments were accompanied by the suspension of WeChat, China’s largest social media platform, for Indian mobile numbers. This means a service interruption for foreigners as well as Chinese expatriates currently in India. Previously, India had already announced the banning of several Chinese mobile apps, including TikTok. Also in this context, Huawei predicts a profit reduction of 50% in India.

Elections in Hong Kong

Elections for the Legislative Council in Hong Kong were delayed this week for a year, with Chief Executive Carrie Lam invoking emergency powers for that purpose, citing health risks in the face of Covid-19. This measure follows the entry into force of the controversial national security law, with the opposition stating that it may result in a constitutional crisis.

Pandemic Situation

Relentlessly, Covid-19 is still spreading and the number of cases is already near 18 million worldwide, with the largest number of cases falling on the american continent, with around 9.5 million active cases, with Latin America surpassing 200.000 cases and the USA recording a daily average of 60 thousand during the month of July.

In Asia, the Philippines will return to a stricter quarantine, after recording over 5000 cases in a single day. Iran, the most affected country by the pandemic in the Middle East recorded the highest daily number of cases in on a monthly basis, with 2600. In Africa, South Africa surpassed 500,00 cases, recording over 10 thousand on Saturday.

Europe may be facing a second wave, with rising concerns over increasing caseloads in France and Spain, increasing the numbers to close to 3 million.

Other Stories

• Turkey suspended oil and gas research in disputed waters with Greece.
• Iran conducted military exercises in the strait of Hormuz region.
• Indonesia conducted a four day exercise in the South China Sea, in defiance of the nine-dash-line
• The EU applied sanctions to Russian intelligence, North Korean and Chinese firms over alleged cyber-attacks.
• GDP results in Q2 for the EU have showed overall drops, painting a bleak picture for the EU economy.
• Also in the USA, results were markedly negative.
• Saudi Arabia posted a 29 billion dollar deficit in the face of declining oil revenues.
• Moderna tests for its Covid-19 vaccine have shown positive results on monkeys.
• The Argentinian economy minister confirmed that the country would again request IMF support.