Pramod Thomas is a senior correspondent with Asian Media Group since 2020, bringing 19 years of journalism experience across business, politics, sports, communities, and international relations. His career spans both traditional and digital media platforms, with eight years specifically focused on digital journalism. This blend of experience positions him well to navigate the evolving media landscape and deliver content across various formats. He has worked with national and international media organisations, giving him a broad perspective on global news trends and reporting standards.
THE US president, Donald Trump, said he found a “special bond” with India’s prime minister Narendra Modi as both leaders met in Washington last week to begin talks on an early trade deal and resolve their standoff over tariffs.
New Delhi has also promised to buy more US oil and gas and military equipment, as well as fight illegal immigration, as Modi became only the fourth world leader to visit the White House since Trump’s return to power.
Successive US administrations have seen India as a key partner with like-minded interests in the face of a rising China. Trump announced the new administration was ready to sell one of the top US military prizes – F-35 fighter jets – to India.
“Starting this year, we’ll be increasing military sales to India by many billions of dollars,” Trump told a joint news conference with Modi.
“We’re also paving the way to ultimately provide India with the F-35 stealth fighters,” he added.
A joint statement after the meeting said Washington welcomed New Delhi’s recent steps to lower tariffs on select American products and increase market access to US farm products, while seeking to negotiate the initial segments of a trade deal by the fall of 2025.
Elon Musk with Narendra Modi
Modi vowed to protect India’s interests. “One thing I deeply appreciate, and I learn from president Trump, is he keeps the national interest supreme,” he said. “Like him, I also keep the national interest of India at the top of everything else.”
The two leaders praised each other and Trump complimented Modi as being a “much tougher negotiator” than he is.
Modi described Trump as a friend and told him he was adopting a take on his “Make America Great Again” slogan – with “Make India Great Again”.
They also agreed to deepen security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, a thinly veiled reference to competition with China, as well as to start joint production on technologies like artificial intelligence.
Modi said the two countries would work on a “mutually beneficial trade agreement” to be sealed “very soon,” with a focus on oil and gas.
The series of agreements emerged after talks between Trump and Modi at the White House. It came just hours after Trump railed against the climate for US businesses in India and unveiled a roadmap for reciprocal tariffs on countries that put duties on US imports.
“Prime minister Modi recently announced the reductions to India’s unfair, very strong tariffs that limit us access to the Indian market, very strongly,” the US president said. “And really it’s a big problem I must say.”
The deal to resolve trade concerns could be done within the next seven months, said India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri.
While both leaders “had their perspectives” on tariffs, “what is more remarkable ... is the fact that we have a way forward on this issue,” Misri said.
Meanwhile, academics and policy experts highlighted the significance of Modi’s visit to the US, stressing the achievements and challenges in bilateral relations.
Although several new initiatives were announced, their impact will take time to materialise, with deadlines extending later this year, the experts told Eastern Eye.
“The optics of the meeting were particularly positive, as they demonstrated that the relationship could continue from where Trump left off in his first term. The camaraderie and press conference were well executed,” Vivek Mishra, deputy director, strategic studies programme at the Observer Research Foundation, a New Delhi-based thinktank, told Eastern Eye.
“While many new initiatives were announced, their immediate impact remains to be seen, as they have a deadline extending to fall 2025. It will take at least six to seven months before these announcements begin to materialise.
“The meeting produced several new developments in the partnership. A defence deal was announced, and the India-US Framework Agreement was renewed for 10 years. Importantly, the major defence partner status was incorporated into the framework,” he added.
“Overall, it was a productive visit, though many of the outcomes are yet to be realised as they currently exist only in written form.”
According to Mishra, India faces “significant” challenges, particularly in trade as the country currently maintains a surplus of more than $40 billion (£31.7bn) with the US.
“Trump is firmly focused on reducing this deficit, which appears to be his primary intention at this juncture. This situation presents considerable challenges for India, as the US is likely to demand identification of sectors where India can reduce tariffs and ways to secure greater market access in India.”
Modi offered quick tariff concessions ahead of his visit, with New Delhi slashing duties on high-end motorcycles – a boost to Harley-Davidson, the iconic US manufacturer whose struggles in India have irked Trump.
Also, India slashed tariffs on bourbon whisky to 100 per cent from 150 per cent, a move that will benefit imports of brands like Suntory’s Jim Beam.
Dr Uma Purushothaman, associate professor US studies, School of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, said the timing of Modi’s visit highlights the importance of US-India relations, as he was among the first foreign leaders to meet Trump in Washington.
She told Eastern Eye, “Modi’s visit to the US has been a mixed success. On the one hand, we have finally gotten the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, accused in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, but there has not yet been any agreement on tariffs. We have got defence deals, without any mention of a sanction waiver for India for building the Chabhahar port in Iran. Hopefully, that will come through soon.”
She added, “We have also agreed to buy more energy from the US. The announcement of the US-India COMPACT, which aims to enhance cooperation in defense, trade, investment, energy security, technology, multilateral collaboration, and people-to-people ties, is another important deliverable from the meeting. The US has also agreed to collaborate with us on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC).”
Following, the Modi-Trump meeting, India would join an elite club of countries that include NATO allies, Israel and Japan which would be allowed to buy the F-35 stealth fighters, which can operate without detection at supersonic speeds.
India currently relies on an ageing fleet of Russian fighter jets as well as a small number of French-made Rafale aircraft.
Pakistan said it was “deeply concerned” about the sales.
Continuing a push from his predecessor Joe Biden, Trump said the US and India also planned investment in ports, railways and underseas cable to “build one of the greatest trade routes in all of history,” running from India to Israel to Europe and beyond.
D Dhanuraj, founder-chairman of the Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), an independent public policy thinktank, said he believes Modi’s US visit has helped India “strike a good note” with the Trump administration.
However, the future of the relationship will depend on how both sides build on this momentum, he cautioned.
“India has already taken steps in its annual budget to signal to the administration that the government is ready to engage on issues such as tariffs by reducing import duties on US goods. It seems India was well prepared and had done its homework for the meeting. By agreeing to purchase gas and nuclear modular reactors, the government has demonstrated its willingness for transactional engagements,” he said.
“India has relied on the strength of institutional and bilateral ties between the two countries rather than becoming overly emotional about sensitive issues. The meetings concluded on a positive note, with strong media engagement by the prime minister.”
Reports said that Trump could visit India later this year for a summit of the Quad – a four-nation grouping of Australia, India, Japan and the US.
TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".
Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.
The pair deny the charges and claim they were defending themselves.
Liverpool Crown Court heard the trouble started when their mother, shortly after landing, pointed out a man she had an issue with - Abdulkareem Ismaeil - who was inside a Starbucks café with his family.
Prosecutor Paul Greaney KC said the younger brother, Amaaz, approached Ismaeil, shouted at him, then headbutted and punched him in front of his children.
Starbucks manager Cameron Cartledge said he heard loud voices and saw a man in a blue tracksuit—later identified as Amaaz—arguing closely with another man.
"Blue tracksuit man seemed quite aggressive. He got in the man’s face and shouted. Then he headbutted him, which made him stumble back," said Cartledge, adding that he called police immediately.
Another witness, barista Justine Pakalne, said the violence came from Amaaz, not Ismaeil. "Even if the other man stepped forward, he didn’t touch him. It was Amaaz who headbutted him," she said.
After the café incident, police officers found the brothers near the car park payment area of Terminal 2. According to Greaney, three officers - PCs Zachary Marsden, Ellie Cook, and Lydia Ward - approached to arrest Amaaz. When they did, he resisted and Amaad stepped in.
The court heard that both brothers attacked PC Marsden. Amaaz is also accused of assaulting PC Cook and breaking PC Ward’s nose during the struggle.
"The level of violence was very high," said Greaney. "Amaaz held PC Marsden by the neck, pulling him to the ground. PC Marsden managed to break free and later kicked Amaaz in the face to protect himself."
The prosecution acknowledged that the officer’s actions might appear “shocking” in isolation but argued they must be seen in the context of an armed officer facing a serious threat. "This happened in a busy airport where officers feared their weapons could be taken," Greaney said.
CCTV and police bodycam footage were shown to jurors, showing the incident unfold.
The defence claims both men acted in self-defence. However, Greaney dismissed that argument: "What the footage shows is not defensive behaviour, but offensive and violent conduct."
The court also heard that Ismaeil declined to give a police statement and is not part of the trial.
Both defendants deny all charges. The trial will continue on Monday (7).
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THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.
The boy, who cannot be named due to legal restrictions, was found guilty of carrying out an "unprovoked" attack on Kohli as he walked his dog in a park in Leicester, eastern England, in September last year.
The review follows a detailed assessment by Solicitor General Lucy Rigby KC MP to determine whether the case met the threshold for referral.
“The Solicitor General, Lucy Rigby KC MP, was appalled by this violent, cowardly attack on an innocent man. She wishes to express her deepest sympathies to Bhim Kohli’s friends and family at this difficult time,” said a spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office.
“After a detailed review of the case, the Solicitor General concluded the sentence of the 15-year-old could be referred to the Court of Appeal. The court will now determine whether the sentence should be increased.”
A 13-year-old girl, who was also convicted of manslaughter for her role in the attack, avoided a custodial sentence. She had filmed the assault while laughing and encouraging the boy, the court heard.
At a sentencing hearing on June 5 at Leicester Crown Court, Justice Mark Turner described the attack as “wicked”. He said he was legally bound to consider the defendants’ ages.
The boy, referred to as D1, was convicted of physically assaulting Kohli, while the girl, referred to as D2, received a three-year youth rehabilitation order with a six-month curfew.
Addressing the girl in court, Justice Turner said that a custodial sentence would likely cause “more harm than good”. It is understood that her sentence will not be referred for review as it did not meet the legal threshold.
During the trial, the court was told that Kohli had been racially abused and repeatedly punched and kicked. His daughter, Susan Kohli, found him lying on the ground after the attack.
“They chose to attack a defenceless pensioner and for that I cannot give them any of my sympathy,” she said after the sentencing.
Kelly Matthews, senior district crown prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service, called the incident “tragic” and said it had deeply affected the Leicester community and beyond.
“Kohli set out to walk his dog in his local park, as he did every day, but lost his life in what followed,” she said.
(PTI)
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Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis
THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.
"I have been able to serve the Buddhadharma (the teachings of Buddhism) and the beings of Tibet so far quite well," he said between prayers, clearing his throat now and then.
"And still, I hope to live over 130 years," he said, sparking applause and cheers among his followers.
The 14th Dalai Lama, already longest-lived head of Tibetan Buddhism, spent about 90 minutes at the prayers in his temple. The ceremony was attended by thousands of followers from around the world who gathered in the northern Indian hill town of Dharamshala, where he has lived since fleeing Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule.
"We have lost our country and we live in exile in India, but I have been able to benefit beings quite a lot. So, living here in Dharamshala, I intend to serve beings and the dharma as much as I can," he said in Tibetan, which was translated simultaneously in English and other languages.
China, keen to consolidate its control over Tibet, views the Dalai Lama as a separatist. Beijing insists its leaders would have to approve his successor, in a legacy from imperial times.
The Dalai Lama has previously said that he would reincarnate in the "free world" outside China and this week told his followers that the sole authority to recognise his reincarnation rests with his non-profit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust.
The Dalai Lama is a charismatic figure whose following extends well beyond the millions of Tibetan Buddhists living around the world. He won the 1989 peace prize for what the Nobel committee said was keeping alive the Tibetan cause and seeking genuine autonomy to protect and preserve the region's unique culture, religion and national identity without pressing for independence.
At the prayers on Saturday, he sat on a throne before a large statue of the Buddha, with dozens of monks seated in front of him. Marigold garlands hung from pillars as his followers and journalists crowded around the main temple area.
Oracles and other figures, shaking in trance, arrived to pay their obeisance to their guru. Monks struck cymbals and played ornate long trumpets in honour of the Dalai Lama and others.
The Dalai Lama said he prays daily to benefit all sentient beings and feels he has the blessings of Tibet's patron deity, Avalokitesvara.
"Looking at the many prophecies, I feel I have the blessings of Avalokitesvara," he said. "I have done my best so far. At the least, I hope to still live for 30 or 40 years more."
His birthday celebrations on Sunday will be attended by senior Indian ministers as well as diplomats from the US, along with thousands of his devotees.
(Reuters)
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Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C
Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria
Possible heatwave to return by mid-July
The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.
June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.
Heatwave thresholds and forecast temperatures
A heatwave in the UK is defined as three consecutive days with daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C in the west and north, and 28°C in London and surrounding counties.
According to Met Office meteorologist Zoe Hutin, “Whilst it is difficult this far ahead to determine exactly how hot things could get next week and weekend, there is the potential that some parts of the country could reach heatwave criteria.”
Early forecasts show that temperatures in the south east may rise to the high 20s on 9 July and could reach the low 30s on 10 July.
High pressure building over the south
The likely heat is being driven by a high-pressure system developing from the west, which is expected to extend across southern parts of the UK. This system may draw in warm air from the Atlantic and the Azores, increasing the chances of another period of hot, settled weather.
“Most likely it will be the south and east that see prolonged heat and thus could have another heatwave,” Ms Hutin said. “But it is too soon to say exactly how high temperatures could get.”
Cooler and wetter spell before the heat
In the meantime, cooler weather is expected across the UK this weekend and early next week. Cloudy skies and rain will affect western areas in particular, with temperatures forecast to drop slightly.
The south east is expected to reach 25°C on Saturday (6 July), followed by 24°C on Sunday and 23°C on Monday. Drizzly outbreaks are likely on Saturday, with showers expected on Sunday, especially in the east.
Rain warnings and flood alerts
A yellow weather warning for rain remains in place until Saturday afternoon across parts of Scotland, including Argyll and Bute, the south Highlands, Mull and Skye. Up to 60mm of rain is expected, with more than 100mm possible in mountainous areas.
The Environment Agency has issued flood alerts in Cumbria, including for rivers such as the Duddon, Crake and Mill Beck, following heavy rainfall on Friday. Meanwhile, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has issued six flood alerts for areas including Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire and Arran, Easter Ross and Great Glen, Skye and Lochaber, west central Scotland and Wester Ross.
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Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)
TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.
Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.
Bedi was sentenced on July 4 by judge Griffiths sitting at Southwark Crown Court to five years and four months, while Mavanga was sentenced to six years and six months.
Judge Griffiths said Bedi and Mavanga “were both leading players in a conspiracy whereby the victims of the fraud were persuaded to invest in crypto currency consultancy” and “you conspired to drive a coach and horses through the regulatory system”, according to the FCA.
It said anyone scammed by Bedi and Mavanga and who had not yet heard from the FCA should call 0800 111 6768 or email operationhickory@fca.org.uk.
Bedi on May 2, 2023, pleaded guilty to four charges – conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to breach the general prohibition under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and money laundering offences at an earlier hearing.
Mavanga pleaded guilty to three charges – conspiracy to defraud, conspiracy to breach the general prohibition under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and possession of false identification documents with an improper intention – on June 9, 2023. He was also convicted of perverting the course of justice on November 7, 2024, for the deletion of phone call recordings following the arrest of Bedi in March 2019.