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<keyword id="22003705" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-traders" source="keywords">Indian traders</keyword> involved in <keyword id="22003703" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="border-trade" source="keywords">border trade</keyword> with China through the <keyword id="22003704" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lipulekh-pass" source="keywords">Lipulekh pass</keyword> in Pithoragarh district since 1992, have requested the central government to take up the issue of resumption of border trade through this route with Beijing. The trade route was closed rather suddenly after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, forcing Indian traders to return from the <keyword id="22003706" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Taklakot-mart" source="keywords">Taklakot mart</keyword> in Tibet leaving behind their woollen products. Five years have passed but the route has not been opened, an organisation of border traders in Dharchula said. The traders who belong to the <keyword id="22005864" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bhotia-tribe" source="keywords">Bhotia tribe</keyword> started to raise their demand for reopening of the trade route through Lipulekh after China recently began the process of implementing a pact, in which it had agreed to open all 14 trade passes with Nepal. The implementation of the agreement inked by China and Nepal in December, 2022 began on May 25 this year, when China opened Piangi pass situated in Dolpa district of eastern Nepal, president of Bharat Tibetan Simant Vyapar Samiti, Dharchula Jeewan Singh Rongkali said. Three more passes along the Indo-Tibet border in the western region of Nepal that fall in the districts of Humla, Bajang and Darchula will be opened on June 20, 30 and 25 respectively, he said. "We have so far sent 22 applications to the government of India requesting it to take up with the Chinese authorities the reopening of the trade route through Lipulekh pass but have received no response so far," Rongkali said. According to Rongkali, Indian tribal traders from Dharchula alone have left trading items worth Rs 15 lakh in <keyword id="22005865" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="taklakot" source="keywords">Taklakot</keyword> Mart of Tibet at the time of closure of border trade in 2019, following the Covid-19 pandemic. "We have no information if our stored goods are safe or in a state of decay. They were stored in plywood covers at the time of closure of trade," Rongkali said. "We want trade with China to be resumed through Lipulekh pass but if for some reason it is not possible then the traders should be given 15 days' time to go to Taklakot to ring back their goods," he said. Goods of over 450 Indian tribal traders have been lying there for the last 5 years, he said. According to Rongkali, over 450 Indian traders used to supply essential goods to villagers of over 45 villages of western Tibet through this trade route since 1992. "Out of over 1.5 crore trade annually, we have paid lakhs of rupees towards customs duty and other taxes to the government of India," said Rongkali. China announced in the year 2022 that it will build trans Himalayan multi-dimensional connectivity with Nepal to restructure the road and communication network with that country, Rongkali said. "As China has not given permission to open our passes along the Indo-China border, we have an apprehension that the mart made for Indian traders in Gakkhu town of Taklakot could be handed over to Nepalese traders," said Rongkali.

Indian traders demand resumption of border trade with China through Lipulekh pass

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Russia is proposing alternative payment systems and commodity centers.</li><li>The proposal aims to strengthen BRICS economies' sovereignty and reduce dollar reliance.</li></ul>Russia has released new details on how it could move away from the dollar, part of a long-running effort to buoy trade amid Western sanctions.Earlier this month, Russia's Finance Ministry, its central bank, and Moscow-based consultancy Yakov &amp; Partners outlined the country's vision of what the country is aiming for in a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.yakovpartners.com/publications/imfs/">report.</a>Other than championing <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/dedollarization-russia-actively-working-brics-local-currencies-platform-us-dollar-2024-6">alternative payment</a> systems based in non-dollar currencies, Russia is also pitching the set-up of centers for mutual trade in commodity resources.Russia is a commodity giant and a major producer of oil, natural gas, gold, and grains. However, the country has been heavily sanctioned by the US following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has impacted its oil and gas trade.The report proposed setting up foundations for commodity trading centers but did not provide details. However, it explained why it was a good idea."This measure will ensure independent pricing and strengthen the sovereignty of the BRICS economies," the report said, referring to Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa — the anchor members of the BRICS emerging markets group.Such a measure would add to what Russia is already doing to keep trade humming amid sweeping sanctions, such as those that block banks from dealing with <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-all-china-banks-refuse-yuan-ruble-transfers-sanctions-2024-8">payment transactions</a> involving Russian companies.Another offbeat way Russia is beating sanctions is <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-barter-pakistan-mounting-sanctions-western-war-allies-international-trade-2024-10">barter trade. </a>One Russian company struck an agreement to trade chickpeas and lentils for tangerines, rice, and potatoes from Pakistan, according to Tass state news agency earlier this month.Such alternative payment systems and bartering "are based on a notion that any involved institutions, even if faced with extraterritorial restrictions, will retain unchallenged access to their domestic market that will allow them to effectively facilitate domestic and cross-border transactions," the report said.Moving BRICS trade to trading centers within the bloc would also involve the use of local currencies and facilitate a move away from using the dollar for trade, according to the document.Russia's report on alternative payments and trading systems came weeks before the annual BRICS summit, which will be held in the Russian city of Kazan from October 22 to October 24.The proposal also came months after Russia proposed a grain-trading exchange for BRICS members, as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://interfax.com/newsroom/top-stories/101594/">Interfax</a> news agency reported in April.BRICS member countries are <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.usda.gov/oce/commodity/wasde/wasde1024.pdf">major producers and exporters</a> of grains in the world market, with Russia accounting for about one-quarter of the world's wheat exports. Meanwhile, Brazil accounts for about 60% of the world's soybean exports, and India accounts for about 40% of the world's rice shipments.Most global grain prices are set on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and are dominated by the US dollar."The BRICS countries, being key participants in the global grain market, cannot fully participate in the formation of prices for economically fundamental and food security-essential products as wheat, barley and corn, world prices for which are formed, and often manipulated, in third countries," Russia's Union of Grain Exporters wrote in a letter to the country's Agriculture Ministry in December when it proposed a BRICS grain exchange.Russia faces an uphill battle in changing the basics of dollar-dependent financial trading systems. Right now, dollar-based trade participants can easily enter and exit their positions, whereas bartering or using other currencies could reduce liquidity and flexibility.Since there's already heavy trading in CME's grain markets, it would be challenging for new exchanges and their products to lure participants over en masse.Brent crude oil futures, for example, are still the world's benchmark and are actively traded. However, their namesake <a target="_blank" href="https://www.shell.co.uk/about-us/sustainability/decommissioning/brent-field-decommissioning/brent-field-decommissioning-programme.html">Brent oil fields</a> in Scotland are being decommissioned due to resource depletion.As the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.imf.org/External/Pubs/FT/GFSR/2015/02/pdf/c2_v2.pdf">International Monetary Fund</a> explained in a 2021 report, "because of the network nature of markets, effects tend to be self-reinforcing— high market liquidity tends to attract more traders and so forth."

Russia pitches trading centers in a widening plan to move away from the US-dominated global financial order 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Chinese state banks are winding down transactions with Russia to avoid US sanctions.</li><li>Smaller local banks are taking over their place to keep trade flowing.</li></ul>Chinese state banks have halted transactions with Russia over fears of getting entangled in US sanctions, but smaller financial institutions are taking their place, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/russia-payment-hurdles-with-china-partners-intensified-august-sources-say-2024-08-30/">Reuters</a> reported on Friday.Some smaller local Chinese banks are still processing payments with Russia because they do not have global businesses to worry about.However, they lack the necessary IT systems and staff to handle cross-border transactions and even need to send hard copies of documents to and from Russia to get them stamped and signed, an anonymous banking source told the news agency.China is a vital trading partner of heavily-sanctioned Russia. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-russia-trade-record-ukraine-war-xi-jinping-vladimir-putin-2024-1">Trade between China and Russia</a> surged to a record high of $240 billion in 2023, so keeping payments flowing is important for both sides.Despite the difficulties, Russia — a major commodity exporter — is still receiving payments for its raw materials exports, such as oil and grains, another banking source told Reuters. Its payments for China's key technologies exports are also still getting through.However, small Russian companies — like those in the consumer goods trade — are not so fortunate. Big Chinese state banks are cutting off transactions with Russia "en masse," and billions of yuan in transactions are in limbo — hitting small firms hard, anonymous sources close to the government told Reuters.The <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://tass.com/politics/1835747">Kremlin has acknowledged</a> the issues with trade payments and said it's working with China on solutions.Reuters' story followed <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-all-china-banks-refuse-yuan-ruble-transfers-sanctions-2024-8">recent news from Russian media</a> about hurdles that local companies were having with Chinese banks.Since the invasion of Ukraine, Russia and its trade partners have been getting around sanctions by using smaller banks and other payment modes or non-US-dollar currencies to circumvent the West's ban of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="c-link" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-eu-announce-some-russian-banks-removed-from-swift-2022-2">some Russian banks</a> from the widely-used SWIFT messaging system.But banks dealing with Russia have been winding their business with the country since December, when the US approved <a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-takes-aim-financial-institutions-with-new-russia-sanctions-authority-2023-12-22/">secondary sanctions</a> targeting financial institutions that were helping Russia.Moscow is now rushing to set up <a target="_blank" rel="" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-moscow-cryptocurrency-bill-digital-ruble-trade-payments-sanctions-2024-7">alternative payment systems</a>, including <a target="_blank" rel="" class="" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/russia-economy-sanctions-cryptocurrency-crypto-payments-china-outlook-digital-assets-2024-8">crypto</a>, to facilitate trade.Russia and China were even planning to revive the age-old practice of barter trade to get around Western sanctions, <a target="_blank" rel=" nofollow" class="" href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/first-russia-china-barter-trade-may-come-this-autumn-sources-say-2024-08-08/">Reuters</a> reported last month.

To get paid by Russian customers, some Chinese banks are taking documents across borders to get them stamped, reported Reuters

Islamabad: Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said that <keyword id="19991528" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="trade-ties" source="keywords">trade ties</keyword> between Islamabad and New Delhi have remained suspended since 2019 due to the imposition of "heavy duties" by <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="India" source="keywords">India</keyword> on imports from Pakistan after the <keyword id="20579845" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pulwama-attack" source="keywords">Pulwama attack</keyword>. In a written reply submitted to the <keyword id="19935944" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="national-assembly" source="keywords">National Assembly</keyword> on Saturday, Dar, who also holds the deputy prime minister's slot, said: "India decided to impose 200 per cent duty on imports from Pakistan, suspended the Kashmir bus service and trade across the Line of Control after the Pulwama attack." According to the Dawn newspaper, Dar was responding to a question by Pakistan Peoples Party lawmaker Sharmila Faruqui seeking details about trade challenges faced by Pakistan in its relations with neighbouring countries, especially India. In March, during a press conference in London, Dar highlighted the eagerness of Pakistan's business community to resume trade activities with India. However, his office later clarified that Pakistan has no plan to resume trade relations with India which has been "non-existent" since 2019. Pakistan downgraded its ties with India after the <keyword id="20467268" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-parliament" source="keywords">Indian Parliament</keyword> suspended Article 370 on August 5, 2019, a decision that Islamabad believed undermined the environment for holding talks between the neighbours. "We have consistently advocated constructive engagement and result-oriented dialogue to resolve all outstanding issues, including the core issue of Jammu and Kashmir with India...," Dar said on Saturday. The foreign minister said that the "onus is now on Delhi to take steps for the creation of an environment that is conducive to peace and dialogue". India has been maintaining that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan while insisting that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment that is free of terror and hostility for such an engagement. Islamabad and New Delhi have a long history of strained relations, primarily due to the Kashmir issue as well as the cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

Trade ties with India suspended due to 'heavy duties': Pakistan Foreign Minister

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="6372909" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="turkey" source="Orion">Turkey</keyword> may deploy its Russian S-400 Triumf air defenses on the Iraqi border.</li><li>US officials have warned Turkey against "activating" it.</li></ul>Turkey may deploy its advanced Russian S-400 Triumf air defenses on the Iraqi border for its planned summer offensive against the Kurdistan Workers' Party, PKK, in Iraqi Kurdistan. Such a move would mark the first operational deployment of the missile system since Ankara received it in 2019 to Western reproach. Turkiye newspaper reported earlier this month that Turkey's S-400s may be deployed on the border, implying it will defend against <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/drone-hunting-drones-are-already-impacting-middle-east-conflicts-2024-4">drones allegedly acquired</a> by the PKK. But the system is effective against bigger threats than crude drones. It's designed to shoot down cruise and ballistic missiles like those fired by Iran in its unprecedented April 13 attack against Israel, and its deployment could worsen tensions with other NATO allies incensed that Turkey even has them. The deal for the S-400 cost Turkey an estimated $2.5 billion. Indirectly, it has cost it far more than that in losses of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/1908351/us-begins-process-of-unwinding-turkey-from-f-35-program-dod-officials-say/">over $9 billion</a> it could have made from manufacturing over 900 parts for the global F-35 supply chain. Washington banned Ankara from buying F-35s over <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nato-militaries-buying-f35-jets-with-baffling-exception-of-turkey-2023-4">concerns</a> it would give Russian technicians data that spoils the fighter's stealth. On top of all that, the US slapped sanctions on Turkey's arms procurement agency. While enduring these penalties, Turkey <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/turkey-russia-s400-too-politically-costly-to-get-rid-of-2023-7">never put</a> the S-400 into service. Following the system's delivery, US officials warned Turkey against "activating" it. Turkey tested its F-16s and F-4 fighters against the S-400's radar in late 2019. Washington strongly rebuked Ankara in October 2020 for announcing it was testing the system. Since then, there has been no indication that Turkey's S-400s have been put into operation. In November 2022, then-Defense Minister Hulusi Akar <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/s-400-air-defense-system-ready-for-use-if-needed-defense-minister-178753">said</a> Ankara has "no problems with the S-400" and that the system "is in place and ready for use." Its purported upcoming deployment on the Iraqi border would be the first time Turkish S-400s have been put into use five years after Ankara received them. Ali Bakir, a Turkey expert at Qatar University's Ibn Khaldon Center and nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative, is skeptical of the report but doesn't outright dismiss the possibility. "This could be a trial balloon, an operational requirement due to the foreign threat in Northern Iraq, where Turkish troops are stationed, or simply untrue news," Bakir told Business Insider. "If the S-400 is deployed for operational needs, it could be to counter the potential threat of Iran's ballistic missiles." Even though Turkey's other air defenses are capable of combating aerial threats from the PKK, Turkey requires an advanced system for intercepting ballistic missiles fired from Iran. "Considering that Ankara has stationed troops in Northern Iraq, it would be more logical to deploy such a system to protect them during regional escalation or confrontation," Bakir said. "Iran has used missiles lately against Northern Iraq." Bakir said that the recent missile attacks between Israel and Iran may be a further rationale to deploy the S-400 in Turkey's east."Such deployment will serve Turkey's security as well as the security of Iraq, which is improving its ties with Ankara lately in an unprecedented way," Bakir said. Deploying S-400s as a contingency to counter Iranian missiles could create "an extremely complex situation" for Turkey, said Suleyman Ozeren, a lecturer at the American University and senior fellow at the Orion Policy Institute."Such a move might mean that Turkey would be using the Russian weapon system against Russia's most loyal ally in the Middle East," Ozeren told BI. "However, Turkey may use the potential threat of Iran-linked militia groups or PKK as a pretext to deploy S-400s." He predicts a deployment would serve three primary objectives. "First, the S-400s have been one of the most expensive yet least productive policy decisions," Ozeren said. "By deploying them and making a lot of noise about it, the AKP may aim to silence critics at home." The AKP is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party, which decided to buy the S-400 in the late 2010s and has defended the contentious purchase ever since. "Second, Ankara may want to prove to Moscow that its military cooperation still stands," Ozeren said. "Third, such a decision may aim to send a message to the West — primarily to the US — that Ankara's position vis-à-vis Russia and NATO remains unchanged." He noted the Turkish S-400 is a "standalone system" incompatible with NATO systems, limiting its use and confirming its "high cost and lack of functionality." A Turkish deployment could escalate the lingering dispute with the US. In January, then-Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-30/us-ready-to-reopen-turkey-f-35-talks-if-russian-s-400-system-issue-resolved">said</a> Washington could discuss readmitting Ankara into the F-35 program if it resolves the S-400 issue. "The problem is not about where Ankara deploys S-400s but about the S-400 remaining in Turkey's possession," Ozeren said. Bakir argued that weapons are purchased "with the intention of use" for either "offensive or defensive purposes." "Even if Turkey were to hypothetically trade the S-400, the US could still mishandle the case of the F-35," Bakir said. "There is no guarantee that Congress will not attempt to pressure Ankara in the future." Ozeren, in contrast, reiterated that the fundamental problem is Ankara's "purely political" decision to purchase S-400s, which he argued was motivated by the AKP's desire to distance Turkey from NATO. "Such a goal was unattainable and unrealistic given the extent of Turkey's integration into the NATO defense system," Ozeren said. "The S-400 decision has left Ankara in a precarious situation that has remained unchanged." "No matter the AKP's motivations back then, reality dictates that the ruling party reverse its course and go back to a stronger alliance with NATO."

Turkey may soon put its controversial Russian S-400 air defenses in operation 

Mumbai, The <keyword id="19899810" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="reserve-bank-of-india" source="keywords">Reserve Bank of India</keyword> and Bank <keyword id="19909773" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="indonesia" source="keywords">Indonesia</keyword> (BI) on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote use of local currencies for bilateral transactions. The MoU was signed here for establishing a framework to promote the use of local currencies viz., the <keyword id="20045514" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-rupee" source="keywords">Indian Rupee</keyword> (INR) and the Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) for cross-border transactions, <keyword id="19899808" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rbi" source="keywords">RBI</keyword> said in a statement. This framework would enable exporters and importers to invoice and pay in their respective domestic currencies, which in turn would enable the development of an INR-IDR foreign exchange market. "Use of local currencies would optimise costs and settlement time for transactions," RBI said. The MoU was signed by RBI Governor <keyword id="19913110" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="shaktikanta-das" source="keywords">Shaktikanta Das</keyword> and Bank Indonesia Governor <keyword id="20862647" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="perry-warjiyo" source="keywords">Perry Warjiyo</keyword>. "The MoU on establishing a framework for cooperation in the area of cross-border transactions in local currencies between <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="india" source="keywords">India</keyword> and Indonesia, aims to promote the use of INR and IDR bilaterally," RBI said. The central bank further said the collaboration marks a key milestone in strengthening bilateral cooperation between RBI and BI. Use of local currencies in bilateral transactions will eventually contribute to promoting trade between India and Indonesia as well as deepen financial integration and strengthen the long historical, cultural and economic relations between India and Indonesia, it added.

RBI, Bank Indonesia sign pact to promote use of local currencies for bilateral trade

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Senate Republicans and Democrats have attempted to negotiate border-related legislation for weeks. </li><li>Now, on the verge of a deal, it seems like their attempts have all been for naught.</li></ul>Congressional Republicans are seemingly throwing away their best opportunity to pass conservative immigration policy in recent memory in a bet on their own and former <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/americans-are-in-denial-that-trump-will-likely-be-the-gop-nominee-2024-1">President Donald Trump</a>'s 2024 campaigns.A select group of Democrats and Republicans in the Senate have been negotiating on immigration-based legislation for more than a month, and have reportedly come to an <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/28/politics/chris-murphy-immigration-border-deal-cnntv/index.html">agreement</a>. But as of Tuesday afternoon, it doesn't appear their work will ever come to a vote due to increasing Republican opposition.Over the weekend, Trump publicly spoke out against the legislation, taking credit for its apparent demise, an act he said he <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-immigration-bipartisan-border-security-us-mexico-democrats-2024-1">wanted to be personally blamed</a> for."A lot of the senators are trying to say, respectfully, they're blaming it on me," he said in Las Vegas. "Please blame it on me. Please."It is worth noting that as of Tuesday afternoon, there still is no bill. No public text has been released despite months of negotiations, even senators have complained that they are receiving few details from the discussions between Sen. James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican, and Senate Democrats.What is known about the bill is that it's unlikely to include a pathway to citizenship or protections for so-called DREAMers, two policy areas that have specifically been part of previous bipartisan immigration discussions. Instead, Democrats would trade conservative immigration policies for additional aid to Ukraine in its war against Russia. Not surprisingly, some Democrats have major issues with that potential trade-off."Using a one-time spending package to enact these unrelated permanent policy changes sets a dangerous precedent and risks assistance to our international partners," 11 Senate Democrats <a target="_blank" href="https://www.padilla.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/padilla-leads-10-colleagues-in-joint-statement-on-proposed-threats-to-asylum-system-in-supplemental-aid-package-negotiations/#:~:text=Any%20proposal%20considering%20permanent%20changes,and%20through%20a%20deliberative%20process.">said in a statement</a> about the talks. "Any proposal considering permanent changes to our asylum and immigration system needs to include a clear path to legalization for long-standing undocumented immigrants."Meanwhile, Republicans are apparently pinning their hopes on Trump's reelection campaign and retaking control of the Senate. But unless the GOP does away with the Senate filibuster, it's unclear how they will ever get the kind of conservative immigration changes they are seeking.While Lankford's colleagues are sympathetic to his plight. Conservative pressure is amping up. Members of the Oklahoma GOP ultimately <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/waynehi43980982/status/1751476206459887831?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1751476206459887831%7Ctwgr%5E9179b61f19c363a1c954c9a00a3c32fa2584870d%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.axios.com%2F2024%2F01%2F29%2Foklahoma-republicans-condemn-lankford-senate-border-talks">censured</a> Lankford over the weekend, alleging he was "jeopardizing the security and liberty of the people of Oklahoma and of these United States."House Speaker Mike Johnson said it's "absurd" to suggest he would kill the talks to help Trump. Johnson said he has discussed the bill "at length" with the former president. Johnson said Biden himself could fix the situation "with a stroke of a pen.""The first and most important job of the federal government is to protect its citizens and we're not doing that under President Biden," Johnson said in a response to CNN's Manu Raju's question.Trump's comments welcoming the blame came days after GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas argued in a media appearance that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ted-cruz-said-republicans-dont-need-a-border-bill-2024-1">further legislation isn't even necessary</a>, that the Biden Administration should simply re-adopt Trump's policies at the border."We don't need a border bill," he said. "We achieved the lowest rate of illegal immigration in 45 years under Donald Trump. What was different, is you had a president that wanted to secure the border."Cruz's suggestion is in stark opposition to Trump himself from late 2018, who <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/HowardMortman/status/1752282441320907225?s=20">said</a> that Congress needed to pass immigration legislation, and that controlling the flow of immigrants at the border couldn't be done solely via executive decree."The only long-term solution to the crisis, and the only way to ensure the endurance of our nation as a sovereign country is for Congress to overcome open borders obstruction," he said.<div type="image" title="Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas" height="1667" width="2500" msid="107271476" hostid="261"></div><h2>Instead of passing legislation, congressional Republicans are turning to impeachment</h2>Fed up with the rampant immigration at the US-Mexico border, House Republicans have filed numerous resolutions over the past year alleging Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro committed "high crimes and misdemeanors" by neglecting his duties monitoring the border.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/alejandro-mayorkas-impeachment-explainer-house-republicans-immigration-border-2024-1">House Republicans are expected to move Tuesday</a> to take the penultimate step toward impeaching Mayorkas, paving the way for a House floor vote as soon as next week. The Homeland Security Committee voted along party lines to approve articles of impeachment that accuse him of failing to enforce the law and breaching the public's trust.In US history only one Cabinet official, former Secretary of War William Belknap, has been impeached, an event that occurred nearly 150 years ago."You are sitting here right now trying to impeach a Secretary of Homeland Security for neglecting his duties literally while he is trying to perform his duties and negotiate legislation," Rep. Dan Goldman, a New York Democrat, said at the start of Tuesday's hearing.House Republicans have done more than push for Mayorkas' impeachment. One member, Rep. Monica De La Cruz went as far as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/1542?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22mayorkas%22%7D&amp;s=1&amp;r=6">filing legislation</a> in March 2023 attempting to bar Mayorkas from trav

Congressional Republicans want to kill a bipartisan border bill to give Trump an edge in the election

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Senate Republicans are lining up against a bipartisan immigration-Ukraine deal.</li><li>Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is trying to overcome Trump's opposition to the massive legislation.</li></ul>Mitch McConnell is in trouble.He's made it clear that he views aiding Ukraine in its efforts to repeal Russia's invasion as central to his legacy. And yet, the longest-serving Senate leader in history may be unable to overcome former President Donald Trump's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-immigration-bipartisan-border-security-us-mexico-democrats-2024-1">efforts</a> to kill the sweeping deal the Senate's top Republican nudged along for months."America's sovereignty is being tested here at home, and our credibility is being tested by emboldened adversaries around the world," McConnell said in a statement announcing his support of the deal. "The challenges we face will not resolve themselves, nor will our adversaries wait for America to muster the resolve to meet them."On Sunday night, a trio of Republican and Democratic senators announced that after months of negotiations, they had reached a deal on a massive $118 billion deal to change US immigration policy, fund Ukraine's and Israel's respective defenses, and harden the Asia-Pacific against China's rise. By Monday afternoon, it appeared the bill was almost certainly dead.Speaker Mike Johnson declared the legislation "dead on arrival" if it ever reached the House. <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/SpeakerJohnson/status/1754558078010175644?s=20"> He also joined with other top House Republicans</a> Monday afternoon to implore Senate Republicans to kill it. Trump deemed it a "Death wish for the Republican Party." McConnell is already facing one key defection: Sen. Steve Daines, who leads the Senate GOP's campaign arm, is <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/SteveDaines/status/1754503777048998364?s=20">lined up against</a> the bipartisan deal.In the now unlikely scenario the bill makes it out of the Senate, it's abundantly clear House Republicans will promptly ignore it. McConnell himself foreshadowed this in behind-closed-door comments that leaked out before the final bill was announced."We don't want to do anything to undermine him," he said of Trump's views on immigration, <a target="_blank" href="https://punchbowl.news/archive/12524-punchbowl-news-am/">according to Punchbowl News.</a>McConnell quickly proclaimed he wasn't trying to kill the talks, but his observation could well prove to be prescient — even as some Republicans caution about <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/republicans-want-to-kill-bipartisan-border-bill-help-trump-campaign-2024-1">nuking a deal to protect Trump.</a><h2>Trump is winning the long-term struggle for control of the Senate GOP.</h2>The current dividing lines illustrate how Trump has continued to gain in his war of attrition against McConnell's grasp.The Senate GOP might be the last large section of the party that the former president doesn't have a firm grip on. And yet, the current makeup is undoubtedly more aligned with Trump than the one he encountered as a political neophyte when he visited Capitol Hill the day just a few days after his historic 2016 upset. Gone are Sens. Jeff Flake, Bob Corker, Ben Sasse, Rob Portman, and Roy Blunt, all figures who to varying degrees (emphasis on Flake and Sasse) clashed with Trump during his time in office. Some of those lawmakers were also vital to policy deals Republicans brokered with President Joe Biden on infrastructure, guns, and updating the law governing how Congress counts presidential electors. Trump unsuccessfully tried to kill the infrastructure deal. The loudest dissenting voice of all, Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, will soon join them on the sidelines, resigned to telling his biographer <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mitch-mcconnell-told-mitt-romney-that-trump-is-an-idiot-2023-9">what his colleagues really think about the former president.</a>Sens. JD Vance of Ohio and Josh Hawley of Missouri headline a small but burgeoning group of conservatives that want to drag the Senate closer to Trump on numerous policy fronts, including immigration and foreign policy. There's even a chance that Kari Lake could soon join them if the former president doesn't tap one of the highest-profile deniers of the 2020 election to be his running mate first.Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, who once took his opposition to Trump to the GOP convention floor, issued an all-caps call for "NEW LEADERSHIP — NOW." Lee further denounced McConnell's "bromance" with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer that shaped the final deal."This bill unites Senate Democrats and sharply divides Senate Republicans," Lee said in another post.Blunt's replacement in Washington, Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri, underlined his views by tweeting a gif of a defiant Jon Snow from HBO's "Game of Thrones." While Hawley said that the legislation "a huge middle finger to working people."Conservatives cite similar themes for their opposition to the bill, namely that Biden's actions caused the current crisis at the border. They are also weary of granting a Homeland Security Secretary, currently Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, more authority when House Republicans are already <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/alejandro-mayorkas-impeachment-explainer-house-republicans-immigration-border-2024-1">pursuing a controversial impeachment of him</a>. It is worth noting that some Republicans initially called for the marriage of immigration and Ukraine aid, a trade-off the Biden administration has now answered through its support of the deal. The border security provisions are unprecedented in the sense that a bipartisan immigration deal has never in recent years included stricter immigration laws without greater protections for so-called Dreamers or a pathway to citizenship for undocumented migrants already in the US.The reality is that McConnell's leadership is imperiled like never before. In 2022, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/16/us/politics/mitch-mcconnell-rick-scott-senate.html">he easily bested </a>Sen. Rick Scott of Florida for the right to lead the Senate GOP, but it was still the first time one of his colleagues directly challenged his leadership. Since then, a group of Senate Republicans has continued to be vocal about the difficulties of having a GOP leader who has an at best icy relationship with Trump.<h2>McConnell is pressed for time.</h2>Time might not be on McConnell's side either. The 81-year-old had multiple high-profile health incidents last year. The Capitol physician concluded that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/capitol-physician-mitch-mcconnell-health-no-evidence-stroke-seizure-disorder-2023-9">McConnell's freezes were not cause for serious concern</a>, but the private plotting of a future without him spilled over into public view. There's a chance that the supplemental could become the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mitch-mcconnell-ukraine-funding-legacy-mike-johnson-house-republicans-2023-10">final piece of his </a>and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bill-arm-israel-and-ukraine-may-define-bidens-legacy-2023-10">President Joe Biden's legacy.</a>In the meantime, McConnell will continue to scrounge for votes. As of this writing, there's a chance a majority of Senate Republicans will stand against their leader.

McConnell staked his legacy on a border-Ukraine deal. He may be too out of step with the GOP to save it. 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Protests blocked <keyword id="11931670" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="trade" source="Orion">trade</keyword> for a second day at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge in McAllen, <keyword id="11896956" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="texas" source="Orion">Texas</keyword>.</li><li>Mexican truck drivers are protesting additional security measures imposed by Texas Gov. <keyword id="11906065" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="greg-abbott" source="Orion">Greg Abbott</keyword>.</li></ul>Mexican truck drivers blocked north-bound traffic at one of the busiest entry points into Texas for the second day in a row, a US official told Insider on Tuesday.The drivers are protesting Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's decision to step up the screening of commercial trucks that cross the border. In an announcement last week, Abbott's office described the policy as an effort to tackle "cartel-facilitated smuggling."The policy has caused significant delays, with a trip that used to take a couple of hours in some cases now taking <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/immigration/2022/04/11/truckers-say-stepped-up-inspections-mean-35-hour-waits-at-one-texas-mexico-border-bridge/">more than 30</a>.<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2022/04/11/texas-border-inspections-truckers-protest/">The Texas Tribune reported</a> that agents from the state's Department of Public Safety appear "to be checking every commercial vehicle that crosses select international bridges," with those inspections taking up to an hour per truck.On Monday, Dante Galeazzi, president of the Texas International Produce Association, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/anger-mounts-along-texas-mexico-border-over-long-delays-commercial-crossings-2022-04-11/?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=daily-briefing">told Reuters</a> that in less than a week the policy had blocked the importation of some $30 million in fresh produce. Last week, <a href="https://texipa.org/gov-abbot-rule-impacting-border-crossing-speeds/">the association urged</a> Abbott to scrap the policy and collaborate with the federal government on such screenings, saying the unilateral security measures had caused commercial traffic to reach a "stand-still."Fed-up truck drivers in Mexico decided on Monday to halt traffic themselves in protest, blocking access to the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, with Mexican outlet <a href="https://www.elmanana.com/local/reynosa/firmes-transportistas-en-bloqueos/5528172">El Mañana reporting</a> Tuesday that they were doing so again.US Customs and Border Protection confirmed that the action is having a significant impact."The commercial traffic at Pharr International Bridge is currently halted temporarily, in both directions," a <keyword id="12145479" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="cbp" source="Orion">CBP</keyword> official told Insider, citing "a protest occurring on the Reynosa side of the bridge and due to no southbound movement by US carriers."A spokesperson for Abbott did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Have a <keyword id="11893589" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="news" source="Orion">news</keyword> tip? Email this reporter: <a href="mailto:cdavis@insider.com">cdavis@insider.com</a>

Mexican truck drivers blocked north-bound traffic at one of the busiest entry points into Texas for the 2nd day in a row in protest of Gov. Greg Abbott's border policies

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The yuan's growing use is chipping away at second-tier currencies, such as the pound, ING said.</li><li>China's share of global payment transactions on the SWIFT system grew to 3% in July. </li></ul>The Chinese yuan's gradual rise in global finance is pulling down other top currencies but not the dollar, according to ING, despite Beijing's desire to challenge the greenback's dominance.China's bilateral swap lines and <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/dedollarization-brazil-yuan-guarantees-argentina-trade-dollar-shortage-brics-summit-2023-8?_gl=1*ll4r5z*_ga*MTMxNDIwNDI1Ni4xNjc1Njg3OTU4*_ga_E21CV80ZCZ*MTY5Mjg4NzMzMi4yMzguMC4xNjkyODg3MzMyLjYwLjAuMA..">cross-border trade agreements</a> have meaningfully boosted the yuan's position. Where once it accounted for just 0.03% of global payment flows in 2010, July saw that figure exceed 3%, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-24/dollar-usage-in-global-payments-in-july-rises-to-record-swift-says?srnd=null" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SWIFT payments data</a> shows.The yuan's gains appear to be coming at the expense of other currencies, like the British pound, <a href="https://think.ing.com/reports/brics-expansion-and-the-dollar-would-a-larger-bloc-mean-faster-dedollarisation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an ING report from last week noted</a>."Despite some pressure, the USD remains the preferential currency for trade. A greater role of BRICS and other emerging markets in global trade may create more natural demand for alternatives to USD, but this has not happened so far. The higher share of CNY in trade invoicing doesn't seem to be dethroning USD, but rather pushing out second tier developed market FX, such as GBP," it said.For its part, the dollar's share of SWIFT transactions is holding relatively steady, accounting for 46.5% in July and 42% in the first half of 2023. That's compared to 41% in 2022 and 44% in 2015.Meanwhile, the euro's use on the SWIFT payments system hit a record low of 24.4% last month, though that's more on account of the all-time high for the dollar.The recent SWIFT data confirms the dollar's strength, even as it faces deeper de-dollarization efforts and growing anti-greenback rhetoric from the BRICS bloc of emerging markets.The coalition, which is currently hosting its 15th annual summit, previously discussed creating an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/xi-putin-seek-brics-expansion-challenge-us-power-and-dollar-2023-8">alternative currency</a>. Meanwhile, its flagship development bank announced plans to use <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/china-based-brics-bank-aims-231937466.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">local currencies for 30% of its lending</a>.On Thursday, BRICS leaders also publicized plans to expand the membership to include other nations. A larger coalition would not have an overwhelming impact on de-dollarization, ING wrote, though it could accelerate the creation of finance systems outside of the dollar's hegemony.As an example, China has been steadily building an alternative to the Western-dominated SWIFT system, with the Cross-border International Payments System, or CIPS. Cut off from US regulation, it now has 91 direct participants. Still the West's financial messaging and clearing systems account for 40 times more transactions than China's CIPS, according to ING.

You Searched For "border trade" and got 10 results

Indian traders demand resumption of border trade with China through Lipulekh pass

PTI

Russia pitches trading centers in a widening plan to move away from the US-dominated global financial order

Huileng Tan

To get paid by Russian customers, some Chinese banks are taking documents across borders to get them stamped, reported Reuters

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Trade ties with India suspended due to 'heavy duties': Pakistan Foreign Minister

PTI

Turkey may soon put its controversial Russian S-400 air defenses in operation

Paul Iddon

RBI, Bank Indonesia sign pact to promote use of local currencies for bilateral trade

PTI

Congressional Republicans want to kill a bipartisan border bill to give Trump an edge in the election

Madison Hall,Brent D. Griffit…

McConnell staked his legacy on a border-Ukraine deal. He may be too out of step with the GOP to save it.

Brent D. Griffiths

Mexican truck drivers blocked north-bound traffic at one of the busiest entry points into Texas for the 2nd day in a row in protest of Gov. Greg Abbott's border policies

Charles R. Davis

China's yuan is displacing other top global currencies in trade, but not the US dollar

Filip De Mott

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