HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top foreign stories at 2100 hours

FGN22 CHINA-INDIA-KASHMIR Ahead of Xi's visit, China says Kashmir issue should be resolved bilaterally; drops UN references

Beijing: As Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived here Tuesday for talks with Xi Jinping ahead of the Chinese President's important visit to India, China said the Kashmir issue should be resolved between New Delhi and Islamabad, significantly omitting its recent references to the UN and UN Security Council resolutions. By K J M Varma

FGN 36 FRANCE-3RDLD RAJNATH Rajnath Singh calls on Macron; discusses India-France defence ties

Paris: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called on French President Emmanuel Macron here on Tuesday and the two leaders discussed stronger India-France defence and strategic ties during their "very warm and productive" meeting. By Aditi Khanna

FGN 34 RAJNATH-3RDLD RAFALE Defence Minister Rajnath Singh receives IAF's first Rafale fighter jet from France

Merignac (France): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday that the French-made Rafale combat jet will boost India's air dominance exponentially, as he was formally handed the delivery of the first of 36 such aircraft acquired by the Indian government at a ceremony here.

FGN 37 AFGHAN-2NDLD QAEDA Al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent's India-born chief killed in US-Afghan raid

Islamabad: India-born Asim Umar, the chief of the Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), has been killed during a joint US-Afghan raid on a Taliban hideout in Afghanistan's Helmand province, Afghan officials said on Tuesday.

FGN20 NOBEL-2NDLD PHYSICS

Cosmology trio win Nobel Physics Prize Stockholm: Canadian-American cosmologist James Peebles and Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz on Tuesday won the Nobel Physics Prize for research increasing our understanding of our place in the universe, the jury said. (AFP)

FGN10 US-COMMITTEE-3RDLD KASHMIR

US Congress committee urges India to end communication blackout in Kashmir Washington: India's communication blackout in Kashmir is having a "devastating impact" on the lives and welfare of the people there, a powerful US Congressional Committee has said, urging New Delhi to lift its more than two-month long restrictions in the Valley. By Lalit K Jha

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