South & Central Asia

Sindhi and Balochi are prominent languages in Sindh and Balochistan accordingly. Similar to Afghanistan, Bhutan is also a landlocked country in South Asia, situated at the eastern end of the Himalayas. It is bordered to the north by China and to the south, east and west by India. The national language of Bhutan is Bhutanese , one of the 53 languages in the Tibetan language family.

International Migration By Ethnic South And Southeast Asians

The Bali Regional Ministerial Meeting on Counter-Terrorism, co-hosted by Australia and Indonesia, met on 4-5 February. The 1st East Asia Summit was convened on 14 December, with a view to establishing closer and substantial relations between the member countries of ASEAN and the participating countries of India, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and the Republic of Korea. A landmark event was the signing of a Declaration on the Establishment of the ASEAN Charter by its leaders.

The statement outlined the group’s goals in relation to nuclear nonproliferation, disarmament and peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The chairman addressed the commitment to a region free of weapons of mass destruction. On May, the 10th annual ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting was held in Vientiane, Laos. The Joint Declaration of the 10th ADMM reiterates all Member States’ commitment to responding effectively to transnational crimes and transboundary challenges. On August 5, the ASEAN released a statement of the development in the Korean Peninsula, reiterating grave concern over the escalation of tensions in the peninsula.

South Asian Countries

Dari is considered to be the prestige language and a lingua franca for inter-ethnic communication. Other native tongues of different minority groups include Uzbek, Arabic, Turkmen, Balochi, Pashayi, and Nuristani languages (Ashkunu, Kamkata-viri, Vasi-vari, Tregami, and Kalasha-ala). Below are links to South Asian countries profiled in theCIA World Fact Book, an online resource that provides information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities. Updated entries within the Factbook are entered almost monthly, so information is very current.

Political Cooperation

Similarly, Israel and Palestine have both been recognized as sovereign states by many members of the United Nations, but haven't yet been granted official nationhood. As a result, they appear on some lists of countries in Asia, but not on others. In the case of Asia, the biggest complication is the presence of several territories that are considered independent countries by some organizations and governments, but not by others.

Extensive Resources On Nuclear Policy, Biological Threats, Radiological Security, Cyber Threats And More

On 24 September at the 2nd ASEAN-US Leaders’ Meeting in New York, ASEAN welcomed the U.S. announcement at the 2010 NPT Review Conference that it is prepared to engage in consultations to resolve issues which have prevented it from acceding to the SEANWFZ Protocol. The statement also congratulated the United States on the successful outcome of the Nuclear Security Summit and promised the support of ASEAN countries to work towards preventing nuclear terrorism. At the 18th ASEAN Summit, which took place in May, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia called upon member states of ASEAN to lower their dependency on fossil fuels and search for alternative methods to produce energy. Given the nuclear catastrophe in Japan, Mr. Yudhoyono stated that nuclear energy needs to be reexamined. On 1 November, China deposited its instrument of ratification of the Third Protocol Amending the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia .

Two urban areas that demonstrate this are Hyderabad, India, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. India is also a major producer of aluminum and iron ore, along with other minerals such as barite , chromium , and manganese . During this season, a low-pressure system south of the Himalayas attracts moisture-laden winds from the Indian Ocean. The Himalayas push these winds up, causing clouds and precipitation to form at a rapid rate. As a result, many areas of Southeast Asia are considered the wettest places on Earth and can see more than 254 centimeters of rain every year.

Microsoft’s largest research and development campus outside the United States is in the HITEC complex. The high temperatures and precipitation levels of Southeast Asia are the perfect conditions for the production of rice and tropical fruits. Rice is one of Asia’s most important agricultural commodities and a major food staple of the entire continent. In 2010, Asia harvested almost 570 million metric tons of rice, accounting for more than 50 percent of the continent’s total cereal production—and roughly 90 percent of total global rice production. Asia also has the highest rates of rice consumption, averaging more than 79 kilograms per person annually. As a result, the majority of Asia’s rice stays within the region and international trade rates are fairly low.