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In this edition of India Today Global, the focus is on the latest release of Jeffrey Epstein-related documents, which mention Trump in flight records.
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00:00Hello and welcome, I'm Geeta Mohan and you're watching India Today Global.
00:14We begin with some breaking news that's coming in at the South.
00:19The Justice Department of the United States of America has released a new batch of documents
00:25related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's investigation on Tuesday
00:32with the latest batch mentioning Donald Trump in connection with flight records of Epstein's private jet
00:40though authorities have not accused the U.S. President of any criminal involvement.
00:45The release includes 30,000 pages with many redactions and dozens of video clips,
00:51some reportedly filmed inside a prison.
00:53Epstein was found dead in 2019 after an apparent or an alleged suicide in a New York jail.
01:02One of the Epstein documents includes an email stating that, and I quote Donald Trump,
01:07travelled on Epstein's private jet many more times than has previously been reported or that we were aware of.
01:14The email dated January 7th, 2020 is part of a chain with the subject line Epstein flight records.
01:24The sender and recipient are redacted, but the bottom of the email lists an assistant U.S. attorney
01:30from the Southern District of New York with the name also redacted.
01:35The email states that Trump was listed as a passenger on at least eight flights between 1993 and 1996.
01:44There are photographs that you can also see have been found in the Epstein files.
01:50The flights include flights with Gisela and Maxwell, who is a partner and friend of Jeffrey Epstein.
02:00So those are details that are coming in in the recent and the latest details that have been out from the Epstein files.
02:08And Trump's name does surface in the flight details, wherein it says that Donald Trump took multiple flights between 1993 and 1996.
02:20Many of those flights not on record or not known earlier.
02:24Well, the other big story we are tracking is Bangladesh and the violence, the instability that we're looking at in Bangladesh,
02:40following protests after the death of prominent student leader Sharif Osman Hadi,
02:44and then the lynching of a Hindu Deepu Chandra Das.
02:48The country's chief advisor, Professor Mohamed Yunus, expressed his commitment to hold general elections on the 12th of February, as was announced earlier.
02:59The situation, though, limping towards normalcy, remains uncertain.
03:04Yunus made the commitment during a telephonic conversation with Sergio Gore, the U.S. Special Envoy for South and Central Asia.
03:11Both of them spoke for about half an hour, discussing trade and tariffs, the upcoming general elections,
03:17and the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi.
03:20India Today is the only Indian channel right now on the ground, on Ground Zero.
03:26Our reporter, Ashutosh Mishra, travels through the old Dhaka area,
03:31where preparations have begun for the upcoming general elections to be held on the 12th of February.
03:36The country is also set to welcome 60-year-old Tariq Rahman,
03:40acting chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, that's BNP,
03:44and son of former Prime Minister Begum Khalid Azir.
03:48I am now in the old Dhaka area, and this totally looks clear,
03:54there will be the banner of posters about the candidates, and several,
03:58these stages have been prepared, not only for the arrival of Tariq Rahman,
04:02but at the same time, the candidates who are contesting from the different seats of Bangladesh,
04:07has around one and a half month left for the general elections,
04:10and the voting for the referendum, that old Dhaka is absolutely turning political and wearing a political mind.
04:18Now, Tariq Rahman, son of a former Premier of Bangladesh, Khalid Azir,
04:26has been in exile, or self-imposed exile, in London for 18 years,
04:32and is set to land in Dhaka on the 25th of December.
04:36Amidst the political chaos and critical physical condition of Khalid Azir,
04:41the return of Rahman is being seen by the party as a relief and a lifeline.
04:46A retired Brigadier General has been appointed Chief Security Officer
04:50to oversee overall security arrangements for both Khalid Azir and Tariq Rahman.
04:56Opinion polls say that the BNP is the front-runner.
05:00A December poll by a U.S.-based non-profit, the International Republican Institute,
05:05shows the BNP leading with 30% support, followed by the Jamaat-e-Islami at 26%.
05:10Of course, Awami League is not present and may not be fighting these elections.
05:15The NCP, which aims to contest all 300 seats in third place, with support of just 6%.
05:23A survey by the Prasomalo newspaper found that 47% of respondents believe
05:29that Tariq Rahman will be the next Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
05:33Our leader Tariq Rahman had to stay out of the country in the national interest,
05:42because he is a popular and established leader.
05:45It was necessary for him to stay away and it's time now for him to return.
05:49Once he returns, he will lead our democratic movement.
05:52If people choose BNP and its leadership in the coming elections,
05:56Tariq Rahman will accept the role to uphold the country's sovereignty, freedom and democracy.
06:02We will build good relations with our neighbours and uphold our rights in global platforms.
06:07He will work for the good of the people and the country and that's what his politics stands for.
06:12And our reporter, Ashutosh Mishra, is in Dhaka.
06:21India Today is the only Indian channel right now on the ground reporting from Dhaka where violence ensues.
06:29Ashutosh, thank you so much for joining us.
06:31Now, we've seen your dispatches, but despite condemnation from UNIS government, fresh attacks continue.
06:35What is the ground assessment there and is Dhaka doing anything to assure safety for the minorities and Indian diplomats?
06:47Well, clearly something that is the biggest failure looks like at the Dr. Yu's administration is the containing the fundamentalists.
06:54And since one and a half year, we have seen many of these talk.
06:56And not only talking about Dhaka, but Chittagram remains vulnerable.
06:59As we have seen one of these in the remote areas of Chittagram 1-2 family where they attacked, the vows was born.
07:04They somehow, so the biggest favor at the moment looks like how Dr. Yu and their administration has not been to assure the Hindus of the safety and security.
07:14In fact, the UN probe committee that was also formed, but eventually all of these efforts and nothing could work actually.
07:21But at the same time, we see all the assurances only coming, looks like only all over.
07:26But when it comes to really providing and ensuring protection of the Bangladeshi national, primarily the Hindus, the minority Hindus, that has remained only in the words as far as assurance is concerned.
07:38We see only and only the atrocities rising.
07:41And there are a number of such cases across Bangladesh, particularly in the remote areas.
07:47Ashutosh, protests in India and anti-India sentiments in Bangladesh.
07:50Are age-old ties with Bangladesh now at a breakpoint?
07:56Well, as far as ties between India and Bangladesh is concerned, that looks like soaring and perhaps all-time low.
08:03The way we are seeing the escalation, both the sides, the war of words, the embassy shutting down their visa services,
08:09the protests escalating, be it the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi or the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, Raj Shahi, Chittagong.
08:15And eventually the services being shut down, all the embassies are being protected heavily by the security force, both the sides.
08:21That looks like a diplomatic standoff has taken quite high.
08:25In fact, I've been asking to the BNP leaders, as it is estimated, that probably that will be the party will be coming to power in Bangladesh.
08:32And Tariq Rahman, who would be the next Prime Minister, that what will be the first challenge when it comes to restoring the India-Bangladesh relationship.
08:39There are parts of it, it will be mutual, it will be on consensus, it will be with the mutual respect of each other.
08:44And that remains, we'll have to see how they are going to do this.
08:47Once it is sore, and clearly when you have a catalyst factor of the fundamentalism, then you have the catalyst factor like ISN and Pakistan playing between India and Pakistan relationship.
08:55So there are many such hurdles, and that looks like only will be possible when there is a new government formed after the elections, a democratic government.
09:02And then there will be something that will be initiated from both the sides.
09:06Right. Ashutosh Mishra, thank you so much for joining us.
09:09We'll keep coming back to you for all the details and latest from Dhaka.
09:12Now shifting focus and staying on Donald Trump and the Epstein files, the U.S. Justice Department released partially redacted Epstein-related documents, sparking criticism and online backlash.
09:25Social media users mocked the heavy redactions with memes, including jokes involving Donald Trump and other public figures, while the DOJ said the edits were meant to protect victims' identities.
09:37The U.S. Department of Justice has partially released in public documents and photographs related to the Epstein case.
09:48But most of these evidences are redacted.
09:51The Department of Justice drew the ire and criticism of Democrats and families of victims.
09:57But the social media users, in their unique style, took a jibe at the DOJ.
10:01Memes flooded on social media sites as the DOJ defended its action as protecting the identities of the victims.
10:10One of the users remarked that the redacted documents looked like as if taxes are being filed for the next year.
10:18Another user wrote, redacted states of America.
10:22But it did not stop at that.
10:24Remember U.S. President Donald Trump's cameo in Home Alone.
10:28A user used a clip of Trump from the movie and redacted his face.
10:33Another person redacted Trump's face from a picture taken during one of his campaigns, saying,
10:38MAGA is like, that could be anybody.
10:41A separate meme stated, why does my milk got the Epstein files on it?
10:45Earlier, the Department of Justice restored the photographs of the U.S. President Donald Trump,
10:53which were removed as the department claimed the photo flagged by the Southern District of New York
10:59for potential further action to protect victims.
11:02The image showed a desk with an open drawer containing a photo of Trump with various women.
11:07The other famed personalities whose photographs have been part of the Epstein files include
11:13Michael Jackson with President Bill Clinton and Diana Ross.
11:17Bill Clinton, who is seen in a tub and also painting of Clinton in a dress.
11:22With Mahasweta Lala, Bureau Report, India Today.
11:29U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans for the Navy to begin building a new class of battleship
11:35that he said would be larger, faster, and hundred times more powerful
11:40than the biggest of any previous U.S.-built warship.
11:43The new class of battleship will be part of a larger vision that Trump dubbed as the Golden Fleet.
11:50As per reports from the WSJ, the ships will replace the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers
11:55and cost around $5 billion each.
11:58They will weigh 30,000 to 40,000 tons and will have the capacity for hosting futuristic technology
12:05like directed energy lasers and rail guns.
12:09The President was speaking from Palm Beach, Florida, where he is staying for the Christmas holidays.
12:14He was joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
12:20Signs next to the President depicted artistic renderings of the first ship of the new line,
12:26the Trump-class USS Defiant.
12:28This type of ship found prominence during World War II, but after the war, the role of the battleships diminished
12:35as aircraft carriers and long-range missiles were inducted in the modern fleet.
12:43Welcome to Mar-a-Lago for this exciting announcement of the new Golden Fleet.
12:49We're calling it the Golden Fleet that we're building for the United States Navy.
12:53As you know, we're desperately in need of ships.
12:55Our ships are, some of them have gotten old and tired and obsolete,
13:00and we're going to go the exact opposite direction.
13:03And again, it's 100 times more powerful than the previous Iowa class, it's called.
13:09Those are the big ones that you'd see on a show.
13:11Victory at Sea.
13:12I don't know if anyone's seen Victory at Sea, but it was a classic.
13:16They'll help maintain American military supremacy,
13:19revive the American shipbuilding industry,
13:22and inspire fear in America's enemies all over the world.
13:25We want respect.
13:27We're going to have it.
13:28We already have it.
13:29We're more respected now than we ever were.
13:34Senior journalist Sandeep Unathan joins me to break down what this really means, Sandeep.
13:39Before we get to what the fleet is and the strength and why and what of it,
13:46the fact that maybe in recent modern history of America,
13:51this could be the first time that a warship or a fleet in itself
13:56is being named after the President of the United States of America.
14:00Well, absolutely, Eda.
14:03And, you know, there has been a tradition, in fact,
14:06of naming ships after presidents,
14:09but it's usually after they've demitted office and much later, in fact.
14:13You have the Gerald Ford class, which is a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
14:17It's the largest carrier in the world.
14:18In fact, it's named after a former U.S. president.
14:21You have the Ronald Reagan, of course,
14:23and you have the George W. Bush,
14:26and you have the George Bush aircraft carrier.
14:29So it's nothing new.
14:30But, you know, it's rare for a U.S. president,
14:33a sitting U.S. president,
14:34to name a class of ships after himself while he's in office.
14:38I mean, these kind of things are usually reserved for much after he's moved on.
14:44And it's usually carried out by his successors.
14:46But, you know, that's Trump for you.
14:48He's the person who's defied all conventions and all norms
14:52and very unabashedly named this new class of guided missile battleships
14:59after himself.
15:01Right.
15:02Sandeep, the U.S. is defiant.
15:04This is the Trump class we're talking about.
15:07Is it going to be as defiant?
15:08And what is the reason, purpose for this fleet?
15:14When will it be commissioned?
15:15Are we looking at the Indo-Pacific security of the Indo-Pacific specifically?
15:21Or is it specific to China?
15:24I know I'm broad basing it, but just, you know, just to understand.
15:26Well, Aghita, it's really all of the above.
15:30And, you know, while the U.S. has the most powerful Navy in the world,
15:33the United States Navy is equal to the next five navies combined or six navies combined,
15:39they are conscious of the fact that the PLA Navy is gaining very rapidly.
15:44And the PLA Navy has the maximum number of ships in terms of numbers.
15:50They have over 300 battle force ships, but the U.S. Navy is ahead in terms of tonnage of ships
15:57because they have some of the largest aircraft carriers in the world.
16:00They have 11 Nimitz and Ford class supercarriers that are over 100,000 tons displacement each.
16:08So the United States has been looking at replacing some of its old warships of the A-Legberg class,
16:14destroyers and cruisers of the last 20 or 30 years.
16:19And they've been trying very hard to do that.
16:21They recently canceled the Constellation class,
16:24which was supposed to be this new common generation frigate program.
16:29That was canceled.
16:29So there is a bit of a flux right now because given the kind of technologies that are coming in,
16:34large capital ships are, you know, literally, they've reached the end of the road.
16:41And for a very big reason, because you have hypersonic missiles,
16:44you have satellites, drones, long-range unmanned surface vessels.
16:50We just saw one of the largest ships in the world to be sunk after the Second World War.
16:57That's the Moscow.
16:59That's the Black Sea Fleet flagship of the Russian Federation that was sunk by Ukraine in 2022.
17:06So there's a big debate on whether large ships are literally on their way out.
17:10Capital ships are on their way out.
17:12And Trump has decided to go in the other direction by going in for this very, very big guided missile battleship class.
17:20But, you know, that's exactly what I wanted to ask you.
17:22Five billion dollars a ship.
17:25And we were just discussing the Pentagon report where they say they cannot fight China
17:30and sustain a war with China because their aircraft carriers, their ships are expensive and can be sunk easily.
17:38Well, so, Geetha, the United States has been here before.
17:43More than three decades ago, they had plans for a class of ships called the Arsenal ship.
17:49Now, the Arsenal ship is a gigantic ship.
17:51You know, it has pretty much the same dimensions as this so-called Trump class, the USS Defiant.
17:57Now, the Arsenal ship was meant to be a very large ship that would carry something like 500 vertically launched missiles.
18:04It was literally a floating arsenal that would pound enemy targets, coastal targets, basically, with hundreds of missiles.
18:13That Arsenal ship was, in fact, killed by U.S. Congress over three decades ago, simply because it was so expensive.
18:19At that point, more than three decades ago, it was half a billion dollars.
18:24And Congress said there's no way we can afford a class of ships that are so expensive.
18:28There was a plan very similar to the so-called Trump class of between 20 and 30 Arsenal ships.
18:35Now, it's very clear that the Trump class of ships plans to brazen it out by saying that we are going to load this ship with so many defensive measures that they can shoot down drones, they can shoot down hypersonic missiles, etc., etc., etc.
18:51So, it's very difficult to imagine these coming to fruition, just as the Arsenal ship was cancelled three decades ago.
18:59Right. Sandeep Unitan, thank you so much for joining us with that perspective and also breaking it down for our viewers. Thank you.
19:06Our senior Republican leader, Vivek Ramaswamy, responded to the online abuse toward U.S. Second Lady, Usha Vance.
19:18Ramaswamy drew sharp red lines against extremism, conspiracy theories, and personal attacks within the American conservative movement.
19:26He was speaking at the event of Turning Point USA's America Fest.
19:31Ramaswamy, who is also an Ohio GOP gubernatorial candidate, referred to extremist figure Nick Funtes and warned that those using racist slurs have no place in conservatism.
19:47Funtes used the derogatory term Jeet against Vice President J.D. Vance's wife on the talk show, Piers Morgan Uncensored.
19:56Jeet is a slur aimed at Indians in general.
19:58Meanwhile, U.S. President J.D. Vance, too, strongly condemned racist and sexist attacks targeting his wife, Usha Vance.
20:06He also asserted that ethnic hatred has no place in conservative movement.
20:11In an interview with UnHerd, Vance responded to Funtes and former press secretary during the Biden administration, Jen Psaki's remarks.
20:21If you believe, and you will forgive me for giving you an exact quote from our online commentator, Nick Fuentes, if you believe that Hitler was pretty fucking cool, you have no place in the future of the conservative movement.
20:34You can debate foreign aid to Israel all you want, that's fine, that's fair, but you have no place with that level of hatred.
20:41You can debate the right resolution of the Russia-Ukraine war, but if you believe Joseph Stalin is someone to look up to, you have no place in the future of the conservative movement.
20:49If you call Usha Vance, the second lady of the United States of America, a jeet, you have no place in the future of the conservative movement.
21:00And if you can't say those things without stuttering, then you have no place as a leader at any level in the conservative movement either.
21:14Certainly not in my state of Ohio.
21:19From nuclear reform to regional outrage, India's Shanti bill has redrawn the strategic map and triggered alarm not in global capitals, but in Islamabad, a country, Pakistan, that has no standing when it comes to nuclear proliferation and now is speaking about India.
21:39We break down what Pakistan is doing and why it's doing so on Statecraft this evening.
21:49India has just cracked open one of the most secretive doors of the Indian state, its nuclear sector.
22:08With the Shanti bill, New Delhi has rewritten a 60-year-old rulebook, ending monopoly, inviting private participation, and signaling nuclear confidence to the world.
22:19But even before the ink could dry, there was outrage, not in Vienna, not in Washington, but in Islamabad.
22:26A country drowning in debt, harboring world's most wanted terrorists, and burdened by one of the darkest nuclear proliferation scandals in history, is suddenly concerned about India's nuclear safety.
22:40So as India reforms its atomic future, we ask why Pakistan, of all countries, is trying to sound the alarm.
22:47And more importantly, whose nuclear program should the world really be worried about?
22:52Hello and welcome. You're watching Statecraft with me, Geeta Mohan.
22:56We'll see you next time.
23:26We'll see you next time.
25:26We'll see you next time.
26:26We'll see you next time.
26:28Because the real danger to the world is not India reforming its nuclear energy sector.
26:33The danger is, pretending Pakistan's nuclear record deserves to be taken seriously.
27:03Goodbye from India.
27:05We'll see you next time.
27:06If you'll see you next time.
27:07Goodbye.
27:08Goodbye.
27:08Goodbye.
27:08Bye.
27:09Kabul.
27:09Transcription by CastingWords
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