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Atlanta, Oct 30 (IANS) The presence of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Atlanta has exposed a widening split among Western governments over how to deal with Moscow, raising doubts about how much consensus the US-hosted grouping can reach on its economic agenda. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is chairing the two-day meeting on October 30 and 31, ahead of the G20 Leaders’ Summit that President Donald Trump will host in Miami in December. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been invited to the summit, although it remains unclear whether he will attend. Lavrov’s attendance has revived a debate over whether engaging Russian officials at international gatherings signals a return to business as usual while the war in Ukraine continues. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said he would not avoid a group photograph with all participants, as dialogue was part of his job, but stressed there could be “no normalcy” with Moscow as long as the war continues. Custom Ad: Multiplex “For the first several years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the United States and its European allies were united in refusing to return to ‘business as usual’ with Moscow, including by avoiding legitimizing it through normal diplomatic engagement,” Nicholas Lokker, an adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security in Washington, told RFE/RL. “That consensus has since broken down,” he said. The rift has surfaced before. At a G20 finance meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, in August, European delegates objected after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent held a bilateral meeting with Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, and insisted Siluanov be left out of that meeting’s family photo, Lokker said. Ukraine’s absence adds to the friction. Washington limited invitations to formal G20 members, leaving Ukraine off the guest list. James Lamond, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, said Lavrov’s presence would make a substantive discussion of Ukraine difficult because Kyiv is not represented. “Anything of substance cannot be negotiated without Ukraine being represented,” he told RFE/RL. Lamond said the talks were likely to be dominated by the wars in Ukraine and Iran, making it hard for ministers to focus on the G20’s economic priorities. Washington has said it wants to take the grouping “back to basics”, with an agenda centred on economic growth, deregulation, innovation, energy and trade. Moscow has also voiced grievances. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said visas for the delegation were resolved only at the last minute, suggesting that “not everyone in Washington is happy” about Lavrov’s participation, RFE/RL reported. Lavrov has said he intends to use the meeting to push for reform of global economic institutions and a more multipolar world order. Whether the ministers will issue a joint statement or the US will release a chair’s summary at the end of the meeting is not yet known. A meeting between Rubio and Lavrov in Atlanta has not been announced. --IANS lkj/as

New Delhi, Oct 30 (IANS) The Supreme Court Collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, on Friday recommended the appointment of five judicial officers as judges of the Madhya Pradesh High Court and six nominees - four advocates and two judicial officers - as judges of the Chhattisgarh High Court. In its meeting held on Friday, the SC Collegium approved the proposal for the appointment of judicial officers Renuka Kanchan, Krishnamurty Mishra, Virendra Singh Rajput, Mamta Jain, and Ashita Shrivastava as Judges of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. "The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on 30th October, 2026, has approved the proposal for appointment of the following Judicial Officers, as Judges of the High Court of Madhya Pradesh," said a statement uploaded on the website of the apex court. The apex court Collegium also approved the appointment of four advocates -- Anand Shukla, Ratna Nidhi Pusty alias R.N. Pusty alias Ratan Pusty, Shashank Thakur, and Sourabh Sharma -- as Judges of the Chhattisgarh High Court. Custom Ad: Multiplex Besides, it recommended the names of judicial officers Rajnish Shrivastava and Balram Prasad Verma for appointment as Judges of the Chhattisgarh High Court. In a separate development, the Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on Thursday, approved the proposal for appointment of nine advocates as Judges of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. The recommended advocates are Vishal Sharma, Vikram Kumar Sharma, Namgyal Wangchuk, Pawan Kumar Kundal, Tahir Majid Shamsi, Tabasum Zafar, Amit Gupta, Pranav Kohli and Anupam Raina. Appointment of judges in the higher judiciary is a continuous, integrated and collaborative process between the executive and the judiciary. It requires consultation and approval from various constitutional authorities at both the state and Central levels. Only those persons whose names have been recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium are appointed as Judges of the High Courts. --IANS pds/vd

Rajkot, Oct 30 (IANS) The Gujarat Police’s State Monitoring Cell (SMC) has seized 517 LPG cylinders worth Rs 9.29 lakh and other equipment during raids at eight locations in a residential area of Rajkot district, busting an alleged illegal gas-refilling operation. Seven people have been arrested, while 15 others have been named as wanted accused. The raids were conducted on Friday in the jurisdiction of Bhaktinagar police station, primarily in the Nehrunagar area, where illegal refilling of domestic LPG cylinders was allegedly being carried out inside houses and godowns. The State Monitoring Cell deployed two separate teams for the operation, citing the risk of an accident and loss of life and property as the activities were taking place in a residential locality. Custom Ad: Multiplex The raids were conducted by Police Sub-Inspectors S V Galchar and V N Jadeja following instructions from Director General of Police (DGP) G. S. Malik to take action against illegal activities in the state. The teams raided eight premises, including godowns and houses on Streets 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 of Nehrunagar. These included premises belonging to arrested accused Ramesh Chavda, Meram Chavda, Hardev Chavda, Amit Dangar and Ashish Gogara, as well as godowns linked to wanted accused Praful Dangar, Dhirubhai Dangar and Umesh Boricha. Two godowns belonging to Dhirubhai Dangar were also searched. Apart from the 517 gas cylinders, valued at Rs 9,29,100, the police seized 16 refilling pipes with nozzles, 44 sheets of stickers bearing the words 'Reliance Gas', 48 cylinder caps, five electric motors, 12 electronic weighing scales, two ordinary weighing scales, three vehicles, seven mobile phones, Rs 9,170 in cash and a spanner. The total value of the seized property was estimated at Rs 11,45,946. Two separate FIRs were registered at Bhaktinagar police station on October 30 against the 22 accused. The cases invoke Sections 125, 287 and 54 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Sections 3 and 7 of the Essential Commodities Act, and Section 9(B)(1)(B) of the Explosives Act, 1884. The seven arrested accused have been identified as Hardev Chavda, Meram Chavda and Ramesh Chavda, all residents of New Gopalvandana, Street No. 5, Rajkot; Rakesh Bishnoi of Chitbera in Jodhpur, Rajasthan; Purannath Kori of Shivshakti Forging on Dhebar Road, Rajkot; Amit Dangar of Nehrunagar, Street No. 8; and Ashish Gogara of Nehrunagar, Street No. 10. The 15 wanted accused include Raju Solanki and Karan Lavadiya, associated with Jaymin Gas Agency; Mangabhai, associated with Madhuram Gas Agency; Arvind Nat, associated with Jai Bhim Gas Agency; Hitesh Chavda, associated with AGS Piyour Gas Agency; and Shailesh Chavda, associated with Madhuram Gas Agency. The remaining wanted accused have been identified as Chandubhai Rathod, Jitendra Jariwala, Dhirubhai Raydhanbhai Dangar, Prafulbhai Naranbhai Dangar, Umeshbhai Prabhatbhai Boricha, Sanjaybhai Chavda, Sanjaybhai Rajput, Raj and Tajuddin. The police also found previous cases of a similar nature against two of the arrested accused. Meram Chavda was previously booked at Bhaktinagar police station in 2015, while Ramesh Gagubhai Chavda had cases registered against him at Aatkot and Dhoraji police stations in Rajkot district in 2021. The State Monitoring Cell said further action is being taken against those named in the cases. --IANS mys/dan

Huawei Mate X8: Huawei may not be finished with major releases this year. The company introduced the Enjoy 100 series and the Pura 90 Plus on 28 October 2026, yet tipster Smart Pikachu now points to several more devices possibly arriving in November. Among them sits the Mate X8, the next book-style foldable in the […]

Organizational conflict has come to light in Kanpur BJP. Regional President Ram Kishore Sahu, ignoring the decision of the state leadership, announced the new names of the coordinator and co-coordinator of the IT cell. After his letter sent to the state office came to light, questions have started being raised regarding authority and discipline within the party.

WWE's scrapped plans for Oba Femi at Crown Jewel have been revealed.