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India says border peace critical to ties with China amid reports of military tensions

India's foreign ministry said peace along its disputed border with China is critical to ties between the Asian neighbours, amid reports of renewed military tensions between the two countries' troops in a remote corner of the Himalayas. New Delhi's comment is its second in less than a week and comes as the Asian giants, who share a long and disputed frontier, mend ties following deadly clashes in 2020. It also comes ahead of a BRICS summit in New Delhi from September 12 to 13 that Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend. "In matters relating to the border areas between India and China, we have always emphasised in discussions with the Chinese side that we consider these issues as most serious," Indian foreign ministry ⁠spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Tuesday at a regular media briefing. "We have also stated that the state of...

US House of Reps bans WhatsApp over security concerns

Meta Platforms' WhatsApp messaging service has been banned from all US House of Representatives devices, according to a memo sent to all House staff on Monday. The notice said the "Office of Cybersecurity has deemed WhatsApp a high risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, absence of stored data encryption and potential security risks involved with its use". The memo, from the chief administrative officer, recommended using other messaging apps, including Microsoft Corp's Teams platform, Amazon.com's Wickr, Signal, and Apple's iMessage and FaceTime. Meta disagreed with the move "in the strongest possible terms," a company spokesperson said, noting that the platform provides a higher level of security than the other approved apps. In January, a WhatsApp official said Israeli spyware company Paragon Solutions had targeted scores of its users, including journalists and members of civil society. "Protecting the people’s House is our topmost priority, and we are always monitoring and analysing for potential cybersecurity risks that could endanger the data of House members and staff,” Szpindor told Financial Times. The restriction will go into effect starting June 30, requiring staff to uninstall WhatsApp from all official House devices. WhatsApp remains approved for use in the US Senate despite the House ban. "Alto risco". WhatsApp banido na Câmara dos Representantes dos EUAhttps://t.co/419duMbZH4 — MSN Portugal (@MSN_Portugal) June 24, 2025 The same FT report highlighted Meta's broader push to strengthen ties with the US military and government, including allowing agencies to use its AI models for defense purposes and partnering with defense firm Anduril on new military tech. In January, Reuters reported that an official from WhatsApp claimed Israeli spyware firm Paragon Solutions had targeted scores of WhatsApp users, including journalists and members of civil society. According to Financial Times, Meta’s chief technology officer Andrew Bosworth recently announced his commission as a lieutenant colonel in the US Army Reserve’s Executive Innovation Corps—seen by analysts as another step toward deepening cooperation between Meta and the military. The app ban also echoes the House's 2022 decision to prohibit TikTok from government devices in 2022 over data security concerns.

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