Morning Digest: Structural differences persist, says scholar as India and China hold border talks in Beijing; Canada to announce retaliatory tariffs against U.S. today, and more

India-China talks: ‘Structural differences have not disappeared,’ says Chinese strategic affairs scholarAhead of talks in Beijing on Tuesday (August 25, 2026) between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Hu Shisheng, a leading Chinese strategic affairs scholar on South Asia, said the focus of both countries would be on “institutionalising stability” even as “structural differences” in the relationship remained. India and China will hold the 25th round of talks between the Special Representatives (SRs) on the boundary question on Tuesday (August 25, 2026). Mr. Doval and Mr. Wang, who is also a member of the Politburo, will also take stock of relations ahead of next month’s expected visit to India by Chinese President Xi Jinping for the BRICS Summit, his first visit in seven years.BJP leaders question Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on the Manusmriti and women’s rightsBharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders have questioned the remarks made by the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on the Manusmriti and women’s rights. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey quoted two verses from the text that emphasise respect for women, while Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma accused Mr. Gandhi of using women’s empowerment as a pretext to target Hinduism.Canada will announce retaliatory tariffs against U.S. on August 25, official sayCanada will announce retaliatory tariffs against the United States on Tuesday (August 25, 2026), an official familiar with the plans told The Associated Press, escalating a trade fight that has sharply worsened since negotiations with the Trump administration collapsed.Simultaneous polls possible in 2029, says panel chiefHolding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies in 2029 under the Modi government’s ‘One Nation, One Election’ initiative is possible if the Constitution is amended and state governments support the move, according to P.P. Chaudhary, the chairman of the joint parliamentary panel examining the related bills.Trump administration moves to impose more than $100,000 fee for H-1B worker visasPresident Donald Trump’s administration on Monday (August 24, 2026) released a proposed regulation to codify an unprecedented fee of more ‌than $100,000 on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers. Mr. Trump first ​imposed this last year but was blocked by the courts.Stalin moves Madras High Court to declare him elected from Kolathur constituencyDMK president M.K. Stalin has filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court, seeking 100% counting of VVPAT slips of the Kolathur Assembly constituency, and consequently to declare him as the returned candidate after nullifying the election of TVK MLA V.S. Babu.Will decide Tejpal plea against surrender before listing appeal against conviction: Supreme CourtA Single-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court on Monday (August 24, 2026) concluded that an appeal filed by journalist Tarun Tejpal against a 10-year sentence in a 2013 rape case cannot be listed for hearing without deciding his separate application seeking exemption from surrender.Detect and deport illegal migrants, Amit Shah tells police chiefsUnion Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday (August 24, 2026) directed the security agencies to take strict measures against infiltration, asking the police chiefs to detect and deport illegal migrants. He was inaugurating the two-day National Security Strategies Conference-2026 (NSSC).Manipur awaits Delhi decision on Census as Meitei, Naga groups demand NRC firstManipur is awaiting a decision from New Delhi regarding the upcoming Census exercise, which remains in limbo in the State amid the demand by several Meitei and Naga civil society groups for a National Register of Citizens (NRC) to be compiled first. With the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RG&CCI) yet to spell out the future course of action, a government source said a review of the situation is likely to be held in the coming days.Around 40 dead in gang attack near Haiti’s capitalGang members attacked displaced people huddling inside a church near Haiti’s capital, killing around 40, some of them execution-style, the mayor told AFP on Monday (August 24, 2026).Trump moves toward levying new tariff on China for flooding market with cheap goodsUnited States President Donald Trump is moving toward levying a new tariff on China that would penalise the world’s second-largest economy for flooding the global market with underpriced goods, according to three people familiar with the matter. Two of the people who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations still being finalised said Mr. Trump is considering setting the new tariff at 7.5%U.S. Treasury chief vows to cut every ‘economic lifeline’ of IranUS Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday (August 24, 2026) laid out plans for the “economic asphyxiation” of Iran, expanding Washington’s secondary sanctions threats and warning of dire consequences for countries that decline to join the pressure campaign.