A | Soldiers from the Australian and UK armies have participated in controversial events that were seen as endorsing the idea of "Khalistan" (a separate homeland for Sikhs), reports in media outlets The Australia Today and the Hindustan Times said.,On June 28, 12 Sikh soldiers of the UK Army reportedly traveled to several religious sites in Pakistan at the invitation of Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Bajwa. The visit of the British Sikh soldiers was organized by the Defense Sikhs Network (DSN), an organization under the UK Ministry of Defense. The delegation of the British Sikh troops was headed by Major General Celia Harvey, who is also the deputy commander of the Field Army of the UK.,During their stay in Pakistan, the delegation not only visited many religious and cultural sites, including the birthplace of Sikhism's founder Guru Nanak, Nankana Sahib, and his final resting place in Kartarpur, but also interacted with Gen. Bajwa, the Pakistan Army chief.,"I am very grateful to the Pakistani military for facilitating this amazing visit for our Sikh soldiers, as for many of them, this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Maj. Gen. Celia J. Harvey told news agency Anadolu.,The visit of British Army personnel to Pakistan came days after another controversial event in Australia that featured serving members of the Australian Defense Force.,As per a report in Australian media outlet The Australia Today, Khalistani banners, flags, and posters were seen at the Griffith Sikh Games last month. This upset several members of the Indian diaspora in Australia and some of them even lodged a formal complaint about the Khalistani literature with the organizers of the Griffith Games.,"I was shocked to see an Australian Defense Force (ADF) marquee and uniformed officers at the Griffith Sikh Games where Khalistani propaganda was spread on posters, banners, hoardings and on loudspeakers," Melbourne resident Gurusharn Singh said in an interaction with the Australian press.,An Australian defense spokesperson, however, clarified later that the troops attended the event in their personal capacity and that the ADF had not received a formal invitation to participate in the Griffith Sikh Games.,"Attendance was not in any official capacity and there was no formal invitation to Defense to participate," the ADF spokesperson told The Australia Today.,The spokesperson said the Australian Defense Force is an apolitical organization and defense members are expected to remain impartial.,Meanwhile, Mahadevan Shankar, a Queensland-based defense expert called it a "serious issue" as the presence of serving ADF personnel could be conceived as their support or endorsement of the Khalistan separatist movement.,"This is a serious issue for serving ADF personnel in uniform, having a stall with ADF merchandise, and being seen at the same place with the Khalistani separatist sympathizers movement," Shankar told The Australia Today.,Despite the controversy surrounding the event in Australia, Delhi has yet to release an official statement on it.,Want to know more? Check out our Koo & Telegram accounts!,Koo: https://www.kooapp.com/profile/sputniknews,Sputnik India: https://t.me/sputniknewsindia。 正值暑期旅游旺季，北京首都机场T3航站楼内办理离境退税的游客络绎不绝。记者昨天从北京海关获悉，今年7月1日起，离境退税“小额抽检”及全流程无纸化新政实施，新政落地首月，首都机场海关共验核退税申请单13430票，申请退税商品总金额1.17亿元，对应退税金额1453万元，入境消费热度持续攀升。 首都机场内，一位首次来华旅游的意大利女士正在离境退税自助机前进行操作。记者看到，她购入了一些衣服和护肤品，完成身份核验后，系统快速处理单据信息并生成了完整的退税明细，确认金额并选定退税渠道后，本次退税操作便已完成。“中国的护肤品在意大利很有名，中国的文化和城市景象也让我深受震撼，体验感特别好。 随后，一位来自俄罗斯的计算机教师因课程录制需要购入了几个大疆无线麦克风，也前来申报退税，“预计能退200多元。”他感叹道，“验核手续很方便，我打算后续再购入一批。” 这一个个便利体验，都得益于自今年7月1日起全面推行的离境退税新政。其中，“全流程无纸化”让整个验核流程更加便捷快速，旅客业务办理时间进一步缩减。 北京海关所属首都机场海关旅检一处副处长梁姝说，新政落地后，所有单据实现电子化，海关通过扫描旅客专属服务码，就能从系统中一键调取完整的电子退税单、电子发票，线上即可完成海关在线核验。 而“小额抽检制”则兼顾了办税效率与监管规范。据了解，北京海关对退税销售额1万元以下的退税申请单，实行按比例随机抽检模式，不再逐单开展实物验核；退税销售额1万元及以上的申请单，仍严格执行逐单实物验核标准。 北京海关相关负责人介绍，从系统显示的退税商品种类看，境外旅客的“购物车”呈现出鲜明特点，除传统的箱包、服装外，国产科技品牌电子产品如手机、耳机等也备受追捧，成为退税商品中的热门品类。同时，具有中国文化特色的纪念品、潮流盲盒等也获得不少外国游客的青睐。
B | 据了解，在首都机场T3航站楼，每天的上午时段是离境退税的高峰期。今年以来，退税申请单数量大幅增长。数据显示，7月首都机场海关共验核退税申请单13430票，同比增长近2.7倍；申请退税商品总金额1.17亿元，对应退税金额1453万元，同比增幅均超15%。（记者 鹿杨）。
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