Too many egos! too many individualities! It is not only true for France, but most 'great' teams with 'great players'. Zizou believes that 'the collective spirit must be displayed by the team'. He rightly said: 'A World Cup is very short; many will never play again, forget your ego and work together for the team'.
Having completed 35 years in this country, I realise how much I love this incredible India, these irritants notwithstanding.
Many in India still believe that the priority No 1 of India's foreign policy should be to make friends with China. Once again, there is nothing wrong to be China's 'friend' or even 'brother', but it should not be at the cost of India's interests or by bending backward over each whim and fancy of a single-party regime in Beijing.
The Dalai Lama is right to reach out to ordinary Chinese; in the long run, it could only pay rich dividends, but the results won't probably be seen in the immediate future, says Claude Arpi.
The death of 11 French engineers in Karachi and Pakistan's secret plot to destabilise India.
Despite the phenomenal rise of the People's Republic, all is not rosy in the Middle Kingdom and the Ox Year may be one of the most difficult of the People's Republic's 60 years of existence. The economic crisis has also brought its tale of desperation, not only in China, but also in Tibet. China watchers agree that it could be a time bomb.
'When you say the per capita argument is catastrophic, it appears to us that we have not the same rights than others,' says Indian ambassador to France Ranjan Mathai.
'France has been very supportive of India, particularly during the NSG negotiations,' says Ranjan Mathai, India's ambassador to France.
The wretched of the earth have stood up and invited themselves to the Great Game.
In 1986, during an interview, the Dalai Lama told me: "We Tibetans can't do anything, except to keep their culture alive. A change will come from within China; it is our only hope". Twenty two years later, I believe this statement is the closest to a possible future scenario or 'solution'
For decades, the Chinese 'minorities', particularly the Tibetans, have been wanting to express their deep-rooted resentment against a regime which slowly but surely is annihilating them.
France might be 'India's best friend' as the French president put it, but the fact remains that the share of France in India's foreign trade is today only 1.8 percent. Though Sarkozy declared that he would like at least 1,000 small and medium size companies to enter the Indian market, it is easier said than done.
When President Chirac arrived in Mumbai in 1998, he declared: 'In India, France is not at the level where it should be.' Ten years later, it is still true. France has a role to play in India, but will Delhi and Paris will be bold enough to seize the occasion?
For reluctant optimists like me, there are still some inconvenient truths. I believe that the time has come for India to follow the example of China who, in Sonia Gandhi's words, has 'shown the world how much could be achieved with pragmatism, clarity of vision.'
'Today, when the planet is in danger, why should India's leaders use petty arguments instead of showing the way?'
Choosing the next Dalai Lama is too profound a tradition to be controlled by the Communists in Beijing.
If Pakistan is today on the brink, the blame should be squarely put on the US and the other Western nations.
The award to the Dalai Lama is good 'for the conscience of the US,' but it does not help the Tibetans in their aspiration for freedom.
In a strategy which is very similar to the one in Tibet (especially after the arrival of the train), Beijing plans to change Burma's demography, making the nation a Chinese colony
'Several countries in the West are on the way to close their nuclear plants because nuclear energy is not considered a clean energy.'
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