American combat troops could stay in war-torn Afghanistan beyond the 2014 deadline set by United States President Barack Obama for their pullout if Kabul sought delaying their withdrawal, the US ambassador has said.
This was the first meeting of the top Indian diplomat with Trump after he was sworn in as the US President on January 20.
Delhi has come to accept the Taliban takeover in Kabul as a reality and seems increasingly unsure of its dogmatic view of the Taliban as a mere proxy of the Pakistani military and security establishment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Top Pentagon officials have shown an understanding of India abstaining at the UN on resolutions against the Russian aggression against Ukraine but had a hard time pacifying many US lawmakers during a Congressional hearing on the Indo-Pacific on New Delhi's repeated abstention at the world body in New York.
'India would not like to see Pakistani domination and tutelage of Afghanistan against Indian security and economic interests.'
At her daily news conference on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked how the world's largest and oldest democracies are working together to bring peace in the region amidst the war in Ukraine.
Vandalism of the statue of the apostle of peace comes during the week of nationwide protests against the custodial killing of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25.
'The Indian-American community is very excited to welcome Prime Minister Modi. He is the second prime minister to come to California after Jawaharlal Nehru, who visited the state in 1961.'
The United States is proceeding with the prosecution of senior Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade and has no intention to withdraw the case of visa fraud against her.
Hydroxychloroquine has been identified by the US Food and Drug Administration as a possible treatment for the COVID-19 and it is being tested on more than 1,500 coronavirus patients in New York.
Haley, in her forthcoming memoir, has claimed that former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former White House chief of staff John Kelly attempted to recruit her to undermine President Trump in an effort to "save the country," according to The Washington Post.
The US has been, historically, a sleeping partner in India-China relations. Today, any attempt by the Modi government to make a bilateral move to improve relations with Beijing could upset Biden's apple cart, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Russia and China are tight-fisted and Iran is broke and none of them has the political will or capacity to bankroll the Afghan economy, which only the US can, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
"In our statement, we have said that we have told them that we want them to be cognisant of the fact that there should be no terrorism that emanates from their territory directed against us, or other countries; that we want them to be mindful of the status of women, minorities and so on so forth. And, and I think they have, also, you know, made reassuring... from their side," foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said.
Former US ambassador to India Frank G Wisner says Americans are going to confront the fact that as prime minister -- if that's where Narendra Modi ends up -- they are going to have to do business with him because the relationship with India is too important to leave it on the altar of disagreements over one man. Rediff.com's Aziz Haniffa reports from Washington, DC.
The 37th India Day Parade organised by the Federation of Indian Associations.
Both statesmen possess a cultivated pugnacious style which they keep in reserve and can at will bring into play, and despite the mutual distrust in Russian-American relations, they are proponents of detente, quintessentially, who take their mission deadly seriously, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Every index of the US-India relationship is pointing north. The time has come for us to set much more ambitious goals for ourselves,' says India's new Ambassador to the United States Dr S Jaishankar.
It is difficult to recall an Indian minister in modern times pushing back at the US publicly, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
On her last day as India's envoy to the United States, Ambassador Nirupama Rao was felicitated by the Barck Obama administration at the State Department on Monday, with US Secretary of State John F Kerry thanking her for her service toward furthering the strategic partnership between the two nations.
The USS John Paul Jones acted like a dog marking the lamp post, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Taliban is showing its strong discontent as the high hopes given to it by the Pakistani military have been dashed, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
September 11 is a "stark reminder" of the continuing threat of terrorism and the world must unite against this menace, India's Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu has said, as he paid homage to the victims of the terror attacks at the 9/11 Memorial here.
'To see India being recognized at a global level at a platform like this... 'I think it says a lot about where we are as a nation and the road ahead for us as a nation.'
Trump was good for world peace. He didn't start a war anywhere, which is not something that can be said for most of his predecessors, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
She became the first from the Indian-American community to serve on a Cabinet rank position in any United States presidential administration.
Interestingly, in his entire remarks, Modi never once mentioned regional security, Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar points out.
China's official media on Thursday warned India against using the Dalai Lama "card", saying New Delhi should stop behaving like a "spoilt kid"
'It is crucial today to realise where we have reached in this 15 year-period in order to fully and properly assess the profundity of what General Rawat has said,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'For Trump, this maddening extravaganza will play out well in his election campaign, showing himself off as a hugely popular world leader,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Trump hosted Diwali celebrations in the historic Roosevelt Room of the White House which was attended by prominent Indian-Americans, Indian-origin administration and diplomatic officials.
United States President Barack Obama has nominated Indian-American, Richard Rahul Verma, as the next US Ambassador to India, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington later this month.
Once Mazar-i-Sharif falls, some isolate pockets of resistance may remain, which the Taliban would tackle through political work or coercion, asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The first phase of the trade deal includes IP protection and enforcement, ending forced technology transfer, dramatic expansion of American agriculture, removing barriers to American financial services, ending currency manipulation, rebalancing the US-China trade relationship and effective dispute resolution.
'The height of irony is that Bobby Jindal will always be known as the first Indian-American Governor, the second Indian-American Congressman and the first Indian-American Presidential candidate, regardless of his claim to be just American. Given the situation in the US, no one will be able to erase his identity in relation to his origin.'
'I have worked long & hard with Robert. He will do a great job!' he said.
The background of the sheet features the United Nations Headquarters building illuminated with the message of "Happy Diwali" to celebrate the spirit of the festival.
Trade tensions between India and the US have been rising with President Donald Trump complaining that tariffs imposed by New Delhi on American products were "no longer acceptable".
Asia Society-organised a Q-and-A session between Nancy Jo Powell, America's first woman ambassador to India, and society president Vishakha Desai. Vaihayasi Pande-Daniel, who attended the interaction in Mumbai, presents an excerpt from the hour-long interaction
United States President Barack Obama ordered tighter security at American diplomatic posts around the world following the attack on the consulate in Libya that left four Americans dead, including Ambassador Chris Stevens and the the embassy in Cairo. Security threats to US diplomatic missions overseas have always been a concern. Rediff.com takes a look at the dark history of American embassies and consulates abroad.
