'Even as discord over US-India trade and commerce colours diplomatic relations, defence relations between the two countries remain on a firm footing,' points out Ajai Shukla.
The Biden administration expects the Modi government to continue to remain as its loyal camp follower even as Washington continues to act in self-interests, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'The MEA, hopefully, made it clear that the Indian PM can't be seen in Xi Jinping's company when China has, for all intents and purposes, annexed over 1,000 sq kms of Indian territory in eastern Ladakh, and essentially that the Wuhan spirit and the Mamallapuram spirit have turned into vinegar.'
At an online media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava gave a run down of the events along the LAC in the eastern Ladakh region and held China responsible for the Galwan Valley clashes off June 15.
US President-elect Donald Trump has nominated David Friedman, a fervent opponent to "two-state solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as his ambassador to Israel to maintain the special relationship between the two allies.
December 2022 could be the last Christmas for Santha Bakery, a business drawing its lineage from the first Christmas cake baked in Kerala.
There is simmering disquiet in the Communist party and the world is watching as to what can unfold in China in the days to come ahead of next year's party congress, notes Rup Narayan Das.
Observing that China has been anxiously watching the rise of Indo-United States relationship, a former top US diplomat believes New Delhi doesn't want to be caught in this Sino-US game at the global level.
In an address at the Indian Council of World Affairs, he said Nepal wants to take the relations with India to the next level, but at the same time added: "We should be mindful equally that healthy relations require continuous nurturing, creative thinking, promptness and readiness to understand each other in changing dynamics."
China and India have agreed to work to maintain peace along the Line of Actual Control and resolve the border standoff through talks while implementing the consensus reached between the two countries' leadership that 'differences' do not escalate into 'disputes', a top Chinese official said.
Both the meetings with the leaders of India and Pakistan would be held in New York on the sidelines of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly, a senior administration official told reporters on Friday in a preview of Trump's engagements in the Big Apple next week.
'It's the first-ever US presidential visit which is specially planned for India.' 'The standalone visit itself has achieved something already. Don't underestimate it.' Sheela Bhatt gives us an exclusive glimpse of what the Modi government hopes to achieve from Trump's visit.
Through the past 18-month period, peace has prevailed in the disputed border regions, which was immensely helpful in the difficult situation that the country was passing through, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'While the Khobragade affair has "upset and diverted attention, it does not mean there is a fundamental flaw in the US-India relationship",' former American envoy Frank Wisner tells Rediff.com's Aziz Haniffa.
High Commissioner Bisaria in his brief address to the audience said that some of the guests could not make to the party. "I want to apologise because some of you faced a lot of trouble to come here and some of our friends could not come," he said. Bisaria also said that people had come from Lahore and Karachi to attend the event and thanked them for coming.
While Sharif's office has released a read-out of his conversation with Trump, the US president-elect's team has issued bare minimum information, triggering much bemusement both in mainstream and social media.
'India enjoys the maneuverability of a coming big power.' 'It is this possibility that has persuaded Moscow to humour India and stayed Washington from getting punitive about India's neutrality on the Ukraine issue.'
COVID-19 has emerged as an important form of diplomatic currency around the world as nations try to showcase their soft power gains. In this race, India has an edge as India is already a pharmaceutical giant having produced some 60 per cent of global vaccines and now justly seeking to strengthen ties and expand its influence in its neighbourhood and beyond, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
Breaking decades of US diplomatic policy, President-elect Donald Trump spoke to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and discussed various issues, a move which could infuriate China.
Darul Uloom Haqqania madrassa, one of Pakistan's largest and oldest seminaries and dubbed as a 'university of jihad' by its critics for helping sow violence across the region for decades, has educated more Taliban leaders than any school in the world and its alumni now hold key positions in Afghanistan, according to a media report.
The game plan is to pressure India and China to come back and commit to further emissions cuts by next year's UN meeting. Neither China nor India has 2030 targets anywhere near in line with a 1.5 degree centigrade pathway, and so will be on the target list of nations under pressure to return next year with more ambition, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Ministry of External Affairs said the two ministers discussed the outstanding issues related to disengagement from all friction points along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.
It is difficult to recall an Indian minister in modern times pushing back at the US publicly, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
It stands to reason that at the meeting on Friday, Pope Francis conveyed to the Kremlin, some message in regard of the developments in Ukraine. The long duration of the meeting in the Russian embassy flags that it was substantive. Indeed, it took place even as the first Russian tank column was sighted on the outskirts of Kyiv, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The special cell of the Delhi police, which had earlier arrested the accused Mukesh Saini along with system analyast Shib Shankar Paul, alleged the latter had developed "intimate" and "close relationship" with the American diplomat Rosana Minschew to whom the secrets were passed on.
Beijing will be intently watching Washington's response for any hint of weakness. Xi Jinping, who feels China has a limited window of strategic opportunity, will be emboldened to take additional initiatives in the Indo-Pacific and specifically against India and Taiwan, warns Jayadeva Ranade, the former senior RA&W officer and China expert.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has been in a damage control mode ever since the explosive cables were leaked out by WikiLeaks, made a telephone call to External Affairs Minister S M Krishna to discuss a wide range of issues ranging from bilateral relationship, to the situation in the region including Afghanistan, besides WikiLeaks cables.
'We hope that the situation in Afghanistan does not pose a challenge to its neighbours and its territory is not used by terrorist groups'
'A breakthrough in eastern Ladakh leading to disengagement and creation of a buffer zone will obviate the need of military deployment through the winter months ahead,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Raising the Kashmir issue at the UN, China has told the General Assembly that the "dispute" should be peacefully and properly addressed in accordance with the UN Charter, Security Council resolutions and the bilateral agreement. China, a close ally of Pakistan, also stressed that no actions should be taken that would unilaterally change the "status quo".
In his maiden address to the employees of the State Department, the US president said he has come to the building to send a clear message to the world: America is back. America is back. Diplomacy is back.
'Both sides had candid and in-depth discussions over easing the current border situation and reached positive common understandings,' it said. 'Both sides welcomed the progress achieved in the recent military and diplomatic meetings, agreed to stay in dialogue and consultation, and stressed the importance to promptly act on the consensus reached in the commander-level talks between Chinese and Indian border troops, and complete disengagement of the front-line troops as soon as possible,' it said.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said India will be benefitted economically by having peace with his country as it will enable New Delhi to directly access the resource-rich Central Asia region through Pakistani territory.
Diplomatic engagement with Pakistan will be a key element in the new US policy towards Afghanistan, which is to be announced by President Barack Obama on Tuesday, the White House has said.
The United States has announced the end of its 20-year-old war in Afghanistan as the last American military flight flew out of the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul shortly before the August 31 deadline.
'How and if India retaliates will go a long way toward determining the trajectory of this crisis.'
In a volte-face, Pakistan's cabinet on Thursday rejected the proposal of a high-powered committee to import cotton and sugar from India, with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi asserting that there can be no normalisation of ties until New Delhi reverses its decision to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
While the de-escalation process was underway, a violent face-off took place on Monday night between Indian and Chinese troops leading to the death of 20 Indian soldiers.
In 2005, the US had denied visa to Modi in the wake of the 2002 Gujarat riots, which is still continuing
China, the Ukraine crisis and Quad will dominate the discussions, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
