Unlike Asia's other populous giant China, India have never made much of a splash at the Olympics, their seven-medal haul at the Tokyo Games a record for the nation. Adding cricket to the Olympic programme -- as is expected for the 2028 Los Angeles Games -- could help boost the tally.
VFS Global expects visa applications from India to surpass pre-pandemic levels in 2024 with the easing of appointment availability. Vishal Jairath, head-South Asia, VFS Global, said during a media interaction that based on indications from the client governments in terms of appointment availability and the resources deployed by them, visa applications would surpass the pre-Covid levels by a healthy margin. "We have geared up. We have looked at our infrastructure and increased capacity in many locations," he added.
Pakistani-American businessman Sajid Tarar said like India, Pakistan also needs strong leadership to handle political instability and economic issues.
At a time when China's bullying behaviour has been evident in its actions and pronouncements, India is signalling that it is ready to emerge as a serious balancer in East Asia and Southeast Asia, says Harsh V Pant.
The frosty nature of relations between India and Pakistan is among the main causes of South Asia's insecurity predicament, he informed the audience of academics at the seminar.
'Three decades of intensive discussions, protocols and Confidence Building Measures were jettisoned one fine morning in 2020.' 'The primary lesson that has been learnt is that that there is no reliability about the Chinese.'
'The United States should not, by this logic, expect India to create military distractions along the Line of Actual Control, hold up Chinese shipping in the Indian Ocean, or even openly provide intelligence or basing for US forces transiting the region.'
Brazil shocked and other big upsets at World Cup qualifiers played on Tuesday
'It was China's rise that caused the New Cold War in Asia as it prompted the United States to rebalance its forces in Asia to experiment with engagement and containment at the same time,' says T P Sreenivasan.
Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doklam from June 16 last year after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed tri-junction by the Chinese army.
'Trump's disregard for norms and institutions could prove very costly for America's social fabric.'
The strategic alliance between China and Pakistan is primarily driven by their rivalry with India, eminent US experts have said, with one of them expressing concern over Sino-India border tensions.
Human rights situation deteriorated in much of Asia and Pacific region in the first quarter of this year, with conflicts in Sri Lanka and Pakistan adversely affecting innocent civilians, global human rights body Amnesty International said on Thursday.
China has 'violated the sovereignty' of not just the United States but of countries across five continents, Secretary of State Antony Blinken alleged Wednesday, days after US fighter jets shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon.
The virtual talks took place under the framework of Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs.
Powered by the dynamic growth of India and China, East Asia has transformed dramatically and is surging ahead becoming the biggest growth story of recent times, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsein Loong said on Wednesday.
China and India should put their differences on the border issue at a "proper position" in bilateral relations and stick to the "right direction" of bilateral ties, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday.
The war of words between China and the US heated up on Tuesday with an American Admiral defending last week's US naval ship's foray near Chinese-made artificial islands in the area while Beijing blasted the move as a "blatant provocation".
Deployment of THAAD in South Korea could unfold a new cataclysm in the Korean Peninsula with unwelcome prospects.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey conducted a patrol within 20 kilometres of Mischeef Reef, part of the Spratly Islands.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday slashed India's GDP growth forecast for FY23 to 7 per cent from the earlier estimate of 7.2 per cent mainly on account of higher inflation and a tight monetary policy. India's economy grew 13.5 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2022-23, reflecting strong growth in services, ADB said in its second supplement to Asian Development Outlook Report 2022 (ADO 2022). "However, GDP growth is revised down from ADO 2022's forecasts to 7 per cent for FY2022 (ending March 2023) and 7.2 per cent for FY2023 (ending March 2024) as price pressures are expected to adversely impact domestic consumption, and sluggish global demand and elevated oil prices will likely be a drag on net exports," ADB said.
'After a strategic pause though, Beijing will revive its policy of slowly creeping towards acquiring sovereignty over the South China Sea.'
'India's specific concerns about whether Russia will be a reliable defense supplier and diplomatic partner in the event of heightened hostilities with China has undoubtedly accelerated the process of US-India defense and intelligence cooperation intended to support Indian military positions along the Line of Actual Control.'
The first summit in South Asia, it will host the largest delegation of 43 heads of State and government as well as the heads of international organisations.
India on Friday strongly protested China's decision to issue invalid visas to some of its athletes for the Asian Games.
For Bihar, trade with China through the rail link will be easier along this route than through Kolkata, saving time, cost and distance
Most economists expect the global economy to weaken in the coming year amid political and financial volatility, but a large majority of over 90 per cent are confident of moderate or strong growth in South Asia, notably India, a survey showed on Friday. At the same time, the outlook for China has dimmed following signs of deflationary pressures and fragility in the country's real estate market, the World Economic Forum's latest 'Chief Economists Outlook' report said. As the world grapples with political and financial volatility, almost six in 10 believe the global economic outlook will undermine progress towards meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with 74 per cent saying geopolitical tensions will have the same effect.
The US president's remarks in this regard come days after senior Indian and Chinese military commanders held talks aimed at resolving the months-long standoff along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh. The two countries agreed to stop sending more troops to their disputed border in the Himalayas.
China's South China Sea build-up and 'territorial sea' construct potentially affects 55 percent of Indian trade passing through the region. Hence, coordinating with the US and Japan could provide dividends to India in the longer run,' says Srikanth Kondapalli.
Chongqing, a populous economic hub in south-western China, is hoping to become Asia's largest manufacturing base for information technology products.
The 'aura of invincibility' around Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been 'shattered' by the Indian voters who gave the Opposition a new lease on life, this is how the international media described the outcome of India's general elections.
He claimed China has a policy of keeping "hot spots like Taiwan, South China Sea and Tawang burning" in order to divert attention to its own failings.
Rutuja Bhosale won the singles rubber while the duo of Prarthana Thombare and Ankita Raina prevailed in the doubles contest as the Indian women's team defeated Chinese Taipei 2-1 in a Billie Jean King Cup Asia-Oceania Group-1 tie in Changsha, China, on Thursday.
Maintaining that its strategic capabilities were not targeted against any particular country, India has said that it abides by all applicable international obligations and expects others do the same, while responding to Chinese reaction to its test-firing of Agni V missile.
Following the Chinese president's comments on Kashmir, India in a quick response asserted that it is not for other countries to comment on "internal affairs of India".
Dreams of success in England's Premier League have turned sour for many of Asia's top soccer players. Lured by the riches and glamour of the Premier League, players from China, South Korea, Thailand and Iran have found their hopes buried by the rigours and red tape of the English top flight.
'Bilateral trade has suffered seriously because of the growing unrest.' 'There is a standstill on both sides amid the curfew.'
'China, which had earlier blockaded New Delhi's bid to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group by citing the nuclear non-proliferation law, finds itself in an awkward position and international isolation.' 'India needs to pursue a policy of mediation between China and the Southeast Asian countries for regional security,' says Srikanth Kondapalli.
The balloon, which was being used by the People's Republic of China in an attempt to surveil strategic sites in the continental United States, was brought down above US territorial waters.
Dar also said Pakistan views Russia as an important player in the West, South and Central Asia, and strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia remains an important priority for Pakistan's foreign policy.
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