India on Friday welcomed Pakistan's decision to accept its $5 million aid offer for flood relief in the country and said it was willing to provide more assistance. Pakistan's decision to accept the aid came nearly a week after the offer was made by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi last Friday. "We welcome the decision of Pakistan to accept the aid offer," external affairs ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash said.
Colonel Anil Athale (retd) recommends that Extrnal Affairs Minister S M Krishna should tell Pakistan that the current exercise in peace building is possibly the last chance for the country to avoid a second Bangladesh like situation.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had a hectic second day at the SAARC Summit in Thimphu, where he held meetings with various Heads od State.
The second round of the Indo-United States strategic dialogue, co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has been postponed in view of the Assembly elections in India and ongoing developments in West Asia and North Africa.
When word got around in the ministry of external affairs that Siddhartha and Malavika were going to New York and would be with SM Krishna, protocol officers went to Delhi airport to see off the couple. Siddhartha chided them for doing so and when the officials said a government vehicle would be picking them up at John F Kennedy airport on arrival, he told them that he would take a taxi to reach the New York Palace hotel where his father-in-law was staying. K P Nayar reports.
After External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, another Union minister from Karnataka has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding a review of the decision of the Cauvery River Authority asking the state to provide Tamil Nadu with 9,000 cusecs of water daily.
Swaraj had on Wednesday tweeted that she was in AIIMS because of kidney failure.
Had it not been for Pankaj Tripathi, who must have worked hard to get those Vajpayee intonations and mannerisms so perfectly well, Ravi Jadhav's flattering portrait of Vajpayee would have been more vacuous than what we get to see, observes Prasanna Zore.
Pakistan on Saturday released all Indian fishermen who have completed their jail terms as a goodwill gesture for External Affairs Minister S M Krishna's visit to Islamabad. "All Indian fishermen who have completed their jail term have been released as a goodwill gesture for Krishna's visit," Pakistan Interior Minister Rehman Malik said after signing the new liberalised visa agreement with the Indian minister.
On a three-day visit to Egypt, the first by a senior Indian leader after last year's revolution, Krishna met the head of current military-led government, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, Prime Minister Kamal Al Ganzhoury as well as his counterpart Mohamed Kamel Amr.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will arrive in Moscow on December 16 to attend the annual Indo-Russian summit.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Islamabad on Tuesday on a two-day visit during which she will hold talks with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz and attend a multilateral conference on Afghanistan.
There is also speculation within the BJP that its national president J P Nadda, whose extended tenure will end by this month and who was among the leaders meeting Modi, may also be brought back in the government.
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, who is travelling with External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on his visit to Islamabad, reports that both India and Pakistan are cautious about keeping the peace process moving forward.
With India raising concern over Pakistan's increasing involvement in Afghanistan's transition process, President Hamid Karzai on Sunday assured visiting External Affairs Minister S M Krishna that his government will not make any move that is detrimental to New Delhi's interest. Karzai sought to allay India's concerns during his meeting with Krishna, who is in Kabul on a two-day visit. The Afghan President assured Krishna that India was 'uppermost' on his prioritiy list.
Times have changed, situations have changed, but the basic nature of superpower geo-politics remains the same and so also India's diplomacy -- call it non-alignment, strategic autonomy or neutrality; it all depends on the time scale, notes Rup Narayan Das.
Responding to External Affairs Minister S M Krishna's invitation to visit India, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has made it clear that he would accept it if the talks are to be "result-oriented", covering all issues of importance, including Kashmir. He stressed the need for "positive and constructive approach" after his July 15 talks with Krishna ended on a bitter note, particularly on Kashmir and terrorism emanating from Pakistan.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday assured External Affairs Minister S M Krishna that the issue of Indian students enrolled in the Tri Valley University would receive her promptest attention and that 'justice' would be done in the matter. Clinton gave the assurance in the matter during a 40-minute telephonic conversation with the visiting Indian minister. Clinton has asked Indian Ambassador to the US Meera Shankar to meet her on Monday and provide all the details.
The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday reserved its order on a petition filed by former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, challenging proceedings initiated by the Lokayukta against him in a corruption case.
India has emphasised on defence technology transfer, co-development and co-production with the United States in the expanding defence ties between the two countries. "The secretary (of state) and I support the growing emphasis on defense technology transfer and co-development and co-production in our expanding defense relationship," External Affairs Minister SM Krishna told reporters at a joint news conference with Hillary Clinton.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on asked Sri Lanka to observe 'restraint' while dealing with Indian fishermen who stray into its waters during talks with his counterpart G L Peiris, who is in New Delhi to explain his country's position on a United Nations report accusing it of "war crimes".
India on Wednesday requested the United States to provide it access to the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks accused David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana, visiting External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said.
It was evident that no preparatory exercise for political and inter-departmental consensus-building in New Delhi before embarking on the trust-building exercise in Islamabad was undertaken.
India and Japan have agreed to restart talks on a bilateral nuclear cooperation agreement aimed at allowing Japanese companies to export atomic power technology and equipment to India.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on Tuesday met Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the wake of the controversy surrounding Minister of State Shashi Tharoor's role in the IPL's Kochi team. IPL commissioner Lalit Modi recently alleged that Tharoor had asked him not to disclose details about owners of the consortium led by Rendezvous that bought the new Kochi franchisee.Tharoor hit back at Modi by alleging that he had made attempts to pressure the winning consortium.
Interacting with media persons on the sidelines of the international conference on the future of Afghanistan at Bonn, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna observed that infiltration poses a threat to that country's economy and development.
India on Friday strongly rejected Pakistan's allegation that it was sponsoring terrorism in South Asia, with External Affairs Minister S M Krishna terming it as "unacceptable". "The track record of India speaks so eloquently," he said, adding, "We don't need to defend our position."
Somalia on Monday assured India that it will do everything possible to get 53 Indian hostages released from pirates in that country, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said. He said India has also offered to help Somalia implement job-generating projects to tackle piracy in the African nation. These issues came up for discussion between Krishna and visiting Somalian Deputy Prime Minister Abdiweli Ali during a meeting in New Delhi.
Terrorism, UNSC reforms, piracy, peacekeeping and Syria will be among the focus areas of India when External Affairs Minister S M Krishna will participate in the UN General Assembly in New York on October 1.
In the first high-level bilateral visit since Mumbai terror attacks, Home Minister P Chidambaram will travel to Pakistan on February 26 for a SAARC meeting on a two-day visit that is expected to break the deadlock in Indo-Pak dialogue.
India on Monday rejected the charge that it was fomenting unrest in Pakistan by funding Taliban fighters based along the border with Afghanistan.
The talks between S M Krishna and Hillary Clinton covered important bilateral issues like Afghanistan, nuclear waiver, defence purchases, terrorism, cyber security and US demands for market access, particularly in insurance and retail trading. Sheela Bhatt reports.
Ahead of Sunday's reshuffle of the Union Council of Ministers, three Cabinet ministers and a minister of state resigned on Saturday, saying they want to work for the party.
The India-Pakistan dialogue process should be "uninterrupted and uninterruptible" and help in building trust between the two countries, Pakistan's minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar said on Tuesday.
India on Sunday rejected any back-channel talks with Pakistan and said no meaningful bilateral dialogue can take place unless that country took action against the Mumbai attack suspects. External Affairs Minister S M Krishna articulated India's position during his talks with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the first highest-level contact between the countries since their Prime Ministers met at the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh in July.
United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday pressed Pakistan to do more to ensure its territory is not used as "launching pad" by terror groups for attacks and also said that Hafiz Saeed was "one of the "principal architects" of the 2008 Mumbai carnage.
Union External Affairs Minister S M Krishna summoned the New Zealand High Commissioner on Thursday over racist remarks made by a TV show presenter on Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
Pakistan on Friday rejected External Affairs Minister S M Krishna's remarks that India has provided adequate proof linking Hafiz Saeed to the Mumbai attacks, saying action could be taken against the Laskar-e-Tayyiba founder only on the basis of "solid evidence".
As he prepares to meet External Affairs Minister S M Krishna in July, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said 'nothing dramatic' should be expected from 'one sitting' and emphasised that the dialogue process should be made 'irreversible'.Qureshi, who along with Krishna has been tasked to bridge the trust deficit, said mutual suspicions were the main reason for the trust gap and the two countries should work towards removing those.
Rejecting New Delhi's assertions that Beijing should respect India's sensitivities on Kashmir, China on Tuesday said that its policy of issuing stapled visas to Kashmiris would remain unchanged, in crucial comments ahead of a meeting between prime ministers of the two countries.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances