Ahead of his talks with his Indian counterpart Nirupama Rao, Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir will be meeting leaders of various separatist outfits from Kashmir over the next two days.
Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir who spoke to the media at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi on Thursday after meeting his Indian counterpart Nirupama Rao said his country desired better ties with India but said Pakistan did not wants talks in which it is lectured to by India.
In diplomacy, it is inadvisable to be a straggler, as you may end up crawling back on a pitiless greasy pole.
Though no official announcement has been made regarding Suri's successor, it is reported that the Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Nirupama Rao is likely to be the next ambassador in Beijing.
India would neither succumb to the Americans on issues of national security, such as its defence ties with Russia, nor cede ground on its domestic interests in the agriculture and dairy sectors.
The Congress party has claimed credit for the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, an accused in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, from the US, saying the Modi government did not initiate the process and merely benefited from the "mature, consistent and strategic diplomacy" begun under the UPA. Former Home Minister P Chidambaram said the government did not secure any breakthrough to make the extradition possible, nor is it the result of any grandstanding. He added that it was a testament to what the Indian state can achieve when diplomacy, law enforcement and international cooperation are pursued sincerely and without any kind of chest-thumping. Chidambaram detailed the UPA government's efforts in securing Rana's extradition, citing the registration of a case against him in 2009, diplomatic pressure on Canada and the US, and continued efforts despite legal setbacks. He highlighted the role of the UPA in securing Rana's conviction for other terrorism-related offences and the cooperation between the US and Indian agencies in gathering evidence and securing his extradition. The Congress leader further stated that it was the UPA's groundwork that paved the way for Rana's extradition, even after the change in government in 2014.
India handed over "additional information" on Mumbai attacks to Pakistan High Commissioner Shahid Malik, who met Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao in New Delhi on Friday. During the meeting held following a request by Malik, additional information on the 26/11 terror attacks including inputs on some of the key aspects and accused involved was given by Rao.
Nepal Maoist chief Prachanda sought to allay India's concerns that his party was strongly anti-Indian, but underlined that the two countries need to redefine the 'unequal' accords of the past given the dramatic changes of the past few years. On the second say of her three-day visit, Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao met the Maoist chairman who also told her that his party was committed to honour the agreements signed in line with the peace process in Nepal.
They alleged that the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance was being used to "victimise especially those Indian men who are Muslim and women who dare to exercise their freedom of choice".
'Given his stint in Beijing, as India's longest serving ambassador there and that too through some challenging and interesting times, Jaishankar ought to have been appointed as foreign secretary in 2013 itself,' says Sanjaya Baru.
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In the first official visit by a United States vice-president to India in three decades, Joe Biden arrived in India on Monday on a four-day tour aimed at boosting ties in key areas of trade, energy, defence and security. The US vice-president will hold meetings with top Indian leadership, including President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on Tuesday before flying out to Mumbai in the night.
Ahluwalia was married to former deputy chairperson of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia and is survived by her husband and two sons.
Her research was focused on urban development, macro-economic reforms, industrial development, and social sector development issues in India.
India's new high commissioner in Islamabad goes to Pakistan at a time when the country is set to face much internal tumult.
Indian Ambassador to the United States Dr S Jaishankar told Rediff.com's Aziz Haniffa that it was "a very nice meeting and President Barack Obama was extremely cordial."
Biden said, "One of the reasons why President Obama called our relations with India, quote, "a defining partnership of the century ahead" is that India is increasingly looking east as a force for security and growth in Southeast Asia and beyond."
'India in 2020 is a lot better prepared than in 1962.' 'It is no longer a pushover; and anything other than a crushing Chinese military victory will be a major loss of face for China,' observes Rajeev Srinivasan in the first of a three part column.
