Robust military preparedness along the entire perimeter of our nation is the only iron-clad permanent guarantee for our security, asserts Vivek Gumaste.
'Seen in the context of world turmoil in face of the pandemic and the Chinese 'miracle' of being the only country in the world to control it, this is not merely a 'Sputnik' moment, but a 'Sputnik Plus' moment,' argues Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Xi Jinping's recent actions in South Asia have amply demonstrated the disastrous impact of China's embrace, observes Jayadeva Ranade, the retired senior RA&W officer and China expert.
'The RSS ideology has been borrowed from fascism and is not borne out of Hinduism.' 'They want India to have one historical identity whereas India is a land full of divergence which goes in every direction.'
India has not been invited to a crucial meeting being convened by Russia on the fast-evolving situation in Afghanistan that is expected to see the participation of Pakistan, China and the US, people familiar with the development said on Thursday.
If the Taliban have proved one thing over these two decades, it is that they are way smarter than their big brother, observes Shekhar Gupta.
'We can expect heightened belligerence from China.'
The two senior most leaders of the Communist Party of India-Marxist are at the loggerhead over alliance or adjustment with the Congress.
'No one in Sri Lanka could afford to stay at home, everyone came onto the street.'
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.
'The one aspect which no Indian military thinker would wish to see emerge is a LoC type of posture at the LAC.' 'The LoC is manned for 750 km and terrorist infiltration has led to the creation of a virtual fortress along its entire length.' 'Something mirroring this at the LAC is going to be expensive although deployment everywhere is not warranted there.' 'However, given the complete trust deficit, there appear few alternatives,' notes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
In January last year, the US signed the first phase of the trade deal with China, which former President Donald Trump described as historic, concluding more than a year of tough negotiations including several months of suspension of talks between the two largest economies of the world.
Will Empire strike back to prevent a game changing election result, asks T P Sreenivasan.
"We have had tremendous success in Afghanistan in the killing of terrorists, but it is time, after all these years, to go and bring our people back home. We want to bring our people back home," the President said hours after the United States signed an agreement with the Taliban in Doha, under which it has committed to withdrawing all its troops from Afghanistan in 14 months' time.
'If you behave like a nail, the adversary will behave like a hammer.'
The 80-page bill, which follows a last-minute deal agreed with the EU last week, just days before the December 31 deadline of the end of the Brexit transition period, was debated by MPs in the House of Commons followed by the House of Lords.
'In India, China's capacities to conduct new types of warfare is critically underestimated,' says Claude Arpi.
It is 25 years since Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee went missing during a patrol on the India Pakistan border. Pakistan has never acknowledged his captivity.
India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syed Akbaruddin, on Thursday lambasted Pakistan for peddling a false narrative on New Delhi and said there are no "takers for your malware here".
As much as we enjoy and write reams and reams about our amazement at the Kantara climax, 30 years on from now, will we remember these portions more fondly or the ones where Shiva is simply hanging out with his friends, mulls Rohit Sathish Nair.
Notwithstanding how the current impasse is solved, at some point in the future, Russia will realise that just as centuries ago it developed the paradigm of securing its heartland's safety through annexing vast buffer zones between itself and the enemy, a more modern security is possible only through friendly relations and sustainable peace, observes Shyam G Menon.
New Delhi must clearly demonstrate to Beijing that China will pay a price for its relentless strategic undermining of India, says Ajai Shukla.
'If the US-Pakistan relationship continues to suffer, Pakistan may feel it has less to lose and decide that it need not keep a leash on LeT in order to appease America.' 'A tougher US policy toward Pakistan could lead to an emboldened and strengthened LeT and JeM, resulting in more terrorist attacks in India.'
....a long-term boundary agreement is reached between the two countries.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi commissioned India's first indigenously designed and built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant in Kochi on Friday, that put India into a select league of countries with domestic capability to build such large war ships.
In fact, the Taliban apparently collects about 10 per cent as cultivation tax from opium farmers and 15 per cent as heroin tax from laboratories and smugglers that smuggle narcotics into Pakistan. This, by itself, is a revenue stream estimated at USD 250-300 million.
India must be aware that there is no question of the US fighting the Chinese on land. We have to fight our own battles, points out Virendra Kapoor.
Major General Sujan Singh Uban, a legendary veteran of the Second World War, was a natural choice to raise, train and command the Special Frontier Force and mould them into a well oiled fighting machine, recalls his son Inspector General Gurdip Singh Uban (retd), who led SFF troops during the Kargil War.
'Guarding the borders in extreme weather conditions is not easy and most people don't realize it is a very tough job.'
Kharge said that while there are very responsible people in the party who were doing their duty, some people had assumed that lack of responsibility will be ignored.
'Instead of fighting over whatever will be left of the present world, the permanent members of the UN security council should have raised a little finger to arrest the death and devastation around us,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
'This, together with Chinese revisionism, will constitute the major test of the international system.'
Prime Minister Modi made a strategic blunder of Nehruvian proportions -- presuming no war can happen now, and the Chinese won't be a military threat and risk their economic interests, observes Shekhar Gupta.
With Intelligence inputs warning of a possible aerial terror attack, Defence Minister A K Antony today said the armed forces were ready to take on any future threats against the country. "We are ready for any eventuality," Antony told reporters while replying to a question on the sidelines of a function to honour war widows in New Delhi.
''At this stage we are closer to military confrontation than at any time since 1971.' 'Given the known positions of the two governments, it will not be surprising if this happens sooner rather than later,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
The onus today is on China, but it also requires a little diplomatic finesse from India, backed by a modernised armed force, argues BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in this excerpt from his new book, Himalayan Challenge: India, China And The Quest For Peace.
'Our competitiveness with China is very important.' 'If the exchange rate depreciates, it is good for us because it helps in our competitiveness.'
'We don't know what the reasons were that we gave back the Haji Pir Pass which was strategically very important. Today the entire infiltration into Kashmir takes place from that area. If we had retained that post that we had captured, things could have been different.' 'A lesson we need to learn is if you start losing the gains of war at the negotiating table, they become a disincentive for future wars,' says Lieutenant General D B Shekatkar (retd), reviewing the lessons from the 1965 War.
The Abbottabad raid has raised many disturbing questions and the Indian armed forces must find answers to them, says Colonel Anil Athale (retd)
Bollywood celebrates 75 years of Independence by telling us what freedom means to them, and posting interesting pictures on social media.
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