Bollywood celebrates 75 years of Independence by telling us what freedom means to them, and posting interesting pictures on social media.
'The leverage created by the Indian military must not be lost.'
'The potential of one such LAC engagement going out of control and leading to heavy casualties cannot be ruled out,' warns Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
'It seems likely that the February 2019 crisis is over.'
Now, as before, India's vote at the UN was dictated by paramount national interests. Though the Indian vote was 'neutral', its explanation was explicit in its criticism of the Russian actions. India took back with the left hand what it had given with the right, explains Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
The dreary, cold months from December to February may prove to be the undoing of many a nation as they grapple with sky-high fuel prices - a result of the Ukraine conflict and the pandemic. Many - Europe, South Korea, Japan, and China - will still pull through on the strength of their wealth or because of strong storage infrastructure. But India will have its back to the wall. Signs of liquefied natural gas (LNG) rates hitting new records this winter are already evident.
'But today I feel proud of my choices because it has given me longevity.'
Internal strife and tribalism is endemic to Afghanistan, notes Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'There is a cost to war.' 'The West knows that and so does Putin.' 'The point is, how much of the cost are both sides willing to pay?'
"We want to work closely (with) Pakistan to create a more stable and secure Pakistan as well," he said.
'As long as we have such partners, Russia cannot be isolated.'
'You may show at the end of December how much money has come into the system, but none would be the wiser because most of see only what we want to see and believe.' 'Some of us will see through it and you will make your proxies call us enemies of the State.' 'I was somewhat with you till here. But we diverge from here on until you can do something which will veer through my cynicism brought about by your policy,' says Harsh N Gokhale.
'Modi's finest political legacy ought to be a border settlement with Beijing,' asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'If you delay the diagnosis even by 24 hours, in that 24 hours individuals would have affected more people.' 'So, contact tracing, testing, isolation, quarantine needs to continue.'
Atique Ahmed is one of the most feared dons of Uttar Pradesh today. There was another don who preceded Atique and had he survived, Atique wouldn't have been around today, recalls Sudhir Bisht.
Migrant workers are leaving Gujarat, PM Modi's home state, as they have no work.
The hard-fought peace in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir has to be maintained, Army chief Dalbir Singh on Thursday said as he accused Pakistan of supporting terrorism in the state. He also said that the army needs to focus on war preparation which is its "primary task".
The bilateral and Quad summits, in which Prime Minister Modi played a significant role, has sent the right message to China, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Thursday called for seamless coordination among various agencies involved in protecting India's maritime interests in the face of emerging security challenges and increasing rivalries and competitions in the Indian Ocean.
'Tibetans will participate in future conflicts with India (in all probability, some were already present in Galwan).' 'As nobody in India would like to have a deadly fight with Tibetan soldiers and officers, the issue needs to be closely followed,' observes Claude Arpi.
'The worst case scenario is for China to behave like a bull in China shop, and brazenly and wantonly indulge in further encroachments, create obstacles to free navigation and convert SCS into an Air Defence Identification Zone.'
Fourteen years after they last met, the directors general of military operations of India and Pakistan on Tuesday held an over two-hour-long meeting at the Wagah border to ease tensions and ensure peace on the Line of Control.
Singh, who arrived in Moscow on a three-day visit on Tuesday at the invitation of the Russian Ministry of Defence to attend the 75th Anniversary of Victory Day Parade, said his visit to Moscow is the first foreign visit from India of an official delegation after the COVID-19 pandemic.
'Heroes are weak; they are cowards; they cry; they betray their fellow soldiers; they lie to their wives so that they can fight for their country and yet have their conscience devour them with guilt.'
'Pakistan's trump card is that it is the only credible guarantor on the horizon who can reasonably assure the Western world that Afghanistan will not again become the revolving door for international terrorism.' 'Trust Pakistan to play this card optimally,' explains Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
In a clear reference to Pakistan, he also sought diplomatic isolation and blacklisting by anti-terror watchdog FATF of countries sponsoring terrorism, asserting that there is a need to take the bull by its horns and strike at the root cause of terror.
In a US-India Joint Leaders' Statement issued after the first in-person bilateral meeting between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House on Friday, the two leaders underscored the importance of combating terrorism in Afghanistan.
'The future does not look very promising for peace in Kashmir,' warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'Definitely, they are going to attempt this, not only in Kashmir but elsewhere, maybe in the Jammu area and beyond.' 'They would want to expand the battle space and the conflict area.'
'India should play the role of a good neighbour, a mediator. and they should stand beside the people of Afghanistan. As a woman, as a human being, I will advise the Indian government to play the role of a peacemaker'
'The Chinese navy is large and expanding both in numbers and capability by the day.' 'India too must take measures to safeguard its own interests, now and in the future.'
The 17 squadron, which operated from Bhatinda air base, was disbanded in 2016 after the IAF started gradual phasing out of Russian-origin MIG-21 jets. It was formed in 1951 and initially flew de Havilland Vampire F Mk 52 fighters.
'Wherever in the world there is political instability, those countries are beset with severe crises today. But India is in a much better position than the rest of the world due to the decisions taken by my government in the national interest,' President Droupadi Murmu said in her address to both Houses of Parliament.
He said that Stalin has come a long way from organising youth under the party in his younger days to moulding himself as a future leader of the DMK.
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.
'Rafales can play an important role in doing DEAD (Destruction of Enemy Air Defence) on the Surface-to-Air Missiles that the Chinese have put on Tibet'
'Since each chief single-mindedly pursues his service's interests in the competition for turf and in core matters such as budget share. The CDS, therefore, must act as an "honest broker" whose decisions serve the broader national purpose, rather than narrow service interests,' says Ajai Shukla.
Prince William, the second-in-line for the British throne, has expressed his desire to fight for Britain on the front line in Afghanistan. The future king, who until now was believed to have been barred from going to war because of his position, said on Thursday that he was still hopeful to perform active duty before he leaves the military to take up his royal mantle.
From Sri Lanka's most popular political family to its most despised -- going by the voices on the streets calling for the Rajapaksas' ouster -- what went wrong for the clan? Veteran Sri Lanka watcher N Sathiya Moorthy offers an insight.
'We took the initiative after Balakot and continued to hold it, forcing Pakistan to react.' 'This was not the case in the Kargil conflict.' 'At that time we 'reacted' to Pakistan's actions,' points out Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
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