'Amid the frequent cries that the defence budget falls short of what is needed, we tend to ignore the reality that any enhancement in the allocation is just not possible, and the armed forces have no option but to operate within this constraint.' 'So, unless deadwood -- especially manpower -- is identified and eliminated, we simply cannot have a modern military of the type that India needs,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
China on Monday said Sri Lanka has allowed its satellite and missile tracking ship to berth at the Hambantota port on Tuesday, but declined to reveal details of talks with Colombo leading to the bankrupt island's government reversing its earlier stand to defer the high-tech vessel's entry.
Arson attacks continued on Wednesday and Muslim-owned businesses were targeted by the mobs.
Esper also highlighted the 'increased' military cooperation with India and called it as 'one of the most important defence relationships of the 21th century'.
The next edition of the high-voltage Malabar naval exercise begins from August 26 to 29 off the coast of Guam amid mounting global concerns over China's growing military muscle-flexing in the Indo-Pacific region.
Polls opened at 7 am local time and would close at 5 pm with some 12,845 polling stations being set up throughout the country for 15.9 million voters, who will choose a successor to President Maithripala Sirisina.
"In the flux and transition of our times, the most critical need in this region is to uphold and strengthen the rules and norms that must define our collective behaviour," he said.
The United States will continue to support India with equipment and other things it needs along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, a top American admiral has told lawmakers, asserting that Washington and New Delhi share a 'tremendous partnership'.
Mauritius promises India full-cooperation on tax treaty issues.
Looking for an adventure escape or a soulful vacay? Here's our guide for your next solo travel jaunt.
The newly discovered debris, found over the weekend, is on its way to Malaysia for further examination. The wreckage is a piece of horizontal stabilizer skin, CNN reported, quoting an unnamed US official as saying.
Hard to believe that some of these surreal places do exist.
It is speculated that the tsunami was caused by activity around a volcanic island in the strait, Krakatoa, which is 156 km west of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.
Manasi Joshi and Rohit Roy celebrate their only child's 17th birthday in the Maldives.
Although the pact would focus mainly on the Pacific and the South China Sea region, any action designed to deter China with or without New Delhi's active participation is a welcome move, notes Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The naval officer had circumnavigated the globe in 2012-13, and was a special invitee at the race, which commemorates 50 years of the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race 1968-69.
Though dubbed as the "war hero", the role of Rajapaksa in ending the conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam with the death of its supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran in 2009 is quite divisive as he stands accused of violating human rights, a charge he vehemently denies.
Navy chief Adm. Sunil Lanba said that by 2050, India will have 200 ships, 500 aircraft.
Rediff.com brings you composite images that show the comparison made between a scene from 2004 (TOP) and 2014.
'If the Chinese intent is to be gauged based on its aggression in the South China Sea, greater forays in the Indian Ocean, a hawk's attitude towards Taiwan, flying its fighters repeatedly over the Senkaku islands in the East China Sea and creating strategic assets globally, there would be a requirement for strategic partnerships for India,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
Mahinda Rajapaksa is a democratically elected leader who received a massive mandate of 71% of votes, and he owes nothing to Delhi or Washington for staging his political comeback, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Just an hour or so from the ones we commonly throng to, they promise a lot more for a lot less.
On the lingering Tamil issue, Modi said he was confident that the Sri Lankan government will carry forward the reconciliation process and fulfil the aspirations of the Tamil community.
The agreement would divert China's attention and keep them busy in the Pacific theatre, probably resulting in a reduction in threat perception in our area of interest in the Indian Ocean, notes Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Nasheed, whose Maldivian Democratic Party functions from Colombo, appealed for India's help.
The US said it has strong evidence that China has deployed anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missile systems and electronic jammers to contested features in the Spratly Islands region of the South China Sea.
A family holiday in the Maldives might seem a good time for Roger Federer to put the racket down, but the Swiss master could not resist the offer of a hit when he found out Marin Cilic was also relaxing in the islands.
Hari Prasad Sridhar captures the natural beauty of the island called Bali.
'Wanting to see the bright side of things, we always told ourselves, 'It could have been worse!', when the situation got tough.' Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd), who helped rebuild the IAF's Car Nicobar air base after the 2004 tsunami, recalls the devastation on United Nations World Tsunami Awareness Day.
'Notwithstanding the realisation among the Indian leadership to build up its navy for the force's expanding role, the Indian Navy was allocated only 15% of the interim defence budget presented in Parliament in February 2019.' 'The outlay for the navy's capital acquisition is not even adequate to meet its committed liabilities,' points out Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
US admiral's suggestion for a revival of a strategic maritime quadrilateral with Japan, Australia and India leaves China livid, says Rajeev Sharma.
'He has dealt with such tremendous odds that he understands things at a level that not many people do.'
At war, the Jalashwa can carry and launch a full infantry battalion in a single wave. At peace, the Jalashwa can evacuate 1,000 people in a single trip. Ajai Shukla explains why the Indian Navy's new tender for more ships like the Jalashwa must be treated with special urgency.
'As far as acquisition of Russian equipment is concerned, with about 70% of Indian military equipment being of Russian origin, a sudden decision to abandon imports from Russia is not feasible,' points out Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
'Which will not happen.' 'Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has expressly refuted Beijing's statement that normalcy was returning to Sino-Indian relations.'
As a percentage of the military budget, the navy's share has fallen from 19 per cent in 2010-2011 to just 15.5 per cent this year. With the Indian Navy's annual budget declining steadily, security planners are reluctant to green light crucial projects, discovers Ajai Shukla.
Khanderi is the second of the Navy's six Kalvari-class submarines built in India. It is a diesel-electric attack submarine which is designed by French naval defence and energy company DCNS which is being manufactured at Mazagon Dock in Mumbai.
Terrorism is not just a threat for a country but to the entire civilization, Modi said.
India's only live volcano in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands which had started showing activity in the year 1991 after being dormant for over 150 years has once again started spewing ash, researchers at Goa-based National Institute of Oceanography said on Friday.
It was Prime Minister Modi's first such virtual bilateral engagement with a leader of a neighbouring country. For Rajapaksa, it was the first diplomatic engagement with a leader of a foreign country after he was sworn in as prime minister.
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