EAM Jaishankar's mission is aimed at strengthening India's strategic autonomy in a complex international environment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said India is a natural ally for the G7 countries in defending the shared values from a host of threats stemming from authoritarianism, terrorism and violent extremism, disinformation and economic coercion.
The resolution was introduced by Senator John Cornyn, Republican Senate Majority Whip, and Senator Mark Warner, ranking member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
Taiwan on Sunday expressed gratitude to India and several other countries for their calls for exercising restrain and avoiding unilateral actions to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait in the face of China's belligerent military posturing following United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to the island.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be on a two-day official visit to India from Thursday, his first trip to the country since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine last month.
The United States has made it clear to India that it is "discouraging" it from proceeding with its acquisition of S-400 missile defence systems from Russia but Washington will have to weigh "important geostrategic considerations" while taking a decision on growing calls for a presidential CAATSA waiver to New Delhi, President Joe Biden's nominee for Coordinator for Sanctions Policy has told lawmakers.
Foreign policy is always a work in progress and ups and downs are built into foreign policy process. What is permanent is national interest. Hopefully, this year, which will also witness general elections in the country, will also clear clouds in the foreign policy horizon, observes Rup Narayan Das.
"We are concerned about the data localisation law and the new e-commerce regulations...they do not fully take into account the needs of all stakeholders, including American and other foreign companies," acting principal deputy assistant secretary of the US, Thomas Vajda said.
The navy is pushing hard for IAC-2 to be a 65,000-tonne, flat deck carrier that is designed and built in India, with technical and tactical consultation from the US navy -- the global masters in aircraft carrier operations.
In a statement just before leaving for the US, Modi said he will conclude his visit with an address at the United Nations General Assembly focusing on the pressing global challenges including the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to combat terrorism, climate change and other important issues.
'At the heart of the strategic relationship between our countries are economic ties.'
One looks upon the coming new year with foreboding as current wars in Ukraine and Gaza spill over and escalate and new ones erupt in incipient fault lines across the world, notes former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
'If there is one certainty in this visit, it is that Trump does not follow a script. He is unpredictable,' highlights Ambassador B S Prakash.
'I don't sense that China wants that kind of conflict or would support that'
Much on the expected lines, Beijing reacted angrily to Hands' visit, saying that it violates the one-China principle to which London is a signatory.
'As one might expect, he believed the Indians were preparing their nuclear weapons for deployment. It took us a few hours - and remarkably good work by our teams on the ground in New Delhi and Islamabad - to convince each side that the other was not preparing for nuclear war'
The United States Navy carried out a freedom of navigation operation in the Indian waters near Lakshadweep Islands on Wednesday without New Delhi's prior consent to challenge India's "excessive" maritime claims, according to an official statement.
'The future of BRICS is under stress as Chinese attempts to expand the platform are being resisted by India and Brazil.' 'Beijing is focused on a quick expansion with the aim of giving the platform a distinctly anti-Western orientation, which New Delhi and Brasilia seem to have no interest in,' notes Harsh V Pant.
'India does not wish to remain silent in improving its strategic space so that its leverage to counter China's expansionist designs is maintained, besides enabling it to play a responsible role from a position of strength for peace and stability in Asia,' points out Dr Rajaram Panda.
A healthy growth in India's services segments has helped the country's total exports and imports of goods and services to cross the $800 billion mark during the first half of 2023, despite a slowdown in global demand, think tank GTRI said in a report on Monday. According to the analysis of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), exports of goods and services rose by 1.5 per cent to $385.4 billion during January-June this year, as against $379.5 billion in January-June 2022. Imports, however, dipped by 5.9 per cent to $415.5 billion during the six months of this year, as against $441.7 billion in January-June 2022.
'The Americans want to have a good relationship with India. They see it as a counterweight to China. And also American businesses are all trying to get out of China and go to India and Vietnam as well, but India largely.'
Weeks before Canada made an explosive allegation implicating Indian officials in the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Canadian officials sought public condemnation of the murder from their allies, including the United States, but were met with reluctance, The Washington Post reported.
"Most worrisome are China's technological advances in the spheres of cyber and space domain, which often transcend beyond the military, to include critical national infrastructure as well," General Bipin Rawat said at the three-day Indian Air Force Conclave.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met his British counterpart Boris Johnson on the sidelines of the COP26 climate summit here and discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation in areas like green hydrogen, renewables and clean technology, economy and defence.
He, however, said sometimes such people spread wrong news or information about China on purpose.
Price said India's relationship with Russia developed over several decades.
Another crucial power group, the US legislative Congress, is increasing pressure for closer ties between Washington and New Delhi.
Russia and China have a broad consensus today on almost all core issues related to global strategic stability, which is unprecedented in modern history, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Speaking at a joint press appearance with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in Washington, DC, Blinken said that the US tried everything possible to avert the Ukraine conflict through diplomacy.
Blinken also underlined that diplomacy is the only way to definitively end the Russian conflict in Ukraine.
Chanting slogans of "Modi Modi" and India-US friendship, Indian Americans walked in a procession for over an hour towards the historic Lincoln Memorial where the participants busted into an impromptu dance.
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla terms India's relationship with China as "complex".
'Both have a very nationalistic view of foreign policy.' 'They think they are shrewd and clever diplomats.'
During their talks, the two leaders decided to significantly expand their ties in several key areas including defence, trade, energy and education.
Pence, in response to a question from Chambers, who is also the USISPF chairman, said that he truly believes that the relationship between the US and India, because much of the work that the corporate sector have done, and the work of President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has never been stronger.
India shifted gears in rejuvenating strategic ties with its major partners like the US and Russia and focused on drumming up global support for its distinct strategy in the Indo-Pacific to check Beijing's increasing muscle-flexing in the region.
Tillerson said China's behaviour and action is "posing a challenge to the rules-based international order".
Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Thursday directed that the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and the ships in her strike group will remain on station in the general area to monitor the situation.
China has 'violated the sovereignty' of not just the United States but of countries across five continents, Secretary of State Antony Blinken alleged Wednesday, days after US fighter jets shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon.
It said that the transit was "ongoing" and that there had been "no interference from foreign military forces so far."
