'Only when China treats India as an equal can we consider them real friends.'
'If the Russian forces do capture Kyiv and set up some sort of provisional government, they might run into an insurgency, for which the geography is just right, it could prove costly for them.' 'In that event, the whole exercise could turn out to be counter-productive -- and costly in both foreign policy and domestic terms.'
'The picture only looks worse from where Bajwa sits.' 'He sees a domineering India to the east, an unravelling Afghanistan and a complex Iran to the west, an overbearing China on the north and a US which is no longer an ally,' observes Shekhar Gupta.
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'Keeping Kashmir out of the informal summit does not mean that they have given up their strategic interest.'
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.
'While high-level interventions may help smoothen inter-State relationships, they cannot fundamentally change the alchemy of such relationships, which are firmly rooted in mutual benefits and mutual interests,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Meanwhile, Pakistan said the terrorist attack in Pulwama district is "a matter of grave concern" even as it strongly rejected Indian media and government's allegations of the country's link to the strike "without" probe.
'Another rejection of mediation between India and Pakistan will leave Mr Trump disappointed.' 'In that case, he is likely to point out the war-like situation on the border and press for direct talks which have been stalled on account of continuing terrorism from Pakistan,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
The meeting took place two days after a military tribunal sentenced Indian national Kulbhushan Jadav to death on charges of spying
Shivshankar Menon said the government's amendment to the Citizenship Act was a "self-inflicted goal".
'The challenge before the two countries is to turn the peak into a plateau and enter an irreversible phase of cooperation,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
'Though the prime minister has talked somewhat needlessly of pilot projects and the real stuff to come, India cannot be sure of a clean victory in any full-fledged conflict -- even if there is reason to engage in such,' points out T N Ninan.
'Many said his visit was very risky. But mercifully, Air Force One has taken off from Delhi without Mr Trump stepping on anybody's toes,' notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Any settlement with Pakistan won't last unless it comes with big power guarantees, says Shekhar Gupta.
'This is a historic juncture when the US is in great need of an alliance with India to strengthen its hands in the fierce struggle with China in the Asian theatre,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and representatives of some Kashmiri separatist groups were on Saturday involved in a war of words outside the UN headquarters.
While we have to hiss loudly and do the lunging bit to keep our foes on their toes, that's only a tactical matter. What is the strategic goal? What is the end game? In my opinion, there is only one possible end game: the unwinding of Pakistan into several pieces: Balochistan, Sind, Balawaristan (Gilgit, Baltistan, the rest of PoK), the Pashtun area Khyber Pakhtunwa which will merge with Afghanistan, and the rump Punjab, says Rajeev Srinivasan.
In a wide-ranging interview with French daily Le Monde, the minister said Pakistan does not deny sending terrorists to India.
'... to Imran Khan, that there's not going to be any mediation of any meaningful sort given his (Modi's) special relationship with Trump.'
Council on Foreign Relations Senior Fellow Daniel Markey Tuesday said that the raising of the issue of American intervention in Jammu and Kashmir by visiting Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington was not 'especially constructive' and was motivated by political expediency.
'Tehran senses that the Modi government is inexorably gravitating toward the US-Israeli-Saudi axis, jettisoning India's traditional independent Gulf policies,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Pakistan's prime minister is trying to use the unrest in Kashmir to save his government, says Ambassador G Parthasarathy, a former high commissioner to Islamabad.
'His secularism merely declared the equality of all religions in India under fundamental rights.'
'If deterrence through India's conventional superiority is to be established now, then India will have to escalate to a point where its greater resources make the difference.' 'This is, to put it mildly, both difficult and dangerous and thus inadvisable,' points out Mihir S Sharma.
Gokhale and Pompeo expressed satisfaction over the significant progress and the quality of the India-US Strategic Partnership
Even as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif headed to the United States for the 70th session of the UNGA and for bilateral meetings to be held on the sidelines of the multilateral summit, back home all that is expected of him is to internationalise the Kashmir issue, or as Pakistan puts it, the 'Kashmir dispute'.
Arpi deserves to be complimented for the commitment and hard work that have gone into this production. The frustrations of seeking reliable documentation from the catacombs of the Indian bureaucracy did not deter him from going after the best information available, and the result is one that he can take much satisfaction in. Ambassador Prabhat P Shukla, Member Advisory Council, Vivekananda International Foundation, reviews Claude Arpi's The End of an Era: India Exits Tibet.
"When we asked the US, to play facilitating role...Why do we ask? Simply because we are not engaging bilaterally," he said.
A realistic assessment will tell us that not much has changed between India and Pakistan; the relationship remains as fraught as before with little prospect of reconciliation, notes Ajai Shukla.
'Outside investors don't want to get tangled up in a religious war.'
India is unlikely to be granted the Most Favoured Nation status before 2014 Lok Sabha elections and resumption of composite dialogue between the two nations, Pakistan finance minister has said.
'It is important to note that American officials were trying their best to use the Taliban for their oil games till December 1997 when Mullah Ghous was invited to America. State Department officials did not show any interest in capturing or killing Osama bin Laden even at that time.'
'There is no holistic picture of our own goals and objectives.' 'For some inexplicable reason, the decision makers find it best to listen to their inner souls in dealing with these issues rather devising a carefully thought-out, structured plan,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
'The most unfortunate part is that after precipitating the crisis situation on Tuesday, the government ducked and took help from Saudi Arabia and the UAE to 'de-escalate' the situation.' 'Make no mistake, this fateful move has grave implications.' 'You don't take help from the wolf to guard the sheep, right?' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Why has the peace been kept?' 'Basically because there is a balance.' 'Maybe they think that balance has changed.' 'People can make mistakes. People can miscalculate.' 'If that is the cause, then I think what we have done, matching their build-up, etc, it is giving a good account of ourselves in the face-offs.'
Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Saeed's detention may help ease India-Pakistan tension, media reports in Islamabad said on Tuesday even as supporters of the Mumbai attack mastermind launched protests across major cities against the government's decision which they say was taken under pressure from the US and India.
Vikas Swarup says India unlikely to give Pathankot-like offer to Pak in Uri attack probe.
'The Constitution must reflect the reality of mature states because otherwise it is the Centre that will become irrelevant,' says T C A Srinivasa-Raghavan.
'I could see it not having any impact whatsoever,' says Stephen P Cohen on Obama's India visit.
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