The top commander of United States and allied forces in Afghanistan was on an unannounced visit to India recently to hold talks with senior Indian leadership on the country's role in the war-torn Afghanistan vis--vis Pakistan and China.
Russia on Wednesday carried out intense rocket strikes targeting the Islamic State in Syria from warships in the Caspian Sea, 1500 km away.
ISI chief Faiz Hameed coerced the Taliban to announce an interim government guaranteed to preserve Pakistan's control over the levers of power in Kabul, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Did Trump hint at US military intervention in Qatar?' asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty was one of those agreements and is set to expire in the next two years. The 1987 pact helps protect the security of the US and its allies in Europe and the Far East.
The State Department and the White House too said that the US expects Pakistan to take decisive action against terrorists operating from its soil.
Indians at large harbour a notion that their country is cherrypicking out of the American basket of goodies, but the policymakers in Delhi and the political leadership are well aware that it can only be a pipe dream since a military alliance with a superpower is a profound irrevocable commitment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
By jettisoning the vision of multilateral world in favour of a Han Empire, China has posed a major long term challenge to India. India must stand firm against Chinese expansionism but also keep a door open for future detente by making a clear distinction between Chinese people and the current Chinese leadership, observe Lieutenant General Ashok Joshi (Retd) and Colonel Anil Athale (Retd).
'A sense of purpose is lacking in India's diplomacy.' 'This is what happens when foreign policy becomes the stuff for grandstanding before the domestic audience,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'There seem to be no reason why Assad should have launched such an attack when he was gaining acceptability,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
Queen Elizabeth II used her banquet speech to subtly remind the visiting US President that the international institutions set up after the World War II were designed to ensure the horrors of conflict were not repeated.
The US foreign and security policy establishment, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar, apprehends that Trump may compel them to exorcise the 'unipolar predicament', and bring foreign and security policies to reflect the desires and priorities of the American public.
As the DefenceExpo gets underway in Goa, Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd) says the proposed Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 should ensure that the Indian defence industry is on the path to design, develop and make in India.
A day after North Atlantic Treaty Organisation forces transferred security responsibilities to Afghan authorities, the United States has said will continue to work with India, Pakistan and Afghanistan to further strengthen the regional security.
Biden is best qualified to address the root cause of the polarisation in American politics before it turns into terminal malignancy, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
As Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah form a joint government after contesting the presidential election against each other, Prakash Bhandari reports from Kabul on the problems facing the new, US-brokered arrangement.
Trump said his visit to Saudi Arabia will include a gathering of leaders from 'across the Muslim world' to unite against extremism.
Politicians, bureaucrats hold different opinions about the delaying of the 2+2 summit.
Democrat Senator Mark Warner and his Republican colleague in the Senate Dan Sullivan, during a programme in Washington asserted that the erstwhile Obama administration and the US Congress designating India as a major defence partner is a significant step forward in taking the India-US relationship to the next level.
American intelligence service used bugs, phone taps and cybermonitoring to obtain information from European Union embassies and offices in Washington, New York and Brussels, a German weekly reported on Sunday.
Trump refuted Clinton's allegations, saying he has no relationship with Putin.
'Traditionally, the US tried to tamp down tensions whenever a crisis situation arose and deputed officials from Washington to travel to Delhi to counsel restraint.' 'This time around, no US envoy flew down to Delhi -- not even when tensions spiked and a flashpoint was reached last week,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Unclassified White House computer networks were breached by hackers recently resulting in temporary disruptions to some services with the Russian government thought to be behind the intrusion, according to a media report.
Iran is India's largest importer of tea in value terms while in terms of volume, it is the second largest after Russia
The election seem to have been conducted without any major security lapses. However, in the coming weeks, the military situation in Kandahar could tilt in the Taliban's favour, notes Aveek Sen.
From reiterating his commitment to build the border wall to protecting the American way of life from terrorist threats, President Donald Trump outlined his vision for the United States of America
'But Russia is well aware of Pakistan's nuisance power on its border.'
'While many Chinese policy makers dismiss the political, economic and technological component of US-India relations, they express caution on the defence-related ties which also happens to be a major driver in US-India relations,' explains China expert Srikanth Kondapalli.
'Clearly, from the Indian viewpoint, the US retrenchment from Asia cannot be happening as good news.' 'The abandonment of the US' pivot to Asia exposes the US-Indian partnership to be a mere transactional relationship,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar
In its sheer audacity, the initiative with Russia has the potential to transform world politics in the same way as the 1972 Nixon visit to China and 'Shanghai Declaration' changed world dynamics, says Anil Athale.
The former secretary of state posted strong wins over Sanders in the island territory of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
The Saudi-Pakistan nuclear weapons cooperation is meant to sound alarm bells in Washington, reminding the Obama administration that its overtures to Iran would have serious negative consequences in terms of its ties with its closest allies in the region, says Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad. Exclusive to Rediff.com
Pervez Musharraf said that Pakistan tried to undermine the Afghan government led by ex-president Hamid Karzai for helping "India stab Pakistan in the back".
The first group of Russian aircraft has left the Hmeimim air base in Syria for their home base in Russia, the Russian defense ministry said on Tuesday.
The CIA released 4,70,000 additional files seized in May 2011 when US Navy SEALs burst into the Abbottabad compound and shot dead Laden.
'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.'
'From the Indian perspective, Trump's invitation to Imran Khan to visit the White House is a bitter pill to swallow,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The US wants action against the existing safe havens of the Taliban and the Haqqani network and demolish its ability to carry out strikes across the border in Afghanistan.
United States President-elect Donald Trump has formally nominated James Mattis, a retired 4-star Marine Corps general who has long voiced concerns about the threat posed by Iran, as the Defence Secretary to replace Ashton Carter.
German magazine expose could have 'severe impact' on US-EU relations
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