Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said a contact was established between India's NSA Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Nasir Janjua after recent tension between the two countries on the LoC.
The Biden administration has come under criticism from several quarters, including from members and supporters of the Democratic party, for not releasing surplus COVID-19 vaccines to India when the country is experiencing its worst-ever public health crisis.
Although there has been no official word so far, it is unlikely that Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar would travel to Islamabd as planned this Thursday for talks with his Pakistani counterpart for the comprehensive bilateral dialogue.
The use of firearms along the LAC marks a serious escalation in border tensions as the previous instance of shots being fired at the de-facto border was in 1975.
As suspense mounted over holding of the Indo-Pakistan National Security Advisor-level talks after both sides hardened their positions on the issue of Kashmiri separatists, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday called a press conference in New Delhi.
NSA Doval, defence top brass brief Union ministers on the deal to help them counter Opposition charges.
India on Sunday summoned Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit and lodged a strong protest over ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir.
The former chief minister said his party was not running away from polls, but wanted the Centre to do justice with the people of Jammu and Kashmir first and take effective steps for the protection of the state's special position.
The disengagement plan was discussed between the two sides during the 8th Corps Commander-level talks which were held on November 6 in Chushul.
The Independence Day event at the historic Red Fort, where prime minister unfurls the tricolour and delivers a speech to the nation, was scaled down this year. Around 4,000 invites, a quarter of the usual, were issued to officers, diplomats, local leaders and others.
The Pakistan army is believed to be planning attacks by terrorists on Indian defence personnel and security establishments besides select civilian targets.
'The Modi government can't ignore the political symbolism that the perceived perpetrators are being allowed inside an Indian military base which was attacked by their puppets, either by tacit approval or compliance of the Pakistani military establishment,' says Rajeev Sharma.
Unfazed by India's strong reservations, Pakistan said it will go ahead with its engagement with Kashmiri separatist leaders when National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz goes to New Delhi for talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval on Sunday.
Pakistan has once again raised the Kashmir issue at the UNSC, seeking mediation from the world body and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to resolve the issue.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said India "sticks to its stand" that dialogue must be held only on terrorism at the Indo-Pak National SecurityAdvisor-level talks, which are under a cloud over the issue of Kashmiri separatists.
India on Friday made it clear to Pakistan that it should not go ahead with the meeting of its NSA Sartaz Aziz with Hurriyat representatives in New Delhi when he comes to hold talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval, saying it will not be "appropriate".
The tenures of three more officers -- Joint Director Arun Kumar Sharma, Deputy Inspector General Manish Kumar Sinha and Superintendent of Police Jayant J Naiknavare -- have also been curtailed, it said.
'If an 'informal meeting' with Xi Jinping materialises before the SCO summit in June, that itself could be regarded as a significant breakthrough in India-China relations,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Amid escalating tensions at the Indo-Pak border, Pakistan's national security advisor Sartaj Aziz has said it is "too early" to speculate on the timing of his visit to New Delhi to hold talks with his Indian counterpart as agreed at Ufa.
As many as 29 explosions were recorded after the last terrorist was neutralised, giving an impression of continuing pitched battles!
Pointing towards Shah, who was present in the Upper House, Sibal asked why FIRs were not registered against those who delivered hate speeches that "incited" communal violence in Delhi.
He underlined that India stands for dialogue and cordial relationship with Pakistan.
Ahead of the first-ever National Security Advisor-level talks, Pakistan on Monday asked India to end the blame game and come forward with a fresh mind for the dialogue.
'The Chinese media was beside itself with rage that how can a country with one-fifth of its economic power and maybe one-third of its military power stand up to them.'
In India, Sartaj Azizis respected as a man of grace, wit and patience. He is a wizened soldier of many diplomatic battles between the two neighbouring nations
In his address at an extraordinary video conference of the G-20 leaders, Modi also urged the grouping to come out with a concrete action plan to fight the pandemic and said human beings rather than economic targets should be put at the centre of its vision for global prosperity and cooperation.
Nitin Gokhale reports on how quick decisions saved a repeat of a Mumbai-like carnage at the key Punjab air force base.
Following the arrest of a top terrorist who had made a video of National Security Advisor Ajit Doval's office, it has come to light that Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad is planning a strike in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir police chief Dilbag Singh said on Sunday.
India is struggling with a second wave of the pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past few days, and hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds.
Colombo seems to be veering to the middle path between China and the US on global matters, but in regional matters of strategic security, it is increasingly identifying with India, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The state government last week announced the schedule for holding elections to local bodies and panchayats in the state.
'While US officials understand and accept India's desire for retaliation, they still don't want to encourage steps that would likely lead to war.'
'By not even acknowledging China's occupation of Indian territory Modi signalled to Beijing that he was not prepared to used forceful means to vacate the Chinese occupation, and that his government was reconciled to this loss of territory and accepted the fait accompli engineered by the PLA.'
As the government came under attack from the Opposition during the debate on the recent communal riots in the national capital that have claimed over 50 lives, the BJP members alleged that the violence was a pre-planned conspiracy and the home minister and authorities took pro-active steps to control the situation.
The cascade of cordiality on both sides after the Modi-Sharif handshake in Paris was preceded by much planning and even goading from UK, US and Germany.
The operation, which the sources said was coordinated by NSA Ajit Doval, led to the rendition of the 33-year-old princess, who has said she was seeking to escape torture inflicted by her father, UAE PM and Dubai ruler Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum.
Rajnath Singh believes it would be naive to see disengagement of the armies from the LAC as the end of the trouble. The defence minister has urged the defence forces to be ready for a long haul
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday offered prayers at a Matua temple in Bangladesh's Orakandi, the birthplace of Hindu mystic figure and Matua community's spiritual guru Harichand Thakur.
'India should not be taken by surprise if the Biden administration seeks China's cooperation at some point,' alerts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The government has returned to talks with Pakistan, but can it withstand pressure from a jingoistic press and a rabidly nationalistic social media.
