'The lesson Beijing would have learned is that there is, cost-benefit wise, no better option than to keep the Pakistan military supplied with its most advanced armaments, certain that in hostilities with India these would be used for maximum effect.'
China's reported move to construct two more nuclear power plants in Pakistan was expected to be discussed at the 46-member Nuclear Supplies Group's five-day meeting at Christchurch, New Zealand last month.
Utilities in the power sector present an interesting investment case at this moment. Most power stocks have lost substantial ground in the past 12 months.
The Russians have termed Putin's visit to India, his first to this country since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, as 'Druzhba Dosti', which means 'friendship' in Russian and Hindi respectively.
One key development is the direct cargo connection between Chennai and Vladivostok, a crucial Russian port on the Northern Sea Route.
The India-US nuclear deal was aimed at ending India's nuclear isolation and nuclear apartheid, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
'Crude oil prices are around $66-67 per barrel now but could fall to $55-60 if global disturbances ease.'
The collective West has always opposed strong leaders and economic development in India, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'It is typical of China's strategic deception of making virtue out of necessity,' observes Rup Narayan Das.
Although the credit for acquiring the technological skill must be given to India's outstanding nuclear scientists, the decision to go nuclear was a political one that entailed clarity of vision, courage and resolve, points out Rup Narayan Das.
The Quad grouping has called for bringing the perpetrators, organisers and financiers of the Pahalgam terror attack to justice without any delay and urged UN member nations to extend cooperation for it.
Trump's new rules for how countries should treat him have led to the current breakdown in India-US relations, explains Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
The BRICS nations condemned the Pahalgam terror attack, advocated for a zero-tolerance approach to terrorism, and criticized rising tariffs during their summit in Rio de Janeiro. They also addressed global challenges and called for reforms in international institutions.
US President Donald Trump has cut short his visit to Canada, where he was to attend G7 Summit meetings, to return to Washington, DC, a day earlier amid escalating tensions between Iran and Israel.
The customs officials, based on an intelligence input, halted a Malta-flagged merchant ship -- CMA CGM Attila -- at the port en route to Karachi on January 23 and inspected the consignment, which included a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machine, originally manufactured by an Italian company.
India on Tuesday said cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear technology is an important pillar of the multifaceted cooperation with Russia, which offered help in building small tropical nuclear power stations.
'Geopolitically and diplomatically it's a very difficult situation for India.'
'Chinese are going bang, bang, bang building 30-35 reactors.' 'We should announce a programme of 50 new reactors and show that we mean business on the ground and not just announcements.'
If the US' renewed closeness with Pakistan ends up strengthening Pakistan's military, it will clearly show that Washington no longer wants a strong India and could be ready to let China dominate Asia, notes Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
At the end of the day, for many worldwide, the ongoing mutual attacks between Israel and Iran would seem a contest devoid of any moral high ground and only a bout between two ordinary adversaries, one that nevertheless risks spinning out of control into a larger conflagration, notes Shyam G Menon.
'Had Haji Pir and/or Skardu been taken, the message would have gone out not just to General Asim Munir and his cohort in the Pakistan army but to the Pakistani people that every terrorist incident in India would lead to substantial loss of territory in PoK.'
India needs to be technologically and militarily prepared to defend itself from both Pakistan and China, alerts Ramesh Menon.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying said China-Pakistan cooperation is in accordance with the 48-member nuclear club, which supervises global nuclear commerce.
China has delivered a second advanced submarine to Pakistan, part of a larger deal to bolster the South Asian nation's naval capabilities in the Indian Ocean. The move underscores China's growing influence in the region and its strategic partnership with Pakistan.
The implication of this stiff stance by China towards Pakistan could have far reaching consequences for the gains achieved in India-China relations including from last year's Copenhagen dividend and the high-level visits between the two, writes Srikanth Kondapalli.
After the 1962 War with China, there was a demand to forge greater defence cooperation between India and the West. One such voice was that of Sudhir Ghosh, a distinguished MP, to tie up strategic cooperation with the USA immediately after the Chinese attack on India, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
Despite four disarmament section talks and six strategic dialogues between the two foreign ministries, China's intransigence on recognising Indian nuclear status resulted in no confidence building measures in the nuclear field between the two, says Srikanth Kondapalli.
'This was undoubtedly a premeditated strategy to thwart India's entry into the NSG.' 'If India hopes to be a major player, it must use its rising clout on the world stage to influence amenable members of the group to alter such discriminatory practices and ensure fair rules of engagement,' says Vivek Gumaste.
India's tactical and operational response demonstrated its ability to prosecute tri-service operations, even without a formal tri-service doctrine or the higher command structure needed to coordinate it, points out Ajai Shukla.
Power generation decelerated 4.7 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 155 billion units (BU) in August 2024. This was the first downtrend in many years, albeit on a high base - generation had increased 19 per cent Y-o-Y to 163 billion units (BU) in August 2023. The dip was partly due to excess rainfall, which pared cooling demand and also reduced need for irrigation.
In calendar year 2024, the stock price of Trent has zoomed 160% As compared to the 18% rally in the BSE Sensex during the same period. It has outperformed the market in the past 10 consecutive years.
The 123 agreement commits Washington to ensure uninterrupted supplies to India's safeguarded civilian nuclear reactors through engagement with other Nuclear Supplier Group countries.
He also said that there were around 620 cases of black fungus or mucormycosis in the city, but there is a shortage of Amphotericin-B injections used in its treatment.
A step away from nuclear weapons being used in conflicts, warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The latest flashpoint in West Asia has derailed India's preliminary plans to resume crude oil imports from Iran, officials said. In January, officials of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas had told Business Standard that the government had been studying proposals for the same, given that India was trying to expand sources of imports. "We are always monitoring the situation when it comes to crude flows.
Areva, the French nuclear group, agreed on Wednesday to supply India with up to six nuclear reactors in one of the first deals since the subcontinent's nuclear programme was brought into the international fold last year after decades of isolation.
It's highly unlikely that China will give up playing the Pakistan card vis-a-vis India anytime soon. Indian policy makers would be well advised to disabuse themselves of the notion of a Sino-Indian rapprochement. China doesn't do sentimentality in foreign policy, India should follow suit, writes Harsh V Pant.
Even as Pakistan continues to urge the international community to accept its membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, highly placed sources in the United States who are involved with the tracking of nuclear commerce have claimed that Islamabad is still selling nuclear materials to North Korea.
