Analysts say that it will be a major breakthrough if a meeting is actually realised.
The appointment of veteran diplomat Peter Burleigh as charge d'affaires at the American embassy in New Delhi was a Department decision and not on the recommendation of Richard Holbrooke, Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, as had been rumored because of their earlier longtime working relationship, senior Administration sources have told rediff.com.
Hours after the multi-lateral conference began in Moscow, India made it clear that its participation was in sync with its Afghan policy and asserted that attending the meeting was not talking to the Taliban at all.
As an immediate fall-out of the Federal Bureau of Investigation foiling a Lashkar-e-Tayiba plot to use United States nationals to carry out major terror attacks in India, the Indian Embassy in Washington has tightened visa approval norms for Pakistan-born American citizens, whose applications would now have to be cleared by New Delhi. An instruction in this regard has recently been issued by Union Home Secretary G K Pillai.
Giving a new dimension to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba plot to attack Indian facilities, Federal Bureau of Investigation's sleuths have recovered two inflammatory Al Qaeda videos, containing speeches by Osama bin Laden and other terrorists, from the house of Pakistan-born Canadian Tahawwur Hussain Rana, who was arrested in October. Produced by 'As Sahab Media', commonly acknowledged to be the media wing of the Al Qaeda, one of the videos is titled 'Bombing of Denmark Embassy'.
Lt Gen Naravane is currently serving as Vice Chief of the Army. In his 37 years of service, Lt Gen Naravane has served in numerous command and staff appointments in peace, field and highly active counter-insurgency environments in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast.
Nirupama Rao, who took over as the foreign secretary on August 1, has had a variety of issues on her platter -- the reported incursions by China along the border, the attack near the Indian embassy in Kabul, Pakistan dilly-dallying on prosecuting Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed and the mounting political pressure over the rehabilitation of displaced Tamils in Sri Lanka.
The US and Pakistan then struck a deal that the US would raid his compound but make it look as if Pakistan was unaware, Hersh said.
Trump said until his aim of a nuclear-free world is achieved, America will be the most powerful nuclear nation on the earth by far.
The MHA put out a set of FAQs on the Act, seeking to counter a 'misinformation campaign'. It said the Act doesn't have anything to do with the deportation of any foreigner in India.
Pakistan's military courts have gained a disrepute for not being transparent and violating all provisions of a fair trial.
Afghanistan will remain a frontline state for Washington for a foreseeable future in terms of the potential threats to US national security from terrorist groups, asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar, who played a stellar role in beginning India's dealings in Afghanistan in 1994.
Several countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, Israel Canada and Singapore, have asked their citizens to exercise caution while travelling to the Northeast India which has witnessed violent protests against the amended citizenship act.
She also met American Ambassador to Pakistan Nancy Powell, who was in New Delhi on a stopover to her vacation.
'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.
Pakistani officials confirmed the development while the US embassy spokesperson refused to comment, saying the information 'appears to be only hearsay', The News daily reported. Some diplomats in Islamabad were aware of the Taliban operation but were not ready to speak on record. One of the hijacked helicopters had already been sold to an unidentified customer in Afghanistan, the report said.
The government has sent a special unit of trained commandos to Pakistan to protect top diplomats of the Indian Embassy there. The batch of 16 personnel, trained in commando skills and unarmed combat from the Central Industrial Security Force, was sent to the neighbouring country in February. "They will perform VIP security duties after assessing the situation there," CISF Director General N R Das told reporters on the sidelines of the force's 40th raising day.
'A lack of strategic trust and the 'persistent security dilemma' prevails between India and China,' points out Dr Rup Narayan Das.
American intelligence agencies have for the first time directly linked the suicide attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul to Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence and indicated that it might have been authorised by the top officials as those involved in assisting militants were not renegades, a media report said in New York on Friday.
Displaying anger at the Kabul embassy blast in which "elements" based in Pakistan were involved, New Delhi on Monday said the incident had vitiated the atmosphere putting the dialogue process "under stress" and asked Islamabad to address its concerns.
'Those who follow the workings of the establishment believe that Indian diplomacy has managed more by the individual flair and brilliance of a few individuals than its systemic strength or organisational excellence.'
The attack was claimed by the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) which said it would not tolerate 'any Chinese military expansionist endeavours on Baloch soil'.
'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.
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday assured Denmark that the perpetrators of the 'wanton act of terrorism' near the Danish Embassy in Islamabad would be brought to justice. Qureshi made the assurance during a phone call to his Danish counterpart Per Stig Moller, said a statement issued by the Foreign Office. The Pakistani minister strongly condemned the attack and termed terrorism a 'scourge that is threatening the whole human society'.
A deft hand on India-China relations, Bambawale earlier handled the China desk at the MEA.
India on Monday conveyed its concern to Pakistan over the recent spurt in border ceasefire violations and the attack on its embassy in Kabul for which ISI has been blamed.
Commenting on news reports that the United States had proposed to accredit an official deployed at the American embassy in Islamabad to the NCA, Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Sadiq said, "Delegations and individuals do meet the members of the NCA, but it is not possible to accredit an official to the NCA." The NCA comprises the President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and top civil and military officials.
The meeting took place at Bill Clinton's request, according to a report.
The Pakistani delegation, in its meetings with World Bank officials, insisted on early appointment of the judges and setting up the court.
When Viktor Zicho left Hungary 11 months ago to cycle to Darjeeling in India, he did not dream that he would be quarantined for two months in Bihar.
Vowing to redouble its efforts to help Afghanistan as a response to the bombing of its embassy in Kabul, India has attacked Pakistan for trying to strike a deal with the local Taliban, saying such bargains "were undermining efforts to defeat terrorists in the war-ravaged country."
'If you behave like a nail, the adversary will behave like a hammer.'
Al Qaeda 'had been preparing to spread its ideology to India', says Bruce Hoffman, Director Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University.
Senior US officials helped Pakistan steal atomic weapons secrets through Turkish agents in exchange for money and other benefits, with ISI passing on the sensitive information to the now disgraced nuclear scientist A Q Khan, a media report claimed in London said.
Matchboxes featuring Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden's photograph and offering a reward of US$ five million for information about him are being circulated in Pakistan's tribal North West Frontier Province. Postal and email addresses for sending information on the Al Qaeda chief are printed on the matchboxes. A leaflet within the matchboxes, containing 30 match sticks, says bin Laden is wanted by the US government on charges of killing 220 innocent citizens.
With a decelerating economy that weakens India's hands on geopolitical issues, it will be interesting to know which way this trip will go.
The Taliban and Al Qaeda have joined hands with Gulbuddin Hekmatyars Hezb-i-Islami and reactivated cells, Naseer Ahmad Rohi, who served at the Afghan embassy in UAE, said.
Singh, who arrived in Moscow on Wednesday on a three-day visit to attend a crucial meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), pressed for expediting supply of a number of weapons systems, ammunition and spares to India by Russia under contracts which were concluded earlier.
Former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga says watching Mahela Jayawardene and his boys return home to their families after the terror attack in Lahore was overpowering.
'Had a very fruitful meeting with Iranian defence minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami in Tehran. We discussed regional security issues including Afghanistan and the issues of bilateral cooperation,' Singh said in a tweet.
