'India is now surrounded on its north, west and east by unfriendly neighbours -- Pakistan, China, Nepal and Bangladesh -- some of whom are openly inimical,' notes Amulya Ganguli.
'It will remain hostile to Indian interests owing to its close proximity to China.'
India has not been invited to a crucial meeting being convened by Russia on the fast-evolving situation in Afghanistan that is expected to see the participation of Pakistan, China and the US, people familiar with the development said on Thursday.
In the past, India strongly rejected references made to Jammu and Kashmir in a previous joint statement by Pakistan and China.
'Putin is in danger of losing face in his Ukrainian adventure. His bluster is a response to this.'
Modi has the chance to break out of India's passive mode and firmly tell Russia that in this day and age, India will not support unilateral invasions, asserts Harishchandra Dighe.
'Putting tanks on the Ladakh border is not enough to combat China, what is needed to ensure resilience against any cyber-attacks or attacks in outer space or China flexing its economic muscle, as it did with Australia.'
'Pakistan has power -- they have the power of terrorism and the reluctance of the world to act against them.'
Expressing concern over the situation in Afghanistan, a group of eminent persons, including former ministers K Natwar Singh, Yashwant Sinha and Mani Shankar Aiyar, on Wednesday urged the government to continue engaging with the Taliban and not allow any political party to use the developments in that country to communally polarise Indian society for electoral gains.
In India, Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Indonesia, more than 50 million persons in each country were estimated to be without handwashing access, according to the study.
The launching ceremony for the first warship was held at the Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai on Sunday. Pakistan-China defence ties turn a new chapter with the launch of the first ship of Type-054 class frigate, Pakistan's state-run APP news agency reported.
The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday adopted a resolution against Sri Lanka's rights record, in a setback to Colombo, which made determined efforts to garner international support ahead of the voting.
Robust military preparedness along the entire perimeter of our nation is the only iron-clad permanent guarantee for our security, asserts Vivek Gumaste.
According to some media reports, the Modi-Xi informal summit could take place from October 11-13.
Raising the Kashmir issue at the UN, China has told the General Assembly that the "dispute" should be peacefully and properly addressed in accordance with the UN Charter, Security Council resolutions and the bilateral agreement. China, a close ally of Pakistan, also stressed that no actions should be taken that would unilaterally change the "status quo".
'Imagine China pursuing its aims in Jammu and Kashmir by using Pakistani and now Afghan proxies.'
Twelve countries - India, Pakistan, China, Russia, Algeria, Argentina, Canada, Chile, Indonesia, Israel, Thailand and Venezuela - are on the Priority Watch List.
'Their deteriorating economic and international situation is also responsible for being more reasonable.'
Xi said China is ready to work with Pakistan to forge a closer China-Pakistan community of shared future in the new era.
Citizens from Pakistan, China and Afghanistan, however, continue to be banned from all PAP areas, including Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur.
'There is a sense of realism in the Pakistan army that if they needled India during the Ladakh standoff, they would have seen a strong retaliation.' 'Pakistan was hoping that India would come out looking weaker in the region and get embarrassed, but that obviously has not happened.'
If the Taliban have proved one thing over these two decades, it is that they are way smarter than their big brother, observes Shekhar Gupta.
The US has the distinction of destroying a flawed but functioning State thrice since 1979. Pakistan has been their constant accomplice, explains Shekhar Gupta.
The defence minister, after inaugurating 44 bridges at an online event, also said that the situation along borders with both the countries remains tense.
"Speaking of Pakistan, the first word that comes to my mind is 'Iron Pak'," Col Wu Qian told a media briefing
'But an overthrow of the Afghan government would really embolden regional militant groups in a big way.' 'LeT and JeM could be emboldened, and prompted to replicate in Kashmir what the Taliban did in Afghanistan.'
'There is much to glean from such exercises. And make it known that we are ready to take them on together!', says Air Commodore Nition Sathe (retd).
Police claimed that the arms and ammunition recovered from them are manufactured in Pakistan, China and Brazil.
He noted that the primary responsibility of the Indian Army is to maintain operational readiness of the "highest order".
Asked about the clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers at Galwan Valley in Ladakh last month, Pawar said, "When I say there should be no politics over the issue, it is because we can attack them. But the entire country will have to pay a heavy price when there is retaliation to the attack."
TheWhat led to Pakistan not taking advantage of India's difficulty is the hold that the US has over the Pakistani ruling elite, observes Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
He was responding to a question over Pakistan denouncing the US drone strike in Balochistan last month as violation of its sovereignty.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Tuesday called for a "strong and vibrant" Pakistan-China economic partnership to promote comprehensive cooperation, especially in the field of nuclear power generation.
'If one puts the context of what Xi Jinping said at the UN about not wanting a 'hot or cold war with any country', one realises that his speech was quite bizarre.' 'The world does not expect such statements from China, a nation aspiring to be a superpower.
American help in defending our independence will send a strong signal to the Chinese, argues Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
According to recently declassified CIA data, obtained by the National Security Archive under the Freedom of Information Act, the CIA had evidence suggesting close Pakistan-China nuclear cooperation, to the point of facilitating a nuclear weapons capability, although the intelligence community saw this as possibly a special case based on an alliance that had existed since 1963.
"The United States and China share a mutual interest in achieving regional stability and peace, and that a failure to designate Azhar would run counter to this goal," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Robert Palladino said in response to a question on previous successful attempts by China to block the UN designation of Azhar
Indian policy makers would be well advised to disabuse themselves of the notion of a Sino-Indian convergence in managing Pakistan. China doesn't do sentimentality in foreign policy, India should follow suit, says Harsh V Pant
To boost tourism in the northeast, the government has withdrawn restrictions imposed on foreign tourists travelling to the picturesque region. The home ministry has allowed free movement of foreign tourists to the three northeastern states of Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland by suspending a decades-old rule under which foreign nationals had to take mandatory permission from authorities for visits.
No strong indicators from Romney on his policy towards India, the Pakistani use of terrorism against India and the Indian interests in Afghanistan, says B Raman.
