Beijing's growing assertiveness as kingmaker in Kabul has suffered a setback with Washington quietly moving in, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Did Xi deliver a message to Modi at Mamallapuram, which though couched in a velvet glove was time-bound? What was that message? It is clear Indian/Israeli/US spy satellites would not have missed detecting Chinese troop movements towards the Ladakh-Tibet frontier. Then why did some important functionaries in the Government of India choose to only ask the Russians about this in April 2020? Was Russian reassurance of Chinese troop movements being part of a routine exercise the reason that the Leh-based XIV Corps did not mobilise itself for its annual summer exercises near the LAC? A fascinating excerpt from Iqbal Chand Malhotra's new book Red Fear: The China Threat.
The S&P warning was largely a repeat of comments made to Reuters in late August, and no missiles were reported to have landed in Syria, but Indian investors were so unnerved that the reports exacerbated a sell-off in the rupee and local stocks.
INS Sindhukirti's refit took so long that many defence experts believed the vessel would never return to operational service.
Amid allegations of bribery attempt in the 197-chopper deal, India has asked the two vendors in the race to extend the validity of their commercial bids till the end of this year, making it clear that the procurement is in for further delay.
India must develop structured multilateralism to its defence buys
The deal is estimated to be worth Rs 12,000 crore.
'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).
The Comptroller and Auditor General report for 2008, released in New Delhi, also questioned the prudence of the Ministry in buying the second-hand Russian warship, which now comes at 'half its life-span and about "60 per cent more expensive' than a new aircraft carrier.
Washington is signalling to Delhi that it can rely on American support in any great game vis-a-vis China. Delhi shouldn't fall into the trap, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
After failing to hit the target in the previous test, the Defence Research and Development Organisation is planning to test-fire the Block II version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile on March 4."We are planning to conduct the second test of the BrahMos Block II version at the Army's test range in Pokharan on March 4 this week," Defence Ministry officials said.
Russia is reportedly angry that India allowed US officers on board the INS Chakra. But are French lobbyists trying to muddy India-Russia waters?
India on Tuesday barred scam-tainted Italian defence firm Finmeccannica from participating in future tenders while deciding to carry out ongoing contracts with the group and its subsidiary AgustaWestland, more than a month after putting all deals on hold.
What the new defence minister does with the Rafale fighter jet deal will decide if India wants to build genuine, long-term defence capability through an indigenous product that slashes life-cycle costs, or opt for glitzy signing ceremony with foreign vendors that would please the public, says Ajai Shukla.
'The INS Vishal -- a 65,000 tonne giant with 54 aircraft, including fighters, electronic warfare aircraft, airborne command posts and anti-submarine helicopters -- can both protect and dominate,' says Ajai Shukla.
In his address to RIC Foreign Ministers, Wang said the three countries should 'correctly handle and properly deal with sensitive factors in bilateral relations and safeguard the overall interests of mutual relation', without directly referring to the current round of India-China military tensions along the Line of Actual Control, (LAC).
China and India, it says, will register the world's biggest increases in defence spending through 2030, measured by percentage, says Washington-based 'Defence News'.
In the course of modernisation, the Indian fighters will be equipped with new Zhuk-ME radars capable of engaging several targets simultaneously.
Official sources said the two leaders will meet for around four to six hours for the 'agendaless' talks
Once the tanks roll back, a zero-based assessment of future equations with China is necessary. Given the conflict situations that China is imposing on India time and again, the red, amber and green lines of interactions with China need to be laid down and communicated in no uncertain terms, asserts Srikanth Kondapalli, the leading China expert.
India and Russia revived a joint military exercise series focusing on counter-terrorism operations, with a Russian Army contingent arriving at Chaubattia in Uttarakhand on Friday for the 10-day training. The 'Indra-2010' will formally kick-start from Saturday and go on till October 21 when battalion-sized troops will test their skills in anti-insurgency operations at the military station in Chaubattia, Defence Ministry officials said in New Delhi.
Singh will hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday when defence and energy security cooperation are expected to figure prominently.
'A breakthrough in eastern Ladakh leading to disengagement and creation of a buffer zone will obviate the need of military deployment through the winter months ahead,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
India on Tuesday test-fired an advanced version of the 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Odisha coast. The missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur at about 10.40 am, Defence Research and Development Organisation said.
Khan said Pakistan was open for "any kind of mediation" and seeks peace with all its neighbours, especially with India.
The HAL-manufactured aircraft is around 580 kg overweight.
Boeing's confirmation that the Super Hornet has flown off a ski-jump is a statement that it is ready to operate off existing Indian aircraft carriers.
The INS Chakra III will be ideal for 'sea denial' missions, in which the submarine denies the enemy the use of the sea.
The Indian Air Force has 31 fighter squadrons as against authorised strength of 42 squadrons.
Modi, who arrived in Moscow on Wednesday on a two-day visit, held talks with Putin during a restricted meeting in Kremlin to begin the 16th India-Russia Summit.
India has realised that one can only deal with China from a position of strength and that is not palatable to Beijing, observes Dr Rup Narayan Das.
Defence ministry incompetence hobbles development of battle-taxis for the Indian Army.
In his pre-departure statement, he said trade ties between India and Russia can increase even further, to benefit not only the two nations but also the world.
The Indian Air Force wants to buy unspecified numbers of Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft from Israel in addition to the three already contracted in 2004 for $370 million each, it was reported. The air force request is near finalisation at the Ministry of Defence, sources said, but the price of the additional AWACS planes is yet to be negotiated.
The defence ministry remains uncertain about spending billions of dollars on a carrier.
A ship-to-shore version of the supersonic Brahmos missile was successfully test-fired in the Andamans on Wednesday. The Defence Ministry announced that the missile with a range of more than 290 km was launched from the deck of the Russian acquired missile destroyer INS Rajput and precisely hit a land target in one of the islands.
The meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Bishkek is their first interaction after Modi's re-election following the stunning victory of the BJP in the general elections last month.
Regional States will be worried that the US's nascent engagement with the Taliban behind the fig leaf of humanitarian aid enables the return of US intelligence personnel to Afghanistan, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
During his two day visit, Modi is expected to seal a raft of major deals in defence, nuclear energy and hydrocarbons sectors to further cement their 'special and privileged strategic ties'.
