'I am hoping that now with the strategic status of our relationship, the Indian voice will get heard in Saudi Arabia,' says Ambassador B S Prakash.
'The attacks made clear to all the Gulf States that Pakistan was the nursery and sanctuary of extremist violence and that this violence threatened all the countries in the region.'
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.
'India, which climbed the escalation ladder first, has climbed down.'
'It remains unclear what Indian objectives have been realised in precipitating the crisis in the first instance last Tuesday,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus as the Chief Adviser has asked Bangladesh's envoys in India, Brussels, Canberra, Lisbon, and the Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York to return immediately and report to the foreign ministry here as part of the latest reshuffle.
The external affairs ministry has sought for a detailed report from the Gurgaon Police on the alleged sexual assault on Nepalese women at a Saudi diplomat's residence in the locality.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its condemnation and denunciation of the statements made by the BJP spokesperson, saying it insulted Prophet Muhammad.
'We began foolishly bragging about Saudi-Emirati investment plans as indicative of the sheikhs 'distancing' from Pakistan, including on Kashmir,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The global map printed on the new 20 Riyal banknote, released to mark Saudi Arabia's presidency of the G20 grouping, does not feature Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh as part of India.
'The way our President was greeted, that itself shows how far India has come.' 'People were aware of who she is, people know who our prime minister is.' 'Everybody knows India now and everybody respects India.'
'Who put the fear of god into Imran Khan and how it happened we do not know, but the great cricketer panicked and called Mahathir to regret that he cannot attend the KL Summit,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The known unknowns in Prime Minister Modi's Saudi visit assume great significance, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Saudi Arabian diplomat, who was charged with confinement and rape of two Nepalese women, on Wednesday night left the country.
A peace keeping role for India is a distinct possibility. Indian military has both the numbers and experience to carry out this job, observes Colonel Anil A Athale (Retd).
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud on Wednesday dismissed the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Moqren bin Abdul Aziz bin Saud, and replaced him with the Interior Minister Mohammed bin Nayef.
Delegates of all G20 countries, barring China, arrived in Srinagar on Monday for the third working group meeting on tourism -- a much-anticipated event for which authorities have made extensive security arrangements and spruced up the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.
'No matter what Modi may boast about 'new India', the geopolitical reality is that India's stature diminishes when it needs a small country like Saudi Arabia under an autocratic ruler to help out with what is arguably one of the most critical templates of its diplomacy,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Mumbai Police Commissioner Ahmad Javed has been appointed the country's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, which has a 2.8 million-strong Indian community.
India and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday resolved the issue of refusal of new Indian passports by immigration authorities in Jeddah which had caused concern among the Indian expatriates in the Kingdom.
US President Barack Obama has nominated veteran diplomat David Hale as the next ambassador to Pakistan.
'The Saudis are in the driving seat in navigating the relations with India; they set its compass and calibrate its pace,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The stage may be set for a recalibrated US-Iran relationship, suggests Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
US authorities have charged two Iranians with conspiring to carry out terror attacks in the country and participating in a plot, allegedly directed by elements of the Iranian government, to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States.
At 13, Naseer Khan left Bihar to work in a saw-mill in Bhutan. He learnt the craft of making sofas, and some of the pieces he made found a place in the royal palace. He returned home after spending 35 years in the Himalayan kingdom, and has continued making sofas, restoring old furniture and creating wire-gutting chairs, all that has become a dying art now.
'The surge of Saudi nationalism is the last thing Washington wants,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Aseel Al-Hamad declared the start of a new era for Saudi women in motorsport on Sunday as she prepared to drive a Formula One car around the French Grand Prix circuit in front of thousands of fans.
An Indian worker in Saudi Arabia will not be executed for trespassing into the "only Muslim" part of the holy city of Medina, despite demands for his execution.
Shahbaz, the president of PML-N party, dashed to Islamabad on Saturday for a day-long visit, during which he held separate meetings with Brigadier (retired) Niaz Ahmad, a close aide of Musharraf, Saudi Ambassador Ali Awadhi Al Asseri and Wajahat Latif, former chief of the Federal Investigation Agency.
Demanding that those involved in the alleged Iranian attempt to assassinate its ambassador to the United States should be brought to justice, Saudi Arabia has asked the United Nations chief to bring the "heinous plot" before the Security Council.
The Saudi embassy in New Delhi appears to have adopted an approach of stonewalling the government's efforts to get it to cooperate in the case involving one of its diplomats charged with the rape of two Nepalese women.
The Phenom 300 jet which was arriving from Italy crashed during an attempt to land at Blackbushe Airport in Hampshire, some 65 kilometres from London, killing all four persons on board including the pilot on Friday.
Of the $1.4 trillion investment opportunities, almost $90 billion each is proposed in petrochemical projects and power generation, $88 billion in water desalination plants and $50 billion in natural gas-related projects.
Messi's future at PSG has been the subject of much speculation in recent days
Iran signed a $3 billion deal with Boeing, backed Qatar against the Saudis, scored a big victory in Syria and reached out to Hamas. Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar examines how the Qatar versus Saudi Arabia standoff is quickly changing alignments in the Middle East.
Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz al Saud, governor of Riyadh and third in line to the throne, has over the last five days in Delhi, Agra and Mumbai reaffirmed the message that terrorism in the name of Islam is not Islamic and that the entire region must be united against jihad.
A source close to Argentina's captain told Reuters that he received a formal offer to join Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal next season, with a contract renewal at PSG not on the cards for the World Cup winner who turns 36 next month.
The Saudi-Pakistan nuclear weapons cooperation is meant to sound alarm bells in Washington, reminding the Obama administration that its overtures to Iran would have serious negative consequences in terms of its ties with its closest allies in the region, says Ambassador Talmiz Ahmad. Exclusive to Rediff.com
In a condolence message sent to the families of the victims of the fire incident in Mangaf, the Emir expressed his sincere sorrow and deep sympathy to the families of the victims and wished a fast recovery to the injured.
The China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to revive diplomatic ties should not be a matter of concern for India as the pact would provide regional stability and would be beneficial for New Delhi's interests as well, Iranian ambassador Iraj Elahi said on Friday.
