Indian Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon meets US Under secretary William Burns in New Delhi.
Veteran diplomat and former Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon took over as National Security Adviser on Saturday. 60-year-old Menon, who will serve in the rank of Minister of State till further orders, took charge from M K Narayanan, who has been appointed as West Bengal governor.
Former National Security Advisor (NSA) Shivshankar Menon has stated that the political dynamics between India and Pakistan have resulted in a "controlled level of hostility" that benefits the ruling elites in both nations. Speaking at the Kerala Literature Festival, Menon described Pakistan as a "brand new state" still grappling with its national identity. He argued that India's foreign policy towards Pakistan is influenced by its domestic politics, resulting in an uneasy equilibrium characterized by a "controlled level of hostility." Menon also questioned the concept of a multipolar world, stating that the current global order is merely "confused." He emphasized that the United States remains the world's true military hegemon, while other nations, including China, are regional powers. Menon further argued that there is no binding international order, leading to a state of "between orders." He highlighted the absence of definitive international agreements on crucial issues in recent decades.
Menon arrived in Washington to review the implementation of initiatives launched during the November visit of US President Barack Obama to India.
In the wake of last week's Kabul attack, National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon will travel to Kabul on Friday to discuss security of about 4000 Indians working on developmental projects across Afghanistan, for which the government has certain proposals.
National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon on Saturday visited the Bangladesh capital on an unscheduled tour, the second in five days to review the last-minute preparedness ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit next week.
Menon, who is leading a high-powered delegation comprising officials from the External Affairs, Information and Technology and Science and Technology ministries, will be here on a three-day visit.
The first high-level meeting between the two countries after the November visit of US President Barack Obama to India, Menon's Washington trip is considered as a preparatory one for the next round of India-US Strategic Dialogue to be held in New Delhi in April.
Among key Congressional leaders, the Foreign Secretary met included Jim McDermott, co-chair of the India caucus at the Congress; Howard L Berman, Chairman of House Committee on Foreign Affairs; and Senator Richard Lugar, Ranking Member of the powerful Senate Committee on International Relations
US Under Secretary of State William Burns held talks with India's Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon on Wednesday during which the latter is understood to have conveyed India's disappointment over Pakistan's inaction against perpetrators of Mumbai terror attacks.
Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon on Wednesday met with the officials of the United States administration to discuss the issues related to the terror attacks in Mumbai that had claimed around 200 lives, including foreigners.Menon called on the Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns during his two-day visit to Washington.Menon's visit was planned ahead of the terror attacks in India's financial capital.
On his first visit to Washington after taking over as foreign secretary, Menon on Wednesday had a three-hour-long discussion with Burns, who is the key negotiator for the nuclear deal.
Menon, who arrived in Colombo by a special flight just after midnight on Thursday night, is scheduled to meet President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brothers Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Economic development; and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary, officials said.
US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke to National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon late Wednesday night and expressed regret over the arrest and strip-search of senior Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade in New York last week.
Pakistan on Friday rejected India's charge that Inter Services Intelligence was involved in the Mumbai terror attacks, alleging that it was a "manifestation of undisguised hostility" and "smear campaign" against Islamabad.
National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon on Monday held talks in Beijing with senior Chinese diplomat and his counterpart for the boundary negotiations Dai Bingguo and discussed wide-ranging bilateral issues.
In the first high-level Sino-India contact since the once-in-a-decade leadership change in the ruling Communist Party of China, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon arrived in Beijing on Sunday for wide-ranging talks on bilateral ties, including the vexed border issue.
Amid threats of fresh attacks on Indian assets in Afghanistan following the deadly suicide bombing at its embassy, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon arrived in Kabul on Sunday to discuss ways to revamp security to thwart designs of the Taliban and its mentor Inter Services Intelligence.
Ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's meeting with his Pakistan counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani, India on Wednesday sounded positive on continuing talks but said there were some "difficult" issues still remaining and Islamabad needed to take credible action to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice.
Menon reached Washington late Thursday night, several hours after his scheduled arrival, due to inclement weather in the region because of which his flights had to be diverted.
Sri Lanka on Friday briefed India about steps being taken towards political reconciliation with ethnic Tamils, amid a growing unease over the slow pace of reforms to enable devolution of power to the war ravaged north.
Former foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon on a new book on the the rise of China and the transformation of India.
Menon is expected to press India's case for allowing it to have civil nuclear cooperation with the international community. He is likely to cite India's impeccable track record on the non-proliferation front despite being a non-signatory to the NPT.
Pakistan's polity does not have the capacity to sustain a normal relationship with India, former foreign secretary and national security advisor Shivshankar Menon has said as he characterized relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors as "managed hostility".
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had a hectic second day at the SAARC Summit in Thimphu, where he held meetings with various Heads od State.
Pakistan on Tuesday dismissed as "baseless accusations" National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon's remarks that David Headley was linked to the Pakistani establishment and intelligence agencies.
As a leader, he was ambitious, not for himself but for India and its people. His was not the short-term election cycle calculation of individual political gain. His was a practical vision of how to better the lives of his fellow citizens, asserts Ambassador Shivshankar Menon, who served as foreign secretary and national security advisor when Dr Singh was prime minister.
India and China have reached a "common understanding" on the progress made so far in their vexed border talks that will provide a framework for drawing a "fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable" boundary, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon said on Tuesday.
Nuclear weapons have deterred world powers from issuing "explicit or implicit threats" to blackmail India to toe a particular line, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon said in New Delhi on Tuesday.
National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon on Friday said the government will act against every terrorist module operating in the country.
Contentious boundary issue and ways to boost bilateral ties were among the issues which figured during discussions between National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon and China's chief negotiator Dai Bingguo in New Delhi on Friday.
United States President Barack Obama vowed to build a 'true global, strategic partnership' with India and stressed on advancing bilateral economic ties and making progress on nuclear security efforts, when he dropped in during key talks between National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon and his US counterpart Tom Donilon. "The President joined the meeting (between Menon and Donilon) and reaffirmed his commitment to building a true partnership with India,"the White House said
Ahead of National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon's visit to Beijing next week, China on Friday sounded buoyant about the resolution of the border problem with India, saying the two sides shared a lot of common ground on the issue and the talks have made positive progress.
Condemning the terror strike in Varanasi, the United States offered India help in investigating the brutal attacks. US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer made the offer during a meeting with National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon in New Delhi on Wednesday morning.
India is willing to discuss proposals to replace the US\ndollar as the global reserve currency, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon said on\nMonday.
National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon on Monday downplayed the recent "map row" with China contending that the issue required to be looked at in the perspective of boundary talks, which have made progress.
National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon arrived in Beijing on Sunday to hold the crucial Special Representatives border talks with China to resolve the long-running boundary dispute between the two countries and lay the ground for Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to New Delhi in December.
Seeking to downplay the Headley controversy, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon said on Tuesday, that the access given by the US to the Pakistani-American terrorist was "unprecendented", saying such cooperation may not have been possible five years ago.
Warning of the possibility of a limited war under a nuclear backdrop in the future, India on Thursday sought a new 'open, balanced and inclusive' global security architecture that corresponds to modern threats such as hi-tech terrorism and cyber conflicts.
In the first high-level contact with Pakistan since the Mumbai attacks, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon met his Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir in Colombo on Thursday and rejected his suggestion for resumption of Composite Dialogue till Islamabad took credible steps to end terrorism.
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