B Raman decodes the email sent allegedly by the Indian Mujahideen after the attack on tourists outside Jama Masjid in New Delhi.
Think of meaningful gestures and non-provocative actions on the ground that could help in containing the anger in J&K, says B Raman
Strategic expert B Raman on the 17 critical question that he wants answered on the Mumbai terror attacks.
While security agencies have been able to prevent any major terror strikes since the Mumbai attacks last November, we should not lower our guard, writes security expert B Raman.
The CRPF and local police on anti-Naxal operations perform a thankless job but a few basic counter-insurgency measures could have prevented the deadly Dantewada attack, writes B Raman.
The available details regarding the fidayeen attack on the United States consulate in Peshawar, the capital of the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan on Monday, are still confusing.However, certain aspects of the attack are clear: It was a single target swarm attack, meant to penetrate the US consulate in a manner similar to the penetration of the General Headquarters of the Pakistan army in Rawalpindi in October last year.
Indians have no way of knowing the truth about so many things that went wrong during our 63 years of freedom
B Raman explores if were Indians the specific target in the Kabul blasts, which killed six Indians and 11 others on Friday.
'There was considerable disappointment in the Dalai Lama's entourage when it turned out that the two officials had specially flown to Dharamshala to request the Dalai Lama not to visit Washington, DC before Obama's first visit to China scheduled for November.'
The deaths in the drone strikes of many Al Qaeda leaders such as its No 3 Sai'd al-Masri and Saleh-al-Somali from Somalia have not weakened the capability of Al Qaeda to plan and mount terrorist strikes, writes B Raman.
The danger of such hysteria is that it could acquire an uncontrollable momentum and take the two countries towards a precipice from where they may not be able to withdraw.
The anger of the youth might have been pacified initially if the governments at Srinagar and New Delhi had shown some understanding of the anger and initiated measures to defuse it, writes B Raman
During Dr Gates' just-concluded stay in Delhi, one saw the transition in adjusting himself to Obama's vision of India as the pre-eminent power of South Asia, whose role will be important for the success of Obama's Af-Pak strategy, writes strategic expert B Raman.
Obama's detractors describe the new approach to counter-terrorism as the Jesuit approach. Will it succeed? Obama and Brennan want to give the new policy a try, writes security expert B Raman
When Robert Gates, the present US defence secretary, was the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, George Bush, the then US president (1988-92), had visited the CIA headquarters and addressed its officers.
Tahawwur Rana facilitated David Coleman's foreign visits and was aware of his links to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, writes strategic expert B Raman.
India reaction to China protests over the Dalai Lama's visit to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh is one of studied ambivalence, writes B Raman
It is clear from the present campaign against India that Beijing has decided that it has made whatever concessions it could to India and that it is India's turn now, says B Raman.
Officials of the US State Department have been briefing the media about the kind of honours that will be accorded to Dr Singh when he visits Washington. These are meant to show that there has been no change in US policies towards India under the Obama administration. The reality is that on every matter, which is of concern to India, greater attention is being paid to China's sensitivities and concerns.
The message, which was conveyed through the Chinese media in the days on the border talks was thus very clear: China continued to attach importance to a further improvement of its bilateral relations with India, but it will remain firm on its claims to Indian territory in the Arunachal Pradesh sector.
On Monday, Dr Singh and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao released a joint statement highlighting 'a shared vision for the two countries in the 21st century.
Though the situation in Tamil Nadu is normal now, there is underlying tension about the possible reactions that will be evoked once Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam chief Velupillai Prabhakaran's death is confirmed."Though the common man will not turn to violence, there are still fringe elements that are pro-LTTE, which will try to whip up the sentiments of the people. But this can be brought under control if the state is alert," security analyst B Raman said.
To say now that the test was a fizzle and that he knew it all along has caused a lot of concern in the minds of our public. This could unwittingly encourage adventurism by India's adversaries.
While keeping our fingers crossed in J&K, we have reasons to be proud of what our intelligence agencies and the security forces have achieved in J&K after 19 years of sustained and well-calibrated counter-terrorism. They are capable of achieving similar results in the Indian hinterland in 2009 if the systemic and individual deficiencies are identified and removed instead of being covered up, says B Raman
A decade before 9/11, plans to use aircraft for terror strikes were mooted by the ISI-backed Punjab terrorist group to target India, a former top intelligence official said.
Power and influence are not given. They are taken. China knows how to take it, India does not, says strategic expert B Raman.
'If nuclear tests are foolish, if they epitomise jingoism, why this Communist insistence on the right to test now?'
B Raman was in Shanghai from May 6 to 9 for a discussion on 'Beijing Olympics and Security'. This is the second of a three-part series on his impressions of China.
This is the last of B Ramn's three-part series on his impressions of China.
A 290-page book, due to hit bookshelves next week, could set the cat among the pigeons of India's intelligence and political communities.
Will the joint anti-terror mechanism prove effective? Tell us!
Pakistan's former interior minister Major General Naseerullah Babar denies a rediff.com column.
'A psychological moment will be created when the Kashmiris will say they can't live with either India or Pakistan. At that time, America will step in and suggest a democratic solution to Kashmir,' former ISI chief Hamid Gul tells Sheela Bhatt.
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