The Indian position on the Russia-Ukraine war and the unconditional treaty between China and Russia appear to have caused some ripples in India-US relations and led to a reappraisal of India's usefulness to the US in the eventuality of a conflict with China, notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
It is the first visit abroad by a senior Union minister in four months as foreign travels were restricted in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
Describing Indo-Russian ties as "deep-rooted and exemplary", India's top diplomat in Moscow has said the bilateral cooperation in fields of civilian nuclear energy and defence is the key pillar of the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Singh received the aircraft at the Rafale fighter jet handing-over ceremony at Merignac in the presence of French Minister of Armed Forces Florence Parly. Members of the top military brass of France as well as senior officials of Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale, were also present at the ceremony.
Amid "great expectations", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday embarked on a visit to Japan which is expected to open new vistas in the bilateral ties and take the strategic and global partnership to a higher level.
The elephant in the room will permeate the conversations, predicts Rup Narayan Das.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama on Monday decided to "further refine" the Indo-US strategic partnership while pushing ahead with cooperation in the areas of security, counter-terrorism, defence, economy and climate change.
This will be the first high-level engagement between India and the United States after National Democratic Alliance's return to power for a second term.
"We are committed to building a new India. We have to do this as early as possible," he said.
The prime minister's meetings with Abe and Turnbull came a day after he held "very expansive" talks with US President Donald Trump on intensifying overall security and defence cooperation, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region where China is strengthening its military build up.
Trump's visit symbolised heightened partisanship and a return to chemistry between leaders defining bilateral ties, notes Kashish Parpiani.
Shringla began his two-day official visit to Nepal on Thursday. He was accorded a warm welcome on his maiden visit to Nepal which is happening at the invitation of Nepal Foreign Secretary Paudyal, amid a strain in bilateral ties following a bitter border row between the two countries.
Russia is a strong and reliable friend of India and both countries have a "truly strategic" partnership, PM Modi on Thursday told President Vladimir Putin.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday left for home after wrapping up his six-day tour that took him to China, Mongolia and South Korea.
Britain's third female prime Minister, Liz Truss, was out of office on Thursday after the shortest tenure at 10 Downing Street in London and without a cherished India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) under her belt as a Brexit prize.
'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.'
'India has a strong and proud tradition of strategic autonomy, and we respect that'
During the trip, Mukherjee will hold bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on civil nuclear cooperation, defence ties and partnership in higher education.
Irrespective of the outcome of Tuesday's keenly-contested US presidential election, America's strategic relationship with India is expected to maintain the current momentum and strengthen further, policy documents and remarks from the two campaigns indicate.
The prime minister also welcomed convergence of views between India and ASEAN for cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.
The two leaders also took positive note of the growing bilateral cooperation in defence, counter-terrorism and energy, besides the co-ordination on regional and global issues, the officials said.
India and the United States are working on efforts to improve cooperation on UN terrorist designations and expand the sharing of information on known or suspected terrorists "no matter where they may be located," says US Ambassador to India Richard Verma
India announced its intention to acquire S-400 'Triumf' surface-to-air missile systems in 2015. The contract worth $5.43 billion was signed during the visit of President Putin to India last year.
A framework agreement on Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project (JNPP) is expected to be signed between the two sides during the visit.
United States President-elect Joseph Biden has always been a strong supporter of India and India-US partnership since his days in Senate and later as a Vice-President.
Swaraj and Tillerson discussed a wide range of bilateral issues, including the situation in the neighbourhood and the Indo-Asia Pacific region, officials said.
Modi said India and Russia have been friends for a long time and thanked Putin for inviting him for the first-ever informal meeting at Sochi.
The prime minister thanked Trump for the welcome.
Describing the unprecedented second visit of US President Barack Obama to India as "game changing" the White House has said the Obama-Modi meeting would "elevate the nature of the relationship" between the two largest democracies of the world.
Not just Vietnam, but other countries in the region like Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand, have also expressed an interest in acquiring the BrahMos cruise missile. Debalina Ghoshal explains the significance of the move.
'Both Russia and the USA seek New Delhi's friendship, because for both -- Russia and the USA -- India is a certain counterbalance to China.'
'We use the word "historic" perhaps too much, but the prime minister's visit certainly was historic in so many ways.'
The tour is aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment.
Vice Chief of the Army Staff Lt Gen S K Saini will embark on a four-day visit to the US beginning Saturday to explore ways to further deepen military cooperation between the two countries. The visit comes ahead of the third edition of the two-plus-two dialogue between India and the US which is slated to be held in India later this month.
Decisions taken during the meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama will take the bilateral strategic ties to an "altogether new high", India Inc said.
The prime minister and president stated their intention to expand defence co-operation to bolster national, regional and global security.
The defence minister also called the bickering against the deal as "disservice" to the armed forces, asserting that urgent requirement of the Indian Air Force was the main reason for sealing it.
The defence minister also said that India attaches importance to peaceful resolution of differences through dialogue and is committed to respect various agreements inked for maintenance of peace along the borders.
According to the Biden-Harris Transition, 'the president-elect noted that he looks forward to working closely with the prime minister on shared global challenges, including containing COVID-19 and defending against future health crises, tackling the threat of climate change, launching the global economic recovery, strengthening democracy at home and abroad, and maintaining a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific region'.
The PM will have an audience with the Emperor of Japan and hold the annual summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe that could see a civil nuclear cooperation pact being inked.
