As Donald Trump registered a historic comeback in the US presidential election, many former Indian diplomats on Wednesday concurred that the India-US ties will "continue to grow" from strength to strength, even as some of them cautioned that Trump is "highly unpredictable" and New Delhi will have to "wait and watch" to see what position he adopts going forward.
Putin is keen on establishing a good personal rapport with Trump and anchor a meaningful US-Russia partnership, realistic enough to accept that Trump is as good an American president as Russia would ever get, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The launch of the first-ever direct train service from Delhi to Kashmir would be a big turning point in the Valley's mood and its integration with India. He had to thwart it at any cost, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
In a dramatic shift in Canada's foreign policy, Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday declared that the long-standing economic and security relationship between Canada and the United States has ended, responding to US President Donald Trump's announcement of new auto tariffs that could severely impact Canada's economy, Politico reported.
'Pakistan's only concern has been while they were on the FATF watch list was to distance their State institutions and organs from any direct connection with the actual execution of militancy inside Kashmir.'
'Once we deal with the disengagement, there is the larger issue as both of us have brought a very large number of troops up to the border.' 'So there is what we call the de-escalation issue, and then there is the larger, the next step is really, how do you deal with the rest of the relationship?'
'...he keeps his campaign promises, does what he said he will do which led to his huge victory.'
'If you respect people, if you accommodate people, these are good attributes to have.' 'Like the whole world is a mixed bag of people, our industry is the same.'
'The message that we intend to leave with at the end of this trip is one of real gratitude for the friendship and the close partnership that President Biden and Prime Minister Modi have enjoyed over the last four years, but also one of tremendous optimism because we see a lot of opportunity in the future.'
Political sources say Modi is 'keen' on getting the NCP (SP) over to the Mahayuti to counter Eknath Shinde's 'demands' and to act as a cushion against his present allies, Nitish Kumar and N Chandrababu Naidu, 'in case their relationship became untenable'.
'... and wants to become a man, things change.' 'The child no longer wants to listen to anyone, and the father doesn't stay silent.'
Lisa Curtis, who served as deputy assistant to President Trump and as National Security Council senior director for South and Central Asia from 2017 to 2021, said she expected the same bumps for India and the US, as in Trump's first term, including tariff, dependence on Russia over arms supply and oil purchase from Iran. Curtis, however, said both countries could never enter an alliance but develop a partnership that is "short of an alliance". She hoped them to achieve a cooperation that deters China, but also prepares both countries in case of a crisis or conflict, be it in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea, or another flare-up on the India-China border.
"The current border situation is overall stable," the Chinese diplomat said.
Choreographer-turned-director Remo D'Souza can sure set the stage on fire but isn't quite the storyteller, notes Sukanya Verma.
In her weekly column, mental health and life coach Anu Krishna tells you how to take control of your life.
'Jaat is not just a community, an agent, or an individual; it's an emotion.'
'Siraj is now getting flak from the same 'saints' of Australian cricket who once prided themselves on their on-field aggression.'
rediffGURU Dr Ashish Sehgal counsels individuals on how to resolve conflicts and prioritise mental wellbeing.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the Border Security Force (BSF) of allowing infiltrators from Bangladesh into India and claimed it's a deliberate attempt to destabilize the state. Banerjee, who alleges a larger conspiracy by the central government, has also accused some district magistrates and SPs of aiding the BSF in their alleged illegal activities. She plans to send a strongly worded letter to the Centre expressing her concerns and has directed the state police to investigate the matter further.
Sexual intercourse or physical intimacy during menstruation could lead to greater bonding between couples as they navigate and normalise bodily process together, suggests rediffGURU Dr Nandita Palshetkar, medical director, Bloom IVF
'If Pakistan's army wants to escalate violence in Kashmir, they have an unlimited supply of jihadis they can train and send. That's not an issue for them.'
It would be a challenge to India's policy makers how to deal with Trump so that mutual economic growth remains sustained and mutual understanding on global issues are not hampered, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
On its 177th anniversary, Utkarsh Mishra explores the history and relevance of The Communist Manifesto.
Trump also announced that the US will end special treatment of Hong Kong in response to Chinese imposition of new controls.
The Galwan clash occurred six months after the Doklam disengagement and two high-profile meetings. India should not be caught by surprise once again, asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
The ideal candidate should be deaf to avoid being shocked by the so-called 'shocking revelations' from the dressing room, asserts K R Nayar.
The duo met at the IOC's headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland and discussed about cricket's future in the Olympic programme.
Jaishankar described as a "reasonable supposition" to expect some improvement in the relations between India and China following the last round of disengagement but hesitated to say that there could be a reset of the ties.
Danielle Collins will exit the Australian Open as public enemy number one after roasting a hostile crowd at the Grand Slam and the American said following her defeat on Saturday that it was up to the fans if they wanted to repair their relationship.
More vaccination would have been done in India if the State had not had complete control of all vaccination, notes Ajay Shah.
China on Thursday said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia's Kazan on Wednesday carries a "great significance" as they reached an "important common understandings" to improve the bilateral ties.
'The border deal offers a hedge for India against Trump's unpredictability when it comes to his approach to competition with China.'
Many were so disillusioned with AAP that they left it in droves. A 10% drop in AAP's vote share is a pointer to that. To assume that if AAP had teamed up with the Congress, the Congress' 6.3% vote share would have helped AAP retain control of Delhi is erroneous, argues Sudhir Bisht.
'Trump's desire to withdraw the US from some arenas on the global stage will result in ceding space to China.'
The US Supreme Court has upheld a law requiring TikTok's China-based parent company to divest from the app, paving the way for the popular platform to be banned from the US starting Sunday. The court's decision was unanimous, with the justices citing national security concerns related to TikTok's data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary. While existing users may still access the app, new users will be unable to download it and updates will no longer be available. The decision comes as the Biden administration prepares to hand over the reins to the incoming Trump administration, which is expected to review the situation before making a final determination on TikTok's fate.
Even a whiff of an incident like the violent 1989 shirt-ripping attack on Krishnamachari Srikkanth by a Karachi spectator would be ruinous. It would set back the ties further, derail an ongoing tournament, and harden Indian attitudes on playing Pakistan anywhere at all, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
But there is a bigger issue that both of us have brought forces close up and in that sense there is a militarisation of the border, he said.
Misri is also likely to brief the parliamentary panel on the recent upswing in India's ties with China following the agreement to resume patrolling at friction points along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.
'He has always let us do our own thing but if we ever need anything, he is there with the best advice.'
