Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the people have given his government a mandate for stability and continuity for the third consecutive term after seeing its work of 10 years and accused the Congress of trying to build a narrative that it has defeated the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance in the Lok Sabha polls.
Saturday's drone attack on MV Chem Pluto came amid increasing concerns over various commercial vessels being targeted reportedly by Iran-backed Houthi militants in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.
" ...the military (is) being increasingly drawn into the political discourse, it's being used to win political arguments"
'The interests of the United States and India are sharply aligned on the issue of Pakistan-based terrorism.'
"Very soon we will have enough systems and we will target.. we will find ways to tackle this threat," the Air Chief Marshal said.
The consignments were sent in a C-17 transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force.
A statement by the foreign office in Islamabad said that Pakistan has always demonstrated its commitment to peace in the region but its desire for peace should not be misconstrued.
'We could quibble with each other whether there were 25 terrorists killed or 250 killed.' 'The message is more that India undertook such an aerial attack and this attack has actually changed the paradigm.' 'The change in paradigm is that India has shown by the surgical strike in 2016 and the aerial strike of 2019 that we will not just sit back and tolerate terrorism which killed so many of our people.' 'We will hit back and by hitting back we will raise the costs of such activities.'
'Though the prime minister has talked somewhat needlessly of pilot projects and the real stuff to come, India cannot be sure of a clean victory in any full-fledged conflict -- even if there is reason to engage in such,' points out T N Ninan.
The reply came in response to an RTI filed by Jammu-based activist Rohit Choudhary about the number of surgical strikes on Pakistan between 2004 and 2014, and after September 2014. He had also sought to know how many of those were successful.
Pakistan-India bilateral relations remained frozen for the fourth year over the vexed Kashmir issue but analysts hope the strained ties could be repaired if Nawaz Sharif becomes the prime minister for a record fourth time in the general elections in February in the absence of his main challenger Imran Khan who is in jail in multiple cases.
In all likelihood, the next conventional Chinese attack on India would be preceded by a massive cyber attack designed to cripple Indian networks and interfere with our disaster-relief programmes.
'Military operations demand the highest degree of secrecy.' 'Those who are demanding transparency in military operations must understand what military operations are all about.'
Barack Obama has said that he had ruled out involving Pakistan in the raid on Osama bin Laden's hideout because it was an "open secret" that certain elements inside Pakistan's military, and especially its intelligence services, maintained links to the Taliban and perhaps even al-Qaeda, sometimes using them as strategic assets against Afghanistan and India.
Notwithstanding its continuing military strikes against Ukraine, Russia has started supplying some components of the second regiment of the S-400 Triumf missile defence system to India, people familiar with the development said on Friday.
Gen Naravane also said the Army will enhance combat capabilities along the border with China so that it is fully prepared to deal with any security challenge.
The country was prepared to face any situation, he added.
As reports filtered in about the United States and the United Kingdom finalising plans for a limited military strike in Syria, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said India is not in favour of an external intervention but would go along with the decision of the United Nations.
Pakistan Air Force Chief Marshal Sohail Aman said it is better if India showed restraint and solved the Kashmir issue to prevent escalation of tension.
The sources said intelligence-based targeted strikes are being conducted by the Indian Army to neutralise mostly Pakistani and foreign terrorists, and the collateral damage has been very negligible in these operations.
'The Pakistani denial was the greatest triumph of this strategy.' 'From now onwards Pakistan will always have to factor in the Indian reaction when it decides to back non-State actors like LeT,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
He asserted, "If America wants Pakistan to cooperate and find solutions within Pakistan on terrorism, on domestic violence, on the economy, then we need peace on our borders. We can't have peace on our borders if the first thought that comes to India is, if there is another Mumbai."
With the two countries having held several rounds of talks to resolve the issue, Singh said India wants peaceful resolution of disputes but asserted no harm to its self- respect will be tolerated.
They said that the Pakistani jets clearly targeted multiple military installations in Naushera and Rajaouri sector, but their attempts were foiled.
Last week, US National Security Adviser John Bolton told his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval that America supports India's right to self-defence.
They justified the strikes, saying the forces had entered into Indian territory occupied by Pakistan.
The UK said the deployment of the carrier strike group marks the start of "a new era of defence cooperation with allies in India and the Indo-Pacific."
'About two I will tell you, but won't tell you about the third one'
The parade began after President Ram Nath Kovind conferred the Ashoka Chakra -- India's highest peacetime gallantry award -- to Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani, a militant-turned-soldier who laid down his life fighting a group of terrorists in Shopian in Kashmir in November.
'All the government needs to do is to identify clear political and strategic objectives and to give the military planners a free hand,' asserts Ajai Shukla.
Modi on Tuesday said the country is in safe hands and nothing is above the nation.
Modi used surgical strikes for political capital, Rahul said.
It is time the political leaderships in this country arrived at a common ground over issues of foreign and security policy concerns. There has to be a greater communication between the government and the Opposition leaderships for the nation to present a unified face against the rest of the world, advises N Sathiya Moorthy.
The MSC Aries was last seen on Friday, sailing towards the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Dubai, according to The Times of Israel.
The announcement comes as the military conflict between Hamas militants and Israel continued for the fifth day.
Operation Meghdoot was launched on April 13, 1984, when the Indian Army and IAF advanced to the Siachen Glacier to secure the heights dominating the northern Ladakh region
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif strongly condemned the "unprovoked and naked aggression" by India along the LoC.
Future conflict will involve bypassing of frontiers to strike at critical vulnerabilities directly and in the hinterland at the appropriate time, explains Lieutenant General Anil Chait (retd), who served as chief of the Integrated Defence Staff and Central Army Commander.
'It is in the interest of China and Pakistan to give a bad name to the Indian Army and remove AFSPA 'completely' from the north east.' 'Hopefully, better sense will prevail and the ground realities of the army countering insurgency in the north east acknowledged,' asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
Though the Indian leadership has not spoken of any military option in the wake of the terror attacks blamed on Pakistan-based elements, the local media has been abuzz with reports of surgical air strikes on targets like the headquarters of the banned Lashkar-e-Tayiba terror group.
