The 24-year-old man charged with the attempted murder of Salman Rushdie has denied being in contact with Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps and said that he acted alone when he stabbed the Mumbai-born author, whom he disliked for being 'disingenuous'.
Invoking India's "civilisational ties" with Iran, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew in to Tehran on Sunday on a two-day visit, saying his talks with the Iranian leadership would provide him an opportunity to advance the "strategic partnership" between the two countries.
Iranian state television on Wednesday claimed that at least 80 "American terrorists" were killed after Teheran launched 15 missiles on US targets in Iraq.
Declaring that they consider the avoidance of war between Nuclear-Weapon States and the reduction of strategic risks as their foremost responsibilities, the leaders of the five countries in a joint statement said, "we affirm that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought."
In a war situation, the policy of 'what is not mine is enemy' tends to hold sway. It is high time professional militaries took air defence seriously, notes Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).somewhat, it is high time professional militaries took Air Defence seriously, suggests Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
Iran's decision to keep India out and welcome China to the scene is a huge strategic setback for India, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
India's Dronavalli Harika defeated former world champion Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria in the third round of the FIDE Grand Swiss chess tournament in Riga to grab a share of the lead.
'Tehran senses that the Modi government is inexorably gravitating toward the US-Israeli-Saudi axis, jettisoning India's traditional independent Gulf policies,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
India should do what we can to ensure that our two friends do not get into a confrontation that is meaningless and ultimately damaging to everyone including us.
In a late-night tweet in capital letters, he said Iran must 'never, ever threaten the United States again'.
On Tuesday night, Iran launched over a dozen ballistic missiles targeting at least two bases where US military and coalition forces' are stationed in Iraq to 'avenge the killing' of General Qasem Soleimani.
Rouhani said the people of Iran were free to protest peacefully, but rejected violence.
Vaishali, sister of the Indian chess prodigy and GM R Praggnanandhaa, scored impressive victories over Mariya Muzychuk (Ukraine) and Russia's Valentina Gunina on the opening day of the Blitz championship.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sudnay arrived in Tehran on a two-day visit.
'India shares the world's pain, but India's pain is not the world's.' 'Little that occurs here is even reported abroad,' notes Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
General Soleimani headed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps's Quds Force and also served as Iran's pointman on Iraq.
Once Mazar-i-Sharif falls, some isolate pockets of resistance may remain, which the Taliban would tackle through political work or coercion, asserts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'A Russia-Iran-China-Pakistan geopolitical grouping is evolving at this point of time.' 'Given that the grouping is in its nascent stages, will this week's terrorist attack in Mirjaveh affect it?' asks Aveek Sen.
'None of these three countries -- Turkey, Iran or Malaysia -- ever made a hostile move against India to support the Pakistan-based terrorist elements,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Russia has already begun delivery of the first S-400 systems, and the question of sanctions, or of a waiver to sanctions, preoccupies New Delhi.
Eight players of Iran's women's national football team are apparently men
'Even during the worst days during the 1990s, India was dealing with the Taliban.'
World leaders are reacting with caution to Donald Trump's jaw-dropping victory in the US presidential election, with some of them reminding him of the democratic values and the global responsibility he carries.
Pompeo defended the killing of Soleimani saying he was making efforts for an attack on Americans in the region.
'The bigger challenge and dilemma for Pakistan would be if the US and Saudi Arabia go full throttle against Iran and enforce regime change in Tehran.' 'That would be bad news for Pakistan, especially with the current instability in Balochistan,' notes Brigadier Narender Kumar (retd).
Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei on Thursday berated the UN Security Council as a "flagrant form of dictatorship" while terming the US and its Western allies as "bullies" trying to monopolise nuclear fuel production, as he asserted Tehran's right to use atomic energy for peaceful purposes.
The Taliban have postponed the formation of a new government in Afghanistan for next week, their spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said on Saturday, as the insurgent group struggles to give shape to a broad-based and inclusive administration acceptable to the international community.
Pak's role in Kabul is not sending a good message to India, a top American lawmaker has said
Trump described the agreement as the "worst" and "one-sided transactions" that America has ever entered into.
Gen Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike on Friday. Trump alleged that Soleimani has been perpetrating acts of terror to destabilise the Middle East for the last 20 yrs.
New Delhi is vulnerable to US sanctions under a 2017 law called CAATSA.
Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad Hossein Zolfaghari told Iran's state TV the apparently male attackers wore women's attire.
Considering that Qatar is a trusted ally of Washington for decades, it is expected to be a steady influence on the Taliban leadership, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Indian and Iranian sources both confirmed to me that India and Iran are moving ahead to implement a payment system on buying oil from Iran and hope to finalise it very soon,' says Aveek Sen.
Incumbent Hassan Rouhani faces stiff competition from hardline cleric Raisi.
Iran has promised India all cooperation in finding out who was behind the February 13 bombing targeting an Israeli diplomat's wife. The Iranians insisted there would be no problem in assisting the Indian government locate the individuals associated with the crime.
In a move that may thaw the 34-year-old icy relationship between the United States and Iran, US President Barack Obama on Friday called his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani and "exchanged pleasantries" in a 15-minute conversation.
Both statesmen possess a cultivated pugnacious style which they keep in reserve and can at will bring into play, and despite the mutual distrust in Russian-American relations, they are proponents of detente, quintessentially, who take their mission deadly seriously, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The direction comes hours after Iran fired over a dozen ballistic missiles targeting at least two American bases in response to the killing of its General Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike.
The fault line between the West and Russia has widened into a deep chasm and this is likely to endure in the foreseeable future. Far from forcing its way into the European tent, Russia may be reduced to the status of an even more sullen and weakened bystander on its periphery. The US appears to have won this hand with little cost to itself, observes former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
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