'It seems likely that the February 2019 crisis is over.'
'We must be careful because China has not given its design in Eastern Ladakh.'
'It is purely based on real-time hard intelligence.' 'Timing is important. When you are attacking at 3.30 am, then everybody will be in the academy of terrorists.' 'If you attack at 10 am then someone will be out, so timing is very important.' 'Therefore, 3.30 am is the time when every terrorist is sleeping.'
North Korea on Friday launched an ICBM for the second time in a month.
Not only is there a possibility for a conventional retaliation by Pakistan, there could also be terror attacks.
'Imran cannot escape responsibility for providing a mask to the Pakistan army to engage in unlawful activities and to wage aggression after India retaliated to the terrorist attack,' says Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
"They probably ran the Defence Ministry with a lot of brokers and 'dalals' in between," she said.
China's stand is that relevant parties should find a solution internally.
'There is a compulsion to look hard, decisive, and risk-taking; start something; and then conclude it in a way you can claim victory.' 'That is not such an easy option against China,' notes Shekhar Gupta.
Major Gogoi might well have saved protesters' lives by opting for a human shield to force his way through the mob. But he incalculably damaged the army's reputation, not just in Kashmir, but anywhere that video is seen.
Given our troubled relationship with Pakistan, we need to keep our security apparatus in a state of alert with state-of-the-art equipment. All bilateral issues with Pakistan -- political, military, economic -- will simply have to go on the back-burner till Pakistan decides it wants to live as a good neighbour, says Vikram Sood.
Will the unpredictable North Korean leader provoke conflict on the Korean peninsula?
The deal with the tribesmen in Waziristan only empowered the local Taliban.
Juventus rehire Allegri.
Rediff.com's Vipin Vijayan, who is travelling with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Japan, reports from Tokyo.
'In our media and general population the idea of 'strong posture' was successfully sold by Modi. This is now a liability for him, as he has discovered,' says Aakar Patel.
"We have asked the US to come back to us with whatever assurances they require," he said.
'From Doklam to Wuhan and the return of the India-China relationship to its previous equilibrium is indeed a major contribution of President Xi and PM Modi. Without any doubt they deserve the kudos for their sagacity and their wisdom,' says Ambassador Gautam Bambawale, India's envoy to China during the Wuhan summit.
'Landmark developments herald the end of two decades of stagnation in the army's modernisation plans,' notes Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Army chief hints at retaliation for soldiers' beheading by Pakistan.
'Both India and Pakistan don't want to escalate tensions.' 'So no matter what is claimed before the public, the reality is slightly different.'
On Sunday morning Eastern US time, four astronauts will zoom into space on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Commanding the spaceflight is Raja Chari, a United States Air Force colonel.
China which rejected the verdict initiated by the Philippines petition has stepped up air and naval patrols to assert its controls over the region.
'Only when India's adversaries are convinced that India has both the necessary political and military will and the hardware to respond to a nuclear strike with punitive retaliation that will inflict unacceptable loss of human life and unprecedented material damage, will they be deterred,' says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Lobbying on the Hill is time consuming and cumbersome, but very effective to influence US government policies, asserts Ambassador T P Sreenivasan, deputy chief of mission at the Indian embassy in Washington, DC after the 1998 nuclear tests and during the Kargil War.
'It is not difficult for a Pakistan army chief assisted by the deep state to manipulate a situation.' 'Pulwama, Uri and Pathankot, all come to mind,' cautions Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
The bravado of NDA ministers may have undone the gains made in cross-border security cooperation over the past several years.
The White House has warned lawmakers that tightening sanctions on Iran could push the US on a "march to war" and derail a diplomatic push to limit Tehran's nuclear programme.
Israel on Monday unleashed more airstrikes on Gaza and shot down a drone used for the first time by Hamas militants even as international pressure mounted on both to end the week-long conflict that has killed 177 Palestinians.
8 Thai boys were brought out of the over the first two days.
The new government must initiate a comprehensive review of India's nuclear weapons doctrine and posture. Ajai Shukla explains
Between 2008 and 2015, India purchased defence equipments worth $34 billion, which is a distant second after Saudi Arabia's $93.5 billion, said the report 'Conventional Arms Transfers to Developing Nations 2008-2015' released by Congressional Research Service.
'Its internal economic rot and corrupt political elite have made the resurgent supremacy of the military establishment more invincible,' says Sunil Sethi.
Pakistan on Wednesday executed nine death-row prisoners, a day after 12 others were hanged
Lockheed, which has a longstanding relationship of 25 years with India, unveiled the F-21 during the Aero India show in Bengaluru in February, saying it will address the Indian Air Force's unique requirements.
'Perhaps the biggest indication was its striking decision in November to delink LeT from its aid certification process.' 'The administration decided that the US, in order to send military aid to Pakistan, would not need to certify that Pakistan is cracking down on LeT.' 'Perhaps the administration was trying to offer a carrot -- in effect, we're backing off on LeT, but in return we expect you (Pakistan) to go after the Haqqanis.' 'Either way, the optics were dreadful for the US given that Hafiz Saeed was released from house arrest a few days after the US move.' 'The US reacted angrily, but eventually it moved on, and refocused on its core concern: The Afghan-focused terror groups.'
Former Defence Minister A K Antony also demanded making public the inter-governmental agreement with France. He wondered how India would bridge the gap with respect to China and Pakistan by acquiring just 36 aircraft when the original plan was for 126.
'I will need a few more pictures, sir, can I get some time from you for a more extended photo shoot?' asked Singh. Modi, ever-obliging before the camera, laughed. 'Sure, but let us plan to do it after my swearing-in is over in May!' The Balakot effect was evident. A fascinating excerpt from Rajdeep Sardesai's 2019: How Modi Won India.
'There were assurances that Jaish-e-Mohammad was being reined in as was the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, but Pakistan's security forces could not risk opening too many dangerous new fronts,' notes former foreign secretary Ambassador Shyam Saran, who has just returned from a visit to Lahore.
With the Indian Army having blocked the PLA several kilometres inside India, hundreds of soldiers from both sides remain in a tense face-off.
