'The most unfortunate part is that after precipitating the crisis situation on Tuesday, the government ducked and took help from Saudi Arabia and the UAE to 'de-escalate' the situation.' 'Make no mistake, this fateful move has grave implications.' 'You don't take help from the wolf to guard the sheep, right?' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Nearly two weeks after drone and missile attacks on its vital oil facilities, Saudi Arabia has said it is enhancing cooperation with India to combat terrorism, including choking funds to terror networks and exchange of information and intelligence.
The Pakistani PM believed New Delhi rebuffed his offer of talks because his country is an issue in the elections in the neighbouring country.
The Chinese President dethroned Russian President Vladimir Putin as the most influential person on the planet.
The Orwellian surveillance State is here. And here to stay, asserts Virendra Kapoor.
Though the government has taken a positive move, it is still a long way for Saudi women to have equal driving rights as men.
Estimated to cost $44 billion, the project was expected to be commissioned by 2025.
Fifty-nine-year-old Khashoggi, a dissident Saudi journalist who lived in the US as a legal permanent resident and wrote for the Washington Post, was critical of the prince's policies and was killed in the Saudi Arabian Consulate in the Turkish city on October 2, 2018.
Trump said he was "not satisfied" with the response of Riyadh over Khashoggi's death.
Prime Minister Modi arrived in Riyadh late Monday night on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia to participate in the high-profile financial summit Future Investment Initiative, dubbed "Davos in the desert", an initiative of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
United States President Trump has been nominated along side his arch nemesis dictator Kim Jong-un.
China remains the elephant in the room and has to be tamed, which the United States alone is unable to do and therefore calls allies to come on board.
A look at the gilded cage where Saudi princes, former ministers, one of the world's richest men and other businessmen are being held prisoner.
Authorities in Turkey are still searching for Khashoggi's remains. Last week, the Turkish chief prosecutor's office said the 60-year-old's body was dismembered after he was strangled, while the Washington Post reported investigators were looking into the theory that the body was dissolved in acid.
Khan said, "If India has evidence or actionable intelligence, they should give it to us and we will take action."
Aseel Al-Hamad declared the start of a new era for Saudi women in motorsport on Sunday as she prepared to drive a Formula One car around the French Grand Prix circuit in front of thousands of fans.
The United States said was "saddened" to hear the confirmation of Khashoggi's death, but made no mention of action against its major ally.
'By annoying the Arabs and cozying up to Iran, Pakistan may end up losing Arab economic support, annoying the Americans and increase Shia-Sunni tensions domestically,' Colonel Anil A Athale (retd) points out.
The report will address what 'we think the overall impact was and who caused it, and who did it', Trump said.
Trump spoke with the Saudi King Salman over missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi and "immediately" dispatched his top diplomat to Riyadh.
'As she was dragged off the yacht, the princess cried, "I won't go back to the UAE, just kill me now!"' 'She hasn't been heard of since then.' 'Perhaps she is dead.' 'If so, Modi's government has blood on its hands,' notes Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
'Tehran,' Foreign Minister Zarif said, 'had expected the Modi government to be "more resilient" in the face of Washington's bullying,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'The Saudis are in the driving seat in navigating the relations with India; they set its compass and calibrate its pace,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'We're not going to give up hundreds of billions of dollars in orders and let Russia, China and everybody else have them. It's all about -- for me -- very simple, it's America first'
'Biden's promise of returning to 'normalcy' after Trump appears to mean that the same old politicians, who are responsible for the 'endless wars' in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, are being brought out of the woodwork after four years,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Saudi Arabia's standing internationally and in the West is going to take a big hit even if MBS is dethroned.'
The US has identified at least some of the individuals responsible for Khashoggi's death.
'Who put the fear of god into Imran Khan and how it happened we do not know, but the great cricketer panicked and called Mahathir to regret that he cannot attend the KL Summit,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
He rejected suggestions that the Pak-Saudi statement was against India's push at UN.
'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.
The Middle East's power house is about to get a new ruler who is only 31 and he may lead Saudi Arabia for decades, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Increasingly isolated on the global stage, the World Cup has so far helped Vladimir Putin send a defiant message to his opponents that Russia is succeeding despite Western efforts to hold it back.
'Prior to Pulwama, the BJP appeared to be on the defensive, uncertain of its stop-and-go development programmes, fearful of growing discontent among agriculturists and unemployed youth, and nervous of gathering steam among Opposition parties across regional and caste alliances,' says Sunil Sethi.
Russia welcomed the world to the soccer World Cup on Thursday as fans streamed in, the hosts savoured a 5-0 victory on the pitch and President Vladimir Putin's government derided Western efforts to isolate him.
'Mr Trump is too capricious to be trusted,' says Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Combating threat of terrorism and radicalisation are expected to figure high on the agenda of the talks between Modi and the leadership of Saudi Arabia, a country known as spiritual home of Islam which recently has formed a major coalition of 34 Muslim nations to fight terror, particularly the Islamic State.
'The more emphatic denial of any proposal for an OIC foreign ministers meet in Islamabad appears aimed at keeping Pakistan on a leash,' notes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
The Modi government caved in under American pressure without even token resistance. Two countries similarly placed as India with high dependence on Iranian oil -- China and Turkey -- have shown the grit to stand up to Washington, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Quiet back channel advice will probably be rendered by Saudi Arabia to India that international perception on both issues does not favour India and that it should be prudent to look inwards and introspect on where the failing has been,' notes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
'No matter what Modi may boast about 'new India', the geopolitical reality is that India's stature diminishes when it needs a small country like Saudi Arabia under an autocratic ruler to help out with what is arguably one of the most critical templates of its diplomacy,' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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