United States President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have arrived in Vietnam and are getting ready for their second meeting in just nine months. The two leaders, who have a history of insult-hurling and name-calling, plan to discuss nuclear weapons on Wednesday and Thursday in Hanoi. The meetings are a follow-up to their first summit last June, when they signed a vaguely worded agreement promising to work toward denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.
The Inter-Services Intelligence does not act independently and takes instructions from Pakistani army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, says a former top aide of United States President Barack Obama, asserting that the spy agency has links with the dreaded Haqqani network of Taliban.
The Indian Armed Forces will express their gratitude to all "corona warriors" by conducting fly-pasts, showering petals on hospitals treating COVID-19 patients and illuminating naval vessels, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said on Friday.
The United Progressive Alliance government has decided to make its intelligence agencies accountable to Parliament for scrutiny in the wake of several goof-ups, failures and misuse of the unlimited funds placed at their disposal.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee met United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and National Security Adviser Tom Donilon to discuss bilateral and regional issues.
India and China on Monday began talks to put in place a mechanism for management of the border between the two nations, an issue that has been an irritant in bilateral relations.
United States President Barack Obama vowed to build a 'true global, strategic partnership' with India and stressed on advancing bilateral economic ties and making progress on nuclear security efforts, when he dropped in during key talks between National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon and his US counterpart Tom Donilon. "The President joined the meeting (between Menon and Donilon) and reaffirmed his commitment to building a true partnership with India,"the White House said
Against the backdrop of the killing of Al Qeada leader Osama bin Laden and the situation in Pakistan, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Monday took stock of the country's overall security scenario with the military top brass.
M K Narayanan had nothing to gain by misrepresenting the Indian position to Timothy Roemer, while the latter had to impress upon his government that his demarche on the phone was very effective. Ambassadors are known to write their cables in a way that pleases their masters back home, says T P Sreenivasan.
Launching a sharp attack on Army Chief Gen V K Singh, former National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra on Sunday said that he should be sent on "forced leave" and not sacked.
Condemning the terror strike in Varanasi, the United States offered India help in investigating the brutal attacks. US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer made the offer during a meeting with National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon in New Delhi on Wednesday morning.
Aziz said all issues, including Kashmir, would be part of the peace talks under the agreed formula for the fresh re-engagement with India.
The tenures of three more officers -- Joint Director Arun Kumar Sharma, Deputy Inspector General Manish Kumar Sinha and Superintendent of Police Jayant J Naiknavare -- have also been curtailed, it said.
United States President Barack Obama on Monday began talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on a wide range of bilateral and other issues. After a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Obama drove to the Hyderabad House from Rajghat to begin restricted talks with the prime minister, which would be followed by delegation-level talks. The two leaders are expected to issue a joint statement covering a number of issues ranging from security, trade and economy.
Reflecting anger in the government, National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon on Tuesday termed as "despicable" and "barbaric" the treatment meted out to India's Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade in New York.
'The major focus will be his message on economics, on increasing exports, supporting jobs back here, and including highlighting some commercial deals that we hope to have consummated by that time.'
about the recent remarks by Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg assigning a major role for China in South Asia and saying that India has a role to play in East Asia, National Security Advisor Shiv Shankar Menon said that in today's globalised world, this was no big deal
"CCP's (Chinese Communist Party) territorial aggression is also apparent on its Indian border where China has attempted to seize control of the Line of Actual Control by force," US National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien said in a remark on China early this week in Utah.
The White House has ruled out any bilateral talks between United States President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh next week in New York where they will attend the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly. "We don't have any bilateral meetings planned at this point," US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters while briefing them on Obama's agenda in New York.
In what highlights the strained relationship between the two neighbouring countries, a top Afghanistan official has urged the United States to impose sanctions on Pakistan and refuse visas to military generals of that country.Afghanistan's National Security Adviser Rangin Dadfar Spanta hurled severe accusations on Pakistani generals, saying there are definite reports that they have terror links.
National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon and United States Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher agreed that there was a need for Pakistan to eliminate Lashkar-e-Tayiba, but differed on the tactics to be adopted for such an exercise.American embassy diplomatic cables leaked by the whistle-blowing web site WikiLeaks reveal that US diplomats made repeated efforts to reassure their often frustrated Indian counterparts.
The PM said there was a need to tackle the problem of terrorism in an organised manner.
'We see India as a cornerstone of our engagement with this hugely important region of the world.'
Obama arrives in India on the 6th, spends the 6th and part of the 7th in Mumbai, part of the 7th and the 8th in New Delhi.
After intense pressure from the United States, Pakistan has reportedly agreed to launch a full-scale offensive against the Taliban and other extremist organisations in their stronghold North Waziristan, but has also clarified to the Obama administration that the timing of the military offensive would be decided by it.
As the most powerful man on earth comes calling on India in November, Aziz Haniffa reports from Washington, DC, that the US president is keen his visit transforms relations between the two democracies
Afghanistan has invited India to broaden its engagement in that country, including in enhancing the capabilities of its security forces, but made it clear that it would resist attempt by anybody to undermine the destiny of its people, in an apparent reference to Pakistan.
"Al Qaeda is especially notable for its longstanding interest in weapons-usable nuclear material and the requisite expertise that would allow it to develop a yield-producing improvised nuclear device," said John Brennan, the Deputy National Security Advisor for Counter-terrorism and Homeland Security, on Monday.
Ahead of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's New Delhi visit, India and China on Monday explored ways to resolve the vexed boundary issue as the special representatives of the two countries held the 14th round of border talks in Beijng.
The United States is the worst affected country in the world from the coronavirus infection. There are 1.3 million coronavirus cases in the country and the death toll stands at 78,000.
National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon and Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, both former ambassadors to Beijing, prevailed over the dominant view of the Karmapa, Ugyen Trinley Dorjee, being a "pro-China asset in India", reports RS Chauhan
Wen, on his part, said that "a healthy, stable and dynamic China-India relationship is of far-reaching significance to the two nations, Asia and the whole world at large."
India and China on Sunday discussed the possibility of working in collaborative projects in third countries, including joint initiatives in Afghanistan to tap large mineral resources, as part of efforts to broad base their relationship.
US President Barack Obama arrived in India on Saturday on a three-day visit during which about 18 announcements are expected to be made on a wide range of areas covering economy, security and political spheres including possible easing of export controls on dual use items.
'It is advisable for Indian interlocutors to follow the Chinese tactic of repeating the Indian position, both for the record and to test the Chinese negotiator's resolve and intentions.' A riveting excerpt from former foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale's The Long Game: How the Chinese Negotiate With India.
China on Tuesday dismissed as 'groundless' India's charge that Chinese hackers had attempted to break into sensitive Indian government computers, a week after American internet giant Google leveled a similar allegation against it. "I can say that these accusations are groundless," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu told reporters when asked to comment on former National Security Adviser M K Narayanan's reported comments that Chinese hackers may be involved.
General James Jones (retired), President Barack Obama's national security adviser, announced his decision to step down from his position, which would be taken over by his deputy Tom Donilon.
Pakistan has agreed in principle to launch a full-fledged military operation against Taliban militants in North Waziristan. But it will be a tough task for the country's army, as the terrain is believed to be the stronghold of numerous Arab, central Asian, Pashtun and Punjabi militants.The military operation may increase the flow of US aid to Pakistan, but the consequences might be unaffordable for the beleaguered country.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday discussed with top officials, including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, the security situation in the country, including the tension at National Institute of Technology Srinagar and the denial of permission to the National Investigation Agency team to visit Pakistan in connection with the Pathankot attack.
'Jaish e Mohammed has been allowed to resurge through supported terror actions in J&K in a deliberate tactic by Pakistan, if only to reduce the international pressure on the Lashkar e Taiba leadership after 26/11,' points out Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.