India and Saudi Arabia on Monday decided to expedite implementation of the $50 billion West Coast refinery project, and identified energy, defence, semiconductor and space as areas for intensified cooperation during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu will visit India to hold the inaugural '2+2' ministerial dialogue between the two countries on December 6, the Russian embassy has said.
India, the world's third biggest oil consumer, meets more than 80 per cent of its oil needs through imports.
"AUKUS? What would it become? JAUKUS? JAIAUKUS?" Psaki said in lighter moments before giving answer to the question.
Iran and Saudi Arabia have agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations and reopen embassies after talks in Beijing between officials from the two rival Middle East powers, Iranian state media reported on Friday.
Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai made a torrid attack on the Pakistani leadership in a face-to-face meeting with Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and demanded that Islamabad produce top Taliban leaders to negotiate with him. Karzai confronted the Pakistanis at an official delegation-level talk on Thursday in Islamabad between the two countries on the sidelines of a trilateral summit meeting of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday chaired a meeting of Pakistan's top civil and military leadership ahead of the resumption of a trilateral initiative with Afghanistan and the US to boost the Afghan peace and reconciliation process.
Foreign Ministers of India and China will meet on Friday for a bilateral meeting in Moscow during which important international issues and terrorism in the region are likely to figure.
India and Saudi Arabia on Monday called on states to reject the use of terrorism against other countries and prevent access to weapons, including missiles and drones, to commit acts of terror.
The separatist leaders told the Pakistani Foreign Minister that the Indo-Pak talks would be futile till Kashmiris are involved in the process.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday met her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow and raised several issues.
India said on Tuesday it will meet Pakistan 'soon' to resolve issues such as transit fee that have stalled a trilateral agreement on the proposed multi-billion dollar gas pipeline originating from Iran. New Delhi first excused itself for a bilateral meeting with Pakistan and then boycotted the September trilateral meeting in Tehran, saying it first wanted to resolve the issue of transit fee payable to Islamabad for wheeling the gas through that country.
Although the special relationship might compel Bhutan to be considerate of Indian interests, new challenges will likely arise. An emerging new phase of relations will also call for fresh redlines between India and Bhutan, observe Harsh V Pant and Aditya Gowdara Shivamurthy.
United States Secretary of State John Kerry has held wide-ranging talks with visiting Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh on key issues, including the regional situation with respect to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
'The US President is joining the Prime Minister in addressing a huge Indian diaspora event in Houston and they will also meet on the margins of the UNGA in New York'
Not only is there a possibility for a conventional retaliation by Pakistan, there could also be terror attacks.
Ajay Banga was on Wednesday appointed the next president of the World Bank, becoming the first-ever Indian-American to head the global financial institution which said it looks forward to working with him at a time when it's tackling the toughest development challenges facing developing countries. "The executive directors of the World Bank today selected Ajay Banga as president of the World Bank for a five-year term beginning June 2, 2023," the bank said in a press statement. In February, President Joe Biden announced that the US would be nominating Banga, 63, to lead the World Bank because he is "well equipped" to lead the global institution at "this critical moment in history."
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov will be the other two participants at the conference. Uncertainty had loomed over the meeting following the cross border clash between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley on Monday evening.
A joint statement was issued by US Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa after their in-person meeting in Phnom Penh on the margins of the 55th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will arrive in New York on Sunday to participate in the high-level 77th session of the UN General Assembly, which kicks off on September 20 with the opening of the general debate.
The Australian prime minister also said that he briefed Prime Minister Modi on AUKUS - a trilateral security arrangement between Australia, the UK and the United States that was unveiled in September 2021.
The trilateral summit of US, Pakistan and Afghanistan this week would help in establishing a working equation between the three Presidents for better coordination and united fight against terrorism emanating from the two Asian countries.
India has so many relationships, such an ability to communicate and find touch points with different countries and regions.
Tirumurti said India 'has been in touch with all concerned parties. It is our considered view that the issue can only be resolved through diplomatic dialogue.'
"China has been promoting peace and stability in this region. We hope that Pakistan and India will maintain friendly relations," he told a media briefing in Beijing.
The production of S-400 missiles to be delivered to India has started. The S-400, an upgraded version of the S-300, had previously only been available to the Russian defence forces.
India on Thursday announced that its charge d'affaires in the Beijing embassy will not attend the opening or closing ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics in the Chinese capital over China honouring a military commander involved in the Galwan Valley clashes as its torchbearer for the mega sporting event.
The statement hinted at China's eagerness not to upset the United States, with which it want to maintain good relations.
The BJP IT cell has held meetings right down to booth levels and these volunteers have been working for the past six months already.
The Indian defence ministry said its border security personnel, as per standard protocol, immediately alerted their Chinese counterparts to locate the UAV and they later reverted with its location.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is expected to raise the issue of China blocking India's bid to ban Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar by the United Nations with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi,.
Although the pact would focus mainly on the Pacific and the South China Sea region, any action designed to deter China with or without New Delhi's active participation is a welcome move, notes Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Swaraj took up the issue with Wang at a bilateral meeting in Moscow on the sidelines of the Russia-India-China trilateral meeting of their foreign ministers.
'The crisis has strengthened America's resolve to work towards building its relationship with India as a bulwark against Chinese aggression'
Two members of the small delegation accompanying External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to the UK have tested positive for Covid-19, forcing him to rework his official schedule in London.
The Indian government expressed its dismay at some of the language used by participating MPs in the Backbench Debate, specifically Pakistani-origin Labour MP Naz Shah.
'The escalation of tension along the border of Ukraine with the Russian Federation is a matter of deep concern'
The demand for a probe comes amid reports that Pyongyang had clandestinely received nuclear enrichment technology from Pakistan when A Q Khan was at the helm of Islamabad's nuclear programme.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said during the 1962 war, then Bharatiya Janata Party leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee demanded that a session of Parliament be convened to discuss it and then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru accepted his demand.
National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon arrived in Colombo on Monday to hold crucial talks on the controversial 13th amendment on devolution of power in the Tamil-dominated northern province and a trilateral maritime security treaty with Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
