(Spring is in the air in Argentina — Modi, Putin and Xi exchange pleasantries) The G20 in Argentina last weekend turned out to be of great significance for India-China relations. On the sidelines of the event, PM Modi and President Xi Jinping had occasion to interact thrice – one bilateral meeting and a second meeting …
India steps up the game with Saudi Arabia
The meeting between PM Modi and the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Buenos Aires earlier today on the sidelines of the G20 summit should not come as surprise. Basically, India has stuck to its stance that the internal affairs of another country are simply not its business; nor is India going to be …
Continue reading “India steps up the game with Saudi Arabia”
India meets the Taliban
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan unknowingly paid a compliment to the Indian leadership when he remarked last week, “A leader who does not take U-turns as per the requirements of the situation is not a real leader.” Khan was drawing an analogy from his cricketing days when he would deviate from an original strategy as …
Long passageway to peace
The terrible beauty about India-Pakistan relationship is that it is immensely popular among the peoples in both countries. Aside a clutch of perennial naysayers, the overwhelming Indian opinion feels elated about the decision to develop a pilgrim corridor to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan. Continue reading…
Turkey’s Hour of Reckoning in Syria
During a Pentagon briefing last weekend, Secretary of Defence James Mattis dropped a bombshell by innocuously slipping in that the US military intends to set up a string of observation posts on the Syrian-Turkish border. Mattis implied that Turkey was on board and that the idea was for the two militaries to jointly prevent any …
Post-Khashoggi US-Saudi ties become iffy
(Lockheed Martin’s THAAD Missile System) Saudi Arabia has inked the deal, finally, after nearly two years of discussions to buy Lockheed Martin’s Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) weapon system. The massive$15 billion deal involves Saudi Arabia buying 44 THAAD launchers, missiles and related equipment. The Trump administration had vigorously canvassed for the arms deal, …
Rising Crimea tensions mar Trump-Putin meeting
(Kerch Strait, Crimea, and Sea of Azov) The ‘frozen conflict’ in Ukraine has suddenly become active on Sunday with an encounter involving the naval vessels of Ukraine and Russia at Kerch Strait in Crimea, the entry point of the Sea of Azov from the Black Sea. The Russians have detained three Ukrainian ships that tried …
Continue reading “Rising Crimea tensions mar Trump-Putin meeting”
US creates new facts on the ground in Syria
The Trump administration is making a determined effort to engage with Turkey, which used to be the anchor sheet of American regional strategies in the Middle East for several decades. Without a robust partnership with Turkey, US policies remain ineffectual on several regional fronts – ranging from the Black Sea and Eastern Mediterranean to post-conflict …
Continue reading “US creates new facts on the ground in Syria”
Prospects for Syrian peace are looking up
(Astana-9 meeting on Syria, May 2018) After prolonged hibernation, the Astana Process on Syrian peace is kinetic, with the troika of ‘guarantor’ states – Russia, Turkey and Iran – set to hold a round of talks in the Kazakh capital on November 28-29. Delegations of Syrian government and the opposition are also expected to attend. …
Continue reading “Prospects for Syrian peace are looking up”
Russo-Japanese peace treaty is doable
(Map of Kuril Islands disputed by Japan and Russia) A new template is forming in the geopolitics of the Asia-Pacific – Russo-Japanese concord. The two regional powers with a troubled history are moving in the direction of concluding a peace treaty that could formally end their World War 2 hostilities and open a new page …