Abu Omar, 70, smokes his pipe as he sits in his destroyed bedroom listening to music on his gramophone in the neighbourhood of al-Shaar in Aleppo, Syria. As Syria’s war enters its ninth year on March 15, many questions arise as to how it began and what it morphed into, but the most pressing one …
Spectre of Afghan quagmire haunts US
The Afghan national security advisor Hamdullah Mohib, while on a visit to Washington, tore into the US’ peace talks with Taliban in remarks to the American media on Thursday. Mohib alleged that US special representative Zalmay Khalilzad is keeping the Afghan govt in Kabul in the dark about the negotiations with the Taliban and that …
Dump Masood Azhar project. Life is real.
(The United Nations Security Council in session in New York) The Chinese reservation about placing a technical hold on the listing of the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed Masood Azhar as a ‘global terrorist’ by the United Nations Security Council does not come as surprise. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman in the recent days had made it …
Pakistan becomes pivotal to Afghan peace
(A view of the Taliban’s office in Doha, Qatar) The marathon talks between the US officials and the Taliban representatives at Doha through a 16-day period ending yesterday can be seen as a defining moment in the endgame in Afghanistan. Both the US special representative Zalmay Khalilzad and the Taliban have signalled that progress has …
Iran trusts Imran Khan but will verify the promise
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani received a phone call from Pakistan PM Imran Khan late in the evening on March 9, which was their first contact after the fedayeen attack near the southeastern Iranian city of Zahedan on February 13 that Tehran alleged as having been executed by terrorists from across the border. Twenty-seven soldiers of …
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If US sanctions Turkey, can India be far behind?
(S-400 : Russia’s geopolitical missile targeting the US) The Turkish-American relations are at a crossroads. Unlike past history of their troubled relationship saw hiccups but the two NATO allies moved on eventually, this time around, they are barreling toward a clash. From an Indian perspective, it is of interest that the clash is over the …
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US, China and root cause of terrorism in South Asia
(Samjhauta Express carrying some 150 passengers left Lahore railway station for New Delhi on March 4, 2019) There were three key elements in the remarks at the press briefing in Washington on Tuesday by Robert Palladino, deputy spokesperson of the US State Department, regarding India-Pakistan tensions, while flagging that “there’s a lot of private diplomacy …
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Why is Pakistan muzzling its terrorists?
‘The Pakistani move to ban militant outfits and placate international opinion and Islamabad’s openness to a UN security council resolution on Azhar — instead of beseeching China to cast yet another veto — enables Islamabad to occupy the high ground,’ notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar. Continue reading…
Modi’s war rhetoric may boomerang on India
The government should welcome Islamabad’s move to ban militant outfits designated by the UN Security Council as a step in the right direction. There is nothing to lose and everything to gain by making a gesture. But a leap of faith is needed. Pakistan is crossing the Rubicon. Even if it is only acting under …
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US kept ‘cool’ during India-Pak crisis. This is why
(Indian soldiers patrol along the fence at the India-Pakistan border) With the India-Pakistan standoff somewhat waning, the time is ripe to put under the scanner the stance taken by the Trump administration through the crisis situation developing since the February 14 terrorist attack in Pulwama. On the face of it, Washington was strongly supportive of …
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