PM’s Military Plainspeak
Prime Minister Narendra Modi surprised even the most cynical national security analyst by not just appointing a Chief of Defence Staff end of last year but going a step further by creating a Department of Military Affairs (DMA) under the Ministry of Defence to coordinate and integrate the three armed forces to improve their combat […]
Raisina Rumble
The flagship Raisina Dialogue of the Observer Research Foundation has run into turbulence. The keynote speaker, Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison, had cancelled last month, citing the bushfires ravaging his country. Even as the organisers scrambled to find a substitute, another high level participant has cried off: Bhutan’s foreign minister Tandi Dorji has conveyed his […]
Where India’s Chief Of Defence Staff Fits In
NEW DELHI: After a long, long wait, India has finally got its first Chief Of Defence Staff (CDS). On January 1, former Army Chief General Bipin Rawat took charge of the post that has the rank of a Four Star General with the salary and perks admissible to that of a Service Chief. So what […]
‘Russia Understands India’s Need To Engage The U.S.’
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold talks with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi on January 15, 2020. They will review the guidelines set following President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s summit meeting in Vladivostok on September 4-5, 2019. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to travel to Moscow for […]
Culture Corner: Dinka Tribal Dance In South Sudan
Song and dance play an important role in the tribal culture of South Sudan. In this video in the Presidential Complex in the capital, Juba, Dinka tribe members celebrate the appointment of two Governors. South Sudan is the world’s newest country, gaining independence from Sudan in 2011 as the outcome of a 2005 agreement that […]
‘Iran Must Rethink Its Strategic Approach With Neighbours, Allies’
Is the Persian Gulf on the brink of war? Talmiz Ahmed, India’s former ambassador to Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, believes none of the protagonists want war. Iran has been weakened by sanctions, Donald Trump has no interest in sending U.S. troops into another conflict. It is conceivable that tensions will die […]
Who Will Succeed Shringla?
Who will be the next Indian ambassador to the U.S.? And who will fill the vacancy created after India’s envoy to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri retired last month? The government is yet to announce, possibly because it’s waiting for current envoy to the U.S., Harsh Vardhan Shringla, to take over as foreign secretary on January […]
Transplant Trouble For Oli?
That Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has a serious kidney ailment and needs a transplant is well known. If the Nepalese leader has a transplant, it will be his second. He had previously undergone the procedure in 2007 but that kidney is apparently no longer functioning and Oli has to undergo frequent dialysis. In […]