Libya’s strongman Khalifa Belqasim Haftar visits Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov off Libyan coast, January 2017. File photo. The United States has alleged that Russia’s presence in Libya is having an “incredibly destabilising” impact. Washington is stepping out of the shade and making way to the centre stage of the Libyan conflict. David Schenker, the …
Continue reading “US gatecrashes into Libyan endgame. But Russia stands in the way”
Palestinian children play outside their dwelling in al-Eizariya town in the Israeli-occupied West Bank with the Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim in the background. “I believe the security situation will improve (in J&K), it will allow the refugees to go back, and in your lifetime, you will be able to go back … and you …
Continue reading “The ballad of India’s Kashmir and Israel’s Palestine”
The December 3-4 summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) in London resembles a family reunion after the acrimony over the issue of military spending by America’s European allies. The trend is up for defence spending across European Allies and Canada. Over $100 billion is expected to be added to the member states’ defence …
Bagh-e Babur (Garden of Babur) in Kabul, Afghanistan The dichotomy between the regime policy and public opinion is nowhere near as sharp as in the world of diplomacy. And nowhere in the contemporary situation is this maxim so sharply visible as in the dalliance of the West Asian oligarchies with Israel. The romance began at …
Continue reading “Bereft of soft power, India stands diminished in Hindu Kush and Central Asia”
The Russia-Japan territorial disputes surged at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the two countries, Toshimitsu Motegi and Sergey Lavrov, at Nagoya, Japan, on November 22 on the sidelines of a G20 foreign ministers’ gathering. Lavrov publicly threw cold water on the Japanese spin that Tokyo is engaged in “persistent talks” with Russia on …
People rallied in the northwestern Iranian city of Tabriz to denounce the violent unrest in the country, Nov 19, 2019 I once had an animated conversation with the Middle East correspondent of a leading Indian newspaper regarding the resilience of the Iranian political system. The year was 2001. The conversation took place in the backdrop …
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani (R) met visiting Pakistani COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Tehran, Nov 19, 2019 The low-key coverage by the Pakistani media on the 2-day visit of the army chief General Qamar Bajwa to Iran notwithstanding, the event signifies a surge in the tempo of ‘mil-to-mil’ exchanges between the two countries. The Iranian …
Continue reading “With eye on India, Pakistan strengthens military ties with Iran”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif received a group of Indian writers and journalists, Tehran, Nov 10, 2019 Historically speaking, India-Iran relationship had its ups and downs during the decades under Shah’s rule. The Lowest point was reached when during the 1965 and 1971 wars with India, Pakistani Air Force jets were stationed in Iran …
Continue reading “Tehran loses patience with Modi government’s hide and seek”
Winner takes it all: Gotabaya Rajapaksa storms to power in the Sri Lankan presidential election on Nov 17, 2019 The thumping victory of Gotabaya Rajapaksa in the Sri Lankan presidential election on Saturday, trouncing his nearest rival Sajith Premadasa by a margin of over 1.3 million votes — 52.25 percent of votes polled against 41.99 …
Continue reading “The return of the ‘strongman’ in Sri Lanka”
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) to have first face-to-face encounter in Paris on December 9, 2019 The relationship of the famous Ukrainian oligarch and billionaire Ihor Valeriyovych Kolomoyskyi with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky lends itself to various interpretations. Both Kolomoyskyi and Zelensky (rather, his spokesperson Iuliia Mendel) are …
Continue reading “Russia-Ukraine relations take leap of faith”
