India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (L) and President Vladimir Putin (R) in Moscow during a five-day visit to Russia (Dec 24-29, 2023) The visit by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to Russia on December 24-29 presented an extraordinary spectacle reminiscent of the halcyon days of Indo-Soviet relations. There …
Maldives explores life outside Indo-Pacific
Maldives’ President-elect Dr. Mohamed Muizzu (C) addressing supporters, Malé, October 2, 2023 A massive western media barrage was to be expected caricaturing the election result of the runoff in the Maldives presidential poll in binary terms as China’s “gain” being India’s “loss”. It further laments that democracy is in peril in Maldives under the incoming …
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Wheel has come full circle in Myanmar
Guerrilla fighters, trained, equipped and financed by Western intelligence to overthrow military rule in Myanmar (File photo) Aung San Suu Kyi, the iconic figure of Myanmarese politics, has been moved from prison to house arrest. This may seem a baby step, but make no mistake, the journey of a thousand steps begins with one step, as …
Politics of hedging in the Indo-Pacific
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi (C) with Director of Foreign Affairs Commission of Communist Party of China Central Committee Wang Yi (L) and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (R) at trilateral meeting, Jakarta, July 12, 2023 On Monday, while delivering the keynote address at the annual China Business Summit held in Auckland, New Zealand Prime …
Russia, China take holistic view of the Pamirs and Hindu Kush
A trilateral foreign minister level meeting agreed to extend China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan, Islamabad, May 5, 2023 The Xi’an Declaration, issued after the First China-Central Asia Summit at Xi’an on May 18-19, takes a direct hit at the West’s interference in the region, scattering the notion in Washington and Brussels that Russia and China’s …
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Macron’s US visit tells Europe’s alienation
French President Emmanuel Macron (R) and US President Joe Biden met in the White House, Washington, DC, Dec. 1, 2022 The state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to the United States stands out as a signpost of the alignments taking place against the backdrop of the historic churning in the world order. The two …
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China sees parallel between Ukraine, Taiwan
On the evening of 18 March, President Xi Jinping (R) had a video call with US President Joe Biden at the request of the latter. The Chinese stance on developments around Ukraine was initially one-dimensional, namely, there is no conceivable comparison between Ukraine and Taiwan issues, as they are fundamentally different, because Taiwan is a …
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A Sino-Russian military alliance is gratuitous (as of now)
Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) met with Russian President Vladimir Putin via video link on December 15, 2001 The New York Times got the story correct when its Moscow bureau watched the outcome of the videoconference between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday and assessed that the US’ two main adversaries …
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Biden proposes a Quad summit. This is why
Quad Upgrade: US President Joe Biden plans the first-ever summit meeting with Quad counterparts from India, Japan, Australia The Axios reported Friday that President Joe Biden plans to meet his counterparts from the so-called Quad — Japan, Australia and India — later this month. Biden’s plan can potentially transform the regional alignments in Asia-Pacific. Its …
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China-EU deal is a reality check for India
After seven long years of negotiations, China and the European Union announced on December 30 that they have reached a Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI). It is a hugely consequential event for the world economy and international politics. The agreement is destined to rebalance the trade and investment relationship between two of the top three …
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