Destruction of Syria's chemical weapons misses deadline

The operation to destroy Syria's chemical weapons is set to  miss its December 31 deadline

Afghanistan president Karzai ignores US,seeks India's support post 2014;Delhi reluctant

As the stalemate over the contentious US-Afghan bilateral security agreement continues,Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai is intensely engaged in diplomatic talks with India  and Iran.

Modi,Rahul to address rallies in Rajasthan : Jats vote on agenda

Jaipur division and Jats vote bank is critical  both for BJP and Congress and Modi and Rahul both the prime ministerial candidates are quite aware of this fact and will be  addressing political rallies in Alwar, Dausa .BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and  Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will address election rallies in the poll-bound Rajasthan on Tuesday.

Narendra Modi to address rally in Bangalore

Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is set to address four lakh people in a mega rally in

Saudi Arabia sabotages Iran nuclear talks,but deal is still Alive

Seemingly headed for a successful conclusion, Iran’s Nuclear talks at  a six party meet  on November 10 could not be finalised due to last minute disagreement of French foreign minister Laurent Fabius and the talk were postponed to Novmber20th with both  US Secretary of state john Kerry and European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton expressing a hope of clinching the deal on the next scheduled  date of talks.

To counter China,India and Indonesia opt for cooperative defence

Most of such countries  have  therefore  indirectly sought US protection to be able  to stand  upto China’s military and Washington has already decided  to augment its Pacific fleet in the coming years  to counter this threat.

To counter Modi,Congress to declare quota for Jats in OBC list

The Group of Ministers (GOM) constituted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is set to include Jat community in the Centre's OBC list.

Russia reclaims leadership role over Syrian crisis

When US president Barack Obama  declared conducting punitive strikes  unilaterally  against Syria after August 21 chemical weapons attack,it drove the world on the edge of a war.

Modi rakes up Sharif's barb at PM

  BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi  launched a scathing attack on the Nehru-Gandhi family by saying that in Delhi people are burdened by the deadweight of governments.

Advani era over,BJP set to anoint Narendra Modi as PM candidate on Friday

The Bharatiya Janata Party is set to anoint its campaign committee chief and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as its Prime Ministerial candidate at the Parliamentary Board meeting on Friday.

It's a big  Friday as the main opposition party of India  ie BJP will  experience a  major political transition, giving a generational shift by formally projecting  Modi as the face of the party for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

But 13th September can also be tumultuous day for the Indian politics as  there are immense speculations that veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani and  Sushma Swaraj, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, could quit their posts if the party declares Gujarat CM Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate ahead of the coming Assembly polls, RSS and top BJP leaders appear to have decided to go ahead with the decision on Modi.

Murli Manohar Joshi has been asked to stay back in the national capital for the meeting. Advani, Swaraj and Joshi are expected to voice their reservations against Modi at Friday's meeting.
 

The anti-Modi camp is insisting on three conditions that if he is declared the PM candidate,First Modi will have to resign from both Gujarat  chief ministership  post and  campaign committee chief  and  Modi will have to obey Adavni's orders.They cited  Bharatiya Janta party's  policy of one-man-one-post, and they must take everyone along in decision-making.

Thursday was a hectic day for  BJP President Rajnath Singh as he talked to many leaders of RSS and his own party and tried to build a consensus for the Gujarat strongman but failed  and  then decided to call  the Parliamentary board  meet at 5 pm on Friday to anoint Modi as the party's PM candidate.

Faced with a virtual deadlock due to strong resistance from Advani, Swaraj and Joshi, Rajnath Singh reached out to RSS .

Having got a nod from the Sangh founthead,number two Bhaiyyaji Joshi at the RSS office Keshav Kunj, Singh decided to hold the Parliamentary Board meeting. Swaraj was asked to cancel her scheduled trip to Ambala on Friday.

Advani, who is the stumbling block in the announcement,has maintained Modi's projection would hurt BJP's campaign against UPA over issues like corruption and price rise as the focus would be on Modi.

 

However, efforts were still being made to soften Advani and party leaders were banking on former BJP president Nitin Gadkari to convince him. Gadkari met Advani late Thursday night, sources said.

Advani had quit the party in a huff in June when Modi was appointed head of the campaign committee, but had to climb down after the BJP's ideological patron, the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), made it clear it would not change its mind.
 

Sushil Modi had on Wednesday tweeted, "Advaniji has failed to gauge the public mood. He himself declared Atalji as PM candidate.  Now also he could have done the same for Namo (Narendra Modi)." Politics is the only profession in which people aspire till their last. Ministerial berth can resurrect a dead politician."

Following this, there was a tweet war of sorts with Advani aide Sudheendra Kulkarni and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy arguing against what he tweeted.

While Advani has remained silent on the issue, his close associate Sudheendhra Kulkarni attacked Modi, describing him as a "polarising" leader" in the society as well as the party and cast aspersions on his ability as a Prime Minister to run a stable and effective government.

"A socially polarising leader has polarised his own party. Can he run a smooth, stable and effective government at the Centre? think seriously!" Kulkarni said on Twitter about Modi without naming him.

"Elections are seven months away. People want a change. But who will provide the change? Leaders who are polarising the society?" Kulkarni told
He maintained that there is no unanimity in the party about the prime ministerial candidate.

"Question does arise that can such a leader ensure a smooth government and peace in the society," he said.

Rajnath Singh and his predecessor Nitin Gadkari had visited Advani in the last two days to convince him on Modi's candidature but got no assurance from him.

Central Asia key to economic prosperity of entire region

After the break up  of the Soviet Union in the year 1990,the  region comprising  Central Asian Republics  was considered to have emerged as an area of great dimensions. Holding enormous deposits of energy resource ,it was supposed  to cater to political needs  of the world fastest

US strike on Syria may turn into a full fledged war

Syrian crisis headed for a new flashpoint  with US reportedly planning military strikes against  Syrian strategic  targets that mainly include  airports,military bases and arms depots . These strikes statedly have a limited scope  lasting for few days in response  to  chemical weapons attacks

Falling Rupee shatters sentiment, Fear of FDI pull out looms large

Indian experts are predicting that downfall of rupee will continue and the problem is likely to intensify further in the coming months.


If the experts are to be believed the situation is not likely to resolve until Lok Sabha elections

Ladakh incursions:China set on a destructive course

Border misadventure  in Ladakh , even in terms of China's own ambitions  of acquiring a world power status ,may turn out to be a very costly affair.  Already bitten by deception in 1962 and China thereafter occupying  significant chunks of Indian territory, it is after the same game again.An already awakened India has been further jolted to think seriously to understand  China’s real intentions.

What is BJP's agenda for 2014 elections? Ram temple or governance

As UPA is busy finalizing agendas, strategies ,alliances and campaign styles for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections  BJP  is back  with the agenda of Ram temple in Ayodhya .

Narendra Modi to be named as BJP's PM candidate in July end

Speculations are rife that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will formally be anointed as BJP's prime ministerial candidate in July end .

US facilitating the return of Taliban in Afghanistan!

The obama administration by agreeing  to  hold peace talks with Talibans,as a Taliban Emirate entity ,has unwittingly undone the accomplishments of the 12 year long war in Afghanistan. US is strangely holding talks with Taliban in Doha,with a taliban flag,that amounted to sidelining the constitutionally elected government of Afghanistan.

Tough road ahead for Nawaz Sharif

Proactive judiciary accompanied by sustained societal movements and churning have  ensured  democracy taking roots in Pakistan that made  possible smooth  transition of power through democratic process .It may still ensure greater stability  of elected governments  in that country.

China’s new twist to the border issue

Indian Foreign minister Salman Khurshid ‘s visit to Beijing has revealed a new twist given by China to the entire China-India border demarcation issue.

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has in fact shown his  country’s insistence on a new border settlement that would seek a fair and reasonable  solution to safeguard their  strategic geopolitical  interests  in the area  and till  then to jointly maintain peace and tranquility along the border.

It is noteworthy  that China  has just  undergone

Boston Bombings:US-Russia cooperation essential to combat Islamist terrorism

The involvement of two Chechen nationals in the ‘Boston Bombings’ has brought to the fore the urgency

Who's behind the Boston bombings:Lone -wolf , or organized terrorism

The bomb blast in Boston Marathon has focused attention again on the danger posed by "lone-wolf" terrorists.

The FBI investigators  have found that the devices used in the Boston Marathon attack  are similar to the "lone wolf" terrorists.    Investigators combing through the grim aftermath of the deadly Boston Marathon terrorist attack have found evidence that timing devices were used on Monday to detonate the bombs that ripped through race spectators, an offi

North Korea nuclear stand-off:Dire urgency of dousing the sparks in Korean Peninsula

The nuclear stand off between US and North Korea has risen to an utterly tense situation.At the centre of the worsening situation is the ultimatum served by North Korea to the South Korea to evacuate the foreigners by April 10,2013, with a simultaneous warning that a failure to do so may lead to a "thermo nuclear" war.

Iran nuclear talks may prove a turning point

World powers at Almaty offered a new package to Iran to break the nuclear deadlock.Both sides agreed to meet again in march for further negotiations and the success of the talks depends upon Iran’s response to the proposal.



The P5+1 nations that have been holding talks with Iran stepped back from a key demand that the country export its entire stockpile of  20% enriched Uranium  -an enrichment level close to weapons grade.Instead, these countries now offered to let Iran keep enough 20% enriched uranium in the country to fuel a research reactor, US said.

Negotiators also asked Iran to stop enrichment  activity at Fordo nuclear facility near Qom instead of shutting down the nuclear facility.

In exchange for a aforesaid demands negotiators offered some easing of the tough sanctions that have cut Iran off from the global financial system.

The negotiations between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany ended on Wednesday with optimism from both sides.

"The just concluded P5 plus 1 (representing five permanent members of the UN Security Council US, Britain, Russia, China and France plus Germany) talks with Iran were useful," State Department spokesperson Patrick Ventrell said .


"But, now it is up to Tehran to respond to the concrete confidence building measures proposed by them," the spokesperson added.

There was agreement at the end of the meeting on the Iranian part to meet next at the experts level on March 18 in Istanbul and to have a follow-on political directors meeting with Iran back in Almaty (Kazakhstan) from April 5th to 6th,he said.
  
"We have a proposal, a serious updated proposal, on the table. But it would require them to also take some of their reciprocal steps to build confidence that they are taking, in a systematic way, the steps that are necessary to come in line with their international obligations," he said.
  
On the issue of Iran's nuclear programme, Ventrell said "I'm not going to list them out one by one. But they know what they need to do to come in compliance with Security Council Resolutions, with their IAEA obligations, and to come clean about their nuclear program."



Incase Iran accepts the new package  it would get some lifting of non-oil and non-financial sanctions.ie lifting of restrictions on trade in gold , precious metals and on petrochemical sector.

Iranian parliament speaker Ali larijani  who visited India said “There is no secret dimension to Iran’s  nuclear programme and it can be resolve through dialogue ie procedural negotiations based on principles of NPT,but world powers were leaving  the negotiating table and using the tactic of more  sanctions and even went ahead by using  the threat of  military strike at the nuclear sites.”


Adding further that “Earlier Iran had practically no defence against military strike during  Iran-Iraq war but now it has developed missiles and has good capacity to resist military attack. “

However, US secretary of State  John Kerry  in his recent statement  has showed Washington’s willingness to have direct diplomatic talks with Iran supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on this issue, who has the final say on all state matters in Iran.



Once the nuclear issue get reconciled  there can be scope for normalization and even  betterment of US-Iran relations.

Barack Obama who in his second term of US presidency has an opportunity to deal with the volatile situation in mid east countries  would be amply asserted by breaking the ice in Iran-US relations.

Larijani said “In politics there is nothing like stalemate or impasse and we should find the ways  this is the point we should pay attention to”.


Larijani also urged India to play a greater role in ending Tehran impasse  with the West on it s Nuclear programme.


On the issue of payment of Iranian crude following sanctions ,Larijani said,” there are people in my delegation  who have been talking to their Indian friends to find mechanism and we have yielded ‘good results’.”

LoC Tension : Part of Taliban’s bigger game plan

The escalating cross border firing along the LoC in Kashmir and rapidly soaring tensions between the two countries are in fact reflections of the chaotic conditions