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If the stalemated war produced a truce, the stalemated peace ever since the Sri Lankan Government and the Liberation Tigers Tamil Elam signed a ceasefire agreement (CFA) in February 2002 has contributed to the revival of violence in the island-nation. The deteriorating ground situation has been accompanied by repeated calls from the Sri Lankan parties for greater Indian involvement in the peace-making efforts. This report is a summary of an inter

Speaking at a meeting of the Foreign Correspondents' Association of Sri Lanka at Colombo on May 26,2005, Hagrup Haukland, the chief of the Norwegian-led military mission, which monitors the three-year-old ceasefire between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), confirmed the allegation of the Sri Lankan Government that the LTTE had constructed an airstrip near Iranamadu in the Wanni area under its control in

In our dealings with Pakistan on the Kashmir issue, we have often appeared defensive, occasionally apologetic, leading to a bleeding heart syndrome among some of us. This approach ignores that Pakistan has cynically used violence, and the world has allowed it to do so, as an instrument of foreign policy. This attitude also mixes sympathy and concern for the innocent with that for the terrorist.

2014 by far has been the most chaotic year in international politics, since the end of the Cold War. The Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East threaten to upturn borders settled for close to a century. Europe is in the throes of an unexpected tussle with Moscow. In the South and East China seas, China's aggressiveness is too clear now to be ignored.

Narendra Modi's dilemma is palpable. Emotionally and intellectually, he is very much part of the Sangh Parivar. But as the chief minister of Gujarat he has grown and outgrown the narrow confines of ideology and understands the virtues and compulsions of pragmatism.

Ambassador of the European Union to India, Dr. Joao Cravinho, admits that the current problem is "big" and it is "about the EU project", but he also believes that "the EU has the strength to deal with Greece" and that it has come out stronger after every crisis it has been facing in the past.

India's former National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan thinks that challenges posed by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor were far greater, as it directly impinged on India's sovereignty and security. He feels that this is a far graver issue than the India-China border dispute.

Far too many times, states make the mistake of not recognising that they are confronted with insurgencies. Fearing the supposed legitimising effect of affording 'miscreants' the title of insurgents, they prefer to describe violent movements as law and order problems, situation, the troubles, and of course, terrorism.

In Tamil Nadu, the inspiration and inputs for the protestors come not from Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka, but from their Diaspora groups whose linkages to the LTTE are discernible.

Much in the manner that the Sino-American dﾂtente transformed the Asian balance of power in the 1970s, the construction of a strong strategic partnership between India and America is bound to change the Asian geopolitical order and rejig the regional alignments.

India need not bite the bait, it can use the space created for pushing its own agenda with China which includes resolving our border dispute, getting the Pakistani monkey off our backs and getting better terms of trade from the Chinese. China is unlikely to yield anything easily, but if the emerging Indo-Pacific geopolitics provides an opportunity, New Delhi would be foolish to look the other way.

Coinciding with the third anniversary of the start of the US military strikes in Afghanistan on October 7,2004,code-named Op. Enduring Freedom, terrorist elements, suspected to be from Osama bin Laden's International Islamic Front (IIF), have carried out four co-ordinated terrorist strikes involving explosives on October 7 and 8,2004.

The security problem of Japan is something of a Gordian Knot. A feeling is spreading among Japanese that they have seen the American forces on their land for too long, for sixty-five years continuously, and the people are fed up with them.

The Government of India is reported to have advised a short postponement of the departure of the Indian cricket team to Bangladesh to play in some matches against the Bangladesh team at Dhaka and Chittagong following the receipt at the Indian High Commission in Dhaka of a fax message purported to have been signed by an organisation called Harkat-ul-Jihad warning of dire consequences if the team went ahead with the visit.

Tensions between the United States of America and Russia over the deployment of a ballistic missile defence system by the US in eastern Europe are sharpening. Japan is deploying such a system to ward off the North Korean missile threat.

India should be pleased that US President Barrack Obama acknowledged India as a global player, and an equal partner in dealing with crucial issues not only in Asia, but also in the world.

Nepal Maoist leader Prachanda's proposal for trilateral cooperation between Nepal, India and China is his big idea. But his geopolitical epiphany could soon be a forgotten footnote if India and China can?t find ways to ensure peace and tranquility on their long and contested boundary.

Terrorism, water and Afghanistan form facets of the wide range of issues which allow possible collaboration between India and Pakistan. These include trade and commerce, energy sharing, increased transport, communication links and simplified visa procedures.

June 4th was the fifteenth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Incident. In 1989, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was widely reviled for its violent handling of peaceful student protests. The crackdown prompted stringent political censure of the CCP by the international community and economic sanctions were imposed against China.

The relationship between India and Sweden has always been low-key. But it's also mature one with immense possibilities for cooperation and collaboration.

India's Afghanistan policy has for long been hos tage to the vagaries of policy making in Washington and the enormous baggage of myths and wishful thinking which burden its strategic outlook.

As Chief Minister Omar Abdullah dithers in finding amicable solutions to the ongoing violence in Kashmir, the nation is desperately awaiting an intervention by the Prime Minister to find an amicable solution to the festering row.

India and China must bilaterally develop a substantial conversation on the cutting edge of global governance issues, including issues of the global commons like climate change, water, health and medicine, and Asian security architecture, as well as issues of space and proliferation, of rules and mechanisms of economic governance, and on new arenas of maritime and ocean governance.

India does not have much time left to set its priorities right, whatever they be. If nothing else, it cannot afford to 'tire out' its neighbours, who can then choose their own, individual course.

The Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation & Resettlement (LARR) Bill 2011 is the single most important piece of 'legislation in waiting' for very long time. The Bill is a major improvement over the archaic 1894 land law that has contributed to most of the impasse over land acquisitions.

At a juncture like this, rather than losing its energy and focus, the Centre and Maosts affected States need to keep up the pressure on the rebels and if possible make smart negotiations with rebel leaders with attractive surrender and rehabilitation packages.

Pakistan's military ruler Gen. Pervez Musharraf has seemingly upset the Indians by insisting on a specific time frame within which a solution to the Kashmir issue acceptable to India, Pakistan and the Kashmiris is worked out within the framework of the composite dialogue between India and Pakistan.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's call for zero-tolerance to terrorism in Washington on July 18 has come at a time when there is an urgent need for a global consensus on this issue. The Ayodhya and London attacks have clearly proved the re-emergence of terrorism with a renewed vigour.

Besides Osama bin Laden, Pakistan Army and ISI have been hand in glove with the Taliban for over 10 years, helping them with safe houses, recruitment bases, training and weapons. Their alliances have been effectively documented not only by the Indian security agencies but also by different western security and intelligence agencies.

Now, we have single party majority government at the Centre and in Delhi. For both BJP and AAP winning the election was the easy part, relatively. The hard part to fulfill promises, to give least government and maximum governance has just begun.

While the domestic economic situation needs various corrective steps to bring back an increase in private investment, the external situation needs to be addressed with right export-boosting policies. Raising export growth seems to be the only alternative.

The new NSS survey clearly shows that 8 per cent GDP growth of the last five years has not translated into a higher level of job creation. There was a dramatic deceleration in total employment growth. And this means that India has been experiencing jobless growth during the last five years.

It is time to think of the role of women in uniform beyond being merely the 'sobering/civilising force' on their male counterpart. With the same training and opportunities, it is time to imbue the phrase 'femme fatale' with a new meaning.

India is now extending 'visa on arrival' to tourists from 180 countries to encourage tourism. But budget tourists, who aim at staying in small hotels/guest houses and not five-star hotels, face problems in finding clean and safe accommodation.

For those who see the India-China relationship as one of the key partnerships of this century, what is most disappointing is the lack of ambition in the agenda for the conversations. The two countries now need to be bold and creative in what they do together.

His arrival created controversy and so did his departure. For nothing was becoming either about Porter Goss¿s arrival at Langley to replace George Tenet, or about his departure on May 5. He was brought in to head a sullen and demoralised force and when he was unceremoniously dropped, the CIA was a much-diminished organisation.

With two resolutions in as many days relating to neighbouring Sri Lanka, both moved by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the Tamil Nadu Assembly has revived complex pan-Tamil issues nearer home, with consequences flowing from across the world.

If the rest of India was ¿shocked¿ over the Tamil Nadu police arresting the Kanchi Sankaracharya in a murder case, it was equally surprised over the passivity of the people in the State, whom they expected would have taken to the streets in protest.

The four-party Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is yet choose between General Sarath Fonseka and incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa