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That is the question that should be uppermost in the minds of analysts as they analyse the outcome of Pakistani President Gen.Pervez Musharraf's visit to India from April 16 to 18, 2005, and compare it with his first visit in 2001, which ended in a fiasco at Agra.

Rationing of gas makes the development of a unified gas market impossible. This means the prevalence of a dozen price levels confounding all - buyers and sellers, and investors on both sides. The spin-off leaves India struggling with the most poorly developed gas infrastructure.

Even as the debate on the Lokpal Bill hots up with the draft Lokpal Bill of the Government likely to come up before the Parliament during the ongoing session, we present below a shorter comparative analysis of the different Lokpal Bills.

This was not to be yet another budget speech. It came in the wake of a regime change where the electorate signaled its unhappiness with the direction of the country. Still, the FM came up with a modest Budget. But that is not the promise of the Modi government. The good days promised look far away.

The ruckus at WCIT is all about the cosy relationship between governments, big businesses and commerce and not about Internet freedom.

The Russia-China partnership has grown steadily in the past decade, driven by Moscow’s widening rift with the European Union. As Western markets closed to Russia in 2014, Beijing emerged as an economic partner, importing Russian energy, defence goods, metals and minerals, timber, and other natural resources and exporting manufactured goods, technology, and dual-use goods. The partnership reached new heights following Russia’s invasion of Ukra

George Perkovich is of the view that India is not a major power today though it definitely enjoys a substantial measure of autonomy. The essence of his argument can be summarised as follows:

Modi's visit to Germany and France will give him an opportunity to discuss key political issues relating to Ukraine and the Middle-East. India is feeling the indirect impact of the Russian estrangement from Europe as this has led to closer strategic ties between Moscow and Beijing.

India and France must start looking together at the region and the world. A Franco-Indian vision document could be a vital first step towards developing a cooperative framework for stability and security in the region. And the relationship must be purposeful, nimble and creative.

The elimination of nuclear weapons is a pre-condition for peace in the 21st century. This was the key message delivered by the Hon'ble Senator Douglas Roche, renowned campaigner for nuclear disarmament in his address to Indian experts at the ORF campus in New Delhi.

Narendra Modi is a post-Partition Prime Minister who has no family history linking him directly to the event. This could work to his advantage if he chooses to take a less emotional and more logical approach to the Indo-Pak relationship.

A private sector-oriented Global Green Bank is required to overcome the market gaps that prevent Global North capital from flowing to the best decarbonisation investment opportunities among Global South enterprises. The Global Green Bank should operate as a world-class investment firm, capable of developing innovative financial solutions and investing through externally raised investment fund-of-funds and its own proprietary book. Such a Global G

We really do not understand inflation stickiness in India since 2010. However, the silver lining is that oil prices may not rise any further following the shale gas revolution in the US. The Finance Minister can certainly do something about growth and possibly pray for lower inflation.

India must persist as future of South Asia is embedded in a firm Delhi-Dhaka engagement.

The more the communal picture changes since the demolition of the Babri Masjid 20 years ago this week, the more it remains the same. Possibly with one variation: the political insecurity of the Muslim grows with each turn.

When two top American diplomats speak out in quick succession about the international system, the world will take note. The op-ed by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice in the Washington Post titled "The Promise of Democratic Peace," and the policy speech four days later by Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns at the European Institute titled "A Renewed Partnership for Global Engagement" fall into this category.

This brief seeks to apply ancient Indian strategic thought to the country’s approach towards its immediate neighbourhood. Employing a Kautilyan perspective on India’s allies within the broader framework of foreign policy end goals, it proposes a non-zero-sum view towards four of its neighbours: Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The brief classifies these neighbours based on the attitudes they exhibit and presents a nuanced approach tow

The Nigerian presidential election on March 28 was nothing short of a historic turning point in the rather fragile democracy. An incumbent Nigerian President was voted out in a general election which was, on the whole, free and fair barring a few technical glitches.

The Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh will strengthen cooperation on border management. The two countries should not only cooperate with each other in controlling cross-border crimes, but also work on improving the lives of the people on the border by encouraging cross-border trade.

Certainly, the Government of India should vehemently object to Lakhvi's release, as it has rightly done. But to expect that such objections will have any substantive impact on Pakistan, is silly. India must keep its guard up.

When talking about Intelligence agencies, the first thing that comes to mind is secrecy ? the services must, it is widely concurred, operate in secret so as to be highly effective.

PM Modi's official visit to the UK is unexceptional. This is despite the hype and hoopla that accompany any Modi tour. However, what was different was that for the first time Modi had to respond to issues like Gujarat 2002 riots and the climate of intolerance back home.

A three-day conference on India-Myanmar relations generated a lively dialogue over questions surrounding the possible challenges and opportunities that India would face while redesigning her Myanmar relations and the Look East policies.

Pakistan has no option but to respond to public outrage. Blocking of the two NATO supply routes to Afghanistan and denying the use of a Baloch airfield to the CIA is actually a low risk retaliation when Iran, Hezbullah, Syria are much more in the eye of a huge, global storm.

One proposal that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could offer to President Pervez Musharraf, when they meet this week in New York on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly, is cooperation in the reconstruction in Afghanistan.

Expanding investments, collaboration between departments, fostering public-private partnerships, and engaging the community are crucial for health care in India

The closing months of the year 2003 saw a change in the language of the discourse emanating from the Pakistani establishment in general and its military dictator Gen.Pervez Musharraf in particular

It can be very tempting to not be overly optimistic following the recent meeting between Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif in Ufa, Russia. There is a sense of familiarity to the manner in which India-Pakistan relations unfold.

A strong alignment between India and Indonesia holds the key to Delhi's much-vaunted "strategic autonomy" and Jakarta's quest for a "dynamic equilibrium" in Asia. It will also set the template for India's security cooperation with other regional powers in Asia.

Elections-2004 has thrown up a question without addressing it, leave alone answering it. By drumming up on the Vajpayee leadership, the BJP-NDA may have kept the nation¿s focus away from the obvious question, but the latter does remain, however much in the background as they may deem fair: After Vajpayee, Who?

Liberalisation has given birth to two Indias. One which is prosperous and living first world lifestyles and the 'other' in which people are living without human dignity and suffering multiple deprivation. Regional disparities have also led to disparate standards of living.

With the UNHRC vote only days away, it was not a total give-away by India. The Prime Minister's statement in the Parliament implied that the tinkered second draft of the US Resolution too did not meet Indian expectations.

The coincidence is striking. The US ¿ban¿ on ¿non-participants¿ in the ¿international coalition¿ to participate in $ 18-billions worth of ¿works contract¿ for Iraq¿s reconstruction, and also the follow-up talks on the deadlocked WTO negotiations at Cancun. Between them, the two may have begun designing a new course for politics and cooperation in the international arena, where economy now has a major say.

The Munich Security Conference Core Group Meeting is beginning in New Delhi from Tuesday. Around 70 senior decision-makers from politics, business, media and civil society from India, as well as the Euro-Atlantic, Asian and the Middle East region will discuss key issues of international security policy.

Non-alignment, strategic autonomy and Asian solidarity might be attractive slogans for some, but offer no guidance for the conduct of Indian Foreign Policy in East Asia and the Middle East. To cope with the new geopolitical imperatives, India must learn to deal with Asia on its own terms and stop imposing its ideological preferences on the region.

In February 2004, President George Bush outlined his new nuclear non-proliferation approach, in his ¿seven points¿ speech at the National Defense University. It include the setting up of proliferation security initiative which will control and monitor not only shipments and nuclear transfer of material/technology but also will be empowered to take direct action against the violators of the law.

China's renewed engagement with the Southeast Asian neighbours seems to be a policy of the new leadership. However, it must follow up on these successful visits by its efforts and actions. For now, maintaining good relations with ASEAN members seems to be Beijing's new strategy to ease tensions in the SCS.

The intent of BIMSTEC member states to push forth with a bold vision for the region was evident at the 2nd Foreign Ministers’ Retreat

After the scheduled western forces drawdown from Afghanistan in 2014, one viable option that would assist Afghan economic development is the US-driven New Silk Road Strategy. But, China, Russia, and Iran have specific visions of a viable NSRS, and these do not necessarily sit well with the US strategy.

The US is entering its trickiest phase in the Af-Pak region, where elections are due in both, Pakistan and Afghanistan just around the time Washington has set for its troops to depart. Can troops depart without an overt or covert understanding with Iran which has a long border with Afghanistan?