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The Shahbagh protests could become a defining moment in Bangladesh's history, bringing back secularism in to the midst of political debate in the country.

Sri Lanka should understand the nuances of diplomatic existence, survival and self-assertion, appreciate them where possible, accept them where needed. India and others may be blamed for Sri Lanka losing the vote but it should rather shake up Colombo to look into what had gone wrong with its foreign policy strategy, instead.

India enter the New Year with a somewhat strengthened diplomatic hand with more international responsiveness to our concerns. However, 2011 will not produce any major breakthroughs in resolving our outstanding problems.

Oslo killer Anders Breivik is the creature of the Murdoch press which has throttled the Murrows of this world. His mind set would synchronize perfectly with Bill O'Reilly's the famous anchor of Fox News. The coverage of American military action in Afghanistan in November 2001 would have been orgasmic for Breivik.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar made two intelligent moves this month. The timing is perfect, but the move can go in any direction. It may either mark the decline of the NCP or contribute to spreading of his party beyond Maharashtra.

This is an edited version of the talk given by Prof. Sudharshan Seneviratne, a well known historian and archaeologist from Sri Lanka, at ORF on April 9, 2012. Prof Seneviratne, currently Professor of Archaeology at the University of Peradeniya, Colombo, has carried out pioneering research in the field of archaeology and is a widely respected speaker on the subject.

The shared values that the United States and India hold dear face profound challenges in a number of areas that threaten global security and the international order, according to the US Ambassador to India, Mr. Richard Verma.

The shared values that the United States and India hold dear face profound challenges in a number of areas that threaten global security and the international order, according to the US Ambassador to India, Mr. Richard Verma.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's visit to the ISI HQ at Aabpara, Islamabad, on July 11 has raised eyebrows over its timing and content. Sharif and his ministerial colleagues stayed at the ISI HQ for five hours and were briefed by the chiefs of the Army and the ISI.

Talking about the challenges confronting the Nawaz Sharif government in Pakistan and the implications of the political transition on the region, Dr. Frederic Grare said the problems facing his government are huge, which cannot be resolved overnight and need long-term solutions.

The one thing Nawaz Sharief should do on day one is to issue an order placing the ISI under civilian leadership. This will de-fang the Army of the most potent instrument it uses to distort Pakistani democracy.

Going by the frequency and nature of the TTP attacks, the militant group seems to be playing a larger game aimed at drawing the armed forces deeper into a protracted conflict in the tribal areas with the US withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in mind. For the Nawaz Sharif government, and the military, the options are fast running out.

Powerful private interests will collude with the most powerful state to safeguard their mutual energy interest or the private sector may actually end up suggesting and implementing a joint framework agreement.

Dr. Gary LaFree of the University of Maryland says in his studies of the data gathered by his department, he has noticed that in recent years, terrorist attacks have become deadlier with advances in technological knowhow. However, attacks using high technology, radiological, chemical and biological attacks, made up only a meager percentage of the total number of attacks.

Despite some setbacks, the visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to China and her meetings with top leaders were quite successful and fruitful, underlying the fact that China has become a time tested friend.

Soft power's importance has increased in the context of globalisation and the growing disquiet over the use of military power for achieving foreign policy objectives. This paper focuses specifically on soft power in India's foreign policy

In Pakistan, the debate today dominating the military and civilian circles is how to tackle the threat of terrorism, and not India. There is a growing feeling among the military leaders about the gravity of the threats posed by these terrorist groups to Pakistan.

A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General in 2010-2011 revealed that while shipyards in the US, France, South Korea and Russia took between 66-84 months from the award of contract to the construction of a ship, in India, it took 116 to 120 months.

The tragic accident of Sindhurakshak should serve as a clarion call for the Navy and the higher defence establishment for introspection over the institutional inadequacies and the need for re-evaluating policy decisions.

The tragic accident of Sindhurakshak should serve as a clarion call for the Navy and the higher defence establishment for introspection over the institutional inadequacies and the need for re-evaluating policy decisions. A refocused attempt to rectify the growing lack of underwater platforms and warship inventory is the dire need of the hour.

The current debate around euthanasia and assisted death brings in spotlight what technological possibilities of the future may end up achieving for humanity.

A Pakistani nuclear deal would suggest that the US is determined to maintain good ties with both India and Pakistan. Those in India, who expected that Washington's unhappiness with Islamabad would result in undivided attention to New Delhi, will be disappointed. But, the US is following the logic of its geopolitical interests.

Pakistan is facing an imminent energy crisis. Hydroelectric projects like Kalabagh, or coal-based ones like the Thar have failed to address the nation's growing energy needs adequately.

Terrorism and the use of nuclear weapons could be taken up for consideration for inclusion in the International Criminal Court's purview. Effective participation by India, even as an observer, could influence the evolution of the ICC in the course of such discussions.

If one really wishes to get a better appreciation of how the Indian Navy plans for an upsurge in naval rivalry with Beijing, the best thing to do is to carefully parse the refreshingly sanguine words of India's naval chiefs on the matter.

It is now a well-known fact that how Pakistani terrorists and ISI operatives exploited the visas in plotting terror attacks against India. And, it is a matter of serious concern that there are 7,000 Pakistanis still in India after their visas had expired.

US President Barack Obama should go to Sochi and send out the message to the world that despite differences, the two countries are together on the issue of terrorism. This would be a diplomatic win for him and resurrect the position of US in the international arena.

New Indian Ambassadors to a host of key countries have recently been appointed. Also a new Permanent Representative to the UN. These appointments reflected the stamp of the Foreign Secretary. Will the government do the same kind of tweaking in the case of domestic bureaucracy too?.

Senior opposition leaders, particularly of the BJP, have been sharply critical of the government¿s reported moves to demilitarise Siachen. While their stridency could be put down in part to the need to sound overtly patriotic during election time, it is indeed surprising that none of the leaders of the Congress Party or the UPA alliance thought it fit to respond.

Greece is having unprecedented economic problems and so is Spain which is seeing the rise of a new party Podemos. France too is in economic trouble and Germany is facing flattening out of exports and slower growth prospects.

After the US withdrawal in 2014, the Taliban, with the help of Pakistan, could plan a low-key but protracted military push towards Kabul. Taliban's attacks in Kabul this year are an indication of this strategy which will push the region towards greater instability in the next one year.

The report of a Chinese hypersonic missile vehicle test is yet another signal that the People's Republic of China intends to contest the hegemony of the United States across the spectrum.

China has considerably increased its investments in Pakistan. Given Pakistan's fragile IMF dependent economy, the idea of an economic rationale behind the substantial Chinese investments seems far-fetched.

The most important feature of the 17th SAARC Summit was the one pertaining to the promotion of maritime and rail connectivity among three of the region's eight countries.

China¿s decision in the 1980's to supply to Pakistan nuclear weapons technology and missiles capable of delivering nukes over long distances was intended to bind India down in a south Asian strategic impasse and constrict India's larger role in Asia and the world. China achieved only partial success in that objective.

There will soon be two important changes in the Nepal and India diplomacy, which are of significant importance to both the countries. Nepal's ambassador to India, Rukma Shumsher Rana, has been recalled while the Indian envoy to Nepal Rakesh Sood will be replaced by another career diplomat.

India needs to develop a vigorous framework for maritime economic activism in the Indian Ocean and beyond. India must collaborate with whoever it can in reconnecting the subcontinent with itself and the neighbouring regions.

As China reconfigures India's Neighbourhood through its active promotion of new silk routes ?over the Great Himalayas and across the Indian Ocean ?New Delhi must make up its mind on how best to respond.

One can draw a range of parallels in the political discourse prevalent in the US and India. In this article, an attempt has been made to find parallels in the narratives that dominated the Indian general election of 2014, with the ones currently dominating the U.S. presidential election in 2016.

India is ahead of the entire world when it comes to fintech. This is an unprecedented time, ripe for entrepreneurship.

The two-week-long Sindh festival, now underway in Pakistan, is significant for multiple reasons. For one, it is about the unfolding leadership transition in the Pakistan People's Party from Asif Ali Zardari, who led it after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December 2007.