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On October 8, seismic fault-lines made a mockery of the ceasefire line that was drawn 56 years ago between the Indian and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). This map delineation, which was renamed as the Line of Control after the 1971 Indo-Pak war, appears to have gone out of control, at least temporarily, by the fury of the massive earthquake that struck J and Northern Areas on that Black Saturday. Thousands have perished on either side, including

That China is now preparing to extend its railway into Pakistan Occupied Kashmir should stir PM Modi to recognise the significance of the railways for India's national security and factor it into the rail budget to be presented to Parliament next week.

Underlining the urgent need for sustained dialogue representing all stakeholders in Kashmir, speakers at a discussion on the present crisis in Kashmir opined that the situation was very critical.

Excerpts from a lecture delivered by Sardar Abdul Qayuum Khan on April 28, 2007 at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, and the open discussion that followed his presentation. Sardar Sahib led a delegation of 23 persons from PoK, which included senior political leaders from different parties. A galaxy of well-known diplomats, academics, media persons and analysts attended the meeting, which was chaired by Shri. M. Rasgotra, former Foreig

It is ironic that nine years ago, India had expelled Jalil Abbas Jilani, who was then the acting high commissioner of Pakistan, for funding Kashmiri separatists. Nine years later, he was allowed to meet the same separatists.

Despite intermittent violence and media claims, the youth in the Kashmir Valley are apprehensive about the mood and methods of the hard-line political parties and leaders, according to Brigadier K Srinivasan (retd),

The Cabinet Committee on Security¿s decision to have Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani as the new person to be heading the talks with separatist outfits raises several questions. What had prompted the Government to finally involve a separatist outfit at the level of talks that the latter have been demanding for so long? And then what would be the status of talk¿s vis-à-vis Pakistan especially after this peace initiative?

This article evaluates the current situation in Kashmir with a view to explore possibilities of reconciliation and re-assimilation.

Before Sopor incidents and Amarnath Yatra amalgamate lethally, for heaven's sake, pick up those reports of the five Working Groups on Jammu and Kashmir formed by the Prime Minister in 2006-07. Many of the recommendations can be implemented unilaterally.

Intra Kashmir dialogue is necessary for peace in Kashmir, said former president and prime minister of Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan, while delivering an address at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, on April 28, 2007.

The three-year extension given to Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Kayani by the civilian government recently serves short-term objectives of a few vested interests and compromises long term interests of the region and its people.

India will need to tread lightly in its pursuit to be more assertive vis-ﾅ-vis the Chinese in the IOR. Low key, footprint initiatives, like surveillance stations and docking or berthing rights, may be the key in increasing the reach of its security net in the region, minus the political backlash of acting like a regional hegemon.

CyberSpace is a free-wheeling mind-Space at the cutting edge of innovation precisely because of the absence of sovereignty and artificial barriers. Declaring sovereignty here is as absurd as extending one's jurisdiction deep into the minds of others.

The negotiations on Space code of Conduct, set to begin in New York, provide an opportune moment for states to narrow down their differences and help establish a comprehensive instrument. The EU must be patient and develop the necessary consensus so that it establishes a strong support base, vital for the longevity of the code.

The emphasis ever since Dr Manmohan Singh Govt came to power in 2004 has been on 'making borders irrelevant without redrawing them'. To ensure this, there has been a continuing stress on connecting India's border provinces with those of its neighbouring countries.

The abduction of two French journalists in Iraq citing the new French law against head-scarves in public places as the reason marks a new chapter in the ongoing US-led 'global war on terrorism'. Considering that France, along with Germany, was more sympathetic to Iraq under Saddam Hussein when US launched the 'Second Gulf War', it also marks a new phase in the 'international jihad' after 9/11.

It is important to examine how female peacekeepers themselves experience gender and other relations while on duty where the power differential in relation to locals is in their favour, but remains different in relation to their male colleagues.

To any intelligence analyst, it should be obvious that the US has already embarked on a psychological warfare (PSYWAR) campaign to keep Iran on tenterhooks in the hope of thereby breaking its will to resist US pressure to agree to the dismantling of its uranium enrichment capability.

Congress and BJP's answer to the Supreme Court's question on Arvind Kejriwal's petition, challenging the imposition of President's rule in Delhi, may have the potential to rearrange the political landscape.

If the final list of prime ministerial candidates consists of only Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi and possibly a third front candidate like Nitish Kumar or anyone else, Arvind Kejriwal will surely be there as the people's candidate. And, in the final analysis, the chances of Kejriwal clinching the highest leadership in the country are brighter than those of Narendra Modi or Rahul Gandhi.

On January 16, 2012, the Kenyan troops completed 90 days of their presence in Somalia where they had gone to fight the al-Shabaab militants. The initial aim of the invasion, which began as a reaction to a spate of kidnappings and raids on Kenyan border by the Islamic militants, was to secure the border between the two countries.

India should be watching Mr John Kerry's trip to Asia with interest considering that the US and China have just held a dialogue on South Asia, even as the US has refused to hold a bilateral dialogue with India on East Asia in the last year.

Kerry's Russia visit signals Washington reaching out to Moscow and is the first sign towards normalising the US-Russia relationship. However, it will be prudent to say nothing more than that for now.

In his election campaign, Senator John Kerry, the Democratic candidate, has been blaming President George Bush for the failure to capture or kill Osama bin Laden during the battle at Tora Bora in Afghanistan towards the end of 2001.

Recently, in two special reports (ORF-Heritage Foundation and ORF-Center for American Progress) Indian and American scholars have come out with many suggestions to fast-track India-US relations. If the policy-makers at the Annual Strategic Dialogue take on board some of these recommendations, it will go a long way in re-energising the relationship.

It's time that India and Pakistan genuinely leave the bad memories of 1971 behind us. It-s a herculean task, but necessary if we are to secure a harmonious relationship.

The whole Devyani Khobragade affair also points to the distrust between New Delhi and Washington. Something which could have been resolved quietly was allowed to blow out of proportion. And both US and India are to blame for it.

Eight Chinese workers from Fujian, who were travelling to Jordan from Najaf in Iraq by a car after having worked in a Chinese-aided power project there for catching a flight to China, were detained by an Iraqi resistance group on January 18,2005, to protest against the Chinese involvement in the project.

Is the Asiatic Lion as the symbol of "Make in India" best suits today's "muscular" India's image? Perhaps, it does if we consider India's size and diversities.

Through concerted attack on India from the usual suspects in recent days, India is first being made the whipping boy for the failure of the American non-proliferation lobby in their own country. Then it has to accept blame for the complex relations the U.S. shares with Pakistan and China that is driving these Asian allies to increase their arsenals. Can we get real, please?

The recent hospital fire in Kolkata has raised several concerns on the issue of regulation of radiological units. After a review recently, the hospital's accreditation was kept in abeyance following non conformity with respect to its radiotherapy division.

As New Delhi and Seoul reconnect politically, the planned visit of President Park to India in the next few months provides an occasion to think boldly about the future of the bilateral partnership. If Delhi can look beyond China in its policies towards northeast Asia, it will find that South Korea can help develop very interesting strategic options for India.

Kurdish militants in Syria seized a border crossing with Iraq from Islamist rebels linked to al-Qaeda which had held the crossing since March, according to activists and an Iraqi official.

In the recent Kuwait elections, for the sixth time the National Assembly was re-elected in last seven years. Though the Assembly is supposed to be in term for four years, t it is usually dissolved by the Constitutional Court before the completion of its term.

What would be the impact, if any, of the recent crisis in Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia - that resulted in the overthrow of the government of Askar Akayev - on the growth of religious extremism in Central Asia in general and in Kyrgyzstan in particular?

India neither has a well-defined bankruptcy legislation for businesses to close down systematically or special courts to take care of such issues; and, as a result the process becomes slower, says former Revenue Secretary M.R. Sivaraman.

Lack of clarity on the legal nature of the Paris deal and the INDCs has been a cause of concern for India. There has been a proposal for a kind of "hybrid agreement", which suggests that Paris deal will not actually be legally binding but have certain legally binding elements.

India's top military experts say the lack of clarity and differentiation between conventional and nuclear missiles in the 2nd Artillery Corps of the Chinese army (PLA) is a cause of concern for India. They also point out that there exists a lack of discussion on Chinese cyber capabilities or its command and control structures.

After in-depth discussion at a roundtable on the nuclear liability bill, the participants agreed that the bill in its present form has several lacunas which need to be addressed. And, an effort could be made to make the bill comprehensive in its reach.

The law makers from the government should know that the removal of two contentious provisions from the 2013 Land Act (LARR) would not end all the trouble facing land acquisition. Given land is a State subject, much would depend on how different states create "enabling conditions" for smooth acquisitions.

The passage of the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) Protocol by Parliament not only removes all hurdles for the final settlement of India's longest border with any neighbour, but also paves the way for exchange of Enclaves and merger of Adverse Possessions by re-drawing the International Boundary (IB), also known as the Radcliffe Line.

The recent years have seen a new trend emerging in the African continent. Representatives from Western conglomerates have been shifting their focus to Africa in order to secure rights to the vast, untapped resources of the ecologically rich continent.

The land amendment bill, brought in by the Modi government, represents a crucial plank of his government's economic agenda to turbocharge Indian growth. The government would find it difficult to execute its Make-in-India policy without improving the legislative framework for land acquisition.