Category: India
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Libya After Gaddafi
The six-month-old liberation struggle in Libya entered a crucial phase with the rebels taking control of capital Tripoli. This more or less portends the end of the Gaddafi regime, which has been ruling the country for the past 42 years. However, at the time of writing this, there is no word about the whereabouts of…
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Can Cameron Bring London Riots Under Control?
British Prime Minister David Cameron is facing his first political test. Since Saturday, London has been witnessing the worst kind of riots and looting. The rioting initially started off in Tottenham on Saturday. The trigger was the fatal shooting of a 29-year-old man, Mark Duggan, by armed police officers. Troubled started brewing in Tottenham, which…
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America’s Debt Woes
Close on the heels of the US debt ceiling deal, credit agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgraded the US government’s credit rating from AAA to AA-plus. This is the first time in history that US gets a credit lower than the coveted AAA. Now the US is in the same league as countries such as…
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Ranjan Mathai Is India’s New Foreign Secretary
Ranjan Mathai is India’s new foreign secretary. The appointment is for two years, which can be renewed if the government so wishes. He succeeds Nirupama Rao, who has been posted as India’s ambassador to the United States. Fifty-nine-year-old Mathai hails from Kerala, a tiny state in the southern part of India, which has produced many…
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Hina’s Maiden India Visit
The new Pakistani foreign minister’s maiden visit to India began with a lot of hope. “I bring the good wishes of the people of Pakistan and the government of Pakistan,” said Hina Rubani Khar immediately upon landing in New Delhi on Tuesday, Interestingly, Khar chose to meet separatist leaders of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference,…
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Moroccan Plane Crashes, Kills 78
Agence Maghreb Arabe Press, the state news agency of Morocco, has reported that a military airplane belonging to Morocco’s Royal Armed Forces has crashed, killing at least 78 people — 60 soldiers and nine crew members; the rest are civilians. The plane was reportedly about to land at western Sahara, a disputed territory. A statement…
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Pakistan Gets A Face-lift
Pakistan’s new foreign minister is only 34 years old. But that’s the least surprising factor of the new minister, Hina Rabbani Khar, who has been promoted from junior minister to the cabinet. In a deeply-conservative Pakistan, it’s the first time a woman has been appointed as a foreign minister. The appointment of the youthful, good-looking…
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Hillary Reaches India
Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State, arrived in New Delhi on 18 July to attend the second round of Indo-US strategic dialogue. Clinton is accompanied by a large delegation including top US counter-terrorism officials such as Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper and Deputy Secretary, Homeland Security Jane Holl Lute. Clinton will have…
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Aishwarya postpones award ceremony
For the second time, Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan requested the French government to postpone the ceremony of the second-highest French civilian award. On 13 July, Rai was to receive the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres) from Jerome Bonnafont, the Ambassador of France to…
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Terror Revisits Mumbai
In a suspected terror attack, Mumbai, the financial capital of India, was rattled during the evening rush as three bombs ripped through crowded places within minutes of each other, killing dozens and injuring many more. Indo-Pak relations are likely to be the first casualty. Initial reports suggest that at least 20 people have lost their…