Srinath Raghavan

Apr 26, 2010
RAGHAVAN.JPG

Srinath Raghavan

Stop looking, go East

Amidst the glitz and hubbub of the recent Brics summit, a bilateral event of considerable significance has gone almost unnoticed.

No respite for Afghanistan

Last week, the President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, publicly admitted that his government and the United States were engaged in three-way talks with the Taliban. Efforts to reach out to the Taliban have, of course, been underway for some time now. After a few false starts, it seems that Kabul and Washington have finally got the process going. The course and outcome of these negotiations will be of great interest to India.

A wider view of India’s Syria vote

India’s vote in support of the latest UN Security Council resolution on Syria has occasioned much speculation and commentary.

Rising with the Sun in Asia

The recent visit to India by Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda of Japan took place against the backdrop of important developments both in bilateral relations and international affairs. The visit is part of the annual India-Japan summit institutionalised by the strategic partnership launched in 2006. The fact that Japan is one of only two countries with whom India has such regular high-level interaction underlines the growing importance of the relationship.

Remove snags for a smooth flight

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s ongoing visit to Moscow comes at an important juncture in India’s relationship with Russia. Interestingly, the trip coincides with the 40th anniversary of the India-Pakistan war of 1971 — the crisis that forged the strategic relationship between India and the erstwhile Soviet Union. Dr Singh’s meetings with the Russian leadership will be important not only to buttress the existing ties but also to explore new areas of cooperation and
convergence.

A weather eye on Afghanistan

Ten years after the US’ intervention in Afghanistan, the international community will reconvene in Bonn on December 5 to consider the next steps. The conference is expected to focus on the modalities of handing over responsibility for security to Afghan forces and the political process of reconciliation with the Taliban. These will have to be worked out keeping in mind the deadline of mid-2014. The conference will also lay out the international community’s commitment to Afghanistan thereafter.

Saarc: India needs to lead the way

The upcoming summit of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) will be held against the backdrop of important global and regional developments.

Old foes and their renewed friction

The Obama administration’s claims about an Iranian government plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Washington could have serious implications for US-Iran relations and for other players in West Asia, including India. There are several questions about the chain of claims being advanced by the US. And Washington hasn’t yet backed these up with solid evidence. Irrespective of their veracity, these allegations are likely to raise the temperature in the region.

Indo-Afghan treaty: A move forward

The visit to New Delhi by Afghan President Hamid Karzai comes at a critical juncture in the decade-long conflict in his country.

Taliban has upped the ante

The assassination of Burhanuddin Rabbani, leader of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council and former President, is a grim reminder of the fact that a negotiated settlement in Afghanistan remains elusive. In particular, it should serve as a wakeup call to Western officials and analysts who have lately been rather optimistic about the prospects of the peace process. Their dominant response to the killing of Rabbani has been predictably trite: the assassination was aimed at derailing the quest for a settlement and that aim should not be allowed to succeed. But the assassination yet again underscores the need to secure the right background conditions for any serious attempt at a negotiated settlement.

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