'The Modi government's pusillanimity vis-a-vis Pakistan makes almost certain that India will, in the coming weeks and months, be confronted with cross border terrorist actions of increasing intensity,' warns Satish Chandra, former deputy national security adviser.
Brajesh Mishra was without doubt an iconic figure. This was due not merely to the enormous influence he wielded with former Prime Minister Vajpayee but also because of his clarity of thought, his intellectual eminence, his can do spirit and his ability to command the loyalty of those who worked with him, notes Satish Chandra.
The document, prepared by an eminent 8-member group, has attracted both criticism and praise. The latter is mainly for drawing attention to India's innumerable foreign policy challenges and for generating debate thereon. On the negative side, a major shortcoming in the document is the failure to clearly spell out a vision for what India should aspire to be and how precisely should these aspirations be realised, says Satish Chandra.
It may not be desirable in the 21st century, in the context of the emergence of human rights as a powerful emotive factor and of India's rise as an important player on the regional and global scene, to place self-imposed restrictions on the way we deem fit to vote on human rights resolutions, says Satish Chandra
S M Krishna's praise for the Sri Lankan government-appointed Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission will diminish our credibility as an honest broker in the eyes of the Sri Lankan Tamils who are becoming increasingly bitter towards India, feels Satish Chandra.
The failure of our diplomatic offensive against Pakistan after the 26/11 attacks rests in part on our faulty tactics, says Satish Chandra.
Apart from S M Krishna's performance in Islamabad, a perusal of the statements made in recent weeks by the Indian side reveals an unfortunate lack of precision in the use of language.
The major substantive lesson that we should draw from the foreign minister-level talks is that Pakistan is not serious about addressing our concerns on terrorism. This should have been clear to us long ago because we have been talking to Pakistan on terrorism ever since 1997, says former deputy national security advisor Satish Chandra.
Since India's default policy of extending the hand of friendship to Pakistan has had disastrous consequences is it not time to discard it in favour of one which penalises Pakistan for inflicting terrorism on our innocent nationals?
The London Conference on Afghanistan held recently has evoked differing reactions in the Indian media. At one extreme it has been welcomed as providing an effective solution to the Afghan problem, even though it may entail the return of Mullah Omar to power in Afghanistan, and at the other extreme it has been criticised not only for paving the way for the return of the Taliban but also for enhancing Pakistan's influence in Afghanistan at India's cost.
Happily, there is today regime compatability between India and Bangladesh on this issue as India's core security concerns arise from the same elements that seek to unseat Hasina. The latter has wisely recognised this and in boldly striking at fanatical and terrorist elements, which pose a threat to India and Bangladesh, has acted with far greater maturity than the Pakistani leadership which continues to nurture jihadi groups.
Had the PM wanted a dialogue with Pakistan only on terrorism this could have been held at the official level without the drama of a long PM-level meeting and an elaborate joint statement. Obviously, US pressure is at work here and the conclusion of the joint statement on the eve of Hillary Clinton's visit gives the game away, says Satish Chandra
Finally, let us recognise that no one is going to fight our battles for us, that only we can safeguard our security and integrity through our own actions, and that any outside help, whether by a super power or the international community, can only be supplementary to our own efforts.
© 2025 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances