French naval commander expresses concern over China expanding its maritime influence in the region.

The India-Japan 2+2 dialogue added strategic heft to the special relationship in the wake of growing Chinese assertiveness on regional affairs, points out Dr Rajaram Panda.

According to observers, with pro-China Rajapaksa winning the election, the result will have a bearing on India's presence in the Indian Ocean region where Beijing is increasingly making inroads.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Rajapaksa and said he looks forward to further deepen relations between the two nations.

Polls opened at 7 am local time and would close at 5 pm with some 12,845 polling stations being set up throughout the country for 15.9 million voters, who will choose a successor to President Maithripala Sirisina.

According to the global report, just 9.6 per cent of all children between 6 and 23 months of age are fed a minimum acceptable diet.

The deployment seems to be more than what is needed.

'China, much more than Pakistan, is a credible potential adversary with the ability to hurt our interests.' 'It must figure higher in our national security concerns,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).

An impressive flypast consisting of four Rafale, five MiG 29-Ks and one Hawkeye was witnessed by Vice Admiral P Ajit Kumar, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command, Alexandre Ziegler, the French Ambassador to India and nine French Navy dignitaries on board the French Carrier Charles De Gaulle.

According to a new report from the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, an estimated 2,275 individuals drowned or went missing in the Mediterranean in 2018.

Folk artist from Chhattisgarh Teejan Bai, Guelleh, Naik and theatre actor from Maharashtra Balwant Moreshwar Purandare will be honoured with Padma Vibushan.

Chinese observers believe the Sino-US relationship will be impacted by issues in North Korea, Japan, India, Ukraine and Iran and that conflicts with these 'third parties' will without exception ultimately become conflicts between China and the US, points out former RA&W officer Jayadeva Ranade.

The report documents allegations of reprisals and intimidation in 38 countries, some of which are members of the Human Rights Council.

'Chinese dominance reduces India's influence in South and Southeast Asia and erodes its status globally.' 'For a country striving to create a multipolar Asia, it would be a serious setback,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).

Shuai Jiao Baba (Let's Wrestle, Dad) in China seems to have made twice its combined earnings in India and the rest of the world.

'If the Chinese intent is to be gauged based on its aggression in the South China Sea, greater forays in the Indian Ocean, a hawk's attitude towards Taiwan, flying its fighters repeatedly over the Senkaku islands in the East China Sea and creating strategic assets globally, there would be a requirement for strategic partnerships for India,' says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).

'Over the last two decades, the India-French relationship has grown steadily, no major political difference having darkened the sky between Paris and Delhi,' says Claude Arpi.

Chinese Foreign Ministry said international community should respect sovereignty and independence of the Maldives.

'There is no Buddha or Gandhi among countries, existing for the service of others; they all exist for the good of themselves.' 'For each country, its own interests should be paramount, and it is futile and churlish to expect China to be an exception to this rule,' says B S Raghavan, the distinguished civil servant and long-time China-watcher.

Trump had accused Pakistan of providing safe havens to terrorists.

Efficient management of time and speedy decision-making have been the focus of President Ram Nath Kovind.

The country ranked 100th out of 119 countries on the global hunger index, slipping three positions from last year.

'Despite the current tension at Doklam and the risk of escalation on the Himalayan land frontier, it is the Indian Ocean we need to worry about more,' says Nitin Pai.

China's Navy wants to join hands with India to maintain security of the Indian Ocean

Among others, China is developing the strategically located Gwadar port in Balochistan, which is aimed towards having a military presence, says a Pentagon report

The decision to not attend the forum attended by 28 heads of state and 130 national delegations is a clear break from its usual policy of going along with the crowd.

'There is no holistic picture of our own goals and objectives.' 'For some inexplicable reason, the decision makers find it best to listen to their inner souls in dealing with these issues rather devising a carefully thought-out, structured plan,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).

India's decision to skip the meeting came after a year of bilateral discord over China's stubborn opposition to India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers' Group and a UN ban against Pakistan-based terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Masood Azhar.

It is the country's second aircraft carrier, after the Liaoning, and the first to be made domestically.

'With the recent challenging of the notion of the Indian Ocean Region being India's strategic backyard, China is gradually upping the ante in the maritime realm around India.'

The arrival a couple of days ago of a Chinese nuclear submarine for the first time in Karachi port, coinciding with a Chinese military delegation's visit, points to Pakistan's importance for China, says former R&AW officer Jayadeva Ranade.

However, Denmark said it is difficult to conclude on the real intention behind this.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on Tuesday that the Indian mother superior of an aid home in Aden, where four nuns were killed and an Indian priest was kidnapped by gunmen, has been safely evacuated.

The 56-year-old Tom Uzhunnalil was taken by Islamic State gunmen after they launched an attack on an elderly care home in Aden.

There are signs of China's external behaviour becoming more aggressive in the coming years. If that happens, strategic implications for neighbours having territorial disputes with China can become deeper and imperatives can rise for the former to counteract, says D S Rajan

It is the third time Genzebe Dibaba, 25, has broken a world record in Stockholm, having previously set new marks for the 3,000 and 5,000 metres at the Ericsson Globe Arena in the Swedish capital

'China's moves are of direct significance to India, which will closely monitor Chinese naval activity in the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean not least because of Chinese maps depicting claims over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.'

The International Fleet Review, conceived as a show of the country's naval might and readiness for battle, saw as many as 100 naval ships, including 70 from the Indian Navy, taking part in the second edition of the coveted event.

The indigenously-built Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel will be the presidential yacht and lead the presidential column for the 11th edition of the Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam.

Swaraj is in Bahrain for a two-day visit to attend the first ministerial meeting of the India-Arab League Cooperation Forum to be held on Sunday.