North Korea's foreign minister accused President Trump of declaring war against his country.
US President George W Bush on Thursday signed into law the legislation to implement the historic Indo-US civil nuclear deal paving the way for the two countries to formally ink the 123 agreement on Friday.
The Berman Bill H R 7081, named after Howard Berman, a Democrat strongly opposed to the deal on non-proliferation grounds and who converted only a couple of days back, was adopted with 86 voting for and 13 against. The Senate also rejected the killer amendments introduced by Democratic Senators Byron Dorgan and Jeff Bingaman to ensure that the US nuclear exports to India do not help boost New Delhi's nuclear weapons programme
The nonproliferation lobby is not happy at all with Congressman Howard Berman's bill, which he introduced in the House of Representatives on September 25. Nonproliferation activists feel that their strongest advocate, who had been critical of the India-United States civilian nuclear agreement, has let them down by capitulating to the Bush administration with a piece of legislation, which is a clone of the measure that was approved two days earlier by the Senate Foreign Relat
A bipartisan group of US lawmakers comprising erstwhile and current co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans have circulated a letter among their colleagues expressing their strong support for the US-India civilian nuclear agreement and included in their 'Dear Colleague' letter a copy of the September 12 Washington Post editorial titled 'Yes for an Answer: Why Congress should expedite approval of the US-India nuclear accord."
Even as the United States Senate has scheduled a quick hearing on the India-US nuclear deal, all eyes are on the House of Representatives whose Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman, a vocal critic of the pact, is yet to take a call on having a similar process."Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been lobbying furiously for the India deal, which appears to hinge on whether the White House can persuade Republican Howard Berman," said a local paper.
The administration is leaving no stone unturned as it races against time to have the US-India civilian nuclear agreement completed by the Congressional adjournment date of September 26 even if indications are there that the lawmakers may return for a Lame-Duck Session after the November 4 presidential elections.
Congressman Jim McDermott, who represents Washington state -- who incidentally voted against the enabling legislation also known as the Hyde Act two years ago -- said, "The likelihood of Congress taking up the nuclear issue again before the end of the year is, it will be very difficult."
Pro-deal lawmakers like Congressman Gary Ackerman continue to express their angst over the close India-Iran ties. The lawmakers have warned that this could be a spoiler to the envisaged strategic partnership between Washington and New Delhi.
With the all-party meetings called by Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla producing no breakthrough to end the deadlock in Parliament, Union ministers Piyush Goyal and Pralhad Joshi accused opposition parties of repeatedly 'insulting' Dhankhar.
"Selling military hardware to Pakistan -- with a generous subsidy from American taxpayers -- is no way to convince them to become responsible players in the international community and assist in the fight against terrorism," Rand Paul said.
Since the new policy was instituted August 4, more than 50 such incidents have been reported across the country.
Burns said, "We'll continue to watch India's relations with Iran, and we'll obviously respond very respectfully to any concerns by members of our own Congress as we should do."
Reports in the media on Friday said US Senator Tom Lantos had written a letter to the prime minister asking India to 'sever' military ties with Iran and "terminate" all cooperation in the energy sector.
"Such co-operation raises renewed questions about the possible diversion of sensitive technology to Iran, for which Indian entities have been sanctioned in recent years, including US-origin technology provided to India."
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday chose Lt Gen Asim Munir as the new Army chief to replace incumbent General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
Holbrooke declared before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday, "We do not think that Pakistan is a failed State. We think it's a State under extreme test from the enemies who are also our enemies and who have the same common enemy -- the United States and Pakistan. It just isn't (a failed State). But it is a State under enormous social, political and economic pressure. And India is always a factor."
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who was on a visit to the US last month, said that America's relationship with Pakistan has "not served" either of the two countries and raised questions on the Biden administration's approval of a USD 450-million sustenance package for the F-16 fleet.
Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doklam from June 16 last year after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed tri-junction by the Chinese army.
Reflecting the strong bipartisan support to the India-US relationship, the lawmakers welcomed the decision of the House Speaker Paul Ryan to invite Modi to address the joint meeting.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to a joint meeting of the United States Congress will be an opportunity to energise efforts to improve bilateral ties, top American lawmakers from across the political divide have said.
Obviously having gotten the green light from the Prime Minister's Office in New Delhi that if they lobby the Speaker to address a joint session of Congress, which he has not been able to do despite his three visits to the US, the Congressmen informed Paul Ryan that 'It is our understanding that if invited, the prime minister would accept.'
As soon as Lok Sabha assembled, opposition members stormed into the well holding placards and shouting slogans. They demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the alleged stock manipulation by the Adani Group.
An influential Hindu organisation in the United States has slammed a group of lawmakers for introducing a resolution in the House of Representatives on record of India's religious freedom arguing that it is grossly inaccurate and aims to provoke.
A bipartisan Congressional resolution has been introduced in the House of Representatives calling on the US government to continue the policy of denying a visa to BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on the grounds of religious freedom violations.
Several members of Congress are confirmed to be in attendance for the Prime Minister's address to a diverse crowd of 18,500 people.
This is for the first time in recent history that the leaders of the two largest democracies would be addressing a joint rally anywhere in the world.
13 Russian nationals and 3 Russian companies have been indicted for interfering in the 2016 US presidential election through social media propaganda.
Disappointed over Pakistan's slow pace of trial in Mumbai terror attack case, a top American lawmaker has demanded that the seven suspects, including Lashkar-e-tayiba operational commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, be handed over to the International Criminal Court to bring them to justice.
Gandhi had recently alleged in London that the structures of Indian democracy are under "brutal attack" and there is a full-scale assault on the institutions of the country.
The United States senate on Tuesday approved Democratic Senator John Kerry as the next secretary of state, who is set to replace Hillary Clinton.
Trump and the White House has described this as an impeachment hoax. White House asserted that the president has done no wrong.
A Pakistani parliamentary panel on Friday criticised the interior ministry for the delay in implementing a new visa agreement with India, with its members passing a resolution that called on the cabinet to ratify the pact at the earliest.
Gretchen Peters, of the United States Military Academy at West Point's Combating Terrorism Center, who has since 2005, spent considerable time studying the link between organised crime and insurgencies in Afghanistan and Pakistan, has told US Congress of the nexus between the criminal enterprise Dawood Ibrahim company, the Haqqani Network and the Inter-Services Intelligence.
It's a simple resolution, which cannot be voted in the other chamber, Senate, and does not have the force of law.
By passing this bill, Congress is showing that the US will not turn a blind eye to the suffering of the oppressed, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy said.
Makki and other LeT/JUD operatives "have been involved in raising funds, recruiting and radicalising youth to violence and planning attacks in India, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)," the sanctions committee said, providing a statement for the reasons of Makki's listing.
Aziz Haniffa reports from Washignton, DC, on Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh's three-day visit to the US capital.
Both the Barack Obama administration and United States lawmakers on Capitol Hill have expressed concern over the Indian Supreme Court's decision to uphold a law that criminalises consensual homosexual conduct.
United States President Barack Obama has nominated Nisha Desai Biswal as the new assistant secretary of state for south and central Asian affairs.
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