The crises of the 21st century, 9/11, the economic meltdown, COVID-19, Russia-Iran war and the Hamas-Israel war seem to be never ending. In this situation, Iran might be contemplating a nuclear deterrent to defend itself, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan, the distinguished long-time Rediff contributor who turns 80 on June 17..

Modi said New Delhi has emphasised on dialogue and diplomacy along with restraint to deal with the situation arising out of the Hamas-Israel conflict.

The Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour given by France is another in a series of top international awards and honours bestowed by various countries on Prime Minister Modi.

El-Sisi welcomed Modi, who is on a two-day state visit to Egypt, at the Presidential Palace where the two leaders were closeted for one-on-one meeting after which the two sides signed a memorandum of understandng.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Monday conferred with the highest honour of Fiji by its premier Sitiveni Rabuka in recognition of his global leadership, in a rare honour for a non-Fijian.

Any Indian government at this juncture would have voted and spoken exactly this way. It isn't just about the vast Indian dependence on Russian-origin military equipment. It is also about trust, asserts Shekhar Gupta.

The prime minister tweeted that he admires Bhutan for its unique model of sustainable development and the deeply spiritual way of life.

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday unveiled a plaque at Ra'anana in northern Israel in the memory of Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in the battle of Tabsor during World War I.

'It was only after D-Day that people believed that I had actually directed Kal Ho Naa Ho.'

US President Trump "presented the Legion of Merit to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership in elevating the US-India strategic partnership," O'Brien said in a tweet.

The memorial is the first-of-its-kind built by India in France after the country's Independence. The announcement to construct the memorial was made by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her last visit to Paris in June 2018.

Vroom! Indonesia president a hit on social media after motorbike stunt

'It is very much a danger.' 'With Tibet following the India tradition of ahimsa and the global visibility of the Dalai Lama who embodies these values, he should be supported by India as a diplomat.' 'It would be in India's self-interest and instead of being embarrassed about his presence, India should recognise this (role).' 'By appeasing China, India does not get anything in return; they (the Chinese have not stopped) claiming Arunachal, part of Kashmir, etc.'

The Jordanian King's visit comes nearly three weeks after Modi travelled to Jordan as part of his trip to West Asia, including Palestine.

The PM held wide-ranging talks with the Sultan of Oman and signed eight agreements, including pacts on cooperation in the field of defence, health and tourism.

There are several books that Aakar Patel wishes were being written but aren't. Fortunately, there's plenty coming up this year that he's eagerly awaiting.

News of all that's transpired on and off the football field

Israel is determined to take the bilateral engagement to a different level that goes beyond defence hardware and intelligence software. Kanchan Gupta reports exclusively from Tel Aviv for Rediff.com

At no other time has a single meeting of the leaders of two democracies been so critical and hazardous.

Meet Cassie de Pecol, a 27-year-old traveller from Connecticut, United States, who visited 196 countries in 18-and-a-half months, making her the fastest person to visit every country in the world.

Selected candidates will get to pursue a fully funded course of their choice at the University of Oxford.

Aseem Chhabra spots 10 must-see movies at the Berlin Film Festival.

Incisive Editor, brilliant scholar on Islam, and now BJP leader, M J Akbar is at his intellectual best when he dissects the Muslim world and its problems, and offers up a solution from his unique perspective, as he did in this recent speech at the 10th R N Kao Memorial Lecture in New Delhi.

Tarun Vijay, MP, salutes the General whom he adored as a great friend.

'Disgruntled, disillusioned, Muslim youth -- of whom there is no dearth, given the Muslim world's sorry state -- are ready to take on the might of the West and attack it in any way they can.' 'For them, it is their faith, and not the reasoning of Newton or Descartes that has stayed with them, sustained them through the misery their world had sunk into,' says Syed Firdaus Ashraf.

Do Modi's foreign visits actually serve India or they nothing more than expensive tools for domestic positioning and image-building, asks Shehzad Poonawalla.

Let's take a look at why:

Palestinians long riven by geography and factional feuding enjoyed a rare show of unity on Thursday in a soccer match that brought together teams from their two territories.

Tiny Guam beat Turkmenistan 1-0 to record their first ever World Cup qualifying victory.

Meet the men who shall face off against FIFA president Sepp Blatter

Indian national football team slumped to its worst-ever FIFA rankings, 171, in the 209-nation chart.

Mahesh Rangarajan, director of the historic Nehru Memorial Museum and Library in New Delhi, tells Sheela Bhatt how the first prime minister will always remain relevant, and the efforts being made to keep his legacy alive.

Former FIFA official Jerome Champagne formally announced on Monday that he will stand against incumbent Sepp Blatter in next year's election for president of the world soccer body.

India on Thursday bluntly told the US that surveillance of political leaders and others in India by the American intelligence was "unacceptable" to which the US responded by saying that any differences that may exist can be resolved by intelligence communities of the two countries.

Israel is no longer the valiant and beleaguered underdog, but increasingly seen as an increasingly arrogant oppressor seeking to crush another old nation under its jackboots, says Mohan Guruswamy.

As results prove every week, nothing can be taken for granted in soccer and despite long odds, FIFA could next year have its first French president since Jules Rimet with Jerome Champagne planning to succeed Sepp Blatter.

A New York Times report reveals what went down as the Special Forces of 18 countries faced off in mock battle.

The Indian women's football team put up a spirited fight but could not avoid their second consecutive loss, going down 1-2 to Chinese Taipei in a group D encounter of the AFC Women's Asian Cup (Qualifiers) at the Faisal Al Huseni Stadium in Ramallah, West Bank.

India struck the winner in the injury time through striker Robin Singh as they began their AFC Challenge Cup Qualifiers campaign with a 2-1 victory over Chinese Taipei in Yangon on Saturday.