Shubhajit Roy

Sources said the Thai Defence Ministry let the Indians know that there were budget constraints for participating in military exercises overseas.

Vladimir Putin visiting October 4-5, India looks at Trump to certify S-400 Triumf deal.

Sources told The Indian Express that the Indian side had conveyed its “disappointment” with Nepal over its last-minute withdrawal through diplomatic channels.

Sources said the Indian side conveyed to the US that the quadrilateral grouping should not be conflated with the Indo-Pacific issue, but should be kept separate.

Foreign secretary to travel to Afghanistan on Monday, meet Afghan officials

‘Territory under Pak control’ refers to PoK; ‘proxies’ to terror groups in polls

While there are more than 50 bilateral dialogue mechanisms between the two governments, this is the highest level of engagement after the summit-level engagement between the Prime Minister and the US President.

“We told them that we are an energy reliant country, and candidly told them that rapid reduction of oil imports from Iran will impact our economy. We said that our economy should not be impacted by your policies,” a source said.

The visit assumes importance in view of the situation in war-torn Syria, where more than 300,000 people have been killed in the past four years and seven million have fled to other countries.

Ahead of the 2+2 dialogue, sources in Delhi said that from the Indian perspective, counter-terrorism is “obviously important”. 

Sources told The Indian Express that India was quite pleased about the Trump administration’s tough stance against Pakistan, and that has been reflected in Washington’s cancellation of $300 million disbursement for the Pakistan’s military.

While New Delhi will urge Washington to keep in mind India’s “strategic relations” with Russia as it asks for a waiver from CAATSA, it will cite “economic challenges” when it comes to rapid reduction of oil imports from Iran.

The two sides are also discussing a security agreement to inform and share intelligence on movement of maritime activities and vessels in the Indo-Pacific region, which is also likely to be a key outcome of the 2+2 dialogue.

“Neither did we raise activities about China, nor did they. The sense we got after the meetings was that we have been able to restore a certain level of political trust between the two sides,” informed a source to The Indian Express.

Two decades old, grouping made little progress until recent efforts at revival. With PM Narendra Modi and other leaders gathered at Nepal summit, a look at BIMSTEC history and what it seeks to achieve.

Malé summons Indian envoy after Swamy’s call to ‘invade’ Maldives if elections rigged; New Delhi distances itself from tweet. What explains India’s position on island nation, what are its concerns?

On August 24, Swamy had tweeted: “India should invade Maldives if rigging of election takes place”. The tweet included a link to a Maldivian news report on a meeting between Swamy and former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed in Colombo early last week.

Manjit Singh GK, who is also the president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), was earlier allegedly attacked by protesters in New York. Three persons have been arrested in connection with the attack in California.

UAE aid for flood relief in Kerala: UAE Ambassador Ahmed Albanna told The Indian Express that there has been no official announcement so far by the UAE on any specific amount as financial aid.