New Delhi:
If the Nehru era gave India a space for hearing at global stage, under Rao-Vajpayee era between 1991 and 2004, it unleashed India's economic power, nuclear potentials and revitalise the approach to the US and also in the extended neighbourhood and ASEAN region.
Since 2014, under the Modi-Sushma team and now a strong axis between PM-NSA-Foreign minister axis, it's New India.
Narendra Modi has displayed his religiosity and underscored the new civilisational identity. India is now 'reshaping' the global policies - from climate change to terrorism.
A few years back responding to a debate on foreign policy issues including vexed Doklam issue, the then External Affairs Minister Late Sushma Swaraj had said in Rajya Sabha while Jawahar Lal Nehru attained ‘high prestige’ for himself, Narendra Modi used foreign policies to attain a heightened respect for the country.
This perhaps is the story of India’s journey in diplomacy vis-a-vis the country’s first Prime Minister and the present incumbent.
Even a neutral expert and a well known name in foreign policy studies, C Raja Mohan has said that India’s international role has acquired “an irreversible momentum under Narendra Modi”.
In fact, many would say in the diplomatic realm, Modi has not disappointed.
Rather it was perhaps not expected of a state-level Neta to set the kind of pace and thrust that he has done !
Over the last few years, India has improved relationships with the key players such as the United States, France, Russia, Japan, Australia, South Korea and neighbouring countries.
Of course, India has issues with China and Pakistan, but here too the root causes of the problems are plenty – some in legacy and the rest in the hands of those players in Beijing and Islamabad.
Even with players like Germany and Israel things have been handled in a much matured manner and in 2017, Modi himself visited Israel to celebrate 25 years of establishment of Indo-Israel relationship.
The bilateral ties were in effect established when P V Narasimha Rao was the Prime Minister.
In India, a section of political class and observers might have taken a jaundiced view and suggested that closer India-Israel ties could jeopardise New Delhi’s relations with Palestine. This is not the true scenario.
When Late Sushma Swaraj visited Palestine, the leadership there had urged India to make effective use of ‘good relations’ with Israel so that a peace could be hammered out between Palestine and Israel.
With regard Arab world also, the Modi government has done a fine balancing walk and the relationship has improved manifold.
This is in contrast to apprehensions expressed by a section of political class that under pro-Hindutva PM Narendra Modi, India’s relations with the Arab world would decline.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, son of the UAE’s founding President and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, for the first time had come as India’s chief guest for the Republic Day function on Jan 26, 2017.
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| Blogger and Nehru |
The relationships with countries such as Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh also grew closer. Afghanistan is a time tested friend and India has a very smooth and mutually dependable friendship with the Maldives.
And with regard to Sri Lanka too, lately In a major move India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Mauritius and Seychelles in the Indian Ocean region have come together on a "common maritime security platform" opening a new vista altogether.
Prime Minister Modi got a feather in his cap on August 9 when he presided over an Open Debate at UNSC on Maritime Security. Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to do so and the fact that a formal statement was adopted shows the changing face of India’s prestige overseas.
The UNSC has also actively appreciated India’s stance on terrorism and in the wake of Pulwama attack, it was natural that added pressure was mounted on Pakistan despite ‘objections’ from certain quarters.
Among other positive sectors, the International Solar Alliance and Quad are two powerful and influential stages.
These certainly combine together to show New Delhi’s growing diplomatic prowess.
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| When 2 Women were Defence and Foreign Ministers |
Ends
'Lion of Herat' in Taliban custody, Insurgents encircle Kabul
New Delhi:
Stories from Afghanistan are now of rapidly advancing Taliban and encircling the war-devastated nation's capital, Kabul.In a major military win by the Taliban, veteran commander and warlord Mohammad Ismail Khan was on Friday captured and 'detained'.
Three more provincial capitals have been captured.
Ismail Khan once called the 'Lion of Herat', he battled Soviet occupiers in the 1980s and was a key member of the Northern Alliance whose US-backed forces toppled the Taliban in 2001.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has confirmed that Khan had been detained.
The key hubs of power of prestige Herat and Kandahar (Afghanistan's second largest city) have beencaptured.According to BBC reports, various factors have contributed to quick 'losses' of territories by Afghanistanarmy and forces loyal to President Ashraf Ghani ZZ.
The Afghan army and police have a troubled history of high casualties, desertions and corruption - with some unscrupulous commanders claiming the salaries of troops who simply didn't exist - so called "ghost soldiers",
the BBC said.
Jack Watling, of the Royal United Services Institute, says even the Afghan army has never been sure of how many troops it actually has.
The capture of Lashkar Gah — Helmand's provincial capital — came after heavy firefighting.
The provincial capital of Lashkar Gah was captured and Taliban insurgents raised their white flag over governmental installations.
The capital of Zabul province Qalat too fell to the Taliban.
The seizures of Kandahar and Herat mark the biggest prizes for the Taliban.
They are moving very fast towards Kabul.
With security rapidly deteriorating, the United States said it would send in 3,000 troops to help evacuate some personnel from the US Embassy in Kabul.
Separately, Britain said about 600 troops would be deployed on a short-term basis to support British nationals leaving the country, media reports said.
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