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T P Sreenivasan is one of India's most distinguished diplomats.
'If only the Italians had accepted that it was a wrong judgement on the part of the crew of the ship, apologised and offered adequate compensation, the matter could have been resolved. But their whole approach has been defiant.'
'India's decision to fall back on an Islamic and authoritarian government to protect and promote its interests is a sad commentary on its neighbourhood policy.'
Ambassador A K Damodaran was the last link between the freedom struggle and Indian diplomacy, the last of those, who walked from a British prison to take on national responsibilities.
'Hedging has become inevitable in the emerging global scenario and we too should have our share of hedging. But it has to be combined with firm positions and sturdy alliances wherever necessary.'
Her concern was the continuation of security breaches and terrorism and the apparent mood to move forward in normalising relations with Pakistan, without any guarantee that terrorism will not be its State policy anymore, says T P Sreenivasan.
'A number of younger diplomats have begun to search for the soul of the foreign service, to give its members a sense of belonging and pride.'
T P Srinivasan outlines the importance of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly session
M K Narayanan had nothing to gain by misrepresenting the Indian position to Timothy Roemer, while the latter had to impress upon his government that his demarche on the phone was very effective. Ambassadors are known to write their cables in a way that pleases their masters back home.
'India seems to have been charmed into conceding ground to the new Pakistan foreign minister on many of its established positions. HRK has established her credentials and the US will be particularly impressed.'
The managing director of the IMF, doubtless, had diplomatic immunity, but it became irrelevant, while Krittika's immunity was in question, but her humiliation stood condemned. Former ambassador TP Sreenivasan offers an insight into the world of diplomatic immunity.
The world will welcome the lofty ideas that have figured in Obama’s Arab Spring speech, but the credibility deficit will remain till the US conduct on the ground matches the President's golden vocabulary.
By a mix of deception, subterfuge, ingratitude and crocodile tears, Pakistan has begun to get sympathy rather than condemnation when it stands exposed as the haven for the most wanted terrorist in the world.
'The US does not want Pakistan either to break up or fall into the hands of fundamentalists. The US has been saying for long that India should work with those in power in Pakistan, because those who came after them would have longer beards!'
T'The IAEA should be given the authority, resources and technical capability to intervene expeditiously in case of a nuclear emergency.'
'Fukushima should inject a sense of nuclear neutrality into the thinking of our policy makers and it leads to a full appraisal of our options for the future.'
'No single instance has come out so far to show that an Indian diplomat was enticed to say or do anything to please the Americans -- no honey traps, no Swiss accounts. Whatever the Indians did or said to their American counterparts was based on facts, policy and personal conviction.'
Gaffes in the UN create some red faces and send a few chuckles around, but do not harm anyone as each country's position is known and the situation can easily be retrieved.
'As India's involvement in the growth of the US deepens, the search for the soul of India gains momentum. India's smart power gets projected in the US in very many ways.'
'The world is convinced that the emergence of India on the global scene is largely beneficial as India plays by the rules.'
'Those who know China would not be complacent enough to think that the Chinese threat is an illusion.'
Security is a science in the US, it is an art here. Former diplomat TP Sreenivasan offers his take on the controversy over the airport 'pat-down' of Ambassador Meera Shankar
We should not rejoice over the loss of face that the US has suffered on account of the leakage of its cable traffic. This can happen to any country.
The image of India demolished by the scams will take time to rebuild itself. No amount of spinning will get the glory back. Nor can spectacular show of Indian dances or glossy publications suffice to change our image.
'We should dream not about a permanent seat at the horse-shoe table in the United Nations, but of a mature balanced and beneficial relationship with the US.'
'He made three highly exaggerated statements. He said Pakistan is "enormous", it is strategically important not only for the US, but also for the world and that the people of Pakistan has tremendous potential.'
"P" word may be as much taboo for him as "K" word
'Those who criticise him for not identifying Pakistan as the source of terrorism appear to have missed the nuances in the speech. It was not the occasion for him to name any country even indirectly, particularly as he had stated earlier that Pakistan should punish the guilty urgently.'
'When we urge you to complete the task of eliminating terrorism, we are not suggesting that we are ready to fight the battle to the Last American. Indians, Americans and humanity itself have a stake in ridding the world of the scourge of terrorism. There should be no more Headleys to perpetrate terrorism.'
'The expectations on the two sides are so divergent that disappointment is inevitable for both.'
'Tharoor has demonstrated that the public and private lives of politicians should remain separate and that personal happiness should take precedence over the exigencies of politics.'
The best they say about him is that he is a man who attends to details and carries out instructions from the Security Council and the General Assembly, 'a carpenter rather than an architect.'
'The Indian side -- S M Krishna, Nirupama Rao and Sharat Sabharwal -- was the picture of tranquillity, poise and perseverance. Krishna spoke in measured tones, but firmly and convincingly. Except for failing to defend the home secretary, Krishna's performance was faultless.'
The strongest argument for the creation of Pakistan was that Hindustan, the undivided India, could not be trusted to take care of the Muslims of the subcontinent. If trust breaks out between them, the whole rationale for the existence of Pakistan will be called into question.
While India is waiting to begin nuclear trade with the US, Pakistan may well have two nuclear reactors constructed on its own soil.
'The damage done by the sordid Madhuri Gupta saga to national interests may well be serious. The damage it has done to the reputation of the Foreign Service must also be of concern. The system of staffing of our missions and designations cannot change, but the public needs to be educated more about the diverse composition of our diplomatic corps abroad'
'The Washington summit is as much about nonproliferation and arms control as about nuclear security.'
The public mood is out of sync with any possibility of a compromise arising out of an Indo-Pak dialogue. But then the resumption of talks will ease the pressure on Islamabad to take action against the identified terrorists in Pakistan, examines TP Sreenivasan.
Remembering SK Singh, a dominant figure in the Indian Foreign Service and the former governor of Rajasthan and Arunachal Pradesh.
'The US appeared to be looking for Indian concessions for favours received, not to go the extra mile to meet Indian aspirations,' says T P Sreenivasan.
'China is not a disinterested observer in South Asia. It is in possession of part of Jammu and Kashmir and has been an unscrupulous supplier of arms and war-like nuclear material to Pakistan.'
'Dr Santhanam's crossing over to the side of the sceptics will be a serious challenge to the scientific establishment.'
President Obama is sensitive to the criticism that he is willing to dilute his commitment to non-proliferation for the sake of commercial advantages.
Nothing that Hillary Clinton did or said, at least publicly, has attracted criticism. This in itself is a sign of success.
'The test, of course, is whether Pakistan will do more to punish the guilty men of Mumbai before the peace process really commences. Pakistan is in no position to take decisions of substance for some more time to come and there is no reason why we should give comfort to anyone that, as on previous occasions, India will engage in the peace process, regardless of the heinous terrorist attacks against India.'
If he has nothing to offer beyond what he has said in Cairo on the Palestine issue, making peace with Islam will remain a distant dream. I very much hope that he has something else up his sleeve.
If he has nothing to offer beyond what he has said in Cairo on the Palestine issue, making peace with Islam will remain a distant dream. I very much hope that he has something else up his sleeve.
'India has much to be apprehensive about President Obama's Afpak policy, nuclear agenda and outsourcing.'
'Shashi Tharoor and Congress party coming together was a recipe for success. If Shashi had chosen to contest on his own on the basis of his personal accomplishments, he could have presented an agenda for change and made a splash, but like some of the other Independent stars, he would have made a point, but not gone any further.'
The US Senators, who sat through the night to vote on the Bill to clear the 123 agreement till the dawn of October 2 in India, must have been unaware that they were linking the new dawn in Indo-US relations to Mahatma Gandhi. The proverbial Gandhi magic may have played a role in persuading the reluctant Senators to remove the last hurdle in India's 34-year-old struggle to end India's nuclear isolation.
Countries with secessionist movements within them should shudder to think of these recent examples of forced independence with the connivance of the big powers. We cannot dismiss them as part of the shaping of a new Europe where Russia, backed by its newly found economic strength, is flexing its muscles to survive against the machinations of NATO. We know that NATO is not confined to Europe any more.
'As long as the prime minister's assurances are embodied in the 123 Agreement, we do not need to quarrel with an internal document of the United States.'
One reason that the United States has advanced as a justification for an exemption for India from the NSG guidelines is that India will be a contributing partner in the non-proliferation regime, once it accepts safeguards. When India insists that the deal is purely for energy and not for assisting in non-proliferation even by implication, the NSG members become perplexed and suspicious.
The mistake the enemies of the deal in India and the US are making is to seek satisfaction over their own wish list.
If the government has the courage to defy its leftist allies, there is no better time to tackle these issues than now.
'To see Jindal just a heartbeat away from the US Presidency should gladden our hearts.'
Yuli Vorontsov will be mourned in India by many, who knew him as a sophisticated and friendly diplomat.
'The 123 Agreement is open to different interpretations, but it has enough ambiguities there to operate in our interest. The withdrawal clauses in the Agreement are a masterpiece in drafting.'
'The US has promised all help, but India will have to work with each of the NSG'S 45 members.'
'The discovery of Hamid Ansari has rekindled hopes that India still has the possibility of rising above partisan politics and to find true patriots with integrity to shoulder State responsibilities.'
Nigerian scams are known to e-mail users around the globe, but this one was new because the message had come from my brother's e-mail account.
'He reduced the secretary general's position so low that his brilliant successors like Boutros Ghali and Kofi Annan looked like rebels.'
'If we approach the 123 Agreement as a device to open the door to international cooperation and not as a fundamental document, it may be possible to find the middle path soon.'
What distinguished Shashi from the other senior Indians in the UN Secretariat even in the early years of his career was that he was not paranoid about asserting his international personality to the point of erasing his Indian identity.
Alleviation of poverty is a key element for progress, but to establish a better economic climate for India's farmers and create more jobs, India has to overcome many hazards.
'It sent a clear message to the Americans that despite the Hyde Act, India would deal with Iran on the basis of its own lights.'
With his added stature as the runner-up to the highest position in the United Nations, the sky is the limit for Tharoor, whether he stays in the UN or not.
'We came out of Havana with much of our position on terrorism diluted.'
For the first generation of desis, their Indianness is an anchor, which restrains it, while for the next, it is a legacy that inspires them to soar high. Both are genuinely desi and do South Asia proud.
For a person, who speaks nothing but Malayalam, preaches no intricate philosophy and claims no divinity, her following around the world is nothing but a miracle.
It remains unclear whether Rabuka's time in India at the Staff College had a role to play in his anti-Fiji Indian feeling.
'He was convinced Netaji died in the air crash. If he had survived, he would have contacted Nairsan.'
'Perhaps, it was even more sensational as Lincoln did not have to fight centuries of caste prejudices that Narayanan had to overcome.'
A famous writer once said the Qutab Minar and Madhavan Kutty were the two attractions for every Keralite who went to New Delhi.
They began as hot favourites of the US, but at one time or the other, fell out of favour.
Professor Jagdish Bhagwati is best known for transforming the philosophy of development.
Angela Merkel could become Germany's first ever woman leader.
'Elbaradei has not only learnt to work with India productively, but also developed a rapport with our nuclear scientists.'
To me, somehow, Dhar matched Chanakya of my imagination, tall, handsome, intelligent and stylish. But there was nothing Machiavellian about him.
'More than his ideology, Castro's personal charisma must be responsible for his longevity.'
If there ever was a personification of all that is best in personal diplomacy, it was K P S Menon.
'Only a great country could risk the wrath of China by giving refuge to the Tibetans.'
Encounters with the larger-than-life monarch.
Encounters with Zubin Mehta.
Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara loved his country, but saw it as his inheritance, which he had to run in his own way.
Steve Solarz's standing in the community and his general reputation as a friend of India helped advance our cause in Washington. He was not expected to be objective when it came to India, but his presentations were compelling and absorbing.
'He had no false modesty either about India or about himself and he had nothing to be modest about.'
Did Narasimha Rao promise the Americans that India would not test a nuclear device?
February 23, 2012
Kerala fishermen's killings: A crisis beyond diplomacy'If only the Italians had accepted that it was a wrong judgement on the part of the crew of the ship, apologised and offered adequate compensation, the matter could have been resolved. But their whole approach has been defiant.'
February 17, 2012
How India missed the opportunity in the Maldives'India's decision to fall back on an Islamic and authoritarian government to protect and promote its interests is a sad commentary on its neighbourhood policy.'
February 07, 2012
The foreign service has lost its Bhishma pitamahaAmbassador A K Damodaran was the last link between the freedom struggle and Indian diplomacy, the last of those, who walked from a British prison to take on national responsibilities.
December 28, 2011
2011, the year of hedging in foreign policy'Hedging has become inevitable in the emerging global scenario and we too should have our share of hedging. But it has to be combined with firm positions and sturdy alliances wherever necessary.'
November 29, 2011
Kavita Karkare's call should not fall on deaf earsHer concern was the continuation of security breaches and terrorism and the apparent mood to move forward in normalising relations with Pakistan, without any guarantee that terrorism will not be its State policy anymore, says T P Sreenivasan.
October 17, 2011
How the IFS is finding its soul'A number of younger diplomats have begun to search for the soul of the foreign service, to give its members a sense of belonging and pride.'
September 20, 2011
PM steps on to the shifting sands at the UNT P Srinivasan outlines the importance of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly session
September 06, 2011
WikiLeaks: Narayanan is more credible than RoemerM K Narayanan had nothing to gain by misrepresenting the Indian position to Timothy Roemer, while the latter had to impress upon his government that his demarche on the phone was very effective. Ambassadors are known to write their cables in a way that pleases their masters back home.
August 01, 2011
Pakistan's charm offensive works, and how!'India seems to have been charmed into conceding ground to the new Pakistan foreign minister on many of its established positions. HRK has established her credentials and the US will be particularly impressed.'
June 21, 2011
Strauss-Kahn and Krittika Biswas: Illusions of immunityThe managing director of the IMF, doubtless, had diplomatic immunity, but it became irrelevant, while Krittika's immunity was in question, but her humiliation stood condemned. Former ambassador TP Sreenivasan offers an insight into the world of diplomatic immunity.
May 25, 2011
Obama: a better orator than statesmanThe world will welcome the lofty ideas that have figured in Obama’s Arab Spring speech, but the credibility deficit will remain till the US conduct on the ground matches the President's golden vocabulary.
May 16, 2011
Sympathy for Pakistan?By a mix of deception, subterfuge, ingratitude and crocodile tears, Pakistan has begun to get sympathy rather than condemnation when it stands exposed as the haven for the most wanted terrorist in the world.
May 5, 2011
Pakistan won't change a bit even after Osama'The US does not want Pakistan either to break up or fall into the hands of fundamentalists. The US has been saying for long that India should work with those in power in Pakistan, because those who came after them would have longer beards!'
April 07, 2011
After Fukushima disaster, the IAEA has to changeT'The IAEA should be given the authority, resources and technical capability to intervene expeditiously in case of a nuclear emergency.'
March 31, 2011
The suffering of the Japanese must not be in vain'Fukushima should inject a sense of nuclear neutrality into the thinking of our policy makers and it leads to a full appraisal of our options for the future.'
March 25, 2011
WikiLeaks: Indian diplomats emerge unscathed'No single instance has come out so far to show that an Indian diplomat was enticed to say or do anything to please the Americans -- no honey traps, no Swiss accounts. Whatever the Indians did or said to their American counterparts was based on facts, policy and personal conviction.'
February 14, 2011
UN gaffes are not rareGaffes in the UN create some red faces and send a few chuckles around, but do not harm anyone as each country's position is known and the situation can easily be retrieved.
January 19, 2011
India's Smart Power in the US'As India's involvement in the growth of the US deepens, the search for the soul of India gains momentum. India's smart power gets projected in the US in very many ways.'
December 30, 2010
India is no longer the elephant in the room'The world is convinced that the emergence of India on the global scene is largely beneficial as India plays by the rules.'
December 21, 2010
India-China relations worse than in 1962!'Those who know China would not be complacent enough to think that the Chinese threat is an illusion.'
December 13, 2010
Let us grow up!Security is a science in the US, it is an art here. Former diplomat TP Sreenivasan offers his take on the controversy over the airport 'pat-down' of Ambassador Meera Shankar
December 03, 2010
Wikileaks: Caught in the Midnight SunWe should not rejoice over the loss of face that the US has suffered on account of the leakage of its cable traffic. This can happen to any country.
November 29, 2010
India lives from crisis to crisisThe image of India demolished by the scams will take time to rebuild itself. No amount of spinning will get the glory back. Nor can spectacular show of Indian dances or glossy publications suffice to change our image.
November 09, 2010
The Obama visit: A balance sheet'We should dream not about a permanent seat at the horse-shoe table in the United Nations, but of a mature balanced and beneficial relationship with the US.'
November 07, 2010
India could not prosper unless we resolved Kashmir!'He made three highly exaggerated statements. He said Pakistan is "enormous", it is strategically important not only for the US, but also for the world and that the people of Pakistan has tremendous potential.'
"P" word may be as much taboo for him as "K" word
'Those who criticise him for not identifying Pakistan as the source of terrorism appear to have missed the nuances in the speech. It was not the occasion for him to name any country even indirectly, particularly as he had stated earlier that Pakistan should punish the guilty urgently.'
November 06, 2010
Suswagatham, President Obama'When we urge you to complete the task of eliminating terrorism, we are not suggesting that we are ready to fight the battle to the Last American. Indians, Americans and humanity itself have a stake in ridding the world of the scourge of terrorism. There should be no more Headleys to perpetrate terrorism.'
October 29, 2010
Obama visit will be less strategic, more economic'The expectations on the two sides are so divergent that disappointment is inevitable for both.'
August 23, 2010
Stars to smile upon Shashi Tharoor after wedding'Tharoor has demonstrated that the public and private lives of politicians should remain separate and that personal happiness should take precedence over the exigencies of politics.'
August 20, 2010
Why the world is not over the moon on BanThe best they say about him is that he is a man who attends to details and carries out instructions from the Security Council and the General Assembly, 'a carpenter rather than an architect.'
July 19, 2010
Indian Shining in Islamabad'The Indian side -- S M Krishna, Nirupama Rao and Sharat Sabharwal -- was the picture of tranquillity, poise and perseverance. Krishna spoke in measured tones, but firmly and convincingly. Except for failing to defend the home secretary, Krishna's performance was faultless.'
July 14, 2010
India-Pakistan talks: Futile quest for trustThe strongest argument for the creation of Pakistan was that Hindustan, the undivided India, could not be trusted to take care of the Muslims of the subcontinent. If trust breaks out between them, the whole rationale for the existence of Pakistan will be called into question.
May 07, 2010
Pakistan gets nuclear deal by proxyWhile India is waiting to begin nuclear trade with the US, Pakistan may well have two nuclear reactors constructed on its own soil.
April 29, 2010
Madhuri Gupta maligns the Foreign Service'The damage done by the sordid Madhuri Gupta saga to national interests may well be serious. The damage it has done to the reputation of the Foreign Service must also be of concern. The system of staffing of our missions and designations cannot change, but the public needs to be educated more about the diverse composition of our diplomatic corps abroad'
April 12, 2010
Red Lines at the Washington Summit'The Washington summit is as much about nonproliferation and arms control as about nuclear security.'
February 08, 2010
Substance lies in talks and not in talks on talksThe public mood is out of sync with any possibility of a compromise arising out of an Indo-Pak dialogue. But then the resumption of talks will ease the pressure on Islamabad to take action against the identified terrorists in Pakistan, examines TP Sreenivasan.
December 04, 2009
A diplomat and a politicianRemembering SK Singh, a dominant figure in the Indian Foreign Service and the former governor of Rajasthan and Arunachal Pradesh.
December 02, 2009
Dr Singh's cotton candy visit'The US appeared to be looking for Indian concessions for favours received, not to go the extra mile to meet Indian aspirations,' says T P Sreenivasan.
November 20, 2009
What Manmohan Singh should tell Barack Obama'China is not a disinterested observer in South Asia. It is in possession of part of Jammu and Kashmir and has been an unscrupulous supplier of arms and war-like nuclear material to Pakistan.'
September 04, 2009
How Santy's Bombshell will impact India'Dr Santhanam's crossing over to the side of the sceptics will be a serious challenge to the scientific establishment.'
August 21, 2009
The US may have no nuclear trade with IndiaPresident Obama is sensitive to the criticism that he is willing to dilute his commitment to non-proliferation for the sake of commercial advantages.
July 22, 2009
Hillary sets up camp right on trackNothing that Hillary Clinton did or said, at least publicly, has attracted criticism. This in itself is a sign of success.
June 17, 2009
'Pakistan will project it as a diplomatic victory''The test, of course, is whether Pakistan will do more to punish the guilty men of Mumbai before the peace process really commences. Pakistan is in no position to take decisions of substance for some more time to come and there is no reason why we should give comfort to anyone that, as on previous occasions, India will engage in the peace process, regardless of the heinous terrorist attacks against India.'
June 08, 2009
If only a fine speech could help!If he has nothing to offer beyond what he has said in Cairo on the Palestine issue, making peace with Islam will remain a distant dream. I very much hope that he has something else up his sleeve.
June 05, 2009
If only a fine speech could help!If he has nothing to offer beyond what he has said in Cairo on the Palestine issue, making peace with Islam will remain a distant dream. I very much hope that he has something else up his sleeve.
May 28, 2009
India-US: Hazardous days ahead'India has much to be apprehensive about President Obama's Afpak policy, nuclear agenda and outsourcing.'
May 16, 2009
Shashi Tharoor makes history'Shashi Tharoor and Congress party coming together was a recipe for success. If Shashi had chosen to contest on his own on the basis of his personal accomplishments, he could have presented an agenda for change and made a splash, but like some of the other Independent stars, he would have made a point, but not gone any further.'
October 02, 2008
N-deal: A dream come trueThe US Senators, who sat through the night to vote on the Bill to clear the 123 agreement till the dawn of October 2 in India, must have been unaware that they were linking the new dawn in Indo-US relations to Mahatma Gandhi. The proverbial Gandhi magic may have played a role in persuading the reluctant Senators to remove the last hurdle in India's 34-year-old struggle to end India's nuclear isolation.
September 09, 2008
Sedition was never so well cloakedCountries with secessionist movements within them should shudder to think of these recent examples of forced independence with the connivance of the big powers. We cannot dismiss them as part of the shaping of a new Europe where Russia, backed by its newly found economic strength, is flexing its muscles to survive against the machinations of NATO. We know that NATO is not confined to Europe any more.
September 04, 2008
No Dark Secrets in a Bureaucratic Note'As long as the prime minister's assurances are embodied in the 123 Agreement, we do not need to quarrel with an internal document of the United States.'
August 25, 2008
NSG: Do not discard the baby with the bath waterOne reason that the United States has advanced as a justification for an exemption for India from the NSG guidelines is that India will be a contributing partner in the non-proliferation regime, once it accepts safeguards. When India insists that the deal is purely for energy and not for assisting in non-proliferation even by implication, the NSG members become perplexed and suspicious.
July 14, 2008
India has got the best possible agreementThe mistake the enemies of the deal in India and the US are making is to seek satisfaction over their own wish list.
July 02, 2008
Next Steps in the Nuclear DealIf the government has the courage to defy its leftist allies, there is no better time to tackle these issues than now.
May 12, 2008
Bobby Jindal for Vice-President?'To see Jindal just a heartbeat away from the US Presidency should gladden our hearts.'
January 09, 2008
From Stalin to Putin: man of all seasonsYuli Vorontsov will be mourned in India by many, who knew him as a sophisticated and friendly diplomat.
August 29, 2007
Leave the nuclear deal to the Little Man'The 123 Agreement is open to different interpretations, but it has enough ambiguities there to operate in our interest. The withdrawal clauses in the Agreement are a masterpiece in drafting.'
August 24, 2007
IAEA and NSG will be no Cakewalk'The US has promised all help, but India will have to work with each of the NSG'S 45 members.'
July 23, 2007
A Diplomat and a Gentleman'The discovery of Hamid Ansari has rekindled hopes that India still has the possibility of rising above partisan politics and to find true patriots with integrity to shoulder State responsibilities.'
July 16, 2007
Nigeria Calling: Indians beware!Nigerian scams are known to e-mail users around the globe, but this one was new because the message had come from my brother's e-mail account.
June 26, 2007
Kurt Waldheim: Rogue or Role Model?'He reduced the secretary general's position so low that his brilliant successors like Boutros Ghali and Kofi Annan looked like rebels.'
June 04, 2007
Nuclear deal breakers still alive and well'If we approach the 123 Agreement as a device to open the door to international cooperation and not as a fundamental document, it may be possible to find the middle path soon.'
March 30, 2007
Hard to imagine UN without Shashi TharoorWhat distinguished Shashi from the other senior Indians in the UN Secretariat even in the early years of his career was that he was not paranoid about asserting his international personality to the point of erasing his Indian identity.
March 05, 2007
The twenty-first century is India's to loseAlleviation of poverty is a key element for progress, but to establish a better economic climate for India's farmers and create more jobs, India has to overcome many hazards.
February 12, 2007
Pranab's Iran visit a signal to the US 'It sent a clear message to the Americans that despite the Hyde Act, India would deal with Iran on the basis of its own lights.'
October 04, 2006
Tharoor bowed out with enhanced prestige for himself and IndiaWith his added stature as the runner-up to the highest position in the United Nations, the sky is the limit for Tharoor, whether he stays in the UN or not.
September 20, 2006
In Havana there was more give than take'We came out of Havana with much of our position on terrorism diluted.'
July 24, 2006
Desis in ActionFor the first generation of desis, their Indianness is an anchor, which restrains it, while for the next, it is a legacy that inspires them to soar high. Both are genuinely desi and do South Asia proud.
June 22, 2006
The uniqueness of AmmaFor a person, who speaks nothing but Malayalam, preaches no intricate philosophy and claims no divinity, her following around the world is nothing but a miracle.
February 15, 2006
From golf partner to coup leaderIt remains unclear whether Rabuka's time in India at the Staff College had a role to play in his anti-Fiji Indian feeling.
January 23, 2006
The Man Who Knew Netaji'He was convinced Netaji died in the air crash. If he had survived, he would have contacted Nairsan.'
November 10, 2005
Narayanan's journey was no less spectacular than Lincoln's'Perhaps, it was even more sensational as Lincoln did not have to fight centuries of caste prejudices that Narayanan had to overcome.'
November 07, 2005
Tribute: Kerala's Envoy ExtraordinaireA famous writer once said the Qutab Minar and Madhavan Kutty were the two attractions for every Keralite who went to New Delhi.
September 21, 2005
From Waldheim to AnnanThey began as hot favourites of the US, but at one time or the other, fell out of favour.
August 12, 2005
Development & dim sumProfessor Jagdish Bhagwati is best known for transforming the philosophy of development.
August 05, 2005
Europe's rising starAngela Merkel could become Germany's first ever woman leader.
June 16, 2005
The Nuclear straight hitter'Elbaradei has not only learnt to work with India productively, but also developed a rapport with our nuclear scientists.'
June 15, 2005
Our Man in MoscowTo me, somehow, Dhar matched Chanakya of my imagination, tall, handsome, intelligent and stylish. But there was nothing Machiavellian about him.
May 31, 2005
The Fidel Castro I knew'More than his ideology, Castro's personal charisma must be responsible for his longevity.'
May 24, 2005
The charming diplomatIf there ever was a personification of all that is best in personal diplomacy, it was K P S Menon.
May 4, 2005
India's honoured guest'Only a great country could risk the wrath of China by giving refuge to the Tibetans.'
March 16, 2005
The King of TongaEncounters with the larger-than-life monarch.
March 1, 2005
India is in his marrow'Encounters with Zubin Mehta.
February 14, 2005
A colossus who died lonelyRatu Sir Kamisese Mara loved his country, but saw it as his inheritance, which he had to run in his own way.
January 28, 2005
A true friend of IndiaSteve Solarz's standing in the community and his general reputation as a friend of India helped advance our cause in Washington. He was not expected to be objective when it came to India, but his presentations were compelling and absorbing.
January 11, 2005
Dixit was short, his presence was gigantic'He had no false modesty either about India or about himself and he had nothing to be modest about.'
December 30, 2004
Rao could stick to his gunsDid Narasimha Rao promise the Americans that India would not test a nuclear device?
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