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I love China despite 'suppression' in Tibet: Dalai
"Sometimes you see some of these hardliners' sort of policy, brutalist policy, sometimes I got some irritation for short moment," the Buddhist monk said in a TV talk-show. "Still, yes, I have to sort of make effort to keep love," he said in the interview broadcast on Monday evening. The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 as China crushed an abortive uprising against its rule in the Himalayan territory. He has since lived in India and built a global following, despite China's attempts to isolate him. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate met on Thursday at the White House with President Barack Obama, leading China to summon the US ambassador in Beijing to protest. Beijing accuses the Dalai Lama of being a separatist. But the Dalai Lama repeated he is not seeking independence but only greater autonomy for Tibetans within Chinese rule. "We do not want separation from China because Tibet -landlocked country, materially backward. Every Tibetan wants modernized Tibet so for that reason remain within the People's Republic of China is our own interest," he said. He said Tibetans had complaints about Chinese policies, including on religious freedom and the environment. "The Chinese government denies there is a sort of problem. They say Tibetans - very happy, prosperity, very much better than previous Tibet," he said. "But we received information from some inside... on cultural side, or religious ... so much suppression and control, restriction," he said. The Dalai Lama conceded that his "Middle Way" approach pursuing dialogue and nonviolence to seek autonomy within China had failed to change conditions for those within Tibet. "Our approach brings lots of support from Chinese intellectuals or writers and also many governments, now clearly including the United States government and the Indian government," he said. The Dalai Lama turns 75 in July and has increasingly focused attention on the search for his successor, amid fears among Tibetans that China is waiting for his death to pick a pliant new spiritual leader. In a separate interview with National Public Radio, the Dalai Lama said it was up to Tibetans to decide whether to continue his seven-century-old position. "If majority of Tibetan people feel the Dalai institution is no longer much relevant, then this institution should cease there is no problem," he said. Indo-Pak meet on 25th Feb is a significant breakthrough: USWASHINGTON, Feb 23: The Foreign Secretary level meeting between India and Pakistan on 25th Feb is a significant breakthrough between the two South Asian neighbours, a top Obama Admin official has said. "We welcome very much the fact that these talks are taking place. I think this is a significant breakthrough, and I really want to commend both the Indians and the Pakistanis for arranging these talks," the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake said in an interview to the BBC, according to a transcript released by the State Department. "Talks have been suspended for some time as a result of the November 2008 bombings in Mumbai, so we think this is a very valuable opportunity for both of these countries to explore the important issues on their agenda, but also to think about ways that they can begin the process of reestablishing the composite dialogue that they suspended and again, normalise relations," Blake said in response to a question about the 25th February meeting between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan. "As you know, a great deal of progress was made between 2004 and 2007. I think we and the Indians and the Pakistanis themselves hope that that progress can be reestablished," Blake said. The Foreign Secretary level meeting between India and Pakistan on 25th Feb is a significant breakthrough between the two South Asian neighbours, a top Obama Admin official has said. "We welcome very much the fact that these talks are taking place. I think this is a significant breakthrough, and I really want to commend both the Indians and the Pakistanis for arranging these talks," the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake said in an interview to the BBC, according to a transcript released by the State Department. "Talks have been suspended for some time as a result of the November 2008 bombings in Mumbai, so we think this is a very valuable opportunity for both of these countries to explore the important issues on their agenda, but also to think about ways that they can begin the process of reestablishing the composite dialogue that they suspended and again, normalise relations," Blake said in response to a question about the 25th February meeting between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan. "As you know, a great deal of progress was made between 2004 and 2007. I think we and the Indians and the Pakistanis themselves hope that that progress can be reestablished," Blake said. Obama meets Dalai Lama defying Chinese warningsWASHINGTON, Feb 18: President Barack Obama held a long awaited meeting with the Dalai Lama on Thursday defying warnings from Beijing that it could further strain US-Sino relations amid tension over American arms sales to Taiwan and claims of Chinese cyber-spying. Obama, who had failed to meet the Tibetan spiritual leader last year to keep Beijing in good humour ahead of his first state visit to China in November, met the Dalai Lama in the White House Map Room instead of his Oval Office to indicate the unofficial nature of the meeting. No cameras were allowed as the two Nobel Peace Prize recipients opened their talks. Dalai Lama has now met every sitting US president since George HW Bush in 1991, but none of them received him in the Oval Office. White House planned to release an official picture later. The Dalai Lama will later hold a separate closed-door meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Across the White House, supporters chanted and waved Tibetan and US flags in snowy Lafayette Square to welcome the Tibetan spiritual leader who has lived in exile in India since 1959 when he fled his homeland. Ahead of the visit the Dalai Lama's special envoy, Lodi Gayari, said he would be asking the US president to "help find a solution in resolving the Tibet issue that would be mutually beneficial to the Tibetan and Chinese people". But it was "important in itself that the meeting is happening," he said. Gayari stressed that the Dalai Lama agreed with Obama's decision not to meet him last October, but said that "we had a lot of misgivings". Meanwhile, a new national CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released on Thursday said nearly three-quarters of all Americans think that Tibet should be an independent country. But the survey also indicates that most Americans think it is more important to maintain good relations with China than to take a stand on Tibet. US wants Indian firms to create jobs in America
U.S. Ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer also sought to downplay concerns that President Barack Obama was targeting American companies having operations in India ever since he called such businesses tax evaders. “There are some companies that try to take advantage of U.S. law, not in India; they try to manipulate U.S. law for the most part and create tax havens in other places in the world”, Mr. Roemer told reporters late Wednesday evening. The U.S. President is trying to target them and “go after”, he said. Also speaking in the context of outsourcing to India, Mr. Roemer said the U.S. also believes “very, very deeply” in regard to trade issue. “You can create jobs in America, and have fair tax policy and double your exports”, he said. Mr. Obama had said earlier this week, “If you are a business here, entirely located in the US, and investing in the U.S., and hiring workers in the U.S., you are paying a 35 per cent rate”. “However, if you are a multinational and you are investing in India, and your workforce is in India, and your plants and equipment are in India, but your headquarters are here, you are taking deductions on all the expenses in India, but you are keeping your profits outside the U.S.; and that just doesn’t seem entirely fair”, he had argued. Meanwhile, Roemer strongly backed U.S. solar technology firms initiating and expanding their exports to India. A trade mission of 15 U.S. solar companies is currently visiting Bangalore. The mission is headed by Acting Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Service, Mary Saunders. “There are 15 cutting-edge solar companies seeking local trading partners and project opportunities”, Mr. Roemer said. Obama speaks to Manmohan; condemns Pune blast
In the brief telephonic conversation, Obama condoled the loss of lives, the Prime Minister's Office said. "The two leaders took the opportunity to review developments in Indo-US relations," it said. The Obama administration has offered FBI help in the investigation into Saturday's blast at the German Bakery, a popular eatery in Pune's posh Koregaon Park area. The US State Department has said it is working with India and Pakistan to combat the threats the three countries face from terrorist and extremist groups. "The information we have shared so far has been quite unprecedented, and we intend to continue to working with the Government of India to try and protect our two societies from these types of attacks," Acting US State Department Spokesman Gordon Duguid said. Dalai Lama to seek Obama's help in resolving Tibet issue
The Tibet's exiled leader would also meet the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the State Department announced. Terming it as an important meeting, the Dalai Lama's Special Envoy, Lodi Gyari, said the Tibetan leader will speak about Tibet, and as two Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, he and the President are likely to discuss global concerns. "His Holiness will be asking the President to help find a solution in resolving the Tibet issue that would be mutually beneficial to the Tibetan and Chinese people," Gyari said in a statement issued soon after the arrival of the Dalai Lama in Washington on Wednesday afternoon. The Dalai Lama would also receive an award for his commitment to advancing the principles of democracy and human rights. Hillary Clinton claims Iran is becoming 'military dictatorship'
"We see that the government of Iran, the supreme leader, the president, the parliament [are] being supplanted and that Iran is moving towards a military dictatorship," she said in a blunt assessment delivered to students in Qatar during a three-day tour of the Arabian peninsula. The Revolutionary Guard is viewed by many as the dominant political, economic and military force in the country. With over 120,000 men under its command, it has become the bedrock of the Iranian regime, protecting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the country's president who was once a Guard officer himself. Since Mr Ahmadinejad's controversial re-election last June, it has further cemented its power by using its feared Basij paramilitary wing to lead the suppression of protests by the opposition's so-called Green Movement. So brutal were the Basij's tactics that Britain and France yesterday led calls demanding an independent investigation into the post-election violence amid renewed allegations of widespread torture and even extrajudicial execution of political dissidents. Besides its political influence, the Revolutionary Guard has also caused international alarm because of its control over Iran's missile programme. More than half of the Iranian cabinet is filled with ex-Guard veterans, and US National Security Adviser James Jones has said sanctions against it could "well trigger regime change" in Iran. But It is the Revolutionary Guard's vast commercial empire that will be in America's sights for sanctions. Since it was founded to protect the regime in 1979, the Revolutionary Guard's business empire has grown to such an extent that some believe it controls a third of the Iranian economy. With annual revenues of at least £8 billion, it is regularly awarded lucrative state tenders for oil and gas development and has interests ranging from construction, to car manufacturing and banking. There are many targets to choose, and it is understood that Mr Obama is likely to seek a freeze on the international assets of more than 100 companies linked to the Guard. By concentrating a fourth round of UN sanctions on the Revolutionary Guard, US officials believe a wedge will be driven between the Iranian people and what they call Iran's "entitled class". It is a risk strategy, however, as hundreds of thousands of Iranians are employed by firms linked to the guard. International patience with Iran ran out last week when it resumed uranium enrichment, a move seen as an effective rejection of diplomatic efforts to end the impasse over the country's nuclear programme. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, has since claimed that Iran now has the capability of enriching uranium to a purity of 80 per cent, close to weapons-grade level. As Mr Obama stepped up his efforts to win support to punish Iran, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, travelled to Moscow to take up the sanctions cause with the Kremlin. US officials say Russia's patience with Iran has run out and predict that Moscow – which watered down the three previous rounds of sanctions – will support a new UN resolution. With Russia on board, the United States hopes China, which also holds a Security Council veto, will follow suit. US has never propped up India: Gates
"I would tell you that the United States clearly has not or has ever propped up India. India has not needed us for that purpose and, in fact, those familiar with the history would know that our relationship with India was fairly strained until not too many years ago," defence secretary Robert Gates has said. Gates comments came in response to questions fired at him during his recent visit to Pakistan, full transcript of which have released by the Pentagon. In his exchanges with Indian and Pakistani leaders, Gates said both the countries had said they would like to resolve the differences bilaterally. "Having an open and candid and completely transparent dialogue... seems to be the best way to avoid misunderstanding," Gates said in key remarks as New Delhi and Islamabad are set to resume their stalled bilateral talks. He said there were misgivings both in Islamabad and New Delhi on the role the two countries were playing in Afghanistan and it was essential that in any future dialogue such a misunderstanding should be cleared. He also suggested that India and Pakistan could deal with the suspicions through back channel discussions. Though both Islamabad and New Delhi saw no role for third party intervention in their bilateral dialogue, the US defence secretary said, "if we can be of any help and if the two parties want us to be of help, we will do what we can. We are prepared to play a constructive role, but only if both parties want us to be involved." Gates said US had made it clear that terrorist outfits like the Taliban in Afghanistan, Taliban in Pakistan, al-Qaida, Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba were working together which is a common threat to "US, Pakistan, Afghanistan as well as India." "There has to be a level of cooperation in countering the terrorist threat in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, the United States and others to prevent the terrorists from doing exactly what their objective is. "Believe me, there should be no mistake; these terrorists want to destabilise Pakistan. They would like to see Pakistan become an extremist state and that is their objective. And if they think they can provoke a conflict with India, that's what they will try to do," he said. "All I was saying when I was in India was we all have to work together to prevent that kind of an outcome. We all have a common enemy. We all have a common purpose," he said. Obama pledges to create jobs in key speech
Speaking to a before a politician-packed House of Representatives chamber and a television audience of millions, Mr. Obama urged lawmakers to come together around new stimulus spending and short-term economic relief. Defiant despite stinging setbacks, he said he would not abandon ambitious plans for longer-term fixes to health care, energy, education and more. “Change has not come fast enough,” Mr. Obama said. He compared the United States to other nations: “Washington has been telling us to wait for decades, even as the problems have grown worse. Meanwhile, China’s not waiting to revamp its economy. Germany’s not waiting. India’s not waiting.” Mr. Obama looked to use the high-profile speech to change America’s conversation from how his presidency is troubled -- over the messy health care debate, a limping economy and the missteps that led to Christmas Day’s barely averted terrorist attack -- to how he is seizing the reins on the economic worries foremost on Americans’ minds. He spoke to a nation gloomy over double-digit unemployment and federal deficits soaring to a record $1.4 trillion, and to fellow Democrats dispirited about the fallen standing of a president they hoped would carry them through this fall’s midterm congressional elections. Democrats fear that the fallen standing of the president could hurt them in November’s congressional and gubernatorial elections. Just last week, Republicans scored a stunning victory by winning the Senate seat long held by the late Edward M. Kennedy. Republicans applauded the president when he entered the chamber, and even craned their necks and welcomed Michelle Obama when she took her seat. But the warm feelings of bipartisanship disappeared early. Democrats jumped to their feet and roared when Obama said he wanted to impose a new fee on banks, while Republicans sat stone-faced. Democrats stood and applauded when Mr. Obama mentioned the economic stimulus package passed last February. Republicans sat and stared. The president devoted about two-thirds of his speech to the economy, emphasizing his ideas for restoring job growth, taming budget deficits and changing a polarized Washington “where every day is Election Day.” These concerns are at the roots of voter emotions that drove supporters to Obama but now are turning on him as he governs. He looked to rescue the health care plan, his top domestic priority. The plan was on the verge of passage, then got derailed after opposition Republicans captured the Massachusetts seat. The United States lacks universal health care. “Do not walk away from reform,” he implored. “Not now. Not when we are so close.” In a remarkable shift from past addresses, and notable for a president whose candidacy caught fire over his opposition to the Iraq war, foreign policy was taking a relative back seat. On national security, Mr. Obama proclaimed some success, saying that “far more” al-Qaeda terrorists were killed under his watch last year in the U.S.-led global fight than in 2008. Also, hoping to salve growing disappointment in a key constituency, Mr. Obama said he would work with Congress to repeal the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military. But in a concession to concern among Republicans and in his own party’s right flank, Obama neither made a commitment to suspend the practice in the interim nor issued a firm deadline. Throughout the speech, Mr. Obama aimed to show he understands Americans’ struggles to pay bills while big banks get bailouts and bonuses. Trying to position himself as a fighter for regular people, he urged Congress to blunt the impact of a Supreme Court decision last week handing corporations greater influence over elections. “I don’t think American elections should be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests, and worse, by foreign entities,” he said. Declaring that “I know the anxieties” of Americans’ struggling to pay the bills while big banks get bailouts and bonuses, Mr. Obama prodded Congress to enact a second stimulus package “without delay,” specifying that it should contain a range of measures to help small businesses and funding for infrastructure projects. Also, Mr. Obama said he will initiate a $30 billion program to provide money to community banks at low rates. The money would come from balances left in the $700 billion Wall Street rescue fund -- a program “about as popular as a root canal” that he made of point of saying “I hated.” Even before Mr. Obama spoke, many of the proposals the White House revealed in advance were being dismissed -- on the right or the left as poorly targeted or too modest to make a difference. Republicans sought to capitalize on the Democrats’ tough straits with their choice for the traditional Republican response: Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia, who took his state from Democratic hands two months ago. Mr. McDonnell, in excerpts of his speech released in advance, said Democratic policies are resulting in an unsustainable level of debt. He said Americans want affordable health care, but they don’t want the government to run it. “Top-down, one-size-fits-all decision-making should not replace the personal choices of free people in a free market,” Mr. McDonnell said. In his speech, Mr. Obama hoped to rekindle the energy of his historic election. Though aides worked up until the last minute to whittle it down, it still ran to an hour and nine minutes, with applause, longer than any State of the Union since the Clinton era and surely taxed viewers’ patience. India won't have unlimited patience if 26/11 is repeated: GatesNEW DELHI, Jan 19: The US on Wednesday made it clear that India's patience would be "limited" if it faces a Mumbai-type attack again as it warned that Lashkar-e-Taiba was working in league with al-Qaeda to destabilise the region and provoke an Indo-Pak military confrontation. Defence Secretary Robert Gates, who discussed the serious threat posed by terrorism to the region with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Defence Minister A K Antony, emphasised the need for "high level of cooperation" from all countries to defeat the "syndicate" of terror, including the LeT, the Taliban and the Tehreek-e-Taliban under the command of al-Qaeda. He said the syndicate had "home and safe haven" in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border areas and that there was need to recognise the magnitude of threat to the entire region. "While al-Qaeda is operating in Afghanistan along with the Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban is focusing on Pakistan. The Lashkar-e-Taiba is focusing on Pakistan as also India," Gates told reporters here winding up his two-day visit. "The success of any one of them is success for all... Victory for one is victory for all. These groups operate under the umbrella of al-Qeada from North West Frontier Province (of Pakistan) and Waziristan," he said. "Under the umbrella, they intend to destabilise not only Pakistan, but the entire region by provoking confrontation between India and Pakistan through terror attacks. This is a very complicated issue and very dangerous for the entire region as a whole," he added. To a question, Gates said that it would "not be unreasonable to assume that India's patience will be limited" if there is a repeat of 26/11. "After the Mumbai attacks, India had responded with great restraint and statesmanship. But if attacked again, the response is a question. I leave this question to the Indian government," Gates said. Pressing the need for high level of cooperation to eliminate such forces, he said it would be difficult to wipe them out by targeting only one of the groups. Describing the terror situation in the region as "complicated" and "very dangerous", the US Defence Secretary said it would be "very dangerous" to single out any one group out of the syndicate to be targeted as all of them needed to combated together. In this regard, he said, it was important for all the countries to "remain engaged and eliminate the terror groups". Queried whether he sought India's military role in Afghanistan, Gates suggested that the US was not interested in it given the "real suspicions" between India and Pakistan about the role each is playing there. US defence secretary meets Indian PM, discusses military cooperation
Besides the expanding defence cooperation between New Delhi and Washington in training, exercises and trade, the two sides focused on the fight against insurgent groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan during Gates' talks with Manmohan Singh and external affairs minister S M Krishna. Gates arrived Tuesday afternoon on a two-day visit to India after the Taliban staged one of their most audacious attacks in Kabul Monday, setting off explosions and engaging security forces close to the presidential palace and seizing ministry building. After his arrival, Gates met the prime minister and appealed for closer military cooperation between America and India to bring stability to South Asia. In an opinion piece published in the Times of India ahead of his visit here, Gates said that the two nations have been drawn together by their shared values and should push for greater cooperation in consulting new security threats. "We must seize this opportunity because the peace and security of South Asia is critical not just to this region but also to the entire international community," he said. Gates would meet his Indian counterpart defence minister A.K. Antony and is expected to discuss how New Delhi and Washington can extend its cooperation in counter-terrorism. He will also be meeting Indian Army chief Deepak Kapoor Wednesday. He is expected to sign a bilateral Logistics Support Agreement and a communication sharing pact, said officials in the Prime Minister's Office here. During his discussion with the political establishment, he is expected to focus on regional security, Afghanistan and relations between India and Pakistan. This will be the first high-level talks between the two countries since the prime minister visited Washington in November last year at the Obama administration's first state visit. His visit was preceded by another senior official in the Barack Obama administration, US special envoy Richard Holbrooke, who was here Monday to confer with Indian officials ahead of the London conference on Afghanistan. Gates came to India ahead of his trip to Pakistan. He had last visited the Indian capital February 2008. Earlier, speaking to reporters on his flight to New Delhi, Gates said he sees his visit to India as another step toward expanding the two countries' solid defence relationship, particularly in light of the common threats they face. "It will be a further review of progress we are making in expanding the relationship - whether it is training, exercises or defence trade," he said. "All these things have grown significantly since the two countries signed a defence framework agreement in 2005," he said calling terrorism the greatest common challenge the two countries face. Gates also cited strides the US and India have made in developing a stable defence trade, most recently with India's decision to buy US transport aircraft and other military equipment. Besides, he will explore with Indian leaders ways to expand the already-robust military-to-military relationship, deepen counter-terrorism cooperation and bolster India's role in promoting security in Afghanistan and Pakistan and the entire South Asia region. The talks undoubtedly will address tensions between India and Pakistan. However, defence officials said they are gratified by both countries' growing recognition that their biggest threat is radical extremism, not each other. Gates had also praised India's restraint after the Mumbai terror attacks, terming it "statesman-like". "I believe that the Indians responded subsequently with a great deal of restraint and have conducted themselves in a very statesmanlike manner since that attack," he told reporters. Military trade is likely to be discussed, but Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell emphasised that Gates' visit is intended to deepen relations with a growing global economic, political and security leader, not to sell weapons. "The secretary is travelling to India because we have strong bilateral relations with that country and need to nurture and grow those," he said. "That is a priority." Military exercises between the US and India have increased in size and scope every year since 2002, the defence official noted. LeT gave Gilani, Headley $28,000 for Mumbai terror preparation
A Federal Grand Jury indictment unsealed in Chicago on Thursday reveals that the Lashkar-e-Taiba bankrolled 26/11 suspect Daood Gilani alias David Coleman Headley to the tune of $ 28,000, including $ 3000 in Indian currency, for his repeated trips to India for surveillance jobs. Gilani/Headley’s LeT handlers also showed him a styrofoam mockup of the Taj Mahal hotel and provided him with a global positioning system device and taught him how to use it to record the locations of possible landing sites and potential targets in Mumbai, which Headley then used during his surveillance trips in April and July 2008, the charges state. The new details are contained in the indictment formally charging Chicago businessman Tahawwur Hussain Rana with helping his army school mate Daood Gilani alias David Coleman Headley in the Mumbai terror attack and being part of a conspiracy hatched in Pakistan to attack a Danish newspaper that published cartoons of Prophet Mohammed. Throwing fresh light on the case, the Grand Jury also indicted Ilyas Kashmiri, a former Pakistani special forces commando who authorities allege is a terrorist leader in contact with al Qaeda, and Abdur Rehman Hashim Syed, a ''retired'' major in the Pakistani military. Both are believed to be in Pakistan and it was not immediately clear how the U.S intends to proceed against them. Rana and Gilani are in federal custody in Chicago. The indictment offers new details about the role that the two Pakistani army school buddies are alleged to have played in the 2008 terror assault in Mumbai that killed nearly 170 people and the financial transactions in Pakistan. It says Rana knew of the planned attacks as long ago as 2006, and that he allowed Headley to travel as a representative of his Chicago-based Immigration business when the latter went overseas to scout locations for the attacks. But Gilani/Headley’s involvement in terrorism goes even further back to 2002 and 2003 when he allegedly attended terrorism training camps in Pakistan maintained by LeT. According to the charges, unnamed Lashkar Member A, who served as a “handler” for Headley and another person associated with Lashkar, advised Headley in late 2005 that he would be traveling to India to perform surveillance of potential targets. Headley changed his given name of Daood Gilani on Feb. 15, 2006, in Philadelphia, enabling him “to present himself in India as an American who was neither Muslim nor Pakistani,” says the indictment. In the spring of 2006, Lashkar Member A and a Lashkar associate discussed with Headley the idea that he could open an immigration office in Mumbai as a cover for his surveillance activities. In approximately June 2006, Headley allegedly traveled to Chicago, advised Rana of his assignment to scout potential targets in India, and obtained approval from Rana, who owned First World Immigration Services in Chicago and elsewhere, to open a First World office in Mumbai as cover for his activities. Rana allegedly directed an individual associated with First World to prepare documents supporting Headley’s cover story of opening a First World office in Mumbai, and advised Headley how to obtain a visa for travel to India. Headley misrepresented his birth name, his father’s true name and the purpose of his travel in his visa application, the indictment alleges. The indictment says Headley made five extended trips to Mumbai — in September 2006, February and September 2007, and April and July 2008 — each time taking photographs and making videotapes of various potential targets, including those attacked in November 2008, and using his association with First World as cover for his travels. Before each trip, Lashkar members and associates allegedly instructed Headley regarding specific locations where he was to conduct surveillance, and Headley traveled to Pakistan after each trip to meet with Lashkar members and associates, report on the results of his surveillance, and provide the surveillance photos and videos. US authorities have refrained from naming LeT Member A and other Pakistani associates in the plot in order not to embarrass Islamabad, which is widely seen here as patron of terrorism in all but formal designation. Washington apparently needs Pakistani cooperation, and a toe-hold in Islamabad, to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism there. Rana, 49, was indicted on three counts of providing material support to terrorism, including the Mumbai and Denmark plots. He remains held without bail and could face a life term if convicted. Headley, who is also 49, faces 12 counts, including six counts of conspiracy to bomb public places in India. The charges against him could carry the death penalty if he is convicted, but he has been cooperating with investigators since his arrest in Chicago in October in the hope of a reduced sentence. Dawood is a terrorist, has 'strategic alliance' with ISI, says USWASHINGTON, Jan 7: Nearly 17 years after Dawood Ibrahim’s infamous D-company fled to Karachi after devastating Mumbai with serial bomb attacks that killed 258 people, the United States has highlighted Pakistan’s patronage of the underworld don and said the "criminal-terrorism fusion model" he represents is "a credible threat to US interests in South Asia." A US Congressional report released Tuesday identified the D-company as a "5,000-member criminal syndicate operating mostly in Pakistan, India, and the United Arab Emirates," which has a "strategic alliance" with ISI and has "forged relationships with Islamists, including Lashkar-e-Taiba and al-Qaida." The report, prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the research wing of Congress, is aimed at priming US lawmakers on various issues, and has no immediate policy implications. The US Department of Treasury has already designated Ibrahim as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) in 2006 and President Bush designated him, as well as his D-Company organization, as a Significant Foreign Narcotics Trafficker under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. Neither action has persuaded US "ally" Pakistan, which shelters Ibrahim but denies he is in the country, to prosecute him or extradite him to India or US Aside from periodic hand-wringing, Washington too has made little effort to force Pakistan to give up Ibrahim or other terrorists such as Omar Sheikh Saeed, an accused in the Daniel Pearl beheading case who is also suspected of wiring $ 100,000 to 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta. In fact, the same day as the CRS report on criminal-terrorism nexus was released, Washington was also forced to focus on the nexus between Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in India and its fall-out in Afghanistan, following reports that the massacre of seven CIA agents at a Forward Operating Base in Afghanistan was masterminded by Ilyas Kashmiri, a Pakistani commando-turned-jihadi. Kashmiri’s initial terrorist forays into India were largely ignored by Washington, the same way it overlooked the jihadi activities of Masood Azhar, Hafeez Saeed and other terrorist leaders under the pretense that it did not affect US interests. The latest CRS has a different tone altogether. It makes no secret of Pakistan’s sponsorship of the criminal-terrorist Ibrahim, saying his "D-Company is believed to have both deepened its strategic alliance with the ISI and developed links to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which was designated by the US as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in 2001." During this time period, some say D-Company began to finance LeT’sactivities, use its companies to lure recruits to LeT training camps, and give LeT operatives use of its smuggling routes and contacts, the report says. It also notes that some press accounts have reported that Ibrahim’s network might have provided a boat to the 10 terrorists who killed 173 people in Mumbai on 26/11 and records that the "US government contends that D-Company has found common cause with Al Qaeda and shares its smuggling routes with that terrorist group." Tracing Ibrahim’s background, the report says he began as a "criminal specialist" in Bombay, first as a low-level smuggler in the 1970s and later as the leader of a poly-crime syndicate. He formed a thriving criminal enterprise throughout the 1980s and became radicalized in the 1990s, forging relationships with Islamists, including LeT and Al Qaeda. D-Company’s evolution into a true criminal-terrorist group began in response to the destruction of the Babri Mosque and the subsequent riots that killed hundreds of Muslims, it recalls. "Outraged by the attacks on fellow Muslims and believing the Indian government acted indifferently to their plight, Ibrahim decided to retaliate. Reportedly with assistance ISI, D-Company launched a series of bombing attacks on March 12, 1993, killing 257 people. Following the attacks, Ibrahim moved his organization’s headquarters to Karachi, Pakistan," the report says, mincing no words about the terrorist don’s Pakistani location and patronage. While US analysts and researchers periodically wake up to the continued Pakistani protection of terrorists such as Ibrahim, Omar Sheikh Saeed, Masood Azhar and others, there is no sign that Washington is making any effort to persuade Islamabad to act against them. A furious President Obama railed about intelligence failure and the inability to connect the dots on the same day the CRS report was released, but US intelligence history is dotted with monumental flubs – including sleeping over A.Q.Khan’s nuclear proliferation (and not holding him or Pakistan accountable to this day) and a shocking lapse in tracing the origins of the $ 100,000 wired to 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta which would go towards significantly unraveling the 9/11 plot. Obama to unveil anti-terror reforms
Obama will outline an initial series of changes, including enhancements in much-criticized "watchlists" of terrorism suspects, after he meets with intelligence chiefs and other top security advisers, an administration official said. On Obama's first full day back from his Hawaii vacation, he faces the challenge of spotlighting national security — suddenly pushed to the top of his agenda — while not looking distracted from other pressing public concerns like reducing double-digit unemployment. It won't be easy. The administration is on the defensive after intelligence failures allowed a Nigerian with alleged links to Yemen-based al-Qaida operatives to board a transatlantic flight from Amsterdam on December 25. The man is accused of trying to blow up the plane with explosives hidden in his underwear. US spy agencies and the state department had information about the suspect, 23-year-old Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, but never connected the dots that might have put him on a no-fly list. White House officials have conceded the failed bomb plot on a Detroit-bound airliner exposed errors that must be fixed but have played down the need for a top-to-bottom overhaul of the US security system. But Obama, who returned on Monday from 11 days in his home state, has been lambasted by Republicans who accuse his Democratic administration of being weak on terrorism and unable to fix intelligence gaps that have lingered since the September 11, 2001, hijacked plane attacks. Republicans hope to score points for November elections to help challenge the Democrats' control of Congress. With the US military increasing forces battling Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan and burdened with continued responsibilities in Iraq, the failed Christmas attack has also raised doubts whether enough attention has been paid to Yemen, a poor, restive country at the tip of the Arabian peninsula. Despite the administration and media focus on the bombing attempt, White House spokesman Bill Burton said he did not expect the issue to keep Obama from addressing jobs, healthcare reform and the rest of his agenda. "When you're president of the United States you've got to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time," Burton said on Monday. It was clear, nevertheless, that national security issues and their domestic political ramifications would take up more of Obama's time than expected as he approached the one-year mark of his presidency. Pak officers working with jihadis, Headley confirms to FBI
Sources said this was revealed by Headley to his FBI interrogators in what is the first confirmation by an independent probe agency of the involvement of Pakistani army officers in planning and executing terrorist operations against India. This, sources said, had been conveyed to the Indian side by the FBI team which visited India to share information on Headley’s questioning. Sources said the officials identified by Headley were working with Lashkar on ‘Karachi project’ as part of a larger campaign against India. This project involves using jihadi fugitives from India sheltered in Pakistan to draw in vulnerable Indian Muslim youth. The FBI interrogation of David Coleman Headley has revealed a Lashkar training project involving jihadi fugitives from India. The youth, after they are trained by Pakistani army officials, are sent back to India as part of the gameplan to conceal the Pakistani involvement and pass off the terror in India as a home-grown phenomenon. During their discussions with FBI, the Indian side told them about their strong suspicion that Headley was present in the Karachi control room from which the Lashkar leadership choreographed the 26/11 terror attacks. The FBI team said this was not borne out by the evidence in their possession but the Indian side has asked the US agency to check a few facts which they have promised to do. The details of the Karachi project, revealed by FBI, corroborates India’s own findings. Agencies here have established that a number of absconding terrorists — Aamir Raza Khan, Mufti Sufi Patangiya and Rasool Parti and the remnants of Shahid Bilal gang from Hyderabad — have been luring Muslim youth to be trained as jihadis before being sent to India. The launch of Indian Mujahideen, which tormented India with a wave of bombings, was part of the plan to erase Pakistan’s fingerprints and pass off the attacks as resulting from the disaffection of a section of its own population. Even 26/11 attackers, armed with fake IDs of a Bangalore engineering college, had planned to mask their nationality. One of them had called up a TV channel introducing the gang as Deccan Mujahideen. Barack Obama rewrites war and peace for Nobel audience
The audience, a strange hotchpotch of Hollywood celebrities, pale Scandinavian politicians and rural Norwegians in folk costume, shifted uneasily when he talked about the necessity for bloodshed. Although the Nobel prize was established by the inventor of dynamite its laureates try to avoid dwelling on death. “Some will kill,” Mr Obama said of the US soldiers under his command. “Some will be killed.” He was intent on using the Nobel speech to discuss the costs of armed conflict and to examine “the relationship between war and peace, and our effort to replace one with the other”. For all of his initial tension, his unusually uncoordinated movements, Mr Obama ended up more at ease in the City Hall than when he gave his other “meaning of war” speech to West Point cadets earlier this month. On that occasion, he struggled to find the language to persuade future officers that bearing arms in Afghanistan was a good cause. At the Nobel ceremony his task was simpler: to convince his huge television audience that the US was committed to multilateralism, to strengthening the United Nations and to nuclear disarmament; and that this was not a sign of weak resolve. The White House was not being governed by a pro-European patsy. “It is also incumbent on all of us to insist that nations like Iran and North Korea do not game the system,” he said, making clear that he wanted international co-operation on stricter sanctions. “Those who claim to respect international law cannot avert their eyes when those laws are flouted. Those who care for their own security cannot ignore the danger of an arms race in the Middle East or East Asia.” Mr Obama was on familiar terrain: in the land of rules. The Nordic audience clearly lapped it up and by the end of the day had almost forgiven him for snubbing King Harald by avoiding the traditional Nobel salmon lunch with the monarch. Wanting to avoid any sign of premature triumphalism, the White House had shrunk a ceremony that normally stretches to three days into a crisp 24 hours. There is a pre-Christmas coziness to the Peace prize; it is chosen by five former politicians, often befriended, sometimes neighbours. This year the committee was chaired by the former Labour Prime Minister Thorbjøorn Jagland, and four women, the majority of whom had strong leftist credentials and a determination to reward the United States for shedding the legacy of President Bush. That fact that they were considering Mr Obama’s name as early as February was irrelevant. What counted was character, intention, a commitment to dialogue — and a rapid de-Bushisation of transatlantic relations. That was enough for the Nobel judges but it left Mr Obama beached, having to de-code and justify why he had accepted a prize that he had not yet earned. Hence the truncated visit. A year’s worth of Norwegian social life crammed into a single white-tie banquet. Ms Obama had packed a dancing gown but the word was that there would be no serious waltzing on a day when her husband wanted to demonstrate his commitment to the seriousness of war. “We can understand that there will be war and still strive for peace,” he said, thus parrying the critics who had pointed to the irony of the peace prize being handed to the architect of a future military surge in Afghanistan. The intellectual core of the speech was dedicated to setting out under what circumstances a war could be considered just, and what had to be done to create a stable rather than illusory peace. It was now essential, he said, to think deeply about the conduct of war. That was why, he said, he had started to close down Guantánamo Bay prison. “We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend,” he said, earning applause and very un-Nobellian whoop from the Hollywood benches. Kristian Berg Harpviken, the head of the International Peace Research Institute in Oslo, told The Times: “There seems to be a reassessment underway as to how wars should be fought.” Mr Obama seemingly wishes to develop the ideas about humane warfare that were first mooted during the war in Kosovo. “But there are problems,” said Dr Harpviken. “What is left of our protective mission if large numbers of civilians get killed? And is the price of avoiding US troop casualties, the greater exposure of Afghan soldiers?” Mr Obama frequently referred to civilian losses in his speech, and he stressed that humanitarian intervention remained a justification for force. “Inaction tears at our conscience and can lead to more costly intervention later.” As he prepared for his Nobel banquet, about 6,000 demonstrators gathered close to the venerable 19th century Grand Hotel taken over by the White House. What was striking was the fact that war protesters were outnumbered by climate change protesters. That balance might have been the result of watching Mr Obama on one of the large scale screens in the Norwegian capital. Or it might have been the eerie bright shining light that glowed over parts of the country just ahead of his visit. Not a UFO apparently, despite tabloid reporting, but probably a Russian rocket releasing fuel into the atmosphere. Whatever the cause, it seemed to make Norwegians more receptive to a finely tuned lecture on threat and opportunity, on war and peace. Headley charged with conspiracy in 26/11 attacks in US courtCHICAGO, Dec 7: US prosecutors on Monday charged American national and suspected Lashkar-e-Tayyeba operative David C. Headley with helping plan the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai that killed 172 people. The charges filed in Chicago’s federal court allege that Headley conducted extensive surveillance of targets in Mumbai for more than two years preceding the 2008 attacks. Headley has been charged in 12 counts with conspiracy to bomb public places in India, murder and maim persons in India and Denmark, provide material support to foreign terrorist plots, provide material support to Lashkar and for aiding and abetting the murder of US citizens in India. After his trips to India, Headley travelled to Pakistan to hand over the results of his surveillance and, in early 2008, he took boat trips into the Mumbai harbour, according to court documents. Through his attorneys, Headley has authorised the justice department to disclose that he is cooperating in the ongoing investigation of both the Indian and Danish terror plots. “This investigation remains active and ongoing,” said Patrick J. Fitzgerald, US attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. “The team will continue to seek charges against other persons responsible for the attacks.” Headley, the first American charged in the plot, was arrested in October from Chicago’s O’Hare airport along with Tahawwur Rana. The charges against Headley come a day after an FBI team arrived in India to share information on Headley and Rana. Officials with India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday said they have found that Headley even visited Goa and surveyed Arambol and Anjuna beaches in 2008. “Headley rented a room in Goa where he stayed for almost a week. NIA officials have recorded the statement of the landlady and those he met in Goa,” a home ministry official said. A retired major in the Pakistani military Abdur Rehman Hashim Syed was also charged with conspiracy in planning to attack a Danish newspaper that published cartoons of the Prophet. Pakistan only wants money and weapon: Menendez
“I get no sense that we have a Pakistan strategy. We have been talking about offering them a strategic relationship. They don’t seem to want a strategic relationship,” Senator Robert Menendez said at a hearing on Afghanistan convened by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “They want the money, they want the equipment, but at the end of the day, they don’t want a relationship that costs them too much,” Menendez said. Menendez, who is a vocal critic of Obama Administration’s policy on Pakistan, also opposed the idea of providing unconditional aid to the Islamic republic. “It seems to me the more we build up our troops in Afghanistan, the more reliant we become on the Pakistanis for -- in a variety of ways. So I just don’t get the sense, at this point in time, of a comprehensive policy that says that I should vote for billions of dollars more to send our sons and daughters in harm’s way in a way that we will ultimately succeed in our national security goals,” he said. He said that any aid to Pakistan needs to be conditional and be linked with Islamabad’s seriousness and progress made by them in taking action against terrorism. “I hope I can be convinced before that vote comes. But as of right now, I am not,” said Menendez who has authored several legislations and amendments in the US Congress in this regard. PM hopes US will get India official nuclear power state statusNEW DELHI, Nov 30: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hopes that the United States will help India get the official status of a nuclear weapons state, given its impeccable record in the field of non-proliferation. "Well, I hope it will happen," he told Fareed Zakaria of the CNN when asked if he thinks that the US should try to press the issue and have India brought into the system as a nuclear weapons state. The interview was taken in New Delhi, before Singh travelled to Washington last week. Its first part was telecast last Sunday, while the second part was aired on Sunday. It would be a positive development, the Prime Minister said when Zakaria asked if it is "fair to say that one of the ultimate objectives of India would perhaps be to become a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty system, but to be invited in as a nuclear weapons state in the way that China was." Despite its status as a nuclear nation, India has never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Zakaria noted. India's ultimate goal is actually to sign the treaty, but it does not have official nuclear state status. China got that in 1992, and that is what India wants, Zakaria said. "Well, if we were to go that way, that would be a very positive development from our point of view," Singh said. "We are a nuclear weapons state, but we are a responsible nuclear power. We have an impeccable record of not having contributed to unauthorised proliferation of these weapons of mass destruction," he said. "So, I think India does require, I think, greater consideration of the global community," Singh said. Last week, welcoming the Indian Prime Minister at the White House, US President Barack Obama had identified India as a nuclear power. "As nuclear powers, we can be full partners in preventing the spread of the world's most deadly weapons, securing loose nuclear materials from terrorists, and pursuing our shared vision of a world without nuclear weapons," Obama had said. The statement was viewed by many experts as a recognition by the US that India is a nuclear state. "We should cooperate in addressing global challenges of combating terrorism, making our environment cleaner and moving towards a world free of nuclear weapons," the Prime Minister had said, adding that India supports the move of the Obama Administration to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. India to get details about plans and network of Headley-RanaNEW DELHI, Nov 30: India is expected to get information about the plans and network of LeT operatives David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Rana next week when a high-level FBI team visits New Delhi with "all details" of their probe. National Security Adviser M K Narayanan said US President Barack Obama has told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that he was seized of the case related to Headley and Rana, who were arrested by the FBI on the charges of plotting attacks in India at the behest of Lashkar-e-Taiba. Obama told Dr Singh during their meeting on Tuesday that he would be sending a high-level FBI team to India within a week with "all details", Narayanan told journalists accompanying the Prime Minister on return home from two-nation tour of US and Trinidad and Tobago. The team is expected to give exhaustive details about the plans of Headley and Rana and their network in India. "Let us see what information they share," Narayanan said. Headley, a Pakistani-born American, and Rana, Canadian of Pakistani-origin, were arrested by the FBI in October on the charges of plotting attacks in India and Denmark. Indian officials suspect that Headley and Rana could have been involved in the 26/11 attacks but there is no evidence in this regard so far. Obama, Manmohan vow to implement nuclear deal
"The two leaders reiterated their intention to realise the full potential of the India-US Agreement for cooperation concerning the peaceful use of nuclear energy through the implementation of its provisions," said a joint statement issued on Tuesday after their summit meeting in the Oval office during the prime minister's state visit. "They agreed to expedite US firms' participation in the implementation of this agreement," the statement said without indicating a time frame. Regarding transfer of high technology, another key objective of Manmohan Singh's visit, the two leaders "agreed that strengthening high technology trade between their countries is in the spirit of their strategic dialogue and partnership. "They reiterated their shared commitment to technology security and that it is in their mutual interest to invigorate this area of their partnership," the statement said. The two leaders committed to continue pursuing mutually beneficial defence cooperation through the existing security dialogue, service-level exchanges, defence exercises, trade and technology transfer and collaboration. They recognised the scope for cooperation in the areas of non-traditional threats to security, peacekeeping, humanitarian and disaster relief, and maritime security and protecting sea lanes of communication, the statement said. "They agreed to expedite necessary arrangements to facilitate these activities." Manmohan Singh and Obama also agreed to collaborate in the application of their space technology and related scientific capabilities in outer space and for development purposes, including in the field of agriculture. There is certain amount of assertiveness by China: Indian PM
In a hard-hitting statement, he also sought to ridicule China's growth, suggesting that it was achieved by the "writ of the ruling group in an undemocratic set-up" while ignoring values like respect for human rights and multi-ethnic and "There is certain amount of assertiveness on the part of Chinese. I don't fully understand the reasons for it. That has to be taken note of," Singh said during an interaction at the US Council for Foreign Relations here. He did not elaborate but the statement assumes significance considering that China has recently been involved in some provocative steps like issuing visas to residents of Jammu and Kashmir on stapled sheets of paper rather than passport, to send out a message that the state was not a part of India. Besides, China has objected to the Prime Minister's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, is participating in projects in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir despite India's objections and mentioned Indo-Pak relations in Joint Statement with the US. Referring to the longstanding India-China border problems, the Prime Minister said India has been "trying hard" to engage China over the last five years in an attempt to resolve the dispute through dialogue. Pending the solution, the two countries have agreed to maintain peace and tranquility on the borders. "I have received these assurances from China at the highest level," said Singh, who is here on a four-day visit since Sunday. To a question on the Sino-US joint statement issued after meeting between US President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao in Beijing last week in which Indo-Pak relations were mentioned, the Prime Minister was dismissive. "What happens between President Obama and President Hu is not our direct concern," he said. Singh also sought to ridicule economic growth. "No doubt Chinese growth performance is superior to India's growth performance. But I always believe that there are other values which are important than the growth of GDP -- respect for fundamental human rights, respect for rule of law, respect for multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious "There are several dimensions to human freedom which are not always caught by the numbers with regard to the GDP. So I do believe that even though Indian performance with regard to GDP might not be as good as the Chinese, certainly I would not like to choose the Chinese path. I would like to stick to Indian path," Singh said explaining why Indian model of economic reform was preferable. The Prime Minister said India might seem to be indecisive at times, but "once democracy decides on the basis of wide-ranging consensus, any reforms that are undertaken will be far more durable, far more effective than the reforms introduced by the writ of ruling group in a non-democratic set-up." At the same time, the Prime Minister said world should be prepared for "peaceful rise of China as a major power" an "so engagement is the right strategy both for India as well as the US." US Senate passes unanimous resolution on India and PM's visit
Introduced by Senator Christopher Dodd, Co-Chair of the Senate India Caucus, and co-sponsored by as many as 18 other Senators, the resolution said the Senate "believes that together the governments of India and the US can bring immense benefits to their people and make enormous contributions to addressing the global challenges of the 21st century." A similar resolution was unanimously passed by the House of Representatives last week. The Senate resolution is considered to be significant as it was passed during the course of a rare weekend meeting of the US Senate which discussed the issue of health insurance reform. "Warmly welcoming Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh, on his official state visit," the Senate said it looks forward to the continuing progress in relations between India and the United States. Acknowledging the significant cooperation between the two countries, the resolution said India serves as a pivotal and We will hit India hard: Headley in emails to friendsNEW DELHI: David Coleman Headley, the Pakistan-origin US national who is suspected of plotting another version of 26/11, showed his feelings for India in emails to his old schoolmates. Writing about India earlier this year, after the Mumbai attacks when ties between India and Pakistan were particularly low, Headley is reported to have said, “We will retaliate against India.” These messages were sent by Headley to a Yahoo groups site with his former schoolmates from Hasan Abdal military school in Pakistan. The students call themselves ‘Abdalians’. These remarks were part of impassioned discussions about politics and Islam, a report in the New York Times said. In the aftermath of the Mumbai blasts, when Pakistan feared that India would attack it, terror group leaders like Baitullah Mehsud openly came out to say that they would fight against India on the side of Pakistan if hostilities broke out. Headley was clearly of the same persuasion. The NYT report said that in his email chats, Headley also complained about “NATO criminal vermin dropping 22,000 lbs bombs on unsuspecting, unarmed Afghan villagers” or “napalming southeast Asian farmers”. When a Polish engineer was beheaded by the Taliban in Pakistan, Headley wrote, “The best way for a man to die is with the sword.” The FBI indictment against Headley, the report said, shows that Headley was at ease being both Islamic Pakistani and American. But somewhere along the line, though he embraced the American name David Headley, his beliefs were hardening into more extremist directions. His uncle William Headley, who owns a day care centre in Nottingham, Pennsylvania, was quoted as saying, “Most people have contradictions in their lives but they learn to reconcile them. But Daood could never do that. The left side does not speak to the right side. And that’s the problem.” A news report by New York Times paints terror accused David Coleman Headley as someone with a Pakistani Muslim wife in Chicago but a make-up artist as a girlfriend in New York. In an email posting to his schoolmates, he said, “Some of us are saying that ‘terrorism’ is the weapon of the cowardly... I will say that you may call it barbaric or immoral or cruel, but never cowardly.” He added, “Courage is, by and large, exclusive to the Muslim nation.” The cases of Headley and the Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has focused attention on home-grown Islamism in the US. Headley, like 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, did not come from the poor, indoctrinated madrasas of Pakistan, instead hailed from a more educated westernised background. Headley was born in Washington to parents who worked as diplomats and officials at the Pakistani embassy. Not long after their wedding, Headley’s mother Serill left Pakistan because she could not reconcile to the life there and moved back to the US. Headley was brought back to the US by his mother in 1977 to live as an American. Obama meets Wen, wraps up China trip
Obama's first trip to China has been a mix of goodwill displays towards its sometimes wary people and leaders and closed-door discussions focused on the two big powers' vast and increasingly complex relationship. Wednesday was no different. Obama held talks with Wen and was then scheduled to visit the Great Wall, for Chinese people a proud symbol of their imperial heritage. He is then scheduled to leave for South Korea. The meeting with Wen, the head of the Chinese government, gave Obama a chance to raise touchy economic and diplomatic issues behind closed doors. But in their opening remarks before reporters, at least, both leaders stuck to upbeat phrases. "Mutual trust will help us move forward, while misgivings will take us back," said Wen. Obama already made plain in a summit with President Hu Jintao on Tuesday that he wants movement on China's currency policy. Many in Washington believe Beijing keeps the yuan too low in value, putting competitors at a disadvantage and distorting global economic flows. Hu, who is also the head of China's Communist Party, avoided mentioning the yuan or the dollar in his comments before reporters. But Wen, who is more deeply involved in day-to-day economic affairs, may have been more willing to grapple with Obama on currency and China's own gripes with US trade rules. Officials and experts from both sides have stressed, however, that Obama's visit will not bring about immediate policy shifts. "There will still be setbacks and even conflicts between China and the United States", said a commentary in the overseas edition of China's official People's Daily. "It will take the constant efforts of one or two generations, perhaps several, to bring stable progress to relations." Such summits are about setting priorities for future dealings, not making immediate policy changes, said Jin Canrong, an expert on China-US ties at Renmin University in Beijing. The issue of currencies has drawn testy comments from US and Chinese officials. China's Commerce Ministry on Monday rebuffed calls for the yuan to appreciate, signalling resistance to change foreign exchange policy. Outside pressure has been building on Beijing to let the yuan rise after more than a year of it being nearly frozen in place against the dollar, with the latest appeal voiced by the head of the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday. But Chinese officials have swatted down speculation of any big moves soon, and the government appears likely to keep the currency on a tight rein at least until the middle of 2010 to cement the country's economic recovery. "Any policy changes by China, including on the exchange rate, will be based on its assessment of its own interests, not on external pressure," said Jin, the professor. Wen may also have his own economic warning for Obama. In March, he took Washington to task over its fiscal policies, saying he worried about the health of China's vast US assets. He repeated those worries at a summit in Africa this month. China has amassed $2.27 trillion of foreign exchange reserves, the world's largest stockpile, and analysts think about two-thirds of this is invested in dollar-denominated assets. Obama and Hu have said that strains over trade and US criticism of China's human rights restrictions should not overshadow cooperation. Bonnie Glaser, an expert on China at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., said the statement issued by Obama and Hu underscored "the two countries have a lot of common interests, but it remains to be seen whether they can cooperate to advance them". Obama's talks with the Chinese leadership have also covered Iran and North Korea, both nuclear trouble-spots where Washington and Beijing say they want to work together, but often disagree on how much pressure to apply. Wen visited North Korea early last month. North Korea will also feature in Seoul, where Obama flies to later on Wednesday for meetings with South Korean leaders. North Korea toned down hostile rhetoric a day ahead of Obama arriving in Seoul, saying in an official newspaper on Tuesday that it wanted better ties between the two, divided Koreas. Obama meets Hu, says Tibet part of ChinaBEIJING, Nov 17: Describing Tibet as part of China, US President Barack Obama today supported the early resumption of talks between Beijing and representatives of the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama. "We did note that while we recognise that Tibet is part of the People's Republic of China, the United States supports the early resumption of dialogue between the Dalai Lama's representatives and Beijing," Obama said after his meeting with Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao. Chinese President Hu Jintao hailed US President Barack Obama's recognition of sovereignty issues dear to China. "China approves of President Obama's repeated reiteration of the one-China principle," Hu told reporters. Hu referred to China's "sovereignty over Taiwan and other matters" during a state visit in which some Western analysts had predicted that China would also demand an explicit declaration by Washington of China's sovereignty over the restive frontier regions of Tibet and Xinjiang. Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei, capital of self-ruled Taiwan, to Beijing in 1979 but remains the island's main arms supplier. Obama did not meet Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, when he was in Washington in early October. But the Dalai Lama has said they may meet after Obama returns from China, which condemns the Buddhist monk as a separatist for demanding Tibetan self-determination. China, which has governed Tibet since its troops occupied the territory in the 1950s, has repeatedly accused the Dalai Lama of leading a campaign to split the Himalayan region from the rest of the country. The 74-year-old Dalai Lama, who fled to India amid a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959, has denied the allegations. The last formal talks between the Dalai Lama's envoys and Chinese officials, the seventh since 2002, ended in an impasse in July last year, with China demanding that he prove that he did not support Tibetan independence. Relations have been particularly tense this year after large scale riots in Lhasa, Tibet's capital, in which hundreds of shops were torched and Chinese civilians were attacked. India, China are significant powers of the region: USWASHINGTON, Nov 11: The Obama Administration has said that India and China are two significant powers of the region and the US attaches importance to both countries for regional and global issues. “As you look at the Asia Pacific region, two significant powers in the region, with China on the one hand, India on the other hand, the President and the Secretary will be deeply engaged in discussions in the region,” P J Crowley, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs told reporters. “They (US President Barack Obama and the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton) will have discussions with the Chinese leaders,” Mr. Crowley said in response to a question, He further added that Mr. Obama and Ms. Clinton were looking forward to welcome Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his official visit to the US later this month. “It reflects the importance that we attach to both countries not only in terms of regional issues, but also on global issues,” he said. Mr. Crowley said that India and China are the emerging global powers, “and that’s why we have focused a great energy and attention on developing strong relationships with both.” Obama salutes Fort Hood victims, promises justice
Addressing a hushed crowd of thousands of soldiers on Tuesday, the president spoke forcefully if indirectly of the alleged shooter's motives in last week's massacre, never mentioning Maj. Nidal Hasan by name. "It may be hard to comprehend the twisted logic that led to this tragedy," Obama said. "But this much we do know: No faith justifies these murderous and craven acts." It was an apparent reference to reports that Hasan had communicated with a radical Islamic Imam. A vast investigation is under way, including questions about what the government knew about Hasan and whether action should have been taken. The president's remarks at a memorial service were personal, more about how the victims lived than how they died: the Eagle scout, the newlywed, the expectant mother, the soldier eager to catch Osama bin Laden by herself. The president spent more time meeting privately with the wounded and with loved ones of those killed than speaking in public. His tone stern, Obama pledged to the crowd that "the killer will be met with justice — in this world, and the next." On a steamy Texas day, Obama stepped into a scene filled with military resolve and tender moments. Soldiers helped wounded friends to their seats. A little girl in a black dress and shiny shoes clutched her mother's hand as hurting families streamed in. Thousands upon thousands gathered on a field for the ceremony. Right below the stage was a traditional military tribute to the fallen — 13 pairs of combat boots, each with an inverted rifle topped with a helmet. A picture of each person rested below the boots. Riflemen fired a last salute. A bugler played taps. After the ceremony, Obama walked solemnly along the row of boots, placing a commander-in-chief's coin next to each victim's photo in tribute. Then soldiers and loved ones traced the same path to remember those lost and give a final salute, one woman nearly collapsing with grief. Even as Obama honored the dead, there was fingerpointing back in Washington about what the military knew of Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, before the shooting rampage. Two U.S. officials said a Washington-based joint terrorism task force overseen by the FBI was notified of communications between Hasan and a radical imam overseas and the information was turned over to a Defense Criminal Investigative Service employee assigned to the group. But a military official denied prior knowledge of the Army psychiatrist's contacts with any Muslim extremists. All of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the case on the record. In Texas, one soldier who attended the memorial said the mood at Fort Hood was turning from sadness to anger as soldiers learned more about Hasan's background. "A lot of folks are angry because they feel this could have been prevented," said Spc. Brian Hill, a 25-year-old soldier from Nashville, Tenn., who was injured in Iraq and walks with a cane. "Somebody should have been paying attention." Obama, in his public remarks, spoke of the tranquility and liberty enjoyed by most Americans, and said the 13 fallen gave their lives for it. "That is their legacy," he said. As much as the president made the moment about the gunman's victims, the ceremony also was about him. Presidents inevitably must take the lead in times of tragedy, and this was Obama's moment to offer himself as consoler in chief. The president worked through several drafts of his speech, including three on the Air Force One flight down to Texas. He viewed the personal stories as the most important part of the speech, a senior aide said. About the victims and the soldiers who rushed to help them, Obama said, "We need not look to the past for greatness, because it is before our very eyes." Obama and first lady Michelle Obama devoted considerable time to three private meetings with those affected by the shooting rampage, meeting first with families of those killed, then with some of those wounded and their families, and later with those still hospitalized. "Just the president being here was a great morale booster to show the country he was here for the families," said Ronald Fiveash, a sailor whose brother was shot four times but survived. Sheila Wormuth, whose husband is stationed at Fort Hood, came with her 3-year-old daughter to show their support. While her husband wasn't at the shooting site, she said, "what happens to my husband's brothers and sisters happens to us." Bonita Childs, 46, drove 30 miles to attend the ceremony, even though she had no connection to Fort Hood. "I thought coming here today and showing my gratitude was the least I could do," she said. In a memorial offered in deeply personal terms, Obama spoke every victim's name and told of their lives. "These men and women came from all parts of the country," Obama said."Some had long careers in the military. Some had signed up to serve in the shadow of 9/11. Some had known intense combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, and some cared for those did. Their lives speak to the strength, the dignity and the decency of those who serve, and that is how they will be remembered." Obama to forge new partnership with Asian countriesWASHINGTON, Nov 10: As US President Barack Obama gets ready to leave Washington on a four-nation maiden sojourn to Asia and then hosts Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at his First State Dinner, top administration official on Tuesday said these are attempts to renew America's alliance in the region. "This is the fastest growing economic region in the world. It supports an extraordinary amount of US trade and jobs. It is also home to very critical political relationships to the US in our efforts to combat a series of global challenges," said Ben Rhodes, the Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications. "So the President looks forward to this attempt to really renew America's alliances in the region, to continue to forge new partnerships, and to make progress on a whole series of issues," he told reporters during a teleconference briefing Obama's first four-nation Asia trip beginning on Thursday. Obama is scheduled to travel to Japan, Singapore, N Korea and Beijing during his week-long trip to Asia wherein he would be holding a series of meetings with Asian leaders. The issues to dominate the agenda, Rhodes said, range from economic recovery agenda; Afghanistan, which are supported by several of its Asian partners; US efforts to stop the spread of nuclear weapons, including its continued efforts in relation to North Korea and Iran; and also its effort to make progress on clean energy and combating climate change. "So, there's a broad agenda that overlays the President's whole trip. I think the overarching theme is that America is a Pacific nation, it understands the importance of Asia in the 21st century, and it's going to be very engaged in a very comprehensive way to make progress on a whole series of issues that are critical for our prosperity and our security," Rhodes said. Obama would leave Washington on 12th November and after a brief stopover in Alaska, he would arrive in Japan on 13th November. During his two-day stay in Japan, Obama would be meeting the Japanese Prime Minister and the Emperor, besides delivering a speech at Suntory hall in Tokyo. "In this speech he'll have an opportunity to discuss his view of American engagement in Asia as it relates to the political, security and economic dimensions, and to also reaffirm the strength of the US-Japanese alliance," Rhodes said. Next day, Obama has a series of meetings lined up in Singapore. Prominent among them include bilateral meetings with the Prime Ministers of Singapore, and Presidents of Indonesia and Russia; attending the meeting of the APEC Summit, and having a multilateral meeting with leaders of ASEAN countries. Rhodes said Obama in his meeting with the Russian counterpart is looking forward to continue their dialogue on issues related to nonproliferation, global economic recovery, and a whole host of bilateral issues. US cannot 'dictate' solutions to India, Pak: Clinton
Clinton, who was on a three-day official visit to Pakistan, stated this during an interaction with women civil society leaders. Her remarks came a day after she appealed to India and Pakistan to resolve their differences for the benefit of regional trade and economic development. "What we hope is that at some point in the future -- which I would like to see in the not too distant future -- Pakistan and India can resolve their outstanding differences," Clinton said in Lahore on Thursday during a function. "And why do I say that? Because I believe that trade between Pakistan and India could rival trade anywhere. I believe that if there were peace between Pakistan and India and the outstanding issues were resolved, Pakistan would take off like a rocket in terms of economic development," she had said. Clinton had on Thursday also made it clear that while the US encouraged both countries to address their problems, only Pakistan and India could resolve such issues. India suspended the composite dialogue process after the Mumbai attacks in November last year, which it blamed on Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba. It wants Pakistan to take action against perpetrators of the attacks for resumption of the talks. Obama declares swine flu a national emergencyWASHINGTON, Oct 24: US President Barack Obama has signed a proclamation declaring 2009 H1N1 swine flu a national emergency, the White House said on Saturday. The proclamation, which Obama signed on Friday night, will make it easier for US medical facilities to handle a surge in flu patients by allowing the waiver of some requirements of Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health insurance programs as needed, the White House said in a statement. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that H1N1 swine flu has become widespread in 46 of the 50 US states, a level comparable to the peak of ordinary flu seasons but far earlier and with more waves of infection expected. The White House statement said the declaration was intended to prepare the country in case of "a rapid increase in illness that may overburden health care resources" and was similar to disaster declarations issued before hurricanes hit coastal areas. Seasonal flu normally peaks sometime between late November and early March. Swine flu has hit young adults and children the hardest, while seasonal flu normally is more dangerous for people over age 65. H1N1 has killed more than 1,000 Americans and put more than 20,000 in the hospital in the United States since it emerged earlier this year, the CDC said. But health officials are quick to note that the actual number of cases cannot be measured. Indo-US nuke deal unique, part of broader strategic ties: HillaryWASHINGTON, Oct 21: Affirming that the Obama administration fully backs the US-India nuclear deal, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday said that it was part of broader American strategic approach towards New Delhi and could not be used as a precise template or precedent for other countries. ''The nuclear accord that I supported as a Senator, and the Obama administration supports it as a government, is embedded in a broader strategic dialogue with Indians. We view the relationship as comprehensive and very deep in terms of the issues we wish to explore with our Indian counterparts,'' Clinton said in an address on non-proliferation issues at the US Institute of Peace. She added in this context that it is ''very significant'' that the first official visit to Washington under the Obama administration will be when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrives here late November. While implying that the US-India nuclear deal was unique and ''we are not going to use it as a template in specifics,'' for other countries, Clinton said its broad outlines to offer (to other countries) peaceful nuclear energy while at the same time having safeguards and verification is something the administration is looking at closely. The goal here is to ensure that the fuel cycle that does not spin into non-peaceful purposes, she added. Several countries, notably Pakistan and Iran, have been citing the US-India deal to seek similar deals (as in the case of the former) or leeway in their existing program (in the case of the latter). But India, Clinton indicated, was a different case. ''Obviously, we have lot of confidence with the Indians and their approach and we are going to be working closely with them, including American companies that will be part of implementing the reactor sites that are part of agreement,'' she said. Clinton also said Washington wanted India to be part of the over-all 1 effort, endorsing the strategy of the Bush administration, which wanted New Delhi to be in the nuclear tent rather than outside it, an approach which led to the nuclear deal. ''We want them to really be a major player at the table...in trying to reinstate a non-proliferation regime that can prevent further countries acquiring nuclear weapons or even peaceful nuclear capacity with safeguards,'' Secretary Clinton said. ''India we see as a full partner in this effort ... we look forward to working with them in coming up with a 21st century version of NPT.'' India is not a signatory to the NPT (Non-proliferation Treaty) and has said it will not come on board unless it gets full recognition as a nuclear weapons power. US secretary of state Clinton’s assertions suggest that efforts are underway to accommodate India in a new arrangement as Washington speeds up efforts to renew the treaty. US welcomes India's decision to allocate sites for N-plants
On behalf of the people of the United States of America, I am very pleased with this key step that brings our two great nations closer to full cooperation on safe and clean energy sources, US Ambassador to India Timothy J Roemer said in a statement in New Delhi after India made the announcement on Friday. The government announced that it has allocated sites in Chhayamithi Virdi, in Gujarat, and Kovvada in Andhra Pradesh for the United States for the construction of civil nuclear power plants in pursuance to the agreement with the US for expanded cooperation on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. This important announcement comes in welcome recognition of the trust and confidence as well as the growing partnership between our two countries, the Ambassador said. He said the development not only promises to deliver greater access to clean and affordable energy and electricity for all Indians but also will produce jobs and economic opportunities for the people of both India and the United States. Along with the two sites for the US, the government also announced earmarking of two sites -- Kudankulam (Tamil Nadu) and Haripur (West Bengal) -- for Russian nuclear plants and one in Jaitapur (Maharashtra) for France in pursuance to civil nuclear deals signed with them. Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize
The first African-American to hold the country's highest office, Obama has called for disarmament and worked to restart the stalled Middle East peace process since taking office in January. Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize less than a year after he took office with the jury hailing his "extraordinary" diplomatic efforts on the international stage. The Norwegian Nobel Committee hailed the US president for ``his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.'' The prize worth 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.4 million) will be handed over in Oslo on December 10. India and US to go ahead with nuclear deal: Clinton
"We've said before that the resolution that was passed on Thursday unanimously by the Security Council does not have any bearing on our bilateral civil nuclear cooperation," Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake said. Blake was briefing journalists after a bilateral meeting between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and External Affairs Minister S M Krishna here. The UNSC had adopted a resolution seeking all non NPT signatories to join the treaty but India, which views it as discriminatory, refused to accept it. Afghan-Pak is epicentre of terror: Hillary
"Our goal is to protect the United States, our allies, our friends around the world, from what is the epicentre of terrorism; namely, the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, Clinton said in an interview with News Hour. "Some people say, well, al-Qaida is no longer in Afghanistan. If Afghanistan were taken over by the Taliban, I can't tell you how fast al-Qaida would be back in Afghanistan," she said. The Obama administration is trying to sort out all of the different factors and come to the resolution based on the best information it has, she said. Clinton said the new Afghan policy would be on hold till the new government in that country is in place. The results of the August 20 presidential elections are yet to be declared. It is taking an unduly long time than expected because of the large scale allegations of voters fraud. Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao meets Burns in Washington
Rao, who arrived here from New York late Sunday, had detailed discussion with Burns, the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, on Monday. The two diplomats reviewed the Indo-US dialogue architecture after the visit of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to India in July and preparation for the State visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in November, sources said. Rao visited Washington at the invitation of Burns. The special invitation to visit Washington at a time when the entire Obama Administration is in New York is seen as a "special gesture" from the US State Department. She also met deputy secretary of state James Steinberg and Maria Otero, Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs. Besides areas of bilateral cooperation, they also discussed issues related to counter-terrorism, energy, green technology, agriculture, civil nuclear cooperation and education. Rao, who left Washington for New York later in the evening, would have a second round of discussion with Burns again in New York later this week, on the sidelines of the General Assembly session of the United Nations. She would also meet Special US Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrook in New York. Because of scheduling conflict, Holbrooke has not been able to visit India since the July visit of Clinton. Since then he has visited the region twice. Nirupama Rao invited to Washington for talks
Ms. Rao has been invited by her American counterpart William Burns, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs. They said that Ms. Rao would come to Washington from New York for a day to attend the meeting with Mr. Burns, scheduled for Monday, and then return to the Big Apple to continue with her regular schedule at the United Nations. Mr. Burns too would possibly head back to New York. At a time when the entire Obama Administration is in New York, including President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to attend the annual UN General Assembly session, the invitation to Ms. Rao from Mr. Burns is being seen as a “major gesture” from the US. It is also a clear reflection of the strengthening of relationship between the two countries, as normally when the US President and Secretary of State are in New York, the Administration as a normal rule does not encourage leaders and diplomats from other countries to come to Washington. Pak must act against Hafeez Saeed: US Ambassador Roemer
It is understood that the FIRs were filed under the pressure from the US on Islamabad to act against suspects in the Mumbai attack case. Emerging from the meeting, the US ambassador said that swift action against Mumbai attack suspects is important for US, India and Pakistan. He especially mentioned the name of Hafeez Safeed. He further said that the dismantling of LeT infrastructure was extremely vital. According to media reports, US Ambassador Timothy J Roemer will now meet the Prime Minister. Sign NPT, accept full safeguards, US wants UN to tell IndiaNEW DELHI, Sept 15: In a measure of how the official line in Washington on India’s nuclear status has changed from the Bush to the Obama administrations, the U.S. is circulating a draft U.N. Security Council resolution calling, inter alia, for all Indian nuclear facilities to be placed under international safeguards and not just those that have been declared “civilian” under the July 2005 Indo-U.S. civil nuclear agreement. The ostensible rationale for the resolution President Barack Obama would like adopted at the special UNSC session he will chair on September 24 is to demonstrate the seriousness of his stated commitment to the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons. But there is a sting in the tail for India: For the first time since the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) entered into force, the UNSC is going to demand that all states outside the treaty sign it immediately or begin adhering to its provisions. The only other time the UNSC has adopted such a prescriptive demand for a country or group of countries that never accepted the treaty was in 1998, when it passed resolution 1172 urging India and Pakistan to sign the NPT as well as the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in the wake of the nuclear tests both countries conducted in May that year. Since then, 1172 has been treated by the international community, and the U.S. in particular, as a dead letter as far as India is concerned. Indeed, the Indo-U.S. civil nuclear agreement, followed by the Indian safeguards agreement at the IAEA and the Nuclear Suppliers group exemption was meant to underline Washington’s desire to treat as irrelevant India’s non-adherence to the NPT. Of special concern to India, therefore, is the third operational paragraph of Mr. Obama’s proposed resolution, which says the U.N.: “Calls upon all States that are not Parties to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to join the Treaty so as to achieve its universality at an early date, and in any case to adhere to its terms;”. For a country like India, that is not a party to the NPT and did not explode a nuclear device prior to 1968, the phrase “to join the treaty… and in any case to adhere to its terms” essentially means it should open up all nuclear facilities for inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency so that the latter can ensure that Indian reactors and fissile material stocks are not being used for weapons purposes. Preambular paragraph 15 also reaffirms “all other relevant non-proliferation resolutions adopted by the Security Council,” an implicit reference to Resolution 1172. Taken together, these references to India may lack enforceability but they do signal a quiet return to the “roll back” rhetoric and discourse of the Clinton era, before President George W. Bush pushed for India to be made an exception to the requirements of the NPT-related non-proliferation architecture. Over the past few months, U.S. administration officials have revived the push for NPT universality at various international forums and sought to get the G8 to back a ban on enrichment and reprocessing technology sales to countries like India that have not signed the treaty. Though these moves have been accompanied by statements of support for the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal and the beginning of talks on reprocessing, the repeated foregrounding of the NPT suggests growing American impatience with the Bush administration premise that India’s nuclear credentials warrant it being placed in a category different from Pakistan, Israel and North Korea. The draft resolution also contains a range of other provisions on the CTBT, the permanence of safeguards and so on, as well explicitly requiring that all situations of “noncompliance with non-proliferation obligations” be brought to the UNSC which would then determine whether this non-compliance was a threat to international peace and security. The only reference the resolution makes to the actual abolition of nuclear weapons is its call for all NPT and non-NPT members to undertake to pursue good faith negotiations on “a Treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control.” By clubbing together non-NPT states with all NPT states (i.e. both the nuclear and non-nuclear), this formulation avoids extending de facto recognition to the nuclear weapon status of India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea. US agrees with Indian view on 26/11WASHINGTON: Amid Home Minister P Chidambaram’s meetings with the Obama administration, a senior US official has gone public with the assertion that Pakistan has to show progress on prosecuting the perpetrators of Mumbai attacks and stopping infiltrations. After advancing the US line that India and Pakistan “must now undertake a sequenced series of actions to rebuild confidence and cooperation”, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake concurred with the Indian view that the ball was in Islamabad’s court. “The progress needed first is to bring the Mumbai suspects that are already in custody to trial, to prosecute them and also to stop cross-border infiltration...,” Blake said. Chidambaram, meanwhile, held meetings with NSA James Jones, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, Attorney General Eric Holder and Senator Dianne Feinstein, who heads the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. He was scheduled to meet Secretary of State Hillary Clinton later in the day. Pak gave Iran nuke aid: AQWashington, Sept. 9: Rogue Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan, father of its nuclear weapons, now admits Islamabad had helped with Iran’s nuclear programme. Mr Khan told Pakistan’s Aaj TV in an interview that he and other senior Pakistani officials guided Iran to a network of suppliers to advance its covert nuclear programme years ago. They were also instrumental in Tehran’s covert purchases of equipment through Pakistan’s Dubai suppliers, he said, in the first admission of official Pakistani support for Iran’s nuclear ambitions. This was done, he explained, so that the two countries could emerge as a "strong bloc", resist international pressure and "neutralise" Israel’s power. Mr Khan said Sri Lankan Muslims based in Dubai were suppliers of nuclear material and equipment to Pakistan, Iran and Libya. "The Iranian officials would meet (suppliers) them in Dubai. We told them the suppliers were very reliable." This will further expose Pakistani duplicity as Iran faces tougher international sanctions within weeks over its nuclear programme. Obama says he would like to have dinner with Mahatma Gandhi
Obama called for students to take responsibility and to learn from their failures so that they succeed in the end. "Hi. I'm Lilly. And if you could have dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be," Obama was asked by one of the students. "Dinner with anyone dead or alive? Well, you know, dead or alive, that's a pretty big list," Obama responded amidst laughter. The next moment he was serious. "You know, I think that it might be Gandhi, who is a real hero of mine," Obama said. "Now, it would probably be a really small meal because he didn't eat a lot," he said amidst laughter. But Mahatma Gandhi is someone who has inspired people across the world for the past several generations, he said. Terming the iconic figure as the source of inspiration for many, Obama said "he (Mahatma Gandhi) is somebody whom I find a lot of inspiration in. He inspired Dr King (Martin Luther), so if it hadn't been for the non-violent movement in India, you might not have seen the same non-violent movement for civil rights here in the United States." "What was interesting was that he ended up doing so much and changing the world just by the power of his ethics, by his ability to change how people saw each other and saw themselves -- and help people who thought they had no power realise that they had power, and then help people who had a lot of power realise that if all they're doing is oppressing people, then that's not a really good exercise of power," Obama said. Expressing his belief in the way of change proposed by Gandhi, the President said, "I am always interested in people who are able to bring about change, not through violence, not through money, but through the force of their personality and their ethical and moral stances. That is somebody that I would love to sit down and talk to," said Obama. Mahatma Gandhi has always been a source of inspiration for this first African-American President of the United States of America. "In my life, I have always looked to Mahatma Gandhi as an inspiration, because he embodies the kind of transformational change that can be made when ordinary people come together to do extraordinary things," he wrote in the ethnic India Abroad newspaper last year. "That is why his portrait hangs in my Senate office; to remind me that real results will not just come from Washington, they will come from the people," Obama said. |
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NEW YORK, Feb 23: Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said he feels love in his heart for China but believes hardliners in Beijing are in denialover their cultural "suppression" of his homeland.
BANGALORE, Feb 18: As the debate on outsourcing rages, the United States is of the view that India can create jobs in America taking advantage of its “fair tax policy”.
NEW DELHI, Feb 18: US President Barack Obama on Thursday spoke to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and condemned last week's terror blast in Pune that has claimed 11 lives.
WASHINGTON, Feb 18: The Dalai Lama arrived in Washington for a meeting with President Barack Obama on Thursday during, which the Tibetan spiritual leader would seek US help in resolving the Tibet issue, despite Chinese opposition to the meet.
QATAR, Feb 15: In a clear signal Washington intends to make Iran's military hierarchy the prime target of a new round of United Nations sanctions, the US Secretary of State warned the elite unit had effectively mounted a silent coup.
WASHINGTON, Feb 8: United States has dismissed Pakistani perceptions that it was propping India, saying that New Delhi "did not need us for that purpose" and has advocated that the two neighbours resolve their differences bilaterally. 
WASHINGTON, Jan 28: An embattled President Barack Obama vowed in his first State of the Union address on Wednesday to make job growth his topmost priority, as he looked to reignite his stalling presidency. 
NEW DELHI, Jan 19: In a clear push for closer bilateral military cooperation in the face of the "greatest common challenge of terrorism", visiting US Defence Secretary Robert Gates in talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday sought bolstered Indian role in promoting security in Afghanistan and stability in the entire South Asia. 
WASHINGTON, Jan 15: Guns, grenades, ammo, some dry fruits and bottled water, and the promise of paradise was all that offered to the ten young men who constituted the Pakistani cannon fodder for the 26/11 attack on Mumbai. Expatriate Pakistanis who were part of the planning and surveillance cost a whole lot more – in US dollars. 
WASHINGTON: US president Barack Obama on Tuesday plans to unveil reforms aimed at thwarting future attacks like the attempted Christmas Day airliner bombing, as he seeks to limit political fallout from the incident. 
OSLO, Dec 10: President Obama turned the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony today into a professorial address on why and when the United States was prepared to use force. There was, he admitted in the Oslo City Hall, some controversy over granting the ultimate peace accolade to the commander-in-chief of an army that was engaged in two wars. 
WASHINGTON, Dec 4: An influential democratic senator on Friday said that Islamabad was not interested in developing a strategic relationship with the Obama administration in tackling terrorism and is interested only in money and weapons that came through the unconditional aid granted by the US.
WASHINGTON, Nov 25: Reaffirming the "global strategic partnership between India and the United States", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Barack Obama have vowed to implement their landmark nuclear deal to realise its full potential.
WASHINGTON, Nov 24: Against the backdrop of some provocative steps by China, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said there was "certain amount of assertiveness" by China lately, which had to be taken note of.
WASHINGTON, Nov 23: Welcoming the State Visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the US Senate on Monday passed a unanimous resolution saying that India and the United States can together make "enormous contributions" in addressing the challenges of the 21st century.
BEIJING, Nov 18: US President Barack Obama continued courting China in talks with Premier Wen Jiabao on Wednesday, opening an opportunity to press him on the economic and currency strains that have shadowed his goodwill visit.
FORT HOOD, Nov 11: Somberly reciting 13 names and 13 stories, US Prez Barack Obama saluted the Americans killed at this Army post as heroes who died for their country - and promised a nation demanding answers that "the killer will be met with justice." 
ISLAMABAD, Oct 30: The US can "just encourage" India and Pakistan to resume their stalled composite dialogue but it "cannot dictate solutions," secretary of state Hillary Clinton said here on Friday. 
NEW YORK, Sept 26: The United States has said that India's position on non-proliferation and CTBT will not impact the nuclear deal between the two countries and expressed hope to move forward with the landmark agreement.
WASHINGTON, Sept 22: Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao met with her US counterpart William Burns and discussed a wide range of bilateral issues, including counter-terrorism and the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's proposed visit to America in November. 
NEW DELHI, Sept 19: In a special gesture, the Obama Administration has invited Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao to Washington on Monday for discussions on bilateral matters and issues of mutual interest despite its pre-occupation with the crucial UN General Assembly session in New York. 
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