Jayanth Jacob

Foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale in US to lay 2+2 groundwork

Foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale and other senior Indian officials will hold discussions with their US counterparts in Washington this week to prepare the ground for the first two-plus-two dialogue between the two countries, to take place in New Delhi in September, sources said.

Rahul Gandhi joins RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav to protest against rapes at Muzaffarpur shelter home

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav has been targeting Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar over the alleged rape incident at the shelter home in Muzzafarpur.

How 2+2 talks may affect over 300K Indians’ applications for Green Card

A total of 306,601 applications filed by Indian nationals for a Green Card under the Employment-Based Preference Category are pending approval with the US authorities, the latest available data show.

MEA reshuffle: Venkatesh Varma to be India’s envoy to Russia

D Bala Venkatesh Varma, a 1988 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, is set to become India’s envoy to Russia

India among 3 foreigners abducted and killed in Kabul

An Indian, Malaysian and a Macedonian citizen were abducted and killed by militants in Kabul.

NRC is India’s ‘local internal matter’ with ‘ethnic undertones’: Bangladesh

Bangladesh called the exclusion of over 40 lakh people in Assam from the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) India’s “local internal matter” with “ethnic undertones”. It said New Delhi has not even once in the 48 years of Bangladesh’s existence ever raised the issue of illegal immigrants with Dhaka.

Between Imran Khan and India hangs the shadow of Pakistan Army

India once again finds itself staring at the reality of the Pakistan army, and how much authority it would give Imran’s government to deliver an outswinger or go for an out-of-the-box shot as far as bilateral ties are concerned.

India neither surprised by Pakistan election results, nor expecting turnaround, say experts

Imran Khan, once seen as a progressive liberal, and the Cricket World Cup-winning captain of Pakistan , has undergone a major political transformation in the little over two-decade history of his political party.

Pakistan’s new government will look at Army for deciding India ties

Narendra Modi, Xi Jinping look to boost ties with Africa

PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping are visiting Africa and will attend the 10th BRICS summit in South Africa.

600 Indian construction workers in Qatar stranded with no pay

An Indian official said nearly 300 of the workers have been provided work in other companies while some have been brought back. But those affected say there has been no word on their compensation after having worked for eight to 10 years.

PM Modi to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on BRICS sidelines

Prime Minister Modi will also meet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who assumed office in February this year, and is expected to meet Russian president Vladimir Putin, officials said.

All-party team led by Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan unhappy with Modi meet

At the meet, PM Modi reportedly handed over a list of projects in Kerala to CM Vijayan saying that these would not be getting the “Centre’s financial assistance”, said members of the delegation.

India seeks leniency in US sanctions on Iran, cities oil imports, Chabahar port venture

The US is re-imposing sanctions on Iran after the Trump administration decided to walk out of the Iran nuclear deal of 2015. 

India a stakeholder in the Korean peace process, says PM Modi

Modi made an oblique reference to North Korea’s linkages with Pakistan and hinted that this is a reason why India is a stakeholder in the peace process.

Around the world for diplomacy: Modi ministers target to visit 192 nations

Three more countries remain in the list of 192 member states of the UN to which the NDA government wanted to send a minister.

Four reasons led Air India to replace Taiwan with Chinese Taipei on website

Chinese Taipei is a standard nomenclature used internationally, said a person familiar with the development, listing one of the factors.

Congress says ‘no’ as AAP sends ‘feelers’ for tie-up

Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken says the party does not have confidence in the AAP given that Arvind Kejriwal recently stated that he will supportModi and the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls if the central government grants statehood to Delhi.

Air India’s decision consistent with international norms, India’s position on Taiwan: MEA

The external affairs ministry has defended national carrier Air India’s decision of replacing Taiwan with Chinese Taipei on its website.

Lucknow interfaith couple’s passports cleared

Persons familiar with the internal probe said an official at the RPO and police in the verification report went beyond their brief, getting into details that are “irrelevant” while issuing the travel document to Tanvi Seth and Anas Siddiqui.

India-US to hold talks on sanctions against Iran oil imports

The US has told India and other countries to cut oil imports from Iran to “zero” by November 4 or face sanctions, indicating that there would be no waivers to anyone.

Kailash Mansarovar yatra: 1,600 Indian pilgrims stranded after landslides, rains

At least two Kailash Mansarovar pilgrims died — one of possible high-altitude sickness and another of heart attack — and their bodies were airlifted by helicopter, officials said.

No change in visa policy for students from India, says UK

Indian students will experience no change as a result of the latest announcement on visa application, the British High Commission in New Delhi said.

How gaps in India’s passport rules may have helped Nirav Modi cross borders

Once passport is revoked, the information gets fed into a system that is expected to be shared world over, making the travel of Indian passport holder legally impossible

India looks to boost ties with Latin America

To build ties with the region becoming increasingly important for its foreign policy objectives, New Delhi was pushing for high-level contact that has been missing, officials said on Monday.

Centre to crack down on those seeking jobs abroad without orientation programme

Blue-collar workers from Delhi who fail to undergo a mandatory orientation programme cannot go abroad, with the government refusing them clearance to emigrate, a move that could have a bearing on job prospects of thousands of people.

India rejects UN report on rights violations in Kashmir, calls it ‘fallacious, motivated’

The UN, in its first report on human rights in the region, urged Pakistan to end its “misuse” of anti-terror legislation to persecute peaceful activists and quash dissent.

In India’s statement on Donald Trump-Kim Jong Un summit, an oblique reference to Pakistan

India said it welcomed the meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore on Tuesday. India enjoys good ties with both the countries.

Private sector experts for govt jobs: What MEA started as experiment gains momentum

Around 12 such officials hired as subject experts are attached with the policy planning and research division of the external affairs ministry but they don’t have decision-making or administrative powers

India, US will hold two-plus-two talks on July 6 in Washington

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman will travel to Washington to meet their US counterparts and hold discussions on a host of bilateral issues.