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India Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
US getting in bed with Pak strategic mistake: Ex-diplomat calls ties 'short term'
Former Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup said that US has made a strategic mistake in getting close to Pakistan, which is very close to its strategic competitor China."I think it's a strategic mistake on the part of the US that you are getting in bed with Pakistan, which is in bed with China. China is the US' strategic competitor," said Swarup to have to look at US' relationship with Pakistan in a different lens from the US' relationship with India. I think the relationship with Pakistan right now is a very tactical one and is a short-term one, primarily motivated by the financial gain that the Trump family and Witkoff family hope to make from the cryptocurrency assets in Pakistan. With India, I think, the relationship is much more strategic," said the former diplomat. Speaking on US President Donald Trump's decision to impose 50 per cent tariffs on India, Swarup said, "If you cave in to a bully, then the bully will increase his demands. Then there will be even more demands. So, I think we have done the right thing. India is too large, too proud a country to become a camp follower of any other country.""Our strategic autonomy has been the bedrock of our foreign policy right from the 1950s. I don't think that any government in Delhi can compromise on that," says former diplomat Vikas Swarup on the tariff rift between India and the US," he on ceasefire claims made by the US President, he said that Trump has now made the role of a 'peacemaker' his USP and thinks the biggest conflict he has mediated in is the India and the Pakistan conflict, as both countries are nuclear powers."Trump is a dealmaker and he has now made it his USP that he is the peacemaker. Look at the number of conflict situations that he has mediated in, whether it is Thailand and Combodia, Rawanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Armenia and Azerbaijan; he has injected himself into each of those. He feels that the biggest one of these was the India and Pakistan one because these two are nuclear powers," said to the former Indian Ambassador to Canada, "Trump feels that he deserves credit for this and he has made no secret of his longing for the Nobel Peace Prize. He is hoping that if he can not get it for this, he hopes that bringing about a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine might be his ticket to the Nobel Peace Prize."advertisementHe said that by imposing high tariffs, the US has become the tariff king in the world with an average tariff of 18.4 per cent."The US used to call India the tariff king. But now, with an average tariff of 18.4 per cent, it is now the tariff king of the world. But the fact is, tariffs bring in money. They will bring in about 100 billion dollars a year for the US. But the issue is that, eventually, who will pay for these tariffs? It will be the American consumers," he said, adding that this is going to increase inflation in the US with products becoming about India keeping the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance, Swarup said that Pakistan has been rattled by India's decision to suspend the treaty as it is heavily dependent on the waters of those rivers."What he (Asim Munir) always tries to stoke is the fear of a nuclear war between India and Pakistan, because Pakistan always wants external mediation. They are deliberately provoking nuclear blackmail just so that they can attract the attention of the world," he said.- EndsWith inputs from ANI advertisement
India Today
17-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
UK Foreign Secretary welcomes India-Pakistan ceasefire during Islamabad visit
In a diplomatic balancing act, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy managed to praise both India and Pakistan in the same breath during his visit to Islamabad on Friday, calling the recent ceasefire agreement between the two nuclear neighbors a "positive step" toward lasting regional Foreign Secretary applauded New Delhi and Islamabad for agreeing to cease hostilities, describing the images of recent cross-border clashes as "deeply distressing," especially for "the millions of Brits with Indian and Pakistani heritage," according to images of conflict between India and Pakistan were distressing for all of us in Britain," Lammy said. "But in particular the millions of Brits with Indian and Pakistani heritage, and the many British nationals living in both of these countries."Meeting Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and senior officials during his visit, Lammy reaffirmed the UK's 'strong ties with both India and Pakistan' and highlighted the emotional toll the conflict took on diaspora communities in the UK.'The British Pakistani and British Indian diasporas would particularly welcome news of the ceasefire and increased stability,' he also condemned the 'horrendous terrorist attack in Pahalgam' and said the UK had been doing all it could 'to play a supportive role to reduce tensions, get to a ceasefire and condemn terrorism.'advertisementAccording to the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Lammy praised 'the steps taken by both Pakistan and India to secure an agreement to cease hostilities' and emphasized the importance of sustained regional stability.'Because of the deep and historic links between our populations and our governments,' he said, 'we are determined to play our part to counterterrorism and ensure this fragile ceasefire becomes a durable peace.'The UK diplomat also met British consular staff stationed in Islamabad and commended them for providing real-time support and accurate information to British nationals during the confirmed ongoing dialogue with Indian officials and said he planned to visit New Delhi soon as part of efforts to reinforce UK-India ties — an essential part of Britain's broader Indo-Pacific tensions had peaked with India suspending the Indus Waters Treaty and launching Operation Sindoor, the breakthrough came on May 10, when both countries reached an understanding following backchannel talks supported by international allies, including the UK.
India Today
13-05-2025
- Business
- India Today
Pune traders pull apples from Turkey off shelves after country supports Pak
A "Ban Turkey" campaign, calling for a boycott of Turkish imports, has been launched in Pune following Turkey's open support for Pakistan amid the recent military escalation with India, which intensified after the Pahalgam terror across the city have begun boycotting Turkish apples, which have now disappeared from markets in Pune. Buyers are also reportedly avoiding apples specifically from Turkey, according to news agency have decided to stop buying apples from Turkey because it supports Pakistan, and instead prefer to buy apples from Himachal and other areas. India was taking action against terrorism, but Turkey supplied drones to Pakistan," Suyog Zende, an apple trader at Pune's Agricultural Produce & Livestock Market Committee (APMC) market, said. Turkish-made Kamikaze drones were recovered from a village in the Nowshera area of Jammu and Kashmir after the Pakistan Army launched a barrage of drones targeting Indian cities, in retaliation to India's anti-terror Operation Sindoor. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also spoke with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over the phone and expressed solidarity following India's strikes on terror camps and air bases in Pakistan "Ankara's brother", Turkey has consistently backed Pakistan on the Kashmir issue as well. Amid the tensions, Turkish military assets, six military aircraft and a warship went to to traders, the boycott is not merely a financial decision but a symbolic gesture of support for the Indian armed forces and the government.'When there was an earthquake in Turkey, India was the first country to help them, but they supported Pakistan..." Zende boycott is expected to significantly impact the city's fruit market, as Turkish apples usually contribute to a seasonal turnover of Rs 1,000 to 1,200 InMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Pakistan
India Today
24-04-2025
- Politics
- India Today
High time India cuts Pakistan's 'jugular veins': Ex-US official on Pahalgam attack
Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin on Thursday called Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir's remarks about Kashmir being their "jugular vein" a direct provocation to India in the days leading up to the Pahalgam attack that claimed 26 ex-US official went a step ahead and said that India needs to go ahead and cut "Pakistan's jugular", reported news agency that speech seemed to green light terror. Asim Munir said that Kashmir is the jugular vein. What India now needs to do is to cut Pakistan's jugular. There's no ifs, ands, or buts. There are no shortcuts anymore. Asim Munir gave the green light," Rubin was quoted as telling ANI. Saying that Pakistan is "playing the West for fools," Rubin said that Islamabad has now opened a new front against India in Bangladesh."But we also know, based on geography, based on precedent, and based on ideological swamp, that it is Pakistan's ISI, that they are logistically and ideologically the only country that is the suspect right now," Rubin the timing of the attack, Rubin said that Pakistan's intention was to draw the world's attention away from US Vice President JD Vance's visit to India. He further urged the US to not "let Pakistan get away with it."advertisementRubin further compared the attacks on Pahalgam to the October 7 Hamas attacks on the Convention for Overseas Pakistanis last week, General Munir said, 'Our stance is absolutely clear, it was our jugular vein, it will be our jugular vein. We will not forget it. We will not leave our Kashmiri brothers in their heroic struggle."In response, the Ministry of External Affairs stated: "How can anything foreign be in a jugular vein? This is a union territory of India. Its only relationship with Pakistan is the vacation of illegally occupied territories by that country."Must Watch
