India-US Strategic News and Discussion

The Strategic Issues & International Relations Forum is a venue to discuss issues pertaining to India's security environment, her strategic outlook on global affairs and as well as the effect of international relations in the Indian Subcontinent. We request members to kindly stay within the mandate of this forum and keep their exchanges of views, on a civilised level, however vehemently any disagreement may be felt. All feedback regarding forum usage may be sent to the moderators using the Feedback Form or by clicking the Report Post Icon in any objectionable post for proper action. Please note that the views expressed by the Members and Moderators on these discussion boards are that of the individuals only and do not reflect the official policy or view of the Bharat-Rakshak.com Website. Copyright Violation is strictly prohibited and may result in revocation of your posting rights - please read the FAQ for full details. Users must also abide by the Forum Guidelines at all times.
anmol
BRFite
Posts: 1922
Joined: 05 May 2009 17:39

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by anmol »

Thank you MMS.
firstlook.org/theintercept/article/2014/06/18/nsa-surveillance-secret-cable-partners-revealed-rampart-a/

How Secret Partners Expand NSA’s Surveillance Dragnet
by Ryan Gallagher, firstlook.org
June 18th 2014 8:14 PM

Image
Huge volumes of private emails, phone calls, and internet chats are being intercepted by the National Security Agency with the secret cooperation of more foreign governments than previously known, according to newly disclosed documents from whistleblower Edward Snowden.

The classified files, revealed today by the Danish newspaper Dagbladet Information in a reporting collaboration with The Intercept, shed light on how the NSA’s surveillance of global communications has expanded under a clandestine program, known as RAMPART-A, that depends on the participation of a growing network of intelligence agencies.

It has already been widely reported that the NSA works closely with eavesdropping agencies in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia as part of the so-called Five Eyes surveillance alliance. But the latest Snowden documents show that a number of other countries, described by the NSA as “third-party partners,” are playing an increasingly important role – by secretly allowing the NSA to install surveillance equipment on their fiber-optic cables.

The NSA documents state that under RAMPART-A, foreign partners “provide access to cables and host U.S. equipment.” This allows the agency to covertly tap into “congestion points around the world” where it says it can intercept the content of phone calls, faxes, e-mails, internet chats, data from virtual private networks, and calls made using Voice over IP software like Skype.

The program, which the secret files show cost U.S. taxpayers about $170 million between 2011 and 2013, sweeps up a vast amount of communications at lightning speed. According to the intelligence community’s classified “Black Budget” for 2013, RAMPART-A enables the NSA to tap into three terabits of data every second as the data flows across the compromised cables – the equivalent of being able to download about 5,400 uncompressed high-definition movies every minute.

In an emailed statement, the NSA declined to comment on the RAMPART-A program. “The fact that the U.S. government works with other nations, under specific and regulated conditions, mutually strengthens the security of all,” said NSA spokeswoman Vanee’ Vines. “NSA’s efforts are focused on ensuring the protection of the national security of the United States, its citizens, and our allies through the pursuit of valid foreign intelligence targets only.”

Image

The secret documents reveal that the NSA has set up at least 13 RAMPART-A sites, nine of which were active in 2013. Three of the largest – codenamed AZUREPHOENIX, SPINNERET and MOONLIGHTPATH – mine data from some 70 different cables or networks. The precise geographic locations of the sites and the countries cooperating with the program are among the most carefully guarded of the NSA’s secrets, and these details are not contained in the Snowden files. However, the documents point towards some of the countries involved – Denmark and Germany among them.

An NSA memo prepared for a 2012 meeting between the then-NSA director, Gen. Keith Alexander, and his Danish counterpart noted that the NSA had a longstanding partnership with the country’s intelligence service on a special “cable access” program. Another document, dated from 2013 and first published by Der Spiegel on Wednesday, describes a German cable access point under a program that was operated by the NSA, the German intelligence service BND, and an unnamed third partner.

The Danish and German operations appear to be associated with RAMPART-A because it is the only NSA cable-access initiative that depends on the cooperation of third-party partners. Other NSA operations tap cables without the consent or knowledge of the countries that host the cables, or are operated from within the United States with the assistance of American telecommunications companies that have international links. One secret NSA document notes that most of the RAMPART-A projects are operated by the partners “under the cover of an overt comsat effort,” suggesting that the tapping of the fiber-optic cables takes place at Cold War-era eavesdropping stations in the host countries, usually identifiable by their large white satellite dishes and radomes.

A shortlist of other countries potentially involved in the RAMPART-A operation is contained in the Snowden archive. A classified presentation dated 2013, published recently in Intercept editor Glenn Greenwald’s book No Place To Hide, revealed that the NSA had top-secret spying agreements with 33 third-party countries, including Denmark, Germany, and 15 other European Union member states:
Image
For any foreign government, allowing the NSA to secretly tap private communications is politically explosive, hence the extreme secrecy shrouding the names of those involved. But governments that participate in RAMPART-A get something in return: access to the NSA’s sophisticated surveillance equipment, so they too can spy on the mass of data that flows in and out of their territory.

The partnership deals operate on the condition that the host country will not use the NSA’s spy technology to collect any data on U.S. citizens. The NSA also agrees that it will not use the access it has been granted to collect data on the host countries’ citizens. One NSA document notes that “there ARE exceptions” to this rule – though does not state what those exceptions may be.

According to Snowden, the agreements that the NSA has in place with its partners are lax and easily circumvented. In a statement to the European parliament in March, he used Denmark and Germany as examples to describe how the NSA had effectively established what he called a “European bazaar” for surveillance.

“An EU member state like Denmark may give the NSA access to a tapping center on the (unenforceable) condition that NSA doesn’t search it for Danes, and Germany may give the NSA access to another on the condition that it doesn’t search for Germans,” Snowden said.

“Yet the two tapping sites may be two points on the same cable, so the NSA simply captures the communications of the German citizens as they transit Denmark, and the Danish citizens as they transit Germany, all the while considering it entirely in accordance with their agreements.”

———

Source documents for this article can be found here.
http://www.information.dk/501280

NSA ‘third party’ partners tap the Internet backbone in global surveillance program
information.dk | Nov 1st 2013

Reported in collaboration with The Intercept

Top-secret NSA documents from whistleblower Edward Snowden provide insight into a new and controversial chapter in the NSA's global mass surveillance plot. Under the codename RAMPART-A, ‘third party’ countries tap fiber optic cables carrying the majority of the world's electronic communications in collaboration with the NSA. These partnerships are among the NSAs closest-guarded secrets, and play a central role in the NSA’s ambition to be able to intercept any electronic communication, anywhere in the world.

It has previously been revealed that the UK monitors, records, and shares large volumes of data intercepted from the Internet backbone, which carries everything from emails to Skype calls across the globe at the speed of light. But the new documents show that a number of nations with weaker ties to the NSA – so-called “third party” partners - are more deeply involved in the NSAs global mass surveillance of individuals and organizations than previously known.

According to the Snowden documents, there are 33 third party countries. While the documents do not explicitly state which countries participate in the RAMPART-A program, details in the documents and extensive reporting points to Denmark and Germany being partners.
Access to everything

Special Source Operations (SSO), a top-secret NSA division, referred to by Snowden as the NSA’s »crown jewel« oversees the corporate and foreign intelligence partnerships that make the NSA’s vital cable access programs possible. Its logo, an eagle clasping trunks of brightly lit fiber crisscrossing the globe, leaves little room for interpretation: The SSO’s mission is to intercept and extract large data volumes from cables and networks worldwide.

»If you look at a map of the Internet, there are surprisingly few trunks. Most data flows through a surprisingly small number of choke points. If you get access to them, you get access to everything« says security expert and technologist Bruce Schneier whom Dagbladet Information has shown RAMPART-A documents: »The goal must be to cover the most of the world with as few access points as possible. A lot of Internet traffic flows through the US but a bunch doesn’t. So you’re going to look in places in the world where the data is, if not in the US«.
Cold war cover

Diagrams in two classified SSO PowerPoint presentations illustrate how a »Typical RAMPART-A Operation» works. Partner country »X« taps an international cable at an access point somewhere in country »X«, and forwards the data to a processing center. Equipment provided by the NSA processes the data intercepted at the access point, before the data is forwarded to an NSA site located, according to the diagram, in the US.

According to a presentation slide describing »Sensitivity Factors«, »Most RAMPART-A Third-party partners work the fiber projects under the cover of an overt Comsat effort.« This suggests that the sophisticated data processing operation happens concealed by the characteristic satellite dishes and radomes typically constructed during the cold war era. Presumably the cover would work because intelligence activities carried out inside existing listening stations would surprise few outsiders, even if the physical facility, collection methods and staffing change.
All communication technologies

An excerpt from the US Intelligence »Black Budget« detailing the »Foreign Partner Access Project« provides insight into how important RAMPART-A is to the US government. In 2011, the NSA spent a total of $91 million on foreign cable access programs, out of which RAMPART-A accounted for $76.55 million, or 84 per cent. Second party cable access programs, codenamed WINDSTOP, make up the rest. The fiscal year 2013 requested spending for RAMPART-A was down to $46.2 million but still accounts for 82 per cent of the total requested spending on foreign access projects.

The »Black Budget« also provides details about the volume of data collected by the NSA via third party cable taps. The introductory project description states that »RAMPART-A has access to over 3 Terabits per second of data streaming world-wide«. According to analysis provided by TeleGeography this was more than five times the average international traffic from Denmark in 2013, or 362 million ordinary CD-ROMs if stored on a daily basis.

The most recent SSO overview lists thirteen secret RAMPART-A sites out of which nine were active in April 2013. One site only provided metadata. The three largest sites - codenamed AZUREPHOENIX, SPINNERET and MOONLIGHTPATH, the locations of which are unknown - tap a total of seventy different cables or networks and figure in several documents among the NSAs most productive sources. The large amount of RAMPART-A cable taps, according to the leaked documents, gives access to »international communications from anywhere around the world«, and »all communications technologies« including »Digital Network Intelligence, voice, fax, telex, e-mail, internet chat, VPN and VoIP communications«.

The efforts pay off. According to a 2010 briefing intelligence collected via RAMPART-A was used across all NSA Analysis and Production centers, and yielded over 9000 intelligence reports the previous year, out of which half was based solely on intelligence intercepted through RAMPART-A.
Denmark’s cable access partnership

Details about which countries participate in RAMPART-A and where a given access is located are extremely sensitive, the documents show, and no identifying information can be found in the RAMPART-A documentation. In addition to the top-secret classification, a unique access control system dubbed REDHARVEST ensures that only a limited number of cleared personnel can access this information.

Based on the documents and extensive reporting, however, Dagbladet Information can identify Germany as among the NSA’s partners in the RAMPART-A-program. Denmark, most likely, is a partner too. The Danish participation seems to follow from the fact that RAMPART-A is the only program, in which the cable access is managed in collaboration with NSAs third party intelligence partners. This is consistent with information from a document containing former NSA Director Keith Alexander's talking points for a 2012 strategic meeting between the NSA and the Danish Defense Intelligence Service (DDIS). A key passage reads:

»Emphasize NSA’s commitment to the special access and assisting DDIS in managing the access. Remind the Danes of the long NSA-DDIS partnership working cable access with.«

The sentence is incomplete. It may be a simple mistake, but it’s possible that one or several words have been removed in order to protect a third partner. It does, however, indicate that the Danish Defense Intelligence Service has a cable access partnership with the NSA.

This is further supported by the fact that the NSA, according to a top-secret »Information Paper« describing relations with Denmark, provides its Danish sister agency with »collection and processing equipment». This corresponds to a RAMPART-A briefing which specifies, with near-identical wording, that NSA »Collection and Processing assets« are hosted on partner soil.
Legal in Denmark?

Denmark has never had a public debate about cable access programs and very little is known about DDIS’ operations. Presented with the documentation for this article, DDIS Director Thomas Ahrenkiel would neither confirm nor deny a NSA/DDIS cable access partnership, and referred to Minister of Defense Nicolai Wammen, who told Dagbladet Information:

»I cannot comment on the question regarding any of DDIS’ possible, concrete activities. In general, I can say that the DDIS cooperates with foreign intelligence services in order to protect Denmark and the Danes in the best possible way.« Wammen adds that »this happens within Danish law.«

Three legal experts tell Dagbladet Information that DDIS could legally tap cables in Denmark. Similarly, an NSA/DDIS cable access partnership could be within the law, as long as the NSA does not operate in ways that would be illegal for the DDIS. But the law is not clear on this point, experts point out.

DDIS has broad powers and can obtain information both within Denmark and abroad, as long as it is »targeting conditions abroad«, according to the law governing DDIS. The only real limitation is that DDIS is not allowed to target Danes, but information about Danes happened upon by coincidence, when collecting against foreign targets, is not off limits. And raw data can be shared with foreign intelligence partners almost without limitations.

The largest Danish telecommunications companies, when asked by Dagbladet Information, would neither confirm nor deny giving cable access to DDIS. A spokesperson from TDC, Denmark’s largest telecommunications company, said: »We are subject to certain obligations under the law governing the police and military intelligence services, and of course we abide by them«. The law does not, however, oblige telecommunications companies to assist DDIS in their collection, but TDC declined to comment further.
The Russian connection

Denmark’s value as a cable access partner depends on which traffic flows through its cables. According to data provided by TeleGeography, Denmark has the best connectivity, in terms of bandwidth, to Germany, followed by Sweden and Norway. »If your country is in a key location, and if a lot of interesting traffic happens to flow through it, that makes you an important partner«, says Mikko Hyppönen, who has worked with Internet security since 1991 at Helsinki-based F-Secure: »A large part of the Internet traffic from Russia and the rest of Scandinavia flows through Danish networks, which justifies the US interest in working together with the authorities« says Hyppönen. He adds that a lot of German traffic transits through Denmark:

"It might not be obvious to casual surfers, but for example a lot of German users will connect to Facebook and Google services via Denmark. This is because Facebook and Google have large datacenters in the Nordics and traffic is predominantly routed via Denmark."
Germany a partner too

German participation in RAMPART-A can be inferred from NSA documents reported by Der Spiegel earlier this week in combination with documents seen by Dagbladet Information. In March 2013, Spiegel reports, »unwitting« employees at a telecommunications facility discovered a cable tap, referred to as »Wharpdrive«. The same WHARPDRIVE figures in documents seen by Dagbladet Information, listed as a RAMPART-A project.

According to the document reported by Der Spiegel »witting partner personnel« removed the evidence »a plausible cover story was created«, and the partner offered to discreetly reinstall the equipment. WHARPDRIVE appears in another document about a meeting between the NSA and the German intelligence service BND. Here the operation is described as a trilateral program between NSA, BND, and an unknown third partner, possibly the above mentioned telecommunications company.
A European bazaar

The documents specify that in a typical operation partner countries and the NSA share »tasking and collection« i.e. the targets selected for surveillance and data intercepted from the cables. At the same time, the partner country and the US agree not to use the access to spy on each other: »No U.S. collection by Partner and No Host Country collection by U.S.«. The same point is repeated in an SSO presentation marked NOFORN, which means it cannot be seen by non-US nationals. Here a small, but not insignificant modification, is added to the same sentence: » – there ARE exceptions«.

Which exceptions there are is not clear. It is also an open question whether there would be any repercussions should the NSA violate the agreement. The documents indicate that partners retain some control over which data the NSA can access through partner sites, and that the NSA tries to avoid political conflicts based on lists of topics and targets that would potentially offend the partner. However, according to Bruce Schneier, these agreements will not protect citizens in partner countries from being monitored by the NSA:

»Remember, if there’s an intercept in Denmark, and the NSA has agreed to spy on the Danes, and there’s one in Germany, and the NSA has an agreement not to spy on the Germans there, they can spy on the Germans from Denmark, and the Danes from Germany«, Schneier says.

Edward Snowden made the same argument earlier this year. In a statement to a European Parliament committee, he mentioned Denmark and Germany as examples of how this could be carried out:

»The result is a European bazaar, where an EU member state like Denmark may give the NSA access to a tapping center on the (unenforceable) condition that NSA doesn't search it for Danes, and Germany may give the NSA access to another on the condition that it doesn't search for Germans. Yet the two tapping sites may be two points on the same cable, so the NSA simply captures the communications of the German citizens as they transit Denmark, and the Danish citizens as they transit Germany, all the while considering it entirely in accordance with their agreements.

Ultimately, each EU national government's spy services are independently hawking domestic accesses to the NSA, GCHQ, FRA, and the like without having any awareness of how their individual contribution is enabling the greater patchwork of mass surveillance against ordinary citizens as a whole». In the same statement Snowden also gave an impression of how effective the NSA's surveillance programs are: »I am telling you that without getting out of my chair, I could have read the private communications of any member of this committee, as well as any ordinary citizen«.
‘Strengthens the security of all’

Dagbladet Information has asked the NSA to comment on RAMPART-A. Spokesperson Vanee´ Vines responded: »We are not going to comment on specific, alleged foreign intelligence activities. However, the fact that the U.S. government works with other nations, under specific and regulated conditions, mutually strengthens the security of all. NSA’s efforts are focused on ensuring the protection of the national security of the United States, its citizens, and our allies through the pursuit of valid foreign intelligence targets only.

In January, President Obama issued U.S. Presidential Policy Directive 28, which affirms that all persons – regardless of nationality – have legitimate privacy interests in the handling of their personal information, and that privacy and civil liberties shall be integral considerations in the planning of U.S. signals intelligence activities. All of NSA’s efforts are strictly conducted under the rule of law, including the President's new directive. The agency collects data to meet specific security and intelligence requirements, such as force protection for U.S. troops and allies, counterintelligence, counterterrorism, counterproliferation, and combating transnational crime.«

Download the documents here
anmol
BRFite
Posts: 1922
Joined: 05 May 2009 17:39

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by anmol »

Image
ArmenT
BR Mainsite Crew
Posts: 4239
Joined: 10 Sep 2007 05:57
Location: Loud, Proud, Ugly American

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by ArmenT »

Interesting and poignant article about the Air India flight 182 crash in 1985, written by an USAF parajumper who was involved in the search for survivors.
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/06/21/opini ... index.html

Didn't know that the PJs were involved until now.
disha
BR Mainsite Crew
Posts: 8243
Joined: 03 Dec 2006 04:17
Location: gaganaviharin

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by disha »

PJs were involved to do the rescue operation., the initial thought was that AI Kanishka went down because of some operational failure.

AI Kanishka going down was not the worst., it was that Canada actively aided and abetted terrorism against India and allowed its home grown terrorists to kill innocents.
Rony
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3512
Joined: 14 Jul 2006 23:29

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Rony »

In February, AEI began a conversation on human flourishing with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. On June 24, we will continue that dialogue with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, a leading Hindu spiritual figure. In conversation with AEI President Arthur Brooks, Sri Sri, whose Art of Living Foundation is active in 152 countries, will consider the challenges of rising inequality and human suffering. How can doubts about the free enterprise system and its role in human fulfillment be assuaged? Do material progress and freedom of religion go together? We welcome you to join us for a thought-provoking discussion of these and other related questions.
Prem
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21233
Joined: 01 Jul 1999 11:31
Location: Weighing and Waiting 8T Yconomy

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Prem »

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns- ... 4377.story

U.S. says Fed not involved in clearing India's Iran oil dues
Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve is not involved in clearing payments made by India to Iran to pay some of its dues for oil bought from the Middle East country, a U.S. Treasury Department spokeswoman said.The comment was in response to a June 19 Reuters story citing sources with knowledge of the matter as saying that India planned to clear some oil payments to Iran through the United Arab Emirates central bank. According to the sources, the new payment system includes a step in which funds would be routed through the Federal Reserve. "We can confirm that no U.S. financial institutions, including the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank, will be or have been involved in this payment installment," the spokeswoman for the Department for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence said. The payment is spread over eight installments, ranging from $450 to $650 million each, from February to July. India is slated to take up the last three tranches of $550 million each.The payments are linked to Iran making continuous cuts in its nuclear programme.
pradeepe
BRFite
Posts: 741
Joined: 27 Aug 2006 20:46
Location: Our culture is different and we cannot live together - who said that?

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by pradeepe »

Ajatshatru wrote:"Top NY prosecutor confronts criticism from India":

http://news.yahoo.com/top-ny-prosecutor ... 10258.html
Oh my, this cowardly narcissist a**ole does care very much about his image. I couldn't find his original article. Can anyone help post the article. We need to get the message across. Forget Uncle tom, he needs to explain to his daughter why he is also being accused of abetting custodial rape.
CRamS
BRF Oldie
Posts: 6865
Joined: 07 Oct 2006 20:54

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by CRamS »

pradeepe,

Forget getting the real message across to this guy, don't be surprised if he is given "India Abroad person of the year". I am sure there are enough NRIs and RNIs willing to put this guy on a huge pedestal as an "Indian American coming of age". So while this guy spits on India, abets custodial rape of an Indian diplomat, and then cries foul, there will be enough NRIs and RNIs celebrating his "success". Recall the euphoria over slum dog millionaire Oscars. Bakara might do a special on NDTV portraying his "rise" to stardom. I got an e-mail from an NRI honcho saying that ModiJi needs him in his cabinet to tackle corruption. :-). Too many Indians cannot see beyond their justified deep rooted frustration and anger at Indian VIP privilege, corruption etc, to understand that what happened to DK, and what PB did is an assault on India.

It all depends on how ModiJi changes the entire Indian discourse from any crap doled out to India under the guise of "rising power" and "largest democracy" to a narrative that puts Indian interests front and center.
Rony
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3512
Joined: 14 Jul 2006 23:29

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Rony »

CRamS wrote:Forget getting the real message across to this guy, don't be surprised if he is given "India Abroad person of the year". I am sure there are enough NRIs and RNIs willing to put this guy on a huge pedestal as an "Indian American coming of age". So while this guy spits on India, abets custodial rape of an Indian diplomat, and then cries foul, there will be enough NRIs and RNIs celebrating his "success". Too many Indians cannot see beyond their justified deep rooted frustration and anger at Indian VIP privilege, corruption etc, to understand that what happened to DK, and what PB did is an assault on India.
Exactly. Look at the comments section. Lots of RNIs and NRIs with "he is great and what he did was right" comments and the Americans with their false moral superiority "In America unlike in India law is equal for everyone" type of comments.
Lilo
BRF Oldie
Posts: 4080
Joined: 23 Jun 2007 09:08

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Lilo »

x-post
Rudradev wrote:Actually I am wondering if there isn't something chankian going on with the rash of US "think tank" presentations by authors that seem to enunciate a tubelight "Oh! They were evil all along!" moment with regard to STFUP.

Why now? Perhaps an answer is to be found in the occasional condescending references to Narendra Modi sarkar that the various "experts" make in the course of their talks. Riedel for example says "Modi has a lot of baggage, some of which has merit... but even Nixon was given a chance" (paraphrase).

Fair and Riedel (perhaps not Carlotta Gall, who is a genuine investigative journalist with no known GOTUS connections) have been given their platforms at just this moment, why? Nothing they say is anything the US has not known for years or decades; it's simply being admitted in public for the first time. Who is the intended audience? Is it the great constituency of Indians (living in India and the West) who were responsible for Modi sarkar getting elected with a simple majority? If the target is these people, what is the message? We know as well as Fair or Riedel do that none of the (modest if at all) recommendations they make to deal with Pakistan will be followed by GOTUS. Riedel for example says "cut military aid, because bribing the TSPA doesn't work"... like hell that's going to happen.

It is perhaps even more telling that nothing like these discussions were made public during the MMS years. This was probably due to a sense of satisfaction among US deep state, GOTUS and think tanks that MMS was going to follow the US line when it came to Pakistan anyway... the Indians opposing the MMS policy were a "small lunatic fringe of Hindoos who supported the mass-murderer Modi", and did not matter enough to placate with public anti-Pakistan statements issued by US figures. Now they've seen that the Hindoos who supported Modi are not a lunatic fringe but the dominant political constituency in India, and Modi is in fact the PM.

Is the message supposed to be "when the next terrorist attack happens, go right ahead and do what you need to do India, we won't stop you?"

Did Saddam's Iraq receive these types of messages from similar types of US actors during the run-up to the Kuwait invasion in 1990?

Things to think about here.
All this sudden hot air on Af-Pak is Massa prepping the ground for its "apparent" non-interventionist foreign policy(as it previously parroted while leading into both world wars in the past century) with respect to its desired(and expected) future events after 2014.
Here its "Apparent" onlee because there will be an elaborate dog and pony show putup to show that Massa is no longer in control of the situation,when in fact the "non-state actor" groups like TTP,JuD-LeT,ISIS,ETLM are all infiltrated by entities with Al-CIAda types as the principals.

So when ANA is being decimated upto Kabul,Afghanistan is being overrun by Pakis ,Caliphate is declared by ISIS in Eyeraq ,next 26/11 is unfolding in India etc - massa will feign helplessness when infact Al-CIAda continues to remain the primemover behind these groups.

Massa has already achieved its real goal for going into Af-Pak - i.e infiltration and reboot of all the power networks that matter while exterminating/decapitating the old networks setup by Al-CIAda & ISI that turned to plotting against Massa interests itself.
So in 2014 the drug networks of Af-Pak that finance are still intact, so are the human trafficking networks and the terror militia networks overseeing them.Raymond Davis and Headley types were the grunts who got caught while doing this.

So if post Soviet Taleban,PakJihadis,Bulbuddins,Chechen,Somali,LTTE groups etc are Terror 1.0 by Al-CIAda, Post 2014 Af-Pak,Eyeraq,Levant-NorthAfrica is the nursery for the next iteration- Terror 2.0 of Al-CIAda -now with better(and continuous) oversight enforced by a combination of baksheesh and Drones dropping hellfires, a total lockin into the comm networks etc all absent in Terror 1.0.

The goal is as ujjual to keep afflicting and destabilizing the 2nd and the turd worlds using the radical Islamists and to keep these cuntries amenable to western interests - always.

India/Modi should now brace for Al-CIAda's Terror 2.0 going to be unleashed.
Prem
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21233
Joined: 01 Jul 1999 11:31
Location: Weighing and Waiting 8T Yconomy

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Prem »

http://www.cfr.org/india/bringing-india ... ent/p33173
Bringing India Inside the Asian Trade Tent
The new Indian government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, has outlined trade as a national priority. But economic ties between the United States and India have soured recently, with both sides entrenched in acrimonious market-access complaints. Coming at a time when the United States and India have differences over post-2014 Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other regional security issues, the absence of a once-strong economic ballast matters. To reestablish a constructive economic dialogue with India at just the time a new government takes charge in New Delhi, the United States should champion India's long-pending request for membership in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum as a step toward eventual inclusion in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Membership alone would not eliminate bilateral frictions, but would provide a good opening to resolve concerns and revitalize ties.

India has the world's tenth-largest economy in nominal terms and the third largest based on purchasing-power parity, a measure of gross domestic product (GDP) incorporating relative costs and inflation. Not long ago, U.S. economic ties with India—which began to open its markets following a foreign reserves crisis in 1991—were minimal. That has changed; U.S.-India trade in goods and services grew from $15 billion to nearly $100 billion over the past fifteen years, and two-way investment has increased rapidly. Growing business ties during the 2000s propelled Washington and New Delhi closer.Yet U.S.-India trade remains well below its potential—a little more than one-tenth of U.S.-China trade in goods, the scale of Taiwan or the Netherlands. Worse, in the last three years, disputes over issues such as Indian barriers to U.S. poultry and dairy imports, local content requirements (especially in solar energy), intellectual property protections, and investment limits have become major sources of friction. The United States has initiated three disputes with India in the World Trade Organization (WTO). India has its own countercomplaints about temporary worker visas and nonrefundable social security contributions. In 2013 the atmosphere deteriorated sharply when exasperated U.S. businesses, industry associations, and members of Congress began urging more aggressive action. In 2014, the U.S. International Trade Commission held hearings on India at Congress's request, and the U.S. Trade Representative's office reviewed India for Special 301 Priority Foreign Country designation, with a further out-of-cycle review in the fall. This all-sticks, no-carrots approach has achieved little with India, which sees these processes as illegitimate and outside the WTO. Getting back on track with India will require something positive to collaborate on, so a clear signal of U.S. support for India's bid would be beneficial. Finally, collaboration can be helpful in and of itself: while the U.S.-India civil nuclear initiative has yet to yield the commercial benefits many supporters expected, the deal improved the two countries' ability to work on nonproliferation, which had previously been the most intractable aspect of the bilateral relationship.
India updated its domestic export controls to harmonize with global norms as it works to join the global nonproliferation regimes. In these cases, global organizations provided incentives to make tough political choices at home that bilateral negotiations did not. The effects have not been instant, but were realized in the WTO case within a decade, and in the nonproliferation case within five years. . It would also build confidence for considering future Indian membership in the TPP. Indeed, the Confederation of Indian Industry has begun preparing a roadmap for what India could do to be eligible for the TPP's demanding terms. APEC would be a helpful stepping-stone.There is no financial cost to the United States for supporting India's APEC membership request. But there will be diplomatic costs: the membership moratorium closed the door after Russia, Vietnam, and Peru joined in 1998, so consideration of any new member spurs talk about the need for "balance" from all APEC regions, such as Latin America and Southeast Asia. Although there appears to be no specific objection to India—all but four APEC member economies already have, or are pursuing, trade agreements with India bilaterally or multilaterally, including China—the balance quest bogs down any conversation about India. Balance is a laudable goal, but should not delay consideration of India's case; the economies of Panama or Cambodia, for example, should not be debated as if they were comparable to India's. (For example, using World Bank 2012 GDP figures, India's GDP is $1.8 trillion; Panama's is $36 billion; and Cambodia's is $14 billion—50 and 128 times smaller than India, respectively.) U.S. leadership will be needed to nudge the twenty other members to focus on the special opportunity India presents. It is, however, doable—especially compared to the far more challenging diplomacy needed in 2008 to secure an exemption for India from the forty-two-member Nuclear Suppliers Group. If the United States decides to advocate strongly for India, it could achieve success within a year or two.
The merits of APEC lie in providing a set of shared norms to help orient India toward greater openness in step with the region. Including Asia's second-fastest-growing economy, a colossus in its own right, in this consultative forum far outweighs any potential losses to efficiency once India joins the table. Without India, the forum cannot represent the Asia-Pacific economy.Successfully championing India's bid for APEC membership will require deft diplomacy. As the U.S. government's lead agency for APEC, the Department of State should coordinate support for India's membership bid and commit to working closely with India. To be most effective and sensitive to India's needs, Washington and New Delhi should be fully aligned on strategy, process, and talking points at all times. The secretary of state should call his counterpart with the proposal, as a sign of the importance the U.S. government places on one of India's long-standing goals. In coordination with India, the United States should execute the following steps:Convey U.S. support for India's bid for APEC membership to the host country. With China as the 2014 APEC forum host, the secretary of state should express to China the U.S. intention to back India's membership bid, in preparation for the many upcoming coordination meetings among senior officials before the November summit.Instruct U.S. ambassadors in all APEC member economies and aspirants to convey the U.S. decision to support India's bid. The East Asia, Europe, and Western Hemisphere bureaus in the State Department should mobilize support from all current APEC member economies, informing aspirants subsequently. Identifying champions of Indian membership will help advance the bid. Assistant secretaries can follow up with phone calls; undecided members should receive sub-cabinet-level calls. Arguments supporting India's APEC bid should be provided to every U.S. official at the deputy assistant secretary–level and higher for every appropriate meeting.Include specific instructions in démarche and senior officials' talking points to separate deliberation on additional members from discussion of India. Should member economies fail to reach agreement on a broader slate of new members, as has been the case for years, the United States should propose to postpone deliberation over other candidates to a later date, to prevent India's case from stalling further.Consult the business advisory group and seek input. The State Department should consult the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) on India, given Indian businesses' participation in ABAC's chief executive summit. First points of contact should be the U.S. members (Caterpillar, Eli Lilly, and Qualcomm) and the ABAC secretariat..
putnanja
BRF Oldie
Posts: 4665
Joined: 26 Mar 2002 12:31
Location: searching for the next al-qaida #3

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by putnanja »

NSA used private firms to snoop on India
...
Some of the leaked slides identify New Delhi as a special collection site (SCS) where US assets are based to gather intelligence. The NSA also carries out part of its primary surveillance of foreign satellites from this site. New Delhi has been mentioned as one of the 84 cities worldwide that are part of the NSA’s ‘Global

Interception Network’. The spying is carried out using various methods, including intercepting undersea cables and satellite and telephone communications.

According to the documents, the NSA targets emails, chats, videos, stored data, video conferencing, online social networking and voice over internet protocols (VoIP). The NSA also lists India as one of the targets for its Computer Network Exploitation (CNE) programme by planting malicious software.

India is named as one of the 33 “third parties” which have been designated as “approved signals intelligence partners”, along with Pakistan, Israel, Germany and

France. However, while a “third-party partner” like Pakistan has received over $2.5 million from the NSA, there is no allocation to India in the documents.

Another document shows that the Indian embassy in Washington and the permanent mission to the UN in New York have been repeatedly targeted. An NSA document shows that it managed to place malicious software in the embassy network and used sources in 2010 to get screenshots of the hard drives to gather Indian diplomatic secrets. This seems to have been discontinued subsequently.
...
UlanBatori
BRF Oldie
Posts: 14045
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:14

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by UlanBatori »

This seems to be another website, nothing more (I mean the Asia-Pacific yada yada). Why are Eli Lilly, Caterpillar and Qualcomm so uniquely Asia-Pacific? One is a drug-pusher, one a spade-maker and the other a dotcom. THEY represent the US economy? THREE companies? The Ulan Bator Universal Chamber-Pot of Commerce has more members than that! We have Kahuta Labs, Kraachi Mice-Schidt Exporters, SUPAKCO, IBM (I*lamic bijnej machines), All-Mongolia YakPoo Exporters Pvt LLC, the East Mongolia Company, Vladivostok Hackers Inc, to name just a few..

Does membership in this scam bring some great entry into Asia and Pacific? If they want to keep India out, well, India can make it a black mark that a given corp. is a member of any scam like this, hey?
"Bringing India into the tent" indeed! This is the sort of cra* that I hope the new govt will dismiss with a :rotfl:

I can think of plenty of other Chamber of Commerce type scams that are far better than this.
A_Gupta
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12069
Joined: 23 Oct 2001 11:31
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by A_Gupta »

"Bringing India Inside the Asian Trade Tent"
http://www.cfr.org/india/bringing-india ... ent/p33173
India would reject such a transparency exercise bilaterally, but it prizes the role of multilateral institutions and seeks to uphold the norms of those in which it is part. Its relationships with such institutions do not provoke concerns about strategic autonomy in the way that bilateral relationships sometimes do.
Most importantly, India has demonstrated responsiveness to its multilateral commitments. India remains a tough WTO negotiator, but joining the organization substantially changed the country. It lowered tariffs and implemented intellectual property–rights protections to meet WTO requirements, including amending its patent law after adhering to the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. India updated its domestic export controls to harmonize with global norms as it works to join the global nonproliferation regimes. In these cases, global organizations provided incentives to make tough political choices at home that bilateral negotiations did not. The effects have not been instant, but were realized in the WTO case within a decade, and in the nonproliferation case within five years. India seeks APEC membership fully aware of its requirements, so entry would significantly affect the way India approaches its own commitments to free and open trade. It would also build confidence for considering future Indian membership in the TPP. Indeed, the Confederation of Indian Industry has begun preparing a roadmap for what India could do to be eligible for the TPP's demanding terms. APEC would be a helpful stepping-stone.
Last edited by A_Gupta on 26 Jun 2014 05:48, edited 2 times in total.
UlanBatori
BRF Oldie
Posts: 14045
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:14

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by UlanBatori »

This seems to have been discontinued subsequently.
No wonder. They expected the Indian Embassy in DupleeCity to be trusted with secrets? :rotfl:
A_Gupta
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12069
Joined: 23 Oct 2001 11:31
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by A_Gupta »

As those who remember the Bharara-Khobragade incident may recall - the US Supreme Court in 2012 said officials may strip search anyone who has been arrested for any reason whatsoever --- but, today it ruled that it may not search your cellphone without a warrant (even if you have been arrested).

I read this as - your cellphone is more sacrosanct than your person.
Shreeman
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3762
Joined: 17 Jan 2007 15:31
Location: bositiveneuj.blogspot.com
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Shreeman »

A_Gupta wrote:As those who remember the Bharara-Khobragade incident may recall - the US Supreme Court in 2012 said officials may strip search anyone who has been arrested for any reason whatsoever --- but, today it ruled that it may not search your cellphone without a warrant (even if you have been arrested).

I read this as - your cellphone is more sacrosanct than your person.
In afterthought, what the court said was -- your cellphone is more sacrosanct than your ar$e (cavity searches are common in all sorts of situations, including DK). So the question is, what happens if they find a cellphone during an ar$e search (also not uncommon, bulbuddin ghusaomatyars are not unique to bakistan, prison visitors routinely try to sneaks in cellphones). Get a warrant or apologize?

Edit: business opportunity -- underwear cellphones to prevent warrantless ar$e searches!
Edit2: After the NSA hoohaa, the US supreme court also added a nail to the coffin of cloud computing with the Aereo ruling this same day. In other words, the administration/judiciary are saying -- wearable communication is in, cloud computing is out. Really forward looking. I for one, welcome the Borg!
Hari Seldon
BRF Oldie
Posts: 9373
Joined: 27 Jul 2009 12:47
Location: University of Trantor

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Hari Seldon »

Clinton reveals how Obama forcibly prevented China's 'secret' meeting with India to isolate US (TOI)
WASHINGTON: At the international conference on climate change in Copenhagen in December 2009, US President Barack Obama forced himself into a room where the then Chinese premier Wen Jiabao was holding a secret meeting with the then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other leaders.

Giving a blow by blow account of the incident, of which she was part as the then secretary of state, Hillary Clinton in her memoirs 'Hard Choices' writes that the purpose of China was to isolate the United States by bringing together countries like India, Brazil and South Africa on its side.

But Obama's determination and presence of mind thwarted such a move, she writes.
I remember reading about the incident. Yawnable. IMO MMS himself must've leaked the venue of the meeting onlee...
Vayutuvan
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12066
Joined: 20 Jun 2011 04:36

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Vayutuvan »

It is "search the cell phones" not "search for cell phones" :wink: Business opportunities are not really opportunities if they are "easy come" then they are "easy go" as well to repeat a banality.
Last edited by Vayutuvan on 26 Jun 2014 06:45, edited 1 time in total.
Vayutuvan
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12066
Joined: 20 Jun 2011 04:36

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Vayutuvan »

Aaand former secy Clinton is boasting about it I runs that a pot shirt at Pres. Obama? Now that there is a possibility that First Lady might throw her hat into the ring come 2016, this could be the first shot.
Shreeman
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3762
Joined: 17 Jan 2007 15:31
Location: bositiveneuj.blogspot.com
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Shreeman »

matrimc wrote:It is "search the cell phones" not "search for cell phones" :wink: Business opportunities are not really opportunities if they are "easy come" then they are "easy go" as well to repeat a banality.
Ahem.. The cellphone IS your underwear. Can you then look IN it without a warrant?

edit - patent pindi?
Vayutuvan
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12066
Joined: 20 Jun 2011 04:36

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Vayutuvan »

I get it you are suggesting wearable computers connected through body area networks.
Shreeman
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3762
Joined: 17 Jan 2007 15:31
Location: bositiveneuj.blogspot.com
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Shreeman »

matrimc wrote:I get it you are suggesting wearable computers connected through body area networks.
I am suggesting the so-virginity protection style underwear that is a cellphone, locks included. Now just as you can not search the memory card inside the phone, you can not search the ar$e, also inside the phone. QeD?
sum
BRF Oldie
Posts: 10195
Joined: 08 May 2007 17:04
Location: (IT-vity && DRDO) nagar

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by sum »

X-post:
sum wrote:Guess Unkil has turned us upside down:
NSA used private firms to snoop on India
Some of the leaked slides identify New Delhi as a special collection site (SCS) where US assets are based to gather intelligence. The NSA also carries out part of its primary surveillance of foreign satellites from this site. New Delhi has been mentioned as one of the 84 cities worldwide that are part of the NSA’s ‘Global

Interception Network’. The spying is carried out using various methods, including intercepting undersea cables and satellite and telephone communications.

According to the documents, the NSA targets emails, chats, videos, stored data, video conferencing, online social networking and voice over internet protocols (VoIP). The NSA also lists India as one of the targets for its Computer Network Exploitation (CNE) programme by planting malicious software.
member_22733
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3788
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:14

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by member_22733 »

matrimc wrote:Aaand former secy Clinton is boasting about it I runs that a pot shirt at Pres. Obama? Now that there is a possibility that First Lady might throw her hat into the ring come 2016, this could be the first shot.
time to recheck that autocorrect??? What are you trying to say man?
Amber G.
BRF Oldie
Posts: 9265
Joined: 17 Dec 2002 12:31
Location: Ohio, USA

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Amber G. »

matrimc wrote:I get it you are suggesting wearable computers connected through body area networks.
FWIW - my son's master's thesis in MIT was a similar device, it was interesting to see the prototype.. woven into Kevlar jacket..
rsingh
BRF Oldie
Posts: 4451
Joined: 19 Jan 2005 01:05
Location: Pindi
Contact:

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by rsingh »

^^
I remember a lightly built Indian guy demonstrating a jacket on CNN.........he was your Son?
CRamS
BRF Oldie
Posts: 6865
Joined: 07 Oct 2006 20:54

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by CRamS »

Hari SeldonJi,

IMO, these are useless, trivial revelations to keep the 24-hour "news"/entertainment circus rolling. As if the Chinese and other leader couldn't have met somewhere else :-).
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by ramana »

matrimc wrote:Aaand former secy Clinton is boasting about it I runs is that a pot shirot at Pres. Obama? Now that there is a possibility that First Lady might throw her hat into the ring come 2016, this could be the first shot.
There corrected, for those challenged by auto correct on Ipad!
Vayutuvan
BRF Oldie
Posts: 12066
Joined: 20 Jun 2011 04:36

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Vayutuvan »

LokeshC wrote:time to recheck that autocorrect??? What are you trying to say man?
I cannot delete it anymore. I hope ramana gari corrections suffice for you sire. If not you have to live with the ambiguity of the post. Just one of those things to let it be.
anmol
BRFite
Posts: 1922
Joined: 05 May 2009 17:39

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by anmol »

Jun 26 2014

FLOOR REMARKS BY SENATOR JOHN McCAIN ON THE U.S.-INDIA STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP


Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor on the strategic partnership between the United States and India, which Senator McCain will visit next week:

Mr. President: Next week, I will travel to India where I look forward to meeting with Prime Minister Modi, his national security team, and other Indian leaders. I am excited to be returning to New Delhi, and I do so hopeful about what the Prime Minister’s election could mean for the revitalization of India’s economy and its rising power, and for the renewal of the U.S.-India strategic partnership.

“National elections in India are always a remarkable affair: Over several weeks, hundreds of millions of people peacefully elect their leaders—the largest exercise of democracy on the planet. But even by Indian standards, the recent election that brought to power Prime Minister Modi and his party, the BJP, was a landmark event: It was the first time in 30 years that one Indian political party won enough seats to govern without forming a coalition with another party. This gives the Prime Minister a historic mandate for change, which Indians clearly crave.

“I want Prime Minister Modi to succeed, because I want India to succeed. It is no secret that the past few years have been challenging ones for India – political gridlock, a flagging economy, financial difficulties, and more. It is not my place, or that of any other American, to tell India how to realize its full potential. That is for Indians to decide. Our concern is simply that India does realize its full potential – for the United States has a stake in India’s success. Indeed, a strong, confident, and future-oriented India is indispensible for a vibrant U.S.-India strategic partnership.

“Here, too, it is also no secret that India and the United States have not been reaching our full potential as strategic partners over the past few years, and there is blame to be shared on both sides for that. Too often recently, we have slipped back into a transactional relationship – one defined more by competitive concession-seeking than by achieving shared strategic goals. We need to lift our sights again.

“To help us do so, I think we need to remind ourselves why the United States and India embarked on this partnership in the first place. It was never simply about the personalities involved, though the personal commitment of leaders in both countries has been indispensable at every turn. No, the real reason India and the United States have resolved to develop a strategic partnership is because each country has determined, independently, that doing so is in its national interest.

“It is because we have been guided by our national interests that the progress of our partnership has consistently enjoyed bipartisan support in the United States and in India. This endeavor began with closer cooperation between a Democratic Administration in Washington and a BJP-led government in New Delhi. It deepened dramatically during the last decade under a Republican Administration and a Congress-led government. It reached historic heights with the conclusion of our civil nuclear agreement – thanks to the bold leadership of President Bush and Prime Minister Singh. This foundation of shared national interests has sustained our partnership under President Obama. And it is the common ground on which we can build for the future as a new Prime Minister takes office in New Delhi.

“When it comes to U.S. national interests, the logic of a strategic partnership with India is powerful: India will soon become the world’s most populous nation. It has a young, increasingly skilled workforce that can lead India to become one of the world’s largest economies. It is a nuclear power and possesses the world’s second-largest military, which is becoming ever more capable and technologically sophisticated. It shares strategic interests with us on issues as diverse and vital as defeating terrorism and extremism, strengthening a rules-based international order in Asia, securing global energy supplies, and sustaining global economic growth.

“India and the United States not only share common interests. We also share common values: the values of human rights, individual liberty, and democratic limits on state power, but also the values of our societies—creativity and critical thinking, risk-taking and entrepreneurialism and social mobility – values that continue to deepen the interdependence of our peoples across every field of human endeavor. It is because of these shared values that we are confident that India’s continued rise as a democratic great power – whether tomorrow or 25 years from now – will be peaceful, and thus can advance critical U.S. national interests. That is why, contrary to the old dictates of realpolitik, we seek not to limit India’s rise, but to bolster and catalyze it – economically, geopolitically, and yes, militarily.

“It is my hope that Prime Minister Modi and his government will recognize how a deeper strategic partnership with the United States serves India’s national interests, especially in light of current economic and geopolitical challenges.

“For example, a top priority for India is the modernization of its armed forces. This is an area where U.S. defense capabilities, technologies, and cooperation – especially between our defense industries—can benefit India enormously. Similarly, greater bilateral trade and investment can be a key driver of economic growth in India, which seems to be what Indian citizens want most from their new government. Likewise, as India seeks to further its ‘Look East’ policy and deepen its relationships with major like-minded powers in Asia – especially Japan, but also Australia, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, and Vietnam – those countries are often U.S. allies and partners as well, and our collective ability to work in concert can only magnify India’s influence and advance its interests.

“Put simply, I see three strategic interests that India and the United States clearly share, and these should be the priorities of a reinvigorated partnership:

“first, to shape the development of South Asia as a region of sovereign, democratic states that contribute to one another’s security and prosperity;
“second, to create a preponderance of power in the Asia-Pacific region that favors free societies, free markets, free trade, and free commons;
“and finally, to strengthen a Liberal international order and an open global economy that safeguard human dignity and foster peaceful development.
“As we seek to take our strategic partnership with India to the next level, it is important for U.S. leaders to reach out personally to Prime Minister Modi, especially in light of recent history. That is largely why I am traveling to India next week. And that is why I am pleased that President Obama invited the Prime Minister to visit Washington. I wish he had extended that invitation sooner, but it is positive nonetheless. When the Prime Minister comes to Washington, I urge our congressional leaders to invite him to address a joint session of Congress. I can imagine no more compelling scene than the elected leader of the world’s largest democracy addressing the elected representatives of the world’s oldest democracy.

“And yet, we must be clear-eyed about those issues that could weaken our strategic partnership. One is Afghanistan. Before it was a safe-haven for the terrorists who attacked America on September 11, 2001, Afghanistan was a base for terrorists that targeted India. Our Indian friends remember this well, even if we do not. For this reason, I am deeply concerned about the consequences of the President’s plan to pull all of our troops out of Afghanistan by 2016, not only for U.S. national security, but also for the national security of our friends in India.

“If Afghanistan goes the way of Iraq in the absence of U.S. forces, it would leave India with a clear and present danger on its periphery. It would constrain India’s rise and its ability to devote resources and attention to shared foreign policy challenges elsewhere in Asia and beyond. It could push India toward deeper cooperation with Russia and Iran in order to manage the threats posed by a deteriorating Afghanistan. And it would erode India’s perception of the credibility and capability of U.S. power and America’s reliability as a strategic partner.

“The bottom line here is clear: India and the United States have a shared interest in working together to end the scourge of extremism and terrorism that threatens stability, freedom, and prosperity across South Asia, and beyond. The President’s current plan to disengage from Afghanistan is a step backward from this goal, and thus does not serve the U.S.-India strategic partnership.

“For all of these reasons, and more, I hope the President will be open to re-evaluating, and revising, his withdrawal plan in light of conditions on the ground.

“Another hurdle on which our partnership could stumble is our resolve to see it through amid domestic political concerns and short-term priorities that threaten to push our nations apart. For most of the last century, the logic of a U.S.-India partnership was compelling, but its achievement eluded us. We have finally begun to explore the real potential of this partnership over the past two decades, but we have barely scratched the surface, and the gains we have made remain fragile and reversible, as our largely stalled progress over the past few years can attest.

“If India and the United States are to build a truly strategic partnership, we must each commit to it and defend it in equal measure. We must each build the public support needed to sustain our strategic priorities. And we must resist the domestic forces in each of our countries that would turn our strategic relationship into a transactional one – one defined not by the shared strategic goals we achieve together, but by what parochial concessions we extract from one another. If we fail in these challenges, we will fall far short of our potential, as we have before.

“It is this simple: If the 21st century is defined more by peace than war, more by prosperity than misery, and more by freedom than tyranny, I believe future historians will look back and point to the fact that a strategic partnership was consummated between the world’s two preeminent democratic powers, India and the United States. If we keep this vision of our relationship always uppermost in our minds, there is no dispute we cannot resolve, no investment in each other’s success we cannot make, and nothing we cannot accomplish together.”

###
ramana
Forum Moderator
Posts: 59773
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by ramana »

This is the Republicans reaching out to BJP in India as they did in the 2000 timeframe!!!!
devesh
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5129
Joined: 17 Feb 2011 03:27

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by devesh »

The islamics/gulf seem to have fingers deep in the Democratic pie. May be it's time for saffron to give up the aloof nautanki and take advantage?
Kakkaji
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3866
Joined: 23 Oct 2002 11:31

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Kakkaji »

devesh wrote:The islamics/gulf seem to have fingers deep in the Democratic pie. May be it's time for saffron to give up the aloof nautanki and take advantage?
Also the Chinese are also in deep with the Democrats.
Philip
BRF Oldie
Posts: 21538
Joined: 01 Jan 1970 05:30
Location: India

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Typical US horshit.They screw the world up and then want allies to put the fire out and pay the bills,by buying US weaponry!
svinayak
BRF Oldie
Posts: 14223
Joined: 09 Feb 1999 12:31

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by svinayak »

Philip wrote:Typical US horshit.They screw the world up and then want allies to put the fire out and pay the bills,by buying US weaponry!
Kakkaji wrote:
devesh wrote:The islamics/gulf seem to have fingers deep in the Democratic pie. May be it's time for saffron to give up the aloof nautanki and take advantage?
Also the Chinese are also in deep with the Democrats.
devesh wrote:The islamics/gulf seem to have fingers deep in the Democratic pie. May be it's time for saffron to give up the aloof nautanki and take advantage?
ramana wrote:This is the Republicans reaching out to BJP in India as they did in the 2000 timeframe!!!!
The Game was the TSP and PRC lobby fed money for the last 30 years to both sides to keep India away. The money was good and it was merry time.
This internal politics cannot get itself away from these gigantic lobby which is entrenched within each
Watch the House of Cards - Kevin Spacey showing the Americans how to come out of this special interest lobby which includes US business lobby.

India is being pitched as a solution to remove the prc lobby (Internally) as well as PRC geopolitic problem.
India is not biting
habal
BRF Oldie
Posts: 6919
Joined: 24 Dec 2009 18:46

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by habal »

Isn't John McCain the chief sponsor and US point man for ISIS ? Why is he coming to India ?
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by Paul »

He was in India right after the 26/11 attack hectoring GOI not to retaliate against the poodle. I used to like him at one time but after watching him on 26/11, cheerleading the maidan protests, and egging on the sunnis in the syrian debacle, I realized that he is a bloodthirsty warmonger, an arrogant idiot whose head is stuck where the sun does not shine.
dnivas
BRFite
Posts: 494
Joined: 05 Dec 2008 05:54

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by dnivas »

BJP among six foreign parties authorised for NSA surveillance
ndia’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was included in a top-secret list of six non-U.S. political parties worldwide that the U.S. National Security Agency received official permission to covertly spy upon, according to the latest trove of data released to the media by Edward Snowden, former NSA contractor-turned fugitive whistleblower.
The other five political parties that the NSA had authority to spy upon were Amal of Lebanon, with links to Hezbollah; the Bolivarian Continental Coordinator of Venezuela, with links to FARC; the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood; the Egyptian National Salvation Front; and the Pakistan People’s Party.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/internatio ... epage=true
anmol
BRFite
Posts: 1922
Joined: 05 May 2009 17:39

Re: India-US Strategic News and Discussion

Post by anmol »

India-US track picks up speed with high level visits
Jul 1, 2014, 01.36AM IST TNN[ Indrani Bagchi ]

NEW DELHI: As India and US prepare for a big ticket summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama in Washington this autumn, the first set of high level visits kick off this week.

On Wednesday, Republican senator John McCain will visit India after making a strong statement pushing the strategic relationship. He told the US Senate last week "We must resist the domestic forces in each of our countries that would turn our strategic relationship into a transactional one-one defined not by the shared strategic goals we achieve together, but by what parochial concessions we extract from one another. If we fail in these challenges, we will fall far short of our potential, as we have before."

Later in the week, Bill Burns, deputy secretary in the State Department and Nisha Biswal assistant secretary travel up to New Delhi to begin the work of preparing for the summit, but also for the strategic dialogue between Sushma Swaraj and John Kerry, tentatively scheduled for end-August, early September. Narendra Modi is expected to go to Washington at the end of September for his first ever US-India summit. It's a complete volte face from the time he was blacklisted on the US' visa list — a list of one.

Modi is expected to give a big push to ramping up defense capabilities, which is a fit with the US' outreach to India. In their dialogues, the US is expected to ask India to pick up the defense relationship — not merely buying more US equipment and weapons but making it easier for co-development and co-production in India. India, for its part, will ask for simpler US procedures. Sometimes, Indian offcials say, US procedures put India to shame.

Modi surprised many by accepting an Obama invitation to visit Washington, preferring to keep his personal issues away from national interest. Modi has let it be known that he wants to put the India-US relationship back on track.

More important, though the Middle East/West Asia is more fragile than ever, the US and India would want to work on their Asia strategy. The fulcrum of that particular side of the relationship includes Japan — the trilateral is expected to get a big push by both US and India as a unique forum to work on Asian (read China) issues.

India will want greater clarity from the US about its Afghanistan and Pakistan strategies. The Indian government spends many waking moments concerned at the future of an Afghanistan without US presence. That would possibly be one of the most important conversations that India wants to have with the US.

With the visit of McCain, India would want to pick up the threads of a profitable relationship with the Republican leadership, one that thrived under George W. Bush. In his statement, McCain put out three strategies for both countries — "First, to shape the development of South Asia as a region of sovereign, democratic states that contribute to one another's security and prosperity. Second, to create a preponderance of power in the Asia-Pacific region that favors free societies, free markets, free trade, and free commons," he said. Finally, to strengthen a liberal international order and an open global economy that safeguard human dignity and foster peaceful development.

"If India and the United States are to build a truly strategic partnership, we must each commit to it and defend it in equal measure. We must each build the public support needed to sustain our strategic priorities."
Post Reply