Indo-UK: News & Discussion

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 18 Jan 2009 10:32

Milliband's Cowboy Diplomacy

sum · Post by **sum** » 18 Jan 2009 14:17

Lots of feathers must have been ruffled if so many leaks about Mill-i-Bund's atrocious behaviour behind closed doors are floating around in all papers...

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 18 Jan 2009 16:51

I told you, he put his foot in it... He's gonna get his nuts roasted

It's gonna be fun to watch... He is not really the go-to person if we want to get things moving in ol blighty... He has a high profile, but is light-weight. It is a tory government next anyways.

Shadow FS Hague is much more sensitive to the realities on the Indian sub-continent.

Miliband moved too fast. The insensitive and poorly considered, even downright irrational, comments he made while here will take a long time or a new government in Britain to dilute from MEA memory.

I mean, what was the man thinking? Linking Mumbai to LET & Kashmir.

kshirin · Post by **kshirin** » 18 Jan 2009 17:39

If you analyse the positions the Left in the West have traditionally taken on Kashmir and complex issues they do not understand, Miliband should come as no surprise. The Neocons were not that bad for us and at least initiated a line of thinking emphasising commonality of values with India which made them more receptive to our point of view. Remember Fox News coverage on Mumbai, I am uncomfortable with their bias on other issues but the conservative instincts held good on this one.
UK Left: scapegoating India for their troubles with the Mirpuris joining this crusade is politically convenient to the short-term minded. It also springs from a default mentality - the older generation in the UK still thinks we are cut from the same cloth, casual comments about the indistinguishability of the bloodthirsty Muslims and Hindus reveal this. The younger ones are trying to catch up with the "new" thinking (accelerated after 7/7) but someone has to patiently explain this to Miliband.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 18 Jan 2009 19:33

JE Menon wrote:
Miliband moved too fast. The insensitive and poorly considered, even downright irrational, comments he made while here will take a long time or a new government in Britain to dilute from MEA memory.

I mean, what was the man thinking? Linking Mumbai to LET & Kashmir.

Milliband was trying to link with the new generation India . Rahul Gandhi was his focus and this jamming with the new generation will the feature in the future diplomatic engagement,

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 18 Jan 2009 19:49

Acharya wrote:
JE Menon wrote:
Miliband moved too fast. The insensitive and poorly considered, even downright irrational, comments he made while here will take a long time or a new government in Britain to dilute from MEA memory.

I mean, what was the man thinking? Linking Mumbai to LET & Kashmir.
Milliband was trying to link with the new generation India . Rahul Gandhi was his focus and this jamming with the new generation will the feature in the future diplomatic engagement,

After the Fiasco in the meeting between Mulli-in-Bund and PM/EAM, Rahul Gandhi should have just told him, that in the jhuggi he was going to sleep in, there was space only for one, and that Mulli-in-Bund should look for hospitality with the Mirpuris back home. There should have been no press conference, and all his invitations and meetings should have been canceled. He could have spent the rest of the time catching fish in the hotel swimming pool, thinking over all he did wrong.

I wonder how many people really call Pranab da by his first name, and how funny it would have sounded to him, this upstart greenhorn brat coming out of nowhere and doing that.

I need stretch pants cuz I am turning green again.

Mahendra · Post by **Mahendra** » 18 Jan 2009 19:57

All the best to Rahul Gandhi and Milli-baffoon with linking up sitting in the opposition benches. This goof-up should be given maximum coverage so the Milli and his party doesnt get a single vote from amongst the Indian population in UK. Labour depends quite a bit on the immigrant population for its votes and donations, by siding with the Bakis, Milli might just have commited political fidayeen on his party.

The least Pranabda should do now is to send Milli a life size poster of the Russian minister who showed milli his place.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Jan 2009 20:37

In the Islamic Emirate of England, Held-Wales, Occupied-Scotland and English-Administered-Ireland, another Pakistani reveals his true nature

Muslim civil servant suspended over 'kill British soldiers' blog

A senior Muslim civil servant has launched an astonishing verbal onslaught against the Government over its response to Israel's military strikes in Gaza - and has suggested that killing British troops in Iraq is justified.

Treasury official Azad Ali, president of the Civil Service Islamic Society, now faces the sack over the remarks.

Yogi_G · Post by **Yogi_G** » 18 Jan 2009 20:48

Gerard wrote:Yes we know what he said, we can read it right above this, no need to parrot it

More of where this came from, I hope the Londonistan wakes up some day...

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 18 Jan 2009 20:59

Replying to Jinnah on August 5, Churchill ‘‘espoused the right of Moslems and the Depressed Classes to their fair share of life and power. I feel that it is most important that the British Army should not be used to dominate the Moslems, even though the caste Hindus might claim numerical majority in a constituent assembly’’.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 18 Jan 2009 21:06

Milliband meets Pak COAS Kiyani

British minister leaves Pakistan after talks with army chief

1 day ago

ISLAMABAD (AFP) — British Foreign Secretary David Miliband left here Saturday after holding talks with Pakistan's army chief during a visit aimed at defusing tensions with India after the Mumbai attacks, officials said.

Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have deteriorated dramatically since the November attacks in which 174 people died, including nine gunmen.

Miliband held talks Saturday with Pakistan's army chief General Ashfaq Kayani on the tense situation on the country's borders with India and Afghanistan, an official said giving no further details.

The head of India's army confirmed this week that Pakistan has redeployed troops along the two countries' tense border, but said he regarded war as a "last resort."

The nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours -- which have fought two of their three wars since independence from Britain over Kashmir -- have said they do not want to go to war again.

However, India and Pakistan have engaged in a series of tit-for-tat accusations since the attacks, with each side saying the other is guilty of whipping up "war hysteria".

The top British diplomat reiterated that the Mumbai attacks were carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operating from Pakistani territory and urged Islamabad to act more quickly against extremist networks.

"The whole international community want Pakistan to go further and go faster," he told a press conference in Islamabad late Friday after meeting President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Pakistani counterpart, Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

He said "terrorism from Pakistan is a threat to the stability of the whole region."

Islamabad has said it is doing all it can to crack down on militant groups, announcing Thursday that it had so far detained more than 70 members of an Islamic charity linked to LeT and placed 124 others under surveillance.

sum · Post by **sum** » 18 Jan 2009 22:02

Miliband moved too fast. The insensitive and poorly considered, even downright irrational, comments he made while here will take a long time or a new government in Britain to dilute from MEA memory.

Indian babus have elephantine memory,esp when they have been slighted and publicly humiliated. Expect Mil-i-Bund's name to be put down in a "to be taught a lesson" register somewhere in South Block( of course, not applicable to Amrikhans since they are our new masters

).

jrjrao · Post by **jrjrao** » 18 Jan 2009 23:36

"Miliband is our hero, and we would like to kiss him", says L-e-T.

David Miliband comments on Kashmir welcomed by 'terrorist' group

Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which is said to have been behind the terror assault in which more than 170 people died, has backed comments he made last week during a trip to the region.

The statement will cause further discomfort for Mr Miliband after India reacted angrily to his 'interference' in the issue and senior politicians branded his trip a 'disaster'.

CRamS · Post by **CRamS** » 18 Jan 2009 23:48

jrjrao wrote:"Miliband is our hero, and we would like to kiss him", says L-e-T.

David Miliband comments on Kashmir welcomed by 'terrorist' group

Does anybody have an iota of doubt as to whose ventriloquist vocie it is that put this statement out:

"Our struggle is only confined to Kashmir and we have no relations or association with armed groups operating at international level. We have no global agenda. We just want freedom of Kashmir and if it comes peacefully we will welcome it. We don't see armed struggle as the only way to achieve our goal. If the world listens to our cries and play its role in resolving the Kashmir issue there would be no reason for is to fight."

Davild Miliband should be declared a terrorist, nothing short of that, by the Indian govt.

Keshav · Post by **Keshav** » 19 Jan 2009 01:54

CRamS wrote:Davild Miliband should be declared a terrorist, nothing short of that, by the Indian govt.

Being a terrorist makes you important in this day and age. Being the Prime Minister of Britain is a far more useless position, fit especially for him.

Mahendra · Post by **Mahendra** » 19 Jan 2009 02:24

^^^^

CRamS · Post by **CRamS** » 19 Jan 2009 23:38

So India has to be very happy with the equal equal pontification delivered by terrorist Miliband.

"The foreign secretary was very open and honest about his views, which are those of the British government. He delivered the same message in New Delhi as he did in Islamabad."

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 20 Jan 2009 16:53

As said earlier,Miliband tried to get the "bull" by the horns,but instead got the cow with the "udder" end!

bhttp://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politi ... 18914.html

Miliband's trip to India 'a disaster', after Kashmir gaffe

Foreign Secretary spends the night in a mud hut, but is criticised for 'aggressive style' in top-level talks

By Jane Merrick, Political Editor
Sunday, 18 January 2009

David Miliband, the accident-prone Foreign Secretary, enters a cowshed in Uttar Pradesh

David Miliband was beginning to look as accident-prone as Mr Bean last night after yet another adventure backfired.

After ruining his chance of the Labour leadership by gurning at the cameras while brandishing a banana, the Foreign Secretary's visit to India last week was labelled a "disaster" by the country's leading politicians.

He was accused of being "aggressive in tone and manner" in a meeting with the Indian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, and dismissed as a "young man" by senior officials.

Mr Miliband was forced to defend his three-day tour of India and Pakistan last night, insisting he had been "open and honest". The visit had been billed as a "solidarity" trip over the terrorist attacks on Mumbai. But the diplomatic row caused further embarrassment to Mr Miliband, just four months after the "banana incident" at Labour's party conference in Manchester.

While out of the country last week, the Foreign Secretary was also under fire in the UK for writing an article in which he declared the "war on terror" had been a "mistake". The remarks, in the last days of George Bush's presidency, were criticised for being ill-judged and ill-timed.

In the same article he linked the Mumbai sieges in November, which India blames on the Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba, to the long-running dispute over Kashmir. He said: "Resolution of the dispute over Kashmir would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms and allow Pakistani authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders."

Mr Miliband tried to appear at one with the Indian people by spending the night in a mud-floored hut – with a cow guarding the door – in rural Uttar Pradesh. But clearly this was not enough to win over the Indian government.

Manish Tiwari, a spokesman for the ruling Congress Party, said: "There is no linkage between Kashmir and the terror India has been facing emanating from Pakistan ... The bureaucracy in the British Foreign Office should have educated him a little bit on the facts."

Arun Jaitley, spokesman for the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, said: "In recent years, there has been no bigger disaster than David Miliband's visit."

A government source told AFP yesterday that Mr Miliband's "aggressive style, the tone and manner in which he conducted himself during talks with the Prime Minister [Manmohan Singh] and the Foreign Minister [Pranab Mukherjee] were also upsetting".

William Hague, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said: "Good relations with India are very important to Britain, and must be handled with care and consistency. If these statements are representative of how David Miliband's visit was received, then those relations will have been damaged."

Mr Miliband is not the first Labour Foreign Secretary to ruffle diplomatic feathers over Kashmir. In 1997, Robin Cook was criticised by India for suggesting that the UK could mediate between New Delhi and Islamabad over the conflict.

A spokeswoman for Mr Miliband said: "The Foreign Secretary was very open and honest about his views, which are those of the British government. He delivered the same message in New Delhi as he did in Islamabad."

A Foreign Office official said: "The Foreign Secretary had a very good visit and what he took away to Pakistan was a very clear sense of anger felt about the Mumbai attacks and the need for decisive action by Pakistan, supported by the international community, to root out the terrorism that struck India with such devastating effect."

Nihat · Post by **Nihat** » 20 Jan 2009 17:35

A Foreign Office official said: "The Foreign Secretary had a very good visit and what he took away to Pakistan was a very clear sense of anger felt about the Mumbai attacks and the need for decisive action by Pakistan, supported by the international community, to root out the terrorism that struck India with such devastating effect."

Just papering over the cracks and nothing else , the above stated is what he should have said in public instead of the non-sense he doled out within diplomatic channels.

Chandragupta · Post by **Chandragupta** » 20 Jan 2009 18:15

Mulli-in-Bund (kudos to whoever invented this

) should have been packed on a flight back home without any fanfare, right after the moment he uttered the K-word. You don't lecure Indians in India and certainly not when it's about Kashmir. Pranab Mukherjee should have replied Mulli-in-bund with the hindi translation of Lavrov's "Who the ****** are you to lecture me?". That'd have been something. Instead, Rahul Gandhi took him on a sight seeing tour.

joshvajohn · Post by **joshvajohn** » 21 Jan 2009 00:21

The Brown's government may not come back unless they do invest their billions into people's jobs, support system rather than into banks. Brown's ministers and secretaries are behaving on their own, including Milliband, even the considerable number of Indians votes are being scattered by Milliband's statements. Unless Brown makes sense both economically and also internationally by immediately reacting to people's needs in Britain by investing in new jobs and industries rather than giving many billions into banks he should stop dreaming of coming back as pm of uk.

It is also essential for Brown's govt to distance itself from Milliband's statements about india and other related issues.

vsudhir · Post by **vsudhir** » 21 Jan 2009 00:24

joshvajon

Are you on location in UK? Can you feel the general mood there? Are the tories all set to comeback with renewed majorities?

ashish raval · Post by **ashish raval** » 21 Jan 2009 00:40

Biased Broadcasting corporation is going Gung ho over to see UK is ready for Black Prime Minister, Black London mayer etc. The so called British Elite Media which prides itself of being "Politically correct" fail to see or recognise that there are other coloured people other than Black or White who are more than capable of being a prime minister or a mayer. They just talk in terms of Black or white. I have send letter to Biased corp for stopping such non sense and if they want to write, it is correct to write "non-white" and not just black..bla bla bla..

Mahendra · Post by **Mahendra** » 21 Jan 2009 01:34

You guys forget Omar Bakri the Bak Paki British PM in waiting

joshvajohn · Post by **joshvajohn** » 21 Jan 2009 01:36

yes Tories are leading according to some studies by big margin. I begin to think that David Cameroon is going to 10 Downing street unless labour seriously think about people particularly their own vote banks of labourers than banks!!!!!

enqyoob · Post by **enqyoob** » 21 Jan 2009 03:08

"The foreign secretary was very open and honest about his views,

Translation:

On most days you can see clear through his skull from one ear out the other

putnanja · Post by **putnanja** » 21 Jan 2009 05:42

PM sends Brown a letter on Miliband, Mandelson gets Delhi cold shoulder

New Delhi: Days after British Foreign Secretary David Miliband upset New Delhi with his comments linking Terror to resolution of Kashmir, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has written a letter to British counterpart Gordon Brown and conveyed India’s disappointment on his behaviour and comments.

Miliband’s comments also appeared to have cast a shadow on the visit of Peter Mandelson, British Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. It is learnt that the British High Commission sought an appointment for Mandelson, here on a four-day visit, with Prime Minister Singh and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee but there has been no word from any of them regarding a meeting. The call-on meetings were “requested” but not granted. They were, however, not scheduled.

Mandelson, however, met Commerce Minister Kamal Nath it was conveyed to him that the visit’s profile could have been “different” had it not followed Miliband’s controversial remarks.

New Delhi’s discomfiture with Miliband was made public by Minister of State (Commerce) Jairam Ramesh who didn’t want to go for a CII event where Mandelson was going to participate on Monday. “I didn’t feel like going. So I spoke to Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday afternoon and asked whether I should attend, since the MEA had expressed strong views on Miliband’s style and substance. He said let me think about it, and then he called back after 2-3 hours and told me you should go and make your point,” Ramesh said.

New Delhi is clearly upset with Miliband’s “arrogant” behaviour which has evoked sharp reactions. The MEA even said it didn’t need “unsolicited advice” and that his views were “evolving”.

Mandelson, who is visiting Delhi, Pune and Mumbai, has a business delegation which has representation from various sectors including civil nuclear players such as AMEC and Rolls Royce, infrastructure companies such as Arup and Benoy and the world’s largest law firm, Clifford Chance. Cairn Energy, GKN, Vodafone and Standard Chartered are also part of the delegation.

Sadler · Post by **Sadler** » 21 Jan 2009 05:48

Yogi_G wrote:
More of where this came from, I hope the Londonistan wakes up some day...

Could i impose on you to post the link? I'd like to open some kaffir minds to this peaceful religion. TIA.

Tilak · Post by **Tilak** » 21 Jan 2009 06:03

It is learnt that the British High Commission sought an appointment for Mandelson, here on a four-day visit, with Prime Minister Singh and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee but there has been no word from any of them regarding a meeting.

QED. Everybody wants to meet PMjee onleee... If Miliband wouldnt have yapped.. We would have had a wonderful opportunity of Herr. Economista handshaking 2nd rung visitors from abroad, a photosession and some chai-biscoot diplomacy.

hnair · Post by **hnair** » 21 Jan 2009 06:23

I like Milliband. Bugger is turning british foreign policy into a "Jackass episode featuring Borat". riot.

The thing that really irritates me is his irresponsibility with the banana. I really wish he did not do that and becomes the PM of UK soon. We need to start controlling the trading channels of the world and we need people like him in London

Manny · Post by **Manny** » 21 Jan 2009 07:26

jrjrao wrote:"Miliband is our hero, and we would like to kiss him", says L-e-T.

David Miliband comments on Kashmir welcomed by 'terrorist' group
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which is said to have been behind the terror assault in which more than 170 people died, has backed comments he made last week during a trip to the region.

The statement will cause further discomfort for Mr Miliband after India reacted angrily to his 'interference' in the issue and senior politicians branded his trip a 'disaster'.

Since LET claims they were not responsible for Bombay attack. Solving Kashmir issue is not going to prevent future Bombay like attacks.

vsudhir · Post by **vsudhir** » 21 Jan 2009 22:16

x-posting

Not to belabor the point, bt the daily drip drip drip of news abt the UKstan economy itself tells another tale.... that of the transformation of Britistan to sh1tistan....

Is the Sterling about to tank?

Of course, folks are coming out of the woodwork to claim credit for prescience for having foreseen this catasrophe back in November.

With the pound sterling dropping like a stone against most other currencies and credit default swap rates on long-
term UK sovereign debt beginning to edge up, this is a good time to revisit a suggestion I made earlier on a number of occasions (e.g. here, here and here), that there is a non-trivial risk of the UK becoming the next Iceland.

The risk of a triple crisis - a banking crisis, a currency crisis and a sovereign debt default crisis - is always there for countries that are afflicted with the inconsistent quartet identified by Anne Sibert and myself in our work on Iceland: (1) a small country with (2) a large internationally exposed banking sector, (3) a currency that is not a global reserve currency and (4) limited fiscal capacity.

Seriously Alarmed

The slide in sterling has turned "disorderly"....

For the first time since this crisis began eighteen months ago, I am seriously worried that British government is losing control.

The currency has fallen five cents today to $1.39 against the dollar. It is now perched precariously on a two-decade support line -- the levels tested in 2001 and 1992. If it breaks that line, traders may send it crashing down towards dollar parity.

The danger is blindingly obvious. The $4.4 trillion of foreign liabilities accumulated by UK banks are twice the size of the British economy. UK foreign reserves are virtually nothing at $60.6bn. (on this, more later in a piece I'm writing today)

If the Government is forced to nationalise RBS and perhaps Barclays with their vast exposure in dollars, euros, and yen, it risks being submerged. It is one thing for a sovereign state to let its national debt jump in a crisis -- or a war -- perhaps even to 100pc of GDP. It is another to take on foreign debts on such a scale with no reserves. Yes, the banks have foreign assets as well to match the debts. But how much are these assets really worth?

This is the moment when the "rubber hits the road" -- to borrow from American argot -- the moment when the reckless debt experiment of our economic and political leaders comes back to haunt.

We cannot even do what Iceland did to save its skin. Reykjavik refused to honour the foreign debts of its buccaneering banks. It let them default, parking the losses in Resolution Committees. Small islands can do that. Iceland has fish instead, and lots of metals.

Britain cannot follow suit. The debts are too big. If London takes such disastrous action it will set off global panic and lead to an asset death spiral, drawing the entire world into deep depression. {No skin off UKstan's back, I suppose. If UK can't pay its debts, what else can it do but default??}

What have our leaders wrought? The reckless conduct of City, the fiscal incontinence of Gordon Brown (3pc deficit at the top of the cycle), and the pitiful regulation of the UK housing boom have all combined to bring the country to the brink of disaster.

England has not defaulted since the Middle Ages. There is a real risk it may do so now.

And no -- just so there is no misuderstanding -- it would not have been any better if Britain had joined the euro ten years ago. The bubble would have been just as bad, or worse, as Ireland and Spain can attest. We have our disaster. They have their disaster. When the dust has settled in five years we can make a proper judgement on the sterling-EMU issue. Not now.

The Baby Boomers have had their moment in power. The most spoilt generation in history has handled affairs with its characteristic hedonism. The results are coming in.
The blithering idiots.

Yup, the saner ones are waking up to the headache hangovers bring. Shall cross-post this in the Indo-UK thread as well.

Like I said previously, bad karma due and coming to collect....

JwalaMukhi · Post by **JwalaMukhi** » 21 Jan 2009 23:56

http://www.rediff.com/news/2009/jan/21m ... attack.htm

"A careful examination of the details relating to the various jihadi terrorism-related cases in the UK would reveal that MI5 was intercepting the telephone conversations of these Mirpuris and other Punjabi Muslims with their friends and relatives in which they spoke of going to Pakistan for jihadi training. It did not take any action against them because it thought that they were going to wage a jihad only against the Indians and hence did not pose a threat to the British. The MI5 intercepted the telephone conversation of even one of the perpetrators of the London blasts of July 2005, about his going to Pakistan for jihadi training. It did not act on it thinking he intended to wage a jihad against the Indians.

http://www.dailypioneer.com/151294/UK-a ... hadis.html

Till 1983, the members of the Pakistani diaspora in the UK were considered a largely law-abiding people. The first signs of the radicalisation of the diaspora appeared in 1983 when a group of jihadi terrorists kidnapped Ravi Mhatre, an Indian diplomat posted in the Indian Assistant High Commission in Birmingham, and demanded the release of Maqbool Butt, the leader of the Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front, who was then awaiting execution in the Tihar Jail in Delhi following his conviction on charges of murder. When the Government of India rejected their demand, the terrorists killed Mhatre and threw his dead body into one of the streets. This kidnapping and murder was allegedly orchestrated by Amanullah Khan, a Gilgiti from Pakistan. He was assisted by some Mirpuris of the Pakistani diaspora. The British were uncooperative with India in the investigation of this case and declined to hand over those involved in the kidnapping and murder to India for investigation and prosecution.

amdavadi · Post by **amdavadi** » 22 Jan 2009 00:15

jaise karni waise bharni, Karma does come to bite you in the a**. Its matter of time before we see shariya & Islamic banking in UK.

KaranR · Post by **KaranR** » 22 Jan 2009 00:32

Comment by Milband indicates, election will take place this year. Before the country goes completely bank corrupt. They [Labour party] not only need Paki’s votes but also Muslim’s sovereign funds.
Conservatives should get in with close majority. The other factors is English are not too keen on a Scottish PM for England.

Karkala Joishy · Post by **Karkala Joishy** » 22 Jan 2009 00:38

So what was Rahul Gandhi thinking, when he invited this joker to Amethi?
Some usual psy ops about India's poverty blah blah. Why does Milifool need to know about rural India?

But there is some doubt as to whether Mr Miliband will really gain a true insight into rural Indian life.

"If he did, he might not have access to a proper latrine and clean drinking water, would be at risk from various diseases and would be too cold in the winter and too hot in the summer," one aid agency spokesman active in the area told the BBC.

"In parts of Uttar Pradesh there is only one doctor for 30,000 people."

On Wednesday night Mr Miliband will be sleeping in a "charpoi" - a bed built on a low wooden frame. Officials joke that he may look a bit jaded when he addresses a conference on terrorism on Thursday in Mumbai (Bombay).

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 22 Jan 2009 15:55

We have to thank Rahul Gandhi for putting up Miliband for the night in such romantic rustic surroundings.There would've been no Scotch or bubbly for this champagne socialist to warm his insides on a cold winter night in rural India,no central heating either.Perhaps there was some fresh warm cows milk and a fire fuelled with cow dung,as he tossed and turned on his charpoi,while the insects hummed a lullaby around his face,and in the mornng (in manner I adore),the cock would've announced the break of dawn,a far pleasanter sound to hear than a tinny alarm clock.He could've then performed his daily squat behind a bush watching the wheat fields,while chewing on a stalk,using some leaves as organic toilet paper.What a fine way to start the day!

Having enjoyed such a unique experience of rural India,it is quite obvious that David Miliband charmed by such rustic ways,left his diplomatic manners behind when back in Delhi and instead thought that Hon.Min. Laloo's style was more suitable when meeting PM MMS,formerly of Cambridge Univ (celebrating its 800th B'day too),who has openly said that all his values he learnt was from that august institution.Poor David got it all wrong.Had he behaved like a typical colonial upper class English twit,his vist would've been an outstanding success.His FO also didn't brief him properly as Indian celebrities hate to be reminded of rural India.hasn't even Big B ranted and raved about Slumdog Millionaire?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... ments.html

David Miliband accused of 'arrogance' over Kashmir comments
The Indian Government has lodged a complaint about the "aggressive" and "arrogant" manner of David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, during a recent visit to the country.

By Rosa Prince, Political Correspondent
Last Updated: 8:20PM GMT 21 Jan 2009

David Miliband called for India and Pakistan to resolve their dispute over Kashmir Photo: EPA

Pranab Mukherjee, the Foreign Minister, revealed he had used diplomatic channels to convey his disquiet at statements about terrorism and the disputed regions of Kashmir and Jammu.

He said: ``When the Foreign Secretary of the UK visited us, he shared his perceptions about the situations and I equally told him and all the interlocutors that this is your perception – we do not share with it.''

Manmohan Singh, the Indian prime minister, has already been forced to deny reports he had personally written to Gordon Brown to voice his "disappointment" about Mr Miliband's behaviour during his trip there last week.

But a senior official spokesman confirmed that the Government had been irritated by the Foreign Secretary's attitude, adding: "He did not come across as the foreign minister of a friendly nation."

Mr Miliband's suggestion that resolving the Kashmir dispute would make India less vulnerable to attack was greeted with outrage in the Indian media, which accused him of meddling and appeasing terrorists.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, the terrorist group which is thought to have been behind the Mumbai attacks in which more than 170 died, even welcomed Mr Miliband's comments, describing his intervention as "positive".

The Foreign Secretary was also accused of being insensitive for delivering a speech in which he also claimed that there was no such thing as the "war on terror" in the Taj Hotel – where many of the victims of the November terrorist attacks on Mumbai lost their lives.

Officials further let it be known that Mr Miliband had displayed an "aggressive" and disrespectful attitude in private meetings with ministers.

He was reported to have breached protocol and caused offence by addressing the elderly Mr Mukherjee by his first name, despite the minister pointedly referring to his much younger counterpart as: "Your Excellency."

Arundhati Ghose, India's former ambassador to the United Nations, said: "He was totally tactless. "It was so familiar that it is almost condescending."

The Bharatiya Janata Party, (BJP) the main opposition, described the visit as a ``diplomatic disaster''.

In his article and speech, Mr Miliband said: ``Although I understand the current difficulties, resolution of the dispute over Kashmir would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms, and allow Pakistani authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders.''

In response, an editorial in the Hindu newspaper described Mr Miliband's trip as an "ill-conceived foray'', adding: ``Such ham-handedness plays into the hands of those who are in denial and rationalise violent extremism by finding 'just' causes for it.''

The Conservatives accused Mr Miliband of damaging British relations with a strategically important nation.

William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, said: ``It is clear that the Indian government is extremely unhappy about the visit of the Foreign Secretary.

"Good relations with India are very important to Britain, and must be handled with care and consistency. If David Miliband's comments caused a diplomatic storm in Delhi, then those relations will have been damaged by his visit."

Vishnu Prakas, spokesman for the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi, added: "Mr Miliband is entitled to his views, which are clearly his own and are evolving.

"We do not need unsolicited advice on the internal issues of India like Jammu and Kashmir.''

Mr Miliband's implied criticism of George Bush, the former US President who coined the phrase "war on terror," was undermined this week when new President Barack Obama used his inaugural speech to confirm that he considered America to be "at war".

It is known some allies of Mr Brown were also surprised at the tone of Mr Miliband's speech.

One MP close to the Prime Minister told the Daily Telegraph that Mr Miliband should note the warm words of support Mr Brown offered President Bush in his press conference on Monday.

Mr Brown pointedly thanked the outgoing President for all he had done in the fight against terrorism.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: ``The UK and India enjoy a very strong strategic partnership which covers a very broad agenda. We are confident that the common interests we share and our strong relationship will continue

PS: The silver lining in the clouds is that David-the-Donkey,is quite safe from assassination or terrorist attack in the UK,as he has such superb references from the LET.It would be a brave Islamist who would dare to even stick his tongue out at him with such powerful friends.In fact,he should employ them as his personal bodyguard.They would cut such a fine sight!

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 22 Jan 2009 18:33

Milliband's publicity machine has been pushing his candidature for PM hard, and it has miscalculated badly more than once. he was trying to carve out some blue water between himself and Gordon, and failed (again). During the last labour party conference, Gordon slapped down Milliband very publicly and humiliated him on national television as the young upstart who doesn't know anything. He is trying to play catch up and trying anything and everything.

the Tories are starting to get better at opposition, but they are not yet strong enough to be credible. its a negative vote for gordon at the moment, not a positive one for the tories. and don't forget, even the tories have been flirting with the K word to gain M-votes in marginal Northern Engrezistan seats

Chinmayanand · Post by **Chinmayanand** » 22 Jan 2009 21:25

Al-Qaeda leader calls for attacks on Britain in retaliation for Israel's Gaza offensive

sum · Post by **sum** » 22 Jan 2009 22:28

durgesh wrote:Al-Qaeda leader calls for attacks on Britain in retaliation for Israel's Gaza offensive

Gotta love the irony. Hope that our FM goes to London and asks them to solve the issue over dialogue and withdraw all British forces from everywhere in the world to help prevent such threats being issued...