Everest Mounted!

The Nepalis and the Chinese have finally agreed – after much consternation – that Mount Everest stands 8,848 meters tall. Forget Sir Edmund Hillary, even my 7th standard geography teacher, Paul Mathew, knew that one! In fact he even knew why Eskimos build igloos! The hapless classmate got a thrashing of course, when he replied saying: “Why not?”, to Mr Paul Mathew’s question about whether he knew!
Asides aside, the Americans – with their GPS systems and all – still maintain Mount Everest stands 8,850 meters tall.
Given the rate at which India is subducting under the Asian continental shelf, the Chinese and the Nepalis will be at it again in Kathmandu pretty soon!

US-PAK NUKE DEAL: THE REAL DEAL

Don’t be surprised if the US and Pakistan enter into a nuclear cooperation deal, a few years down the road – perhaps even sooner.
A few important things are happening simultaneously:
Pakistan is becoming central to Washington’s plans of stabilising Afghanistan, so as to effect a pullout of its troops, beginning mid-2011.
Pakistan desperately needs to tackle its energy deficit.
Nuclear power is regaining its popularity across the world – including the United States of America, where President Obama is all for a renaissance of nuclear power.
Most importantly, the international nuclear community wants to reign-in Pakistan’s notorious nuclear establishment, known more for being one of the major facilitators of nuclear proliferation around the world.
Then of course, there’s A Q Khan.
The US has been helping secure Pakistan’s nukes over the past few years.
The US is also believed to be helping raise a specialised force to protect Pakistan’s nuclear establishments.
Now the US has said it is willing to examine Islamabad’s request for a nuclear cooperation deal.
Whats more, Washington has now asked Islamabad to improve its proliferation track record if it wants a nuclear cooperation deal.
India should be happy, as it will bring Pakistan’s notorious nuclear establishment under stringent IAEA and international control regimes.
But India should be extremely concerned, for another important reason.
Want to know why? Refer to my post on:
http://www.roydendsouza.wordpress.com

Obama Health Care Bill

Yes Mr President, it is a big f***ing deal!

“Please ask Robert Blake why Pakistan is so substantially involved in Afghanistan today!”

Senior Indian Diplomat in Utter Frustration

Good, Bad and Ugly Taliban

Has India been forced to toe the line of the West in making a distinction between the Good Taliban and the Bad Taliban? New Delhi has maintained that there is, and can be, no such distinction. The London Conference however, seems to have forced New Delhi to concur with the West, on the need to “reintegrate” sections and individuals of the Taliban, rather than bring about “reconciliation” – albeit within the “red lines”.
Now if that is so many words is not the same as engaging the Good Taliban, I don’t know what is!
What’s worse, we don’t seem to be nimble at all in adapting to the fast-changing Af-Pak scenario. As a result it appears win-win for Pakistan.

Has India been forced to toe the line of the West in making a distinction between the Good Taliban and the Bad Taliban? New Delhi has maintained that there is, and can be, no such distinction. The London Conference however, seems to have forced New Delhi to concur with the West, on the need to “reintegrate” sections and individuals of the Taliban, rather than bring about “reconciliation” – albeit within the “red lines”.
Now if that in so many words, is not the same as engaging the Good Taliban, then I don’t know what is!
What’s worse, we don’t seem to be nimble at all, in adapting to the fast-changing Af-Pak scenario. As a result, it appears to be win-win for Pakistan.