The Uncertain Future of India-Pakistan-Iran Pipeline

re: Pak`s import of sugar from India
http://www.dawn.com/2006/02/05/top8.htm
Beharam has reasons to cheer.
His constipated days will soon be over. Sugarcane will be cheaper from now on.
Sridhar

re: Dost-Mittar

This was a well timed article. Enegry issues are of key importance to both India and Pakistan. For Pakistan, they are important to develop its economy and for India; to sustain its economic growth. I agree, with you - the sub-continent is headed for interesting times.

re: Mantolives # 1

Good point, Yasser.

I remember Aisha interviewing Aiyar at the reception, while he was busy stirring his tea, and she asked the same question, to which his answer was a good example of the ``diplomatic shuffle``.

Ciao

re: Paki mindset
When Pakis do not have an argument, they resort to abusive language.
Typical Paki mindset.
sridhar

re:#135 by behram1
Abey, g@#nd sulagh rahin hai kya.
G@@nd mein ganna ley ley, thoda sukoon mileyga.
Sridhar

re:#136 by behram1
Knock, knock
``who is there``
Agarbatti
``Agarbatti who?``
Agarbatti nahin hai to kya hua, Behram ganney sey kaam chala leyga!
Sridhar

Should we not condemn this bipolar factoid junkie who pasted on this Chowk, those cartoons that the whole world is in uproar about?

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2088-2025511,00.html

Or is he going to apologize for his behavior?

Re: # 138

tahmed32:

Wow! That lullaby really works. :)

Now you see why Pakiland is portrayed as a dog that can be kicked around?

We, them and US

How and why the US responded differently when Pakistan and India, the two South Asian neighbours, had a question or two to ask about their sovereignty from the sole superpower

By Kamran Rehmat


The events of January 13, 2005, when the American forces, at the behest of their intelligence network, whose acumen these days appears unlikely to challenge a fifth grader, decided to take out Al Qaeda No 2 Ayman Al Zawahiri -- reckoning he was around or due for a dinner in the hamlet of Damadola in Bajaur Agency but ended up killing more than a dozen innocent folks including women and children, have left in its wake some searching questions about Pakistan`s sovereignty.

However, the American intrusion and their arrogant indifference to its fallout did not appear to disturb the conscience of the Pakistani leadership.

Unruffled, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz jetted off to the US, brushing aside demands to cancel the visit in protest, and General Pervez Musharraf to Norway and then, Davos for the annual World Economic Forum gala.

True to form, Aziz failed to elicit even a whimper of a direct reference, let alone, apology from any of member of the Bush Inner Circle -- Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Any iota of regret from the ultimate protagonist, George W Bush, was of course, simply out of the question.

The contrast

Contrast all this apparently, flimsy action with how India treated US ambassador in New Delhi, David Mulford, who reportedly dared suggest the country`s civilian nuclear deal with the US could come a cropper if New Delhi did not vote in favour of a possible referral of Iran to the UN Security Council over Tehran`s controversial nuclear programme at the forthcoming International Atomic Energy Agency meeting.

India summoned Mulford and gave him a virtual dressing down, eliciting not just `regret` from the envoy despite his claim that he was misquoted but also had the US State Department straining to the beat of India being its own judge!

A State Department spokesman took pains to assert that what Mulford said was his ``personal opinion`` and that ``ultimately, how India votes on this matter is going to be a decision of the Indian government``.

The ambassador`s `regrets` were all the more remarkable given that he later handed over a transcript of his talk with Press Trust of India -- the source which alluded to his alleged warning to India -- to prove his point that he was quoted out of context!

Apology at home

On the other hand, the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad had also summoned US Ambassador Ryan Crocker after the Bajaur cock-up but beyond itself registering an apology of a protest, it could not seek even an explanation, let alone apology.

To add insult to injury, it was Islamabad, which expressed `regret` over the loss of lives (the Foreign Office note that appeared in the papers the next day is a masterpiece of inanity)!

Ironically, it took some conscientious American writers to state the obvious about the murder of innocent people in Bajaur and blast the Bush Administration for rubbing its `frontline` ally the wrong way. It is they, not the masters steering the destiny of this country, who demanded Washington apologise to Pakistan!

The writer is Assistant Editor of The News, Islamabad.

jang: Of course you are right. Pakistan is a poverty sticken country while India is an advanced nation just like the US. How stupid of me to forget this reality that all patriotic Indians live in. And so of course an 8.5% GDP growth rate Pakistan is really worth only half and India is therefore still ahead.

ha! ha!

Now all you little indians can go to bed happy, while Arjun sings you a lullaby:

Hush little indian dont say a word
Arjun`s gonna cut-n-paste un-de-terred
And if bad paki in cricket should india thrash
Arjun`s gonna sing ``but we got the cash``
And if bad paki should say eight point five
Arjun`s gonna sing ``that be jive``

So little indian, sleep like a lamb
India is ahead, facts be damned

arjun: here is my argument - you are an idiot. :-)

{re: India and China: who has the edge? } Chinese have a sharp edge that goes straight into the crevices of Indians, even though it might be slanted. Shortly these railroad sqautters would be Banged Galore from the east as well as from the west.

Oof allah, hum tau kouch kahe bhi nahi sakhtey
mooun may shakhar khand jo phansi hain

gannay ka juice bara mazaidar hai bapu
ana bander road par

{Historically, China and India had been top 2 GDP nations all the way to 1800s.}

And muslims were the rulers of India, duh!
Correction: India is still in the dumpsters.

re: GDPs for the past 1000 years
Historically, China and India had been top 2 GDP nations all the way to 1800s. Then India fell off as the effects of being colonised by Britain came into play. By 1947, India was in the bottom of the list!
Both china and India are really reclaiming what is their`s by right!
See the following Url:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_past_GDP_%28PPP%29
Sridhar

re: India and China: who has the edge?
Link to the second part of the article
Excerpts:
(I believe China will evolve into a more democratic political system as it pulls itself out of poverty and feels the pressure of a growing middle class.

Although this political evolution is likely, it is by no means a sure thing. Yet for India a democracy already exists, and it has withstood many crises. Furthermore India enjoys an independent judiciary, a critical adjunct to a democratic system.

Democracy is the best system in which power can evolve from the private sector, not from dictates of the government. As far as the politics are concerned, there are no reservations about India.)
(Private enterprise, private property and the rule of law has been the norm in India since the British occupation. In contrast, until recently, the Chinese government owned and controlled everything. It surprises many that Lakshmi Mittal, an Indian-born steel magnate, is the 3rd richest man in the world after Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. In fact, in Forbes` latest list of the world`s wealthiest people, 12 Indians made the list and only two Chinese.)
(India lags in the hard infrastructure of roads, airports, and buildings, but leads in the ``soft`` infrastructure of democratic institutions, free press, and an independent judiciary.)
Sridhar

re: hare versus tortoise: who will win?
The issue is not between India and Pak. That is not an issue at all.
Some of the experts in the financial sector are debating who, between China and India, will be the winner.
A 2 part article from Financial times.
Link to the first part Excerpts:
(The True New Economy
Today, we`re on the verge of another revolution - the Information Revolution. All the ingredients are in place. The two most populous countries on earth, China and India, have turned towards a market-oriented system and have liberalized their economies. The vast stock of information is now beginning to flow freely throughout the world, and the ripple effect will spur inventions for years to come.)
(Major scientific breakthroughs, which in the past, originated primarily from the West and Japan, will now come from everywhere. Many brilliant people with previously untapped potential can now tackle the world`s toughest challenges. Thanks to the Internet and search engines, information is being shared like never before. Great collaborative research will be undertaken by a population that previously was completely shut off to this knowledge.)
The second part of the article in my next post.
Sridhar

re: hare versus tortoise: who will win?
The issue is not between India and Pak. That is not an issue at all.
Some of the experts in the financial sector are debating who, between China and India, will be the winner.
A 2 part article from Financial times.
Link to the first part Excerpts:
(The True New Economy
Today, we`re on the verge of another revolution - the Information Revolution. All the ingredients are in place. )
(Major scientific breakthroughs, which in the past, originated primarily from the West and Japan, will now come from everywhere. Many brilliant people with previously untapped potential can now tackle the world`s toughest challenges. Thanks to the Internet and search engines, information is being shared like never before. Great collaborative research will be undertaken by a population that previously was completely shut off to this knowledge.)
The second part of the article in my next post.
Sridhar