Mr. Bajwa's statement is full of misleading comments.  He says Pakistan is committed to eradicate terrorism, but lot of leaders of militant groups move around with full liberty in Pakistan.  Some have been even proven guilt against them.  Pakistan does not arrest them.  He said Pakistan is willing to discuss Kashmir issue, but will not stop assisting and abetting Kashmiris in Kashmir.  He also said that Pakistan is ready to face any consequences because his defense forces are ready to face any eventuality, when he knows it is not true.He also said that dialogue is needed to prevail peace in the region, but his people do not hesitate to call India 'an enemy'.  Under these circumstances, how can one expect to exchange a meaningful dialogue?

The Middle East issue is such a tangled enigma which is beyond repair.  So many different formidable factors - different in culture, religion, social and linguistic- are the stumbling block to find a permanent solution to this on-going problem.  The writer of the enclosed article has provided live and factual examples of failures whenever this country tried to either change the regime or find a peaceful solution to the problem, whether it is Vietnam, Korea or the turmoil in the Middle East.  I do not think any country irrespective of its fire power can find a permanent solution in the Middle East.  Staying there is just like standing in the swamp.  More you jump around in the swamp, the deeper you go into it and eventually you drown yourself - militarily and economically.  One wonders if it is worth the risk.  However, from a political angle, USA cann't afford to get out exclusively from the Middle East drama because it will provide a strong foothold to Russia and Iran.  As I said above, it is a riddle which is not easy to untangle.  As far as latest gas usage in Syria is concerned, there are many reports about who actually did it.  Is it Assad, the UK Government or the anti-Assad forces to keep USA involved in this issue.  The Jury is still out and we will see what finally happens.

Ms. Mehbooba's thought process is on the right track to minimize rape threats to minors.  But it does not solve the rape threat from its roots.  The female victim is traumatized the same way irrespective of her age bracket.  Yes, the adult has a better understanding of what had happened to her and is able to cope with that situation with more perseverance  and responsibility than a minor victim.  But the  mental torture which stays with that victim is a life long issue she has to face.  One cann't remove that stigma.  Hence, this writer feels that Ms. Mehbooba ought to make this law including all rapes irrespective of female victims' age, and once the rape is proven, the rapists should be put behind bar for a long time without bail.  And, in the event of female rape victim dies, the rapist should be hanged too. Also, rapist's assets should be auctioned and money handed over the victim family. I wish this law becomes a national legislation to help female community in India.

The latest statement of Mr. Abdullah referring to India ought to return portion of Kashmir acquired in the battle of 1965 to Pakistan and Kashmiris are not slaves of India leaves an impression that though he is living in India, but has a very soft heart for Pakistan when it comes to solving a long standing Kashmir problem. He also suggests that LoC should be converted to Line of Peace. But he is forgetting one thing and that is that the civilian government in Pakistan has no say in this matter, and the military of Pakistan wants to keep this issue alive because it is a source of its sustenance. The hotter the Kashmir border, the urgent need for Pakistan to have a strong military. This is the key. Pakistan does not love Kashmir, it is a political and just a prestigious issue for them to stay alive militarily. Because of their failed foreign policy and lack of financial resources, they could not keep East Pakistan as part of Pakistan, Balochistan is on the verge of separation, Karachi is burning, KPP is beyond their control, then how can one expect them to expand their territorial objective. There are only three ways to live with this Kashmir problem- one being the present status quo- keep fighting, second being accept LoC as an international border and live peacefully on their own respect side of the border and the third being a full scale attack and the winner takes it all. There is no other way to handle this issue. Mr. Abdullah is making provocative statements most of the times. I am wondering when three generations of his own family were sitting on the throne, why did they not work with the central government to solve this issue. Why did they not try to revoke an Article 370 from the Constitution which is the main stumbling block to achieve any liveable solution. It is easy to criticize while sitting outside the camp, but very difficult to exert efforts to find a tenable solution. Mr. Abdullah should talk to the central government, his own party and Ms. Mehbooba's party and delete an Article 370 from the Constitution and move forward.

The writer has explained a very factual situation while comparing China with America.  The difference is because of America's bad, short-sighted and lenient foreign policies.  If you go back may be five decades, China was suffering from all kinds of sanctions imposed by the USA.  China was a country full of drug addicts, and no one dared to buy any Chinese products due to inferior quality. Today's China is the making of this country's one-sided policies which brought China from being a backward country to the fore front of one of the global economic powers.

This economic prosperity has brought lot of construction in China.  Unfortunately, the occupancy rate in those skyscrapers is very low even though lot of people are being brought from the rural to the urban areas.  That may not play a constructive role, the moment Chinese economy goes south which means a real estate meltdown.  Mostly, Chinese economy is 'exported' oriented.

True, China cann't expand its own territory due to geographical location, as the writer pointed out wisely.  However, China, by using its economic power, flexing its tentacles in other countries - Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Burma, Uganda, Afghanistan and Africa etc.- by way of developing their ports and other infrastructure.  China provides loans to all those countries at a higher rate with the provision that if a country cannot pay back, then China will own that land on a lease basis for a long term.  Hence, that enables China to achieve its territorial expansionist objective.

Other than that, there is no comparison between China and America.  They have two separate set of governments - totalitarian vs. democracy; controlled regime vs. liberty and freedom; one language medium(English) vs. two main languages- Cantonese and Mandarin ( one does not understand the other) etc.

The key element of this article is the security issue.  America has been on the forefront of all nations due to its heavy investment in the area of "R & D"  Even though for the last 3-4 decades, America has lost most of its manufacturing base, it still remained a super power because of investment in the "R & D" area.

I hope Trump stays in the WH for full two terms and bring back its lost heavy manufacturing base.

Thanks, Bhatiaji, this was a very good and informative article

I think, finally, the Saudi government under Prince Salman has started making decisions which are worthy to be noticed.  These decision whether they are in the field of education, culture, religion, entertainment, economy etc., all are for the well being of its subjects.  They are needed in the 21st century to be able to compete on a global basis.  Yes, Saudis have lots of oil reserves, but how long they will last.  What happens when the oil wells go dry.  How would Saudis survive?  What Saudis need is a good educational curriculum, good universities pursuing high educational system teaching students science, math, different global languages, engineering and architecture etc. so that Saudis can compete with the global talents also.  I am glad that Prince Salman has realized that 7th century Muslim ideology is obsolete and it needs to be replaced with the new thinking and new ideology to survive.  It is always prudent to change with the changing times.  Saudi government should also attract more manufacturing in Saudi Arabia, instead of just buying material from other countries.  The bigger, multi-faceted and expanded manufacturing base a country has, the better off that country is.

When I came to this country in 1970, The US Steel was the largest steel manufacturing company in the world.  Then due to lenient and ill-advised policies in this country in the 80s, slowly and slowly manufacturing base started deteriorating and shifted to overseas.  I believe, for any country, a strong manufacturing base is must for its prosperity and security.  This country imports lot of steel from China who is subsidizing its steel industry and dump steel in the United States at a very competitive price.  We have kind of become complacent about the supply of steel from China.  God forbids if there is a war between China and the US, this supply will disappear which means, the US can run into a scenario of shortage of steel to manufacture defense armaments - fighter jets, tanks, missiles etc.  So, from country's security standpoint, self-sufficiency in steel and aluminum manufacturing is must.  Needless to say, these tariffs will create jobs too - more jobs means higher GDP, higher revenue for the exchequer and higher standard of living for the people living here.