US, Russia seal Syria ceasefire deal, enter new military partnership

The United States and Russia early Saturday announced a breakthrough agreement on Syria that foresees a nationwide ceasefire starting Monday, followed a week later by an unexpected new military partnership targeting the Islamic State and the al-Qaeda as well as the establishment of new limits on President Bashar Assad’s forces.

After a daylong final negotiating session in Geneva, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said shortly after midnight Saturday that the plan could reduce violence in Syria and lead to a long sought political transition, ending more than five years of bloodshed. He called the deal a potential “turning point” in a conflict that has killed as many as 500,000 people, if complied with by Syria’s Russian-backed government and U.S.-supported rebel groups.

The ceasefire begins at sundown September 12, Mr. Kerry said, coinciding with the Eid-ul-Adha holiday.

“Today the United States and Russia are announcing a plan, which we hope will reduce violence, ease suffering and resume movement toward a negotiated peace and a political transition in Syria,” Mr. Kerry said. “We are announcing an arrangement that we think has the capability of sticking, but it is dependent on people’s choices.”

“It has the ability to stick, provided the regime and the opposition both meet their obligations, which we expect other supporting countries will strongly encourage them to do,” he added.

Mr. Kerry’s negotiating partner, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, confirming the agreement, said it could help expand the counterterrorism fight and aid deliveries to Syrian civilians under U.N. auspices that have been stalled for weeks. Assad’s government was informed of the accord, and it as prepared to comply.

“The United States is going the extra mile here because we believe that Russia, and my colleague, have the capability to press the Assad regime to stop this conflict and to come to the table and make peace,” Mr. Kerry said, citing a number of recent meetings with Mr. Lavrov.

“This is just the beginning of our new relations,” Mr. Lavrov said.

The deal culminates months of frenetic diplomacy that included four meetings between Mr. Kerry and Mr. Lavrov since August 26, and a lengthy face-to-face in China between Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin. The arrangement hinges on Moscow pressuring Assad’s government to halt all offensive operations against the armed opposition in specific areas, which were not detailed. Washington must persuade U.S.-backed rebels to break ranks with Fath al-Sham, an al-Qaeda-linked group previously known as the Nusra Front, and other extremist groups.

The military deal would go into effect after both sides abide by the truce for a week and allow unimpeded humanitarian deliveries. Then, the U.S. and Russia would begin intelligence sharing and targeting coordination, while Assad’s air and ground forces would no longer be permitted to target Nusra any longer; they would be restricted to operations against the Islamic State.

The arrangement would ultimately aim to step up and concentrate the firepower of two of the world’s most powerful militaries against Islamic State and Nusra, listed by the United Nations as terrorist groups.

Both sides have failed to deliver their ends of the bargain over several previous truces.

But the new arrangement goes further by promising a new U.S.-Russian counterterrorism alliance, only a year after Mr. Obama chastised Mr. Putin for a military intervention that U.S. officials said was mainly designed to keep Mr. Assad in power and target more moderate anti-Assad forces.

Russia, in response, has chafed at America’s financial and military assistance to groups that have intermingled with the Nusra Front on the battlefield. Mr. Kerry said it would be “wise” for opposition forces to separate completely from Nusra, a statement Mr. Lavrov hailed.

“Going after Nusra is not a concession to anybody,” Mr. Kerry said. “It is profoundly in the interests of the United States.”

Getting Mr. Assad’s government and the rebel groups to comply with the deal may now be more difficult as fighting rages around Aleppo, Syria’s most populous city.

The government appeared to tighten its siege of the former Syrian commercial hub in the last several days, seizing several key transit points. Forty days of fighting in Aleppo has killed nearly 700 civilians, including 160 children, according to a Syrian human rights group.

The proposed level of U.S.-Russian interaction has upset several leading national security officials in Washington, including Defense Secretary Ash Carter and National Intelligence Director James Clapper, and Mr. Kerry only appeared at the news conference after several hours of internal U.S. discussions.

After the Geneva announcement, Pentagon secretary Peter Cook offered a guarded endorsement of the arrangement and cautioned, “We will be watching closely the implementation of this understanding in the days ahead.”

At one point, Mr. Lavrov said he was considering “calling it a day” on talks, expressing frustration with what he described as an hours-long wait for a U.S. response. He then presented journalists with several boxes of pizza, saying, “This is from the U.S. delegation,” and two bottles of vodka, adding, “This is from the Russian delegation.”

The Geneva negotiating session, which lasted more than 13 hours, underscored the complexity of a conflict that includes myriad militant groups, shifting alliances and the rival interests of the U.S. and Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran, and Turkey and the Kurds.

Mr. Kerry outlined several steps the government and rebels would have to take. They must now pull back from demilitarized zones, and allow civilian traffic and humanitarian deliveries notably into Aleppo.

“If Aleppo is at peace, we believe that the prospects for a diplomatic solution will brighten,” he said. “If Aleppo continues to be torn apart, the prospects for Syria and its people are grim.”

But as with previous blueprints for peace, Saturday’s plan appears to lack enforcement mechanisms. Russia could, in theory, threaten to act against rebel groups that break the deal. But if Mr. Assad bombs his opponents, the U.S. is unlikely to take any action against him given Mr. Obama’s longstanding opposition to entering the civil war.

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Micromax enters top three handset brands in Russia

India’s home-grown handset brand Micromax has entered the top three brands league in Russia, for the first time ever, according to Counterpoint Research.

Micromax, which expanded its operations in Eastern Europe a couple of years ago, is now reaping the benefits of distribution and marketing as it captured the third spot for the first time ever with 9 per cent market share, it said.

According to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Market Monitor program, in Q4 2015 (Oct-Dec), Russia’s mobile phone market grew by 8% annually. The growth in the market resulted in significant shifts in the competitive environment during the quarter, it said.

“Russia has over the years been a key market for mobile phone manufacturers, having a halo effect for the performing brands in other countries within the region. While, the Russian economy shrank 3.7%, a sharp dip since the global crisis in 2009 and as the Ruble weakened, but the overall mobile phone demand was surprisingly good, up by 8% YoY. This uptick was driven by a rise in cheaper feature phone demand during the quarter; the smartphone market was flat compared to last year. This is an interesting reverse trend which signals the demand for better and more affordable mobile devices, filling the demand gap,” Peter Richardson, Research Director at Counterpoint research said.

“The rise in demand for affordable phones has been a blessing in disguise for Asian brands as Alcatel One Touch climbed to the number one spot, capturing 12% market share and growing 60% annually. The largest domestic brand in India, Micromax, also moved up the rankings to capture the third spot in Russia for the first time ever, growing more than 350% annually. This is an exciting time for challenger brands such as Micromax and Alcatel OneTouch to strengthen their brands in newer markets, moving up the global rankings,” Tarun Pathak Sr. Analyst at Counterpoint Research said.

The research firm also said Apple saw demand for its iPhone slow due to the weakening economy and stronger Ruble, making it quite an expensive offering. However, the Cupertino vendor still maintained its position in the top five smartphone brands in Russia in Q4 2015.

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Major powers agree on plan for ‘cessation of hostilities’ in Syria

Major powers agreed on Friday to a cessation of hostilities in Syria set to begin in a week and to provide rapid humanitarian access to besieged Syrian towns, but failed to secure a complete ceasefire or an end to Russian bombing.

Following a marathon meeting in Munich aimed at resurrecting peace talks that collapsed last week, the powers, including the United States, Russia and more than a dozen other nations, reaffirmed their commitment to a political transition when conditions on the ground improved.

At a news conference, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry acknowledged the Munich meeting produced commitments on paper only.

"What we need to see in the next few days are actions on the ground, in the field," he said, adding that "without a political transition, it is not possible to achieve peace."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the news conference that Russia would not stop air attacks in Syria, saying the cessation of hostilities did not apply to Islamic State and al Nusrah, which is affiliated with al Qaeda. Islamic State militants control large parts of Syria and Iraq

"Our airspace forces will continue working against these organisations," he said.

The United States and European allies say few Russian strikes have targeted those groups, with the vast majority hitting Western-backed opposition groups seeking to topple the government of President Bashar al-Assad government.

Mr. Lavrov said peace talks should resume in Geneva as soon as possible and that all Syrian opposition groups should participate. He added that halting hostilities would be a difficult task.

But British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said ending fighting could only succeed if Russia stopped air strikes supporting Syrian government forces' advance against the opposition.

Diplomats cautioned that Russia had until now not demonstrated any interest in seeing Assad replaced and was pushing for a military victory.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday raised the spectre of an interminable conflict or even a world war if powers failed to negotiate an end to five years of fighting in Syria, which has killed 250,000 people, caused a refugee crisis and empowered Islamic State militants.

Opposition group cautious

Syria's main opposition group welcomed the plan by the world powers on Friday.

It cautioned, however, that the agreement must prove to be effective before it joins political talks with government representatives in Geneva.

Russia's intervention on the battlefield on behalf of Assad since last October has swung the momentum in the fight between the government and opposition forces. The latest advance over the past two weeks has seen government forces and allies rout rebels and come close to encircling Aleppo, a divided city half held by rebels for years.

The first peace talks in two years between belligerents in Syria fell apart last week before they began in the face of the advance by Assad's forces.

A senior French diplomat said: "The Russians said they will continue bombing the terrorists. They are taking a political risk because they are accepting a negotiation in which they are committing to a cessation of hostilities. If in a week there is no change because of their bombing, then they will bear the responsibility."

Washington is leading its own air campaign against Islamic State militants in eastern Syria and northern Iraq, but has resisted calls to intervene in the main battlefields of Syria's civil war in the west of the country, where the government is mostly fighting against other insurgent groups.

The communiqué of the plan reached in Munich said the powers had established a ceasefire task force, under the auspices of the United Nations, co-chaired by Russia and the United States, and including members having government and opposition groups.

The communiqué added that sustained humanitarian aid would begin this week to various besieged areas of Syria.

"Humanitarian access to these most urgent areas will be a first step toward full, sustained, and unimpeded access throughout the country," the joint communiqué added.

The Assad government for years has repeatedly promised humanitarian access but has rarely lived up to its promises. Western-backed rebels have also been accused of that.

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Diplomats aim for temporary Syria truce in a week

Diplomats trying to secure a ceasefire for the civil war in Syria fell short early on Friday in organising an immediate truce but agreed to try to work out details and implement a temporary “cessation of hostilities” in the coming week.

Although foreign ministers from the International Syria Support Group managed to seal an agreement to “accelerate and expand” deliveries of humanitarian aid to besieged Syrian communities beginning this week, their failure to agree on a ceasefire leaves the most critical step to resuming peace talks unresolved. It was not clear from their comments afterward if deep differences regarding the truce and which groups would be eligible for it could be overcome.

Speaking for the group, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry hailed the results as a significant accomplishment but noted that a cessation-of-hostilities agreement, if it can be achieved, would only be a “pause” in fighting and that more work would need to be done to turn it into a fully-fledged ceasefire.

“The real test is whether or not all the parties honour those commitments and implement them,” he told reporters after the nearly six-hour meeting at a Munich hotel, which ran the early hours of Friday.

While humanitarian access is critical to relieving the suffering of millions of Syrians in the short term, a durable and lasting ceasefire will be required if stalled negotiations between Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and the opposition are to resume on or before the U.N.-set target date of Feb. 25. The talks broke down last month before they really started, due largely to gains by Assad’s military with the heavy backing of Russian airstrikes.

Mr. Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who had been pressing for a ceasefire to begin March 1, said the U.S. and Russia would co-chair both the working group on humanitarian aid as well as a task force that will try to deal with the “modalities” of the temporary truce and include members of the military along with representatives from countries that are supporting various armed groups in Syria.

Russia had proposed the March 1 ceasefire, but the U.S. and others saw that as a ploy to give Moscow and the Syrian army three more weeks to try to crush Western- and Arab-backed rebels. The U.S. countered with demands for an immediate stop to the fighting. Both countries appeared to have made concessions on that front.

Despite the concession on potential timing of the truce and the agreement to set up the task force, the U.S., Russia and others remain far apart on which groups should be eligible for it. The new task force will take up a job that was supposed to have been settled months ago. At the moment, only two groups the Islamic State group and the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front are ineligible for the truce because they are identified as terrorist organizations by the United Nations.

Russia, Syria and Iran argue that other groups, notably some supported by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and some other Arab states, should not be eligible for the ceasefire, and there was no sign Friday that those differences had been resolved.

Mr. Lavrov said the Russian air campaign in support of Assad’s military would continue against terrorist groups and denied persistent reports that the Russian strikes have hit civilian areas, notably around rebel-held Aleppo, where heavy fighting has been raging for the past week.

Among the issues the task force is charged with sorting out are delineating territories held by the Islamic State, al-Nusra and other militant groups, ensuring the compliance of eligible parties and referring violations of the truce for appropriate action, including exclusion from the arrangement.

Asked Friday to comment on the Munich talks, Salem Meslet, the spokesman for the Syrian opposition coalition known as the High Negotiations Commitee, said, “We must see action on the ground in Syria.”

Five years of conflict have killed more than a quarter-million people, created Europe’s biggest refugee crisis since World War II and allowed the Islamic State to carve out its own territory across parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

Overall, the United Nations says almost half a million people are besieged in Syria. Since the beginning of 2015, Syria’s government had approved just 13 inter-agency aid convoys, out of 113 requested, the U.N. reported last month.

As Mr. Kerry met with the Syria group in Munich, U.S. Defence Secretary Ash Carter was in Brussels to rally fresh support for the fight against the Islamic State group in largely the same territory.

Mr. Carter said defence ministers from more than two dozen countries gave a “broad endorsement” of a refined U.S. plan for defeating the Islamic State. After a meeting at NATO headquarters, Mr. Carter told reporters that nearly all participants either promised new military commitments or said their governments would consider new contributions. He predicted “tangible gains” in Iraq and Syria by March.

“We will all look back after victory and remember who participated in the fight,” he said, appealing to coalition partners to expand and deepen their military contributions.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance agreed Thursday to deploy NATO airborne command and control aircraft in order to free up similar U.S. aircraft for the air campaign in Syria and Iraq.

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Russia proposes March 1 ceasefire in Syria; U.S. wants it now

Russia has proposed a March 1 ceasefire in Syria, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, but Washington believes Moscow is giving itself and the Syrian government three weeks to try to crush moderate rebel groups.

The United States has countered with demands for the fighting to stop immediately, the officials said. Peace talks are supposed to resume by Feb. 25.

The talk of new ceasefire plans comes as the U.S., Russia and more than a dozen other countries meet in Munich to try to halt five years of civil war in the Arab country. The conflict has killed more than a quarter—million people, created Europe’s biggest refugee crisis since World War II and allowed the Islamic State to carve out its own territory across parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

Russia says it is supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government as part of a counterterrorism campaign. But the West says the majority of its strikes are targeting moderate groups that are opposed to Assad and the Islamic State.

The most recent Russian—backed offensive, near Aleppo, prompted opposition groups to walk out of peace talks last month in Geneva, while forcing tens of thousands of civilians to flee toward the Turkish border.

The U.S. officials weren’t authorized to speak publicly about private diplomatic discussions in the run—up to the Munich conference and demanded anonymity. One said the U.S. can’t accept Russia’s offer because opposition forces could suffer irreversible losses in northern and southern Syria before the ceasefire ever takes hold.

The officials said the U.S. counterproposal is simple- A ceasefire that is effective immediately and is accompanied by full humanitarian access to Syria’s besieged civilian centers.

Secretary of State John Kerry, who arrived in Germany on Wednesday, had talks planned late in the evening with U.N. peace envoy Staffan de Mistura and Adel al—Jubeir, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, a key backer of Syria’s rebel groups.

The Obama administration has been trying for months to clinch a ceasefire and pave the way for a transition government in Syria that would allow parties to the conflict to concentrate on defeating the threat posed by the Islamic State and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front.

But after having long demanded Assad’s ouster, the shift in the U.S. focus to combating terrorism has resulted in a confusing mix of priorities and a layered strategy in Syria that few understand, and even fewer see working. Beyond Russia, the administration has often struggled to keep its own allies such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia in line.

“We will approach this meeting in Munich with great hopes that this will be a telling moment,” Mr. Kerry said on Tuesday in Washington. His peace push coincides with Defence Secretary Ash Carter’s attendance at a gathering in Brussels to hash out military options with NATO partners.

Brett McGurk, the Obama administration’s point—man for defeating the Islamic State, said Russia’s Aleppo offensive was having the perverse effect of helping the extremists by drawing local fighters away from the battle against IS and to the war against Syria’s government.

“What Russia’s doing is directly enabling ISIL,” Mr. McGurk told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington.

But the panel’s top Democrat echoed some of the frustration of his Republican colleagues with the larger U.S. strategy.

“It seems as if we’re only half-heartedly going after ISIS, and half-heartedly helping the (rebel) Free Syria Army and others on the ground,” said Rep. Eliot Engel, Democrat—New York. He urged a “robust campaign, not a tentative one, not one that seems like we’re dragging ourselves in ... to destroy ISIS and get rid of Assad.”

Mr. Kerry emphasized on Tuesday that U.S. officials “are not blind to what is happening.” He said the Aleppo battle makes it “much more difficult to be able to come to the table and to be able to have a serious conversation.”

But the U.S. has staked its hopes for an end to the five—year civil war in Syria on the peace talks and Assad’s eventual departure, saying the American public has no appetite for a military solution.

To that end, Washington has tempered its calls dating back to August 2011 for Assad to immediately leave power. And to get Russia on board, it now won’t even say that Assad should be barred from running for re—election if and when a new Syrian constitution is drafted.

The ambiguity has emboldened Assad’s supporters, Russia and Iran, while upsetting American allies in the Middle East, who are frustrated by a process that appears to lock the Syrian leader in place well into 2017 and perhaps beyond.

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Putin ‘probably’ approved KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko’s murder

Among the conclusions of a public inquiry into the death in November 2006 in a London hospital of the former Russian spy, Alexander Litvinenko, is the startling but not entirely substantiated allegation that Russian President Vladmir Putin “probably” approved his murder.

The 329-page report of the inquiry committee, chaired by Sir Robert Owens, was presented by Home Secretary Theresa May to the House of Commons on Thursday. The panel was set up on July 22, 2014.

The report has found Andrey Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun guilty of committing the murder of Mr. Litvinenko by poisoning his cup of tea with Polonium-210 during a meeting of the three at a hotel in Mayfair on November 23. There were “several reasons why organisations and individuals within the Russian state might have wished to target Mr. Litvinenko, including to the point of killing him, by late 2006,” the report states. Along with Mr. Putin, the then chief of the Russian intelligence service FSB, Nikolai Patrushev, also “probably approved” the operation, according to the report.

Mr. Lugovoi and Mr. Kovtun, who are currently in Russia, have denied killing Mr. Litvinenko. They refused to give evidence before the inquiry. Though wanted for questioning in the U.K., Russia never agreed to their extradition. Speaking in the House of Commons on Thursday, Secretary May said the “deeply disturbing” conclusions of the Inquiry confirmed that the murder was a “state-sponsored act” by Russia. “It goes without saying that this was a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law and of civilised behaviour,” she said.

The British government would protest to Russia “in the strongest possible terms.”

The British government has frozen the assets of the two individuals.

A Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson has dismissed the findings of the report, according to TASS news agency. “We regret that the purely criminal case has been politicised and has marred the entire atmosphere of bilateral relations,” spokesperson Maria Zakharova said. Mr. Lugovoi has called the allegations against him “absurd.”

“The whole process turned into a theatrical farce with prolonged intermissions.,” he told TASS. Mr. Litvinenko was an officer of the FSB, the successor to the KGB. An outspoken critic of the Kremlin and Mr. Putin, he defected to England with his wife and child in 2000 where the family received political asylum.

Sir Owen’s report states that his public disclosures in the U.K. accusing the FSB of responsibility for the 1999 apartment bombings in Moscow and its collusion in organised crime were some of the reasons why sections of the Russian state wanted to see him eliminated.

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U.S. lifts sanctions; Iran comes in from the cold

The United States on Saturday removed a wide range of sanctions against Iran after International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that Tehran has met its commitments to roll back its nuclear programme, under an agreement with China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the U.S and Germany on July 14, 2015.

Minutes after Secretary of State John Kerry, after a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, announced in Vienna that the deal has come into force, a White House official described the development as “historic” and an “inflection point in Iran’s relations with the world since concerns developed about the peaceful nature of its nuclear programme.”

Entire world is safer: Kerry

“Today... the United States, our friends and allies in the Middle East, and the entire world are safer because the threat of the nuclear weapon has been reduced,” Mr. Kerry said.

The U.S has only removed secondary sanctions that restrict the dealings of other countries with Iran. Primary sanctions that bar U.S citizens and companies from business with Iran will remain.

Iran stands to benefit immensely

However, the removal of restrictions on its oil, petrochemicals, banking, natural gas and port sectors will hugely benefit Iran and allow it to reenter the global market. As an instant relief, Iran will be able to access the huge amount of cash it has accumulated overseas from restricted oil sales during the sanctions.

Most of this money is sitting in China, India, Japan, South Korea and Turkey.

$100-150 billion for Iran

Commentators have estimated a windfall of $100-150 billion for Iran, but a U.S treasury official, briefing on condition of anonymity said the removal of sanctions will unlock only an estimated $50 billion. “Iran is likely to continue to keep it abroad to keep its own currency stable,” the official said.

Chabahar port, IPI gas pipeline

The removal of sanctions will tremendously help India’s plans in Iran, which are many and include the Chabahar port, an Indian Oil petrochemical plant and the proposed Iran–Pakistan–India (IPI) gas pipeline.

India’s oil imports from Iran have been restricted by the sanctions and the recent forward movement on Chabahar port was accommodated within the exemption granted for projects exclusively serving commerce with Afghanistan.

“With the lifting of the sanctions, the scope of India-Iranian cooperation, including the scope of the Chabahar port, can be expanded,” an Indian diplomat said.

U.S. has to keep anti-Iran allies happy

The Obama administration officials were upbeat on Saturday about the “diplomatic success” with a country with which it has no diplomatic relations. “Iran has made unprecedented concessions,” a senior official said.

But the administration has the tough task ahead, of keeping anti-Iran allies in West Asia such as Saudi Arabia and Israel happy and countering domestic criticism by the Republicans that it is going soft on Iran.

Jon B. Alterman, Director, Middle East Programme, at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said: “U.S allies in the region fear that the U.S. focus on the nuclear threat distracts the United States from the array of other threats that Iran poses to the region. The U.S will have to reassure Saudi and UAE and others that that is not the case.”

Long way to go for normal U.S.-Iran diplomacy

Mr. Alterman also believes that the possibility of U.S and Iran entering into normal diplomatic relations is “very far off.” “There are still many reasons each side is distrustful of the other.” He said, Iran wanted to be treated like a normal country, while other countries want Iran to behave like a normal country. “This is a step in that direction but the onus is on Iran to prove that its behavior fits into international norms. That is still a long journey.”

For the consumption of allies in the region and foes at home, the Obama administration insists that the deal is only about stopping Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

No relationship perspective: Kirby

“The Iran deal was never about defining or improving our relationship with Iran. It was about cutting off their pathways to a nuclear bomb, and it will do that. So nobody is looking at this from a relationship perspective,” State Department spokesperson John Kirby said hours before the implementation of the deal. The U.S has also made it clear that it continues to treat Iran as a state-sponsor of terrorism, and punitive actions prescribed for promoting terrorism, human rights violations and missile tests will continue. A U.S official said on Saturday that new sanctions for a ballistic missile test by Iran recently “will be forthcoming at an appropriate time.”

Resolving other issues

At the same time, administration and U.S allies in West Asia are aware of the potential this holds for the U.S in dealing with a host of other issues in the region. “The nuclear talks have opened up the possibility of resolving other issues also. We now have established strong diplomatic channels. The Secretary and Iranian Foreign Minister worked closely on the release of U.S sailors earlier this week, and we used the same channels to secure the release of U.S prisoners from Iran,” one of the officials who briefed on background said.

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Russia wants HAL as partner

The Narendra Modi government’s grand plans to bring in the private sector into the defense sector has received its first reality check with Russia refusing to sign up with a private sector partner for manufacturing helicopters, instead opting to go with the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

The move, confirmed by official sources and Russia’s Rostec on Tuesday, is contrary to the much-hyped claim about Russian willingness to partner an Indian private sector company to make over 200 Kamov-226T light utility helicopters in India under technology transfer. Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence was seen as the front-runner to partner the Russians.

“The organisation for the manufacture of helicopters is provided by the creation of a Russian-Indian joint venture in India, which includes holdings of Rostec-JSC Rosoboronexport and Russian Helicopters, and on the India side – the corporation HAL”, CEO of the Rostec State Corporation, Sergei Chemezov said in a statement in Moscow.

One of the key themes of the Modi government’s push for Make in India in defence sector is to facilitate the entry of the private sector into it, and the Anil Ambani group has been at the vanguard of this move. The group recently acquired the Pipavav Shipyard, has created a cluster of companies, applied for over a dozen manufacturing licences for submarines to UAVs and is involved in active discussion with several foreign companies.

“The Inter-Governmental Agreement on manufacture of Kamov 226 helicopter in India is the first project for a major defence platform under the Make in India mission,” Mr. Modi said in Moscow last week in the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin after the inter-governmental agreement was signed. The Kamovs will replace the ageing Cheetah and Chetak helicopters which have been in service with the military for several decades. Over 400 of these helicopters are in service in India.

The transfer of technology to domestic companies and manufacture of complex military ware are to be at the core of self-reliance efforts, and through them developing a robust military industrial complex in India. This was to be in contrast to the past deals under which several military hardware was being assembled in the country by HAL and other government-run companies.

Informed sources in New Delhi confirmed that Russian Helicopters has conveyed to the Modi government that it would go with HAL as its Indian partner given its experience in assembling military platforms. And India has agreed.

While HAL officials did not respond to questions on the issue, in a related development Mr. Modi will lay the foundation stone for HAL’s new helicopter manufacturing facility at Tumakuru, around 100 km from Bengaluru on January 3.

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Obama’s Syria strategy under attack

The future of Syrian president Bashar Al Assad is a bone of contention not only between U.S and Russia, but also among U.S politicians and policymakers. As the civil war drags on, President Barack Obama’s Syria strategy is coming under attack domestically on three questions – should the U.S fight the Islamic State and Mr. Assad at the same time, should there be deployment of U.S combat forces on the ground and whether the policy of zero civilian casualty is rendering U.S airstrikes in Syria ineffective.

Meanwhile, a meeting on Friday of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) countries in New York is expected to narrow their differences over the future of Assad. A UN Security Council resolution later is expected to endorse a political process that will kick off in January towards an election in 18 months in Syria.

Early this week in Moscow, U.S secretary of State John Kerry had after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin said both countries viewed Syrian conflict "fundamentally very similarly.” Mr. Kerry also declared that the U.S was “not seeking so-called regime change.” But this did not mean an agreement between the two countries.

“…not everybody is unified about the future of Assad inside the ISSG. …What’s important for the United States at this point in the process is that we keep driving towards the ultimate objective, which is a Syrian government away from Assad.. And one of the key issues still outstanding is the future of Assad and not only how long does he stay, but in what capacity does he stay. All that work still needs to be done,” State Department spokesperson John Kirby said on Thursday.

Mr. Obama is facing strident opposition criticism for his Syria strategy, which the Republicans say is failing. In the presidential debate this week, Senator Ted Cruze reiterated his call for “carpet bombing,” while frontrunner Donald Trump said Mr. Obama must choose who is the bigger enemy - IS or Assad. Mr. Trump had earlier called for ‘Russian style’ bombing, which a U.S military spokesman had called “reckless and irresponsible.” Several Republican candidates also called for ground combat against IS, something that Mr Obama has been particularly wary of.

However, conventional conservative view is more nuanced than the admiration shown for Mr. Putin by Mr. Trump. Mr. Assad cannot be allowed to continue, Douglas J. Feith, former under secretary of defence and a key adviser to George W Bush on Middle East, told The Hindu in an interview. “Assad’s survival in power would be an important victory not only for Russia, but for Iran too. America has a large interest in preventing that.”

Mr. Feith, however, agrees, “the military operation is extremely constrained by the insistence on zero civilian casualty.” “There has to be an assessment of the potential collateral damage against the military objective of a particular mission. How can we succeed if we consider drivers of IS oil tankers civilian targets and therefore do not bomb them?”

Though non-committal on the question of boots on the ground, Mr. Feith believes that is a relevant issue. “Everything cannot be achieved from the air and there has to be some ground presence. We already have some presence on the ground, but whether that is good enough or not has to be decided on the basis of current information. If I were in administration that is a question I would ask now - whether we are doing what is required to meet our objective of defeating the IS.”

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Putin vows tough military action in Syria

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin on Friday ordered his forces in Syria to take tough action against any threats, speaking two weeks after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane in the war-torn country.
"I order you to act as tough as possible," he told a defense meeting. "Any targets threatening the Russian grouping or our land infrastructure should be immediately destroyed. I would like to warn those who would once again try to organised some sort of provocations against our servicemen," he said in a thinly veiled threat to Ankara.
Last month, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane on the Syrian border, claiming it violated Turkish airspace.
After the downing of the jet, which led to the deaths of a pilot and another serviceman who tried to rescue him, Russia introduced economic sanctions against Turkey and After the downing of the jet, which led to the deaths of a pilot and another serviceman who tried to rescue him, Russia introduced economic sanctions against Turkey and killing civilians in Syria.
Syria's rebel forces have regularly rejected the possibility of cooperating with the regime or Russia and there has been no evidence of such cooperation. When Russia said in October it was ready to provide air support for Western-backed moderate rebels battling both jihadis and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, those groups ridiculed Moscow, urging it to stop bombing them first.
Russia has been carrying out air strikes in the war-ravaged nation at Assad's request since the end of September, while a US-led coalition is conducting its own campaign targeting the IS group.
Earlier this week Russia said it hit IS targets with missiles fired from a submarine in the Mediterranean for the first time since launching the campaign. Putin rejected claims that Russia is using the Syrian campaign to showcase its top weapons to the West.
"Our actions there are not guided by some unclear abstract geopolitical interests, nor are they guided by a desire to practice and test new weapons systems which is of course important in itself," Putin said. "The most important thing is to prevent the threat to Russia itself." Defence minister Sergei Shoigu said IS jihadis now control 70% of Syrian territory, putting their number at 60,000.

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Obama, Hollande seek shift in Russian strategy before joint action

United States and France on Tuesday said they would like Russia to be part of their joint efforts to fight the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, but put the onus on Russia to prove its credentials by giving up its support to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad.

Hours after NATO member Turkey downed along its border with Syria a Russian warplane, US president Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande indicated a toughening in the coalition’s stance towards Russia. “We have a global coalition of 65 countries and Russia is an outlier. Russia and Iran are a coalition of two, supporting Assad. Given Russia’s military capabilities and their influence on Assad, their cooperation can help the fight against IS,” Mr. Obama said. “But Russia must make a strategic shift” he said, Mr. Hollande by his side at the White House, after a meeting in which they decided to “broaden and intensify strikes” against IS targets.

Mr. Obama defended the Turkish strike that brought down the Russian plane. “Every country has a right to protect its territory and its airspace,” he said, suggesting that Russia was responsible for it. “Russia and Turkey must talk to each other. This points to an ongoing problem as Russian planes have been targeting moderate opposition forces in that area, who are supported, also by Turkey,” Mr. Obama said while Mr. Hollande added that he could “only regret” the incident. The France president, called for Russia and Turkey to take measures to avoid escalation of the conflict.

Asked whether the coalition could consider coordinated operation with Russia against IS, Mr. Obama said for that to happen, Russia must “refocus its attention on IS.” “Until that happens, it (coordinated operation) is very difficult,” he said.

Mr. Hollande, who is scheduled to travel to Moscow after his Washington visit, said he would make the same request to President Vladimir Putin of Russia. “When I go to Moscow, I will request President Putin that we must have a single goal, which is to fight the IS,” Mr. Hollande said.

“All that we are doing now to degrade the IS, cutting down their supply lines and financing, sharing intelligence with ground forces can be supplemented by Russia, if they are willing to change their strategy. Perhaps they will do so in the future,” Mr. Obama said.

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BRICS can give shape to G20: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday strongly condemned the dreadful acts of terrorism in Paris and expressed deepest sympathy and support to Russia for the loss of life in Sinai. He spoke of the need for a united global effort to combat terrorism has never been more urgent and called for making this a priority for BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - nations.

Ankara and Beirut are also reminders of terror's growing spread and impact, Mr. Modi said in his opening address at a BRICS nations leaders meeting hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, here in Antalya, ahead of the G20 Leaders Summit that starts later this afternoon.

“The entire humanity must stand together as one against terrorism,” Mr. Modi said at the meeting that is being seen as a signal from the BRICS nations to the developed countries of their rising significance in global matters.

There was a time when the logic of BRICS and its lasting capacity were being questioned, Mr. Modi said. “We have provided proof of the relevance and value of BRICS through our actions…and, this has come at a time of huge global challenges”.

The New Development Bank, the Currency Reserve Arrangement, Strategy for BRICS Economic Cooperation are clear evidence of the BRICS’ vision and resolve, said Mr. Modi. “Together, we can also give shape to G20.”

The meeting was also attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of South Africa Jacob Zuma and President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff.

Speaking of India’s imminent assumption of the chairmanship of BRICS from 1st February, 2016, the Prime Minister said: “India attaches the highest importance to BRICS”.

The theme of India's BRICS Chairmanship will be “Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions” or 'BRICS'.

Mr. Modi also assured China of India’s support during its presidency of G20. China is set to take over the rotating presidency of the G20 starting in December 2015.

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Pakistan invites India for key Afghan conference

Pakistan has invited External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj for a crucial regional conference here on Afghanistan, a move that could provide an opportunity for the two neighbours to mend their frosty ties.

The ‘Heart of Asia’ conference will be held on December 7 and 8, where representatives from Azerbaijan, China, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the UAE are expected to attend. Pakistan has also sent an invitation to Ms. Swaraj, the Express Tribune reported.

“A formal invitation has been sent to India and 25 other countries for the Heart of Asia ministerial meeting on Afghanistan to be hosted by Pakistan,” a senior Foreign Office official was quoted as saying by the paper.

An Indian diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed New Delhi has received the invitation but said the decision on whether the External Affairs Minister will attend the conference has yet to be taken, the paper said.

He said India is likely to send a high-level delegation headed by the minister given the conference’s importance. The meet provides a moment to unfold the process for a dialogue between the two countries after recent hiccups in their ties.

Indo-Pak ties are going through a chill particularly after cancellation of NSA-level talks following differences over the agenda proposed by Islamabad, and a planned meeting between Kashmiri separatists and Pakistan’s National Security Adviser Sartaj Aziz. India has also accused Pakistan of repeated ceasefire violations and of having a hand in recent terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, who were staying in the same hotel during their stay in New York in September for the UN General Assembly, did not meet on the sidelines of the summit.

Mr. Modi and Sharif had last met in Ufa, Russia, in July on the sidelines of the BRICS and SCO summits.

It is believed that Prime Minister Modi may be ready for talks with Pakistan after Bihar elections, where his party could not repeat the success it had in Kashmir last year, the paper said, citing analysts.

The Afghan conference will discuss the current situation in Afghanistan with particular focus on helping the war-torn country’s economy.

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IS claims responsibility for Russian plane crash in Egypt

A Russian aircraft carrying more than 220 people crashed on Saturday in a remote mountainous region in the Sinai Peninsula more than 20 minutes after takeoff from a Red Sea resort popular with Russian tourists. Egyptian military and security officials say there are no survivors from the Russian passenger plane.

Here are the latest updates

1950 IST

A militant group affiliated to Islamic State in Egypt claimed responsibility for the downing of a Russian passenger plane that crashed in Egypt's Sinai peninsula on Saturday, the group said in a statement circulated by supporters on Twitter.

Egyptian security sources earlier on Saturday said early investigations suggested the plane crashed due to a technical fault.

The claim of responsibility was also carried by the Aamaq website which acts as a semi official news agency for Islamic State.

"The fighters of the Islamic State were able to down a Russian plane over Sinai province that was carrying over 220 Russian crusaders. They were all killed, thanks be to God," the statement circulated on Twitter said.

1946 IST

17 children among those killed in crash.

1900 IST

At a hotel near St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo airport, the friends and relatives of those on the Metrojet flight that crashed in Egypt are gathering to grieve.

Yulia Zaitseva said her friends, a newlywed couple named Elena Rodina and Alexqander Krotov, were on the flight. Both were 33. Egyptian officials said all 224 people on the flight were Russian and there were no survivors.

Zaitseva says Saturday that her friend “really wanted to go to Egypt, though I told her ‘why the hell do you want to go to Egypt?’”

She says “we were friends for 20 years. She was a very good friend who was ready to give everything to other people. To lose such a friend is like having your hand cut off.”

She said Rodina’s parents feel “like their lives are over.”

1845 IST

U.S. officials have offered their condolences to Russia and to all the families involved in the crash of a Russian passenger plane in Egypt.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told reports that “We don’t know any details about it, but obviously the initial reports represent tremendous tragedy, loss, and we extend our condolences to the families and all those concerned.”

Mr. Kerry spoke on Saturday while on a visit to the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan.

Egyptian officials say all 224 people 217 passengers and seven crew on the Metrojet flight were Russian and there were no survivors in Saturday’s crash in the Sinai Peninsula.

Officials say all the victims in Saturday’s Metrojet plane crash were Russian citizens

1805 IST

The aircraft was carrying 214 Russian passengers and three Ukrainians, the Egyptian cabinet said in a statement.

Out of the total 217 passengers, 138 were women, 62 men and 17 were children, the cabinet statement

1800 IST

Several Egyptian military and security officials say there are no survivors from the Russian passenger plane carrying 224 people that crashed into Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.

The officials all spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media. Aviation experts have reached the crash site near the city of el-Arish.

Officials say all the victims in Saturday’s Metrojet plane crash were Russian citizens.

1650 IST

Russia’s Investigative Committee, the country’s top investigative body, has opened an investigation into the crash of a Russian passenger jet in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula for possible violations of flight safety procedures.

Committee spokesman Sergei Markin made the announcement in a statement on Saturday.

An Egyptian aviation official says the pilot of Metrojet Flight 7K9268 had reported technical difficulties early Saturday and planned an emergency landing at the nearest airport before losing contact with Egyptian air traffic controllers and crashing.

1615 IST

An Egyptian aviation official says the pilot of the Russian airliner that crashed in the Sinai Peninsula had reported technical difficulties before losing contact with air traffic controllers.

Ayman al-Muqadem, a member of the Aviation Incidents Committee, said the pilot had reported his intention to attempt to land at the nearest airport.

1605 IST

Egyptian authorities say the wreckage of a Russian passenger jet has been found in area where Egyptian forces are fighting an Islamic militant insurgency.

Egyptian security forces have been waging major operations against a burgeoning insurgency in the northern Sinai peninsula, including the city of el-Arish. Egyptian officials say the wreckage was found in the Hassana area south of el-Arish.

The long-restive northern Sinai has seen a spike in attacks targeting security forces since the military overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Morsy in 2013. An Islamic State affiliate has claimed responsibility for many of the deadly attacks. The Egyptian government has restricted journalists’ access to the area.

1535 IST

Russia’s civil air agency is expected to have a news conference shortly to talk about the Russian Metrojet passenger plane that Egyptian authorities say has crashed in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula.

Officials were gathering at a hotel adjacent to the St. Petersburg airport, where Egyptian officials say the plane was heading with 217 passengers and 7 crew members.

The plane took off early Saturday from Sharm el-Sheikh, a popular Red Sea tourist destination for Russians. Plane tracking website Flight Radar said Metrojet flight 7K9268 disappeared over Egypt 23 minutes after takeoff.

1455 IST

Egypt’s Ministry of Civil Aviation has confirmed that a Russian passenger plane has crashed in the Sinai peninsula.

The ministry said earlier Saturday it had lost contact with a Russian aircraft carrying 217 passengers and 7 crew members.

A statement carried by Egypt’s state-run MENA news agency says the plane took off from Sinai’s Sharm el-Sheikh, a popular destination for Russian tourists, at 5.51 a.m. (local time) on Saturday and disappeared from radar screens 23 minutes after takeoff.

It said the aircraft was bound for St. Petersburg in Russia. A search and rescue team is looking for the plane.

The Airbus A 321, operated by Russian airline Kogalymavia with registration number KGL-9268, was flying from the Sinai Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg in Russia when it went down in a desolate mountainous area of central Sinai soon after daybreak, the aviation ministry said.

The security officer at the scene told Reuters by telephone that search and rescue teams heard voices in a section of the plane.

"I now see a tragic scene. A lot of dead on the ground and many who died whilst strapped to their seats," the officer, who requested anonymity, said.

"The plane split into two, a small part on the tail end that burned and a larger part that crashed into a rock. We have extracted at least 100 bodies and the rest are still inside."

Sinai is the scene of an insurgency by militants who support Islamic State. The rebels have killed hundreds of Egyptian soldiers and police and have also attacked Western targets in recent months.

Russia launched air raids against Syrian opposition groups including Islamic State on Sept. 30. But Egyptian security sources said there was no indication that the Airbus jet had been shot down or blown up.

Premier heads to scene

The A321 is a 185-seat medium-haul jet in service since 1994, with over 1,100 in operation worldwide. It is a highly automated aircraft relying on computers to help pilots stay within safe flying limits.

Saturday's crash is the second fatal accident involving this variant of the A320 jetliner family, according to data from the Flight Safety Foundation. Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail was heading to the crash site with several cabinet ministers on a private jet, the tourism ministry said.

The aircraft took off at 5:51 a.m. Cairo time (0351 GMT) and disappeared from radar screens 23 minutes later, Egypt's Civil Aviation Ministry said in a statement. It was at an altitude of 31,000 feet (9,400 metres) when it vanished from radar screens.

After delays caused by poor weather conditions, Egyptian search and rescue teams located the site of the crash in the Hassana area 35 km (22 miles) south of the Sinai Mediterranean coastal city of Al Arish, the aviation ministry statement said.

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Modi set to travel 60,000 km in 30 days

From London to Kuala Lumpur and back to Paris and Moscow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a series of foreign visits once the crucial Bihar elections are out of the way.

The External Affairs Ministry is gearing up for a string of high profile bilateral meetings in November and December. If all the visits being discussed fructify, Mr. Modi will clock more than 60,000 km in fewer than 30 days, possibly a record even for the well-travelled Prime Minister, who has already visited 27 countries in his tenure, some of them twice.

Most of the outgoing visits are now being planned. Next week, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar will travelto Moscow to attend the annual India-Russia Inter-governmental Commission meeting on October 20 and 21 to review defence and trade ties.

Diplomatic sources say that besides discussing defense acquisitions by India, including some localized or “made in India” projects, and more civil nuclear, space and science projects, the two sides are expected to announce the dates for Mr. Modi’s visit to Russia.

The Prime Minister is due to visit Russia in “early December,” a source said. He expressed his desire to visit Moscow and Astrakhan, a state that has old trade ties with Gujarat which he visited in 2006.

Straight after the Bihar election results on November 8 and Deepavali on November 11, the Prime Minister is expected to head to the U.K. for a three-day visit. Preparations are under way for an event to be attended by 70,000 NRIs at London’s Wembley Stadium. Diplomatic sources said the Prime Minister would travel to a second city in the U.K., which was being finalised. Leicester, Cambridge and Oxford are among the contenders, unless an invitation to the British Prime Minister’s “official retreat”, Chequers in Buckinghamshire, is finalised.

An official involved in planning the visit said: “PM Modi and PM Cameron are expected to spend a lot of time together during the visit”. From the U.K., Mr. Modi will fly to Turkey to conduct bilateral meetings and to attend the G-20 summit in Antalya on November 15 and 16. As no progress has been made in trade talks with the European Union in the past few weeks, an earlier plan to include Brussels for the EU-India summit during the trip, put off earlier this year, has again been set aside.

Within days of returning from the G-20 summit, the Prime Minister will head east, to attend the ASEAN-India summit in Kuala Lumpur on November 21 and 22. A visit to Singapore, his second this year, is being planned, along with an event for Indian expatriates there. Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan was in Delhi this week to discuss arrangements.

Mr. Modi will meet many of the leaders from G-20 and ASEAN-related summits for a third time on November 30, when he flies to Paris for the COP-21 U.N. Climate Change conference, where a major declaration is expected on cutting emissions. Officials say it is not yet clear whether Mr. Modi will complete his summit in Russia on the same trip as to France, but find it “unlikely”. Either way, he will return to Delhi by mid-December, in time for the visit by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar is in Tokyo for talks to plan the visit of Mr. Shinzo to Delhi. While officials told The Hindu it “was too early” to comment on the possible outcomes, Japanese media has reported that the India-Japan nuclear deal could be announced, and officials have confirmed it is being discussed this week.

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