Our southern neighbour is flexing its military mussle after successfully testfired its homemade nuclear-capable ballistic missile. There is no words of condemnation from western leaders and UN itself. When north korea launched its doomed satellite missile last week the whole world threatened it with more sanctions and  words of war. Iran is on the list of being another Iraq or Afghanistan. Why these 'white skinned with blue eyes' people are so hypocrite? does this test serves west's sadistic desire to contain China? do these people want war in Asia?. 

Coz Vaiyas' are US allies but NK ain't

Say what you want about India, but they're a  model for a vibrant democracy around the world. The Indian media does a great job of portaying India as the world's largest democracy with a very educated work force. India commands about the same respect as other western democracies these days. Last year Obama came to India and lobbied the hell out of Indian businesses and government asking for some business from India. Don't be surprised.

On the other hand China is too big and strong and no one will even dare eff with them. NK is an impoverished Mohan Baidya utopia and Iran's government is crumbling from within. They don't have support around the world. Much easier to condemn and sanction them.

Kun missile ho ? Agni ( better known as Hagni missile among Nepalese ) ho ?

 Casino and hakim saab, thank you for putting your honest opinion. My concern as a peace loving human is, whether the missile is made by largest democracy or US's closest ally or impoverished North Korea or an islamic country led by ayotollahs/ mujahidden, the destruction is same when it comes to use. Please accept my apology if your consciousness is hijacked.
khaobadi@ yes it is agni/hagni -V.

 Well, India does need some sort of deterrent against the rising power of China. US can only be somewhat happy with this development.

 nobody cares coz it wont work right as INSAS rifle didnt work. and eventually they will end up selling those junks to corrupted nepalese military.

 Nepali_american@, Indian prime minister recently said, " India and China are not rivals, we are partners. The world is big enough where both countries can rise peacefully". Flexing its military muscle behind China's back would surely backfire and bring instability in the region which is already a volatile. India should have spent that $400 million on those 300 million Indian people who are still living under poverty line.
Nepali kanchoo@, I couldnt agree more with your prediction.

 Just my thoughts, but I think its because Indians are smart and know they need to play by the US rules, EVEN IF THEY DONT AGREE WITH THEM.

In International Relations, there is a theory with something along the lines of, a country will not mess with another country's soverienity. We know this isn't really true, but that rule isn't just some words printed on a book, without reason. It is the moral of conduct by which countries, acting like individuals, dont go into each other's homes and take their stuff. If a neighbor wants to borrow something, he has to ask. 

But like I mentioned, thats not 100% what's happening today as the power imbalance in this world has dealt some countries the better hand in the deck. The US is one of them.

India has a good deck, but clearly not as good as the US holds. The US doesn't even need to bluff, as India and Pakistan frequently do, and frequently get called out on it. India knows that if it bluffs, the US is going to call them out on it. So what can they do? They want their country, their home to become better, but if they go out to be the best, they make a lot of enemies on the way to the top. So they settle for second best, or third best, or whichever uncontested position there is.

UNCONTESTED. This is a loaded term. If the spot for #10 in the world is uncontested and a country comes along and claims that spot, then its not really going to piss off anyone. If that country vyies for #9, and there's someone else there, you can bet your ass those two countries are going to be giving hostile stares to each other and pulling out mean faces. In this hierarchy, the top dog gets the best bone. There's no question about it. The only thing the lower ranking countries can do is try to hide the bones. But if the top dog sniffs it out, its not your bone.

This is unfair, right? This is unfortunately the situation the world is in. And you have to make the best of the situation at hand. 

So in light of all that I just explained, why does the US, and its posse of 1st world countries, not admonish India for testing out the ICBM? 

Simple. India's been appeasing the US ever since the technology boom. If you dissect the US work force, their bread earners, you will undoubtedly find the Indian worker, usually somewhere in the IT department. Mind you, IT, as of right now, is still a higher value skill to have than a construction degree. I'm pretty sure in next 10-15 years its all going to catch up, but for now, its a very much demanded labor market because the supply to the ginormous world demand is so low. But back to the point, Indians are giving Americans labour and capital indirectly, which makes them happy because the white american man can use that extra money to take his family out to Disneyland, again. 

So basically, Indians are willing to adapt to the change that is set in motion by the top dogs. They certainly have their own philosophy, their own culture, but they are at the same time smart enough to realize that their culture, can not overtake the world in such a small time, and hence it is futile and will piss off other countries, if they try to impose their culture on those top dogs. SO naturally, they submit to the culture of a more powerful nation than them. As much as it pains me to say, similar thing is happening between Nepal and India. I'll leave that as a disgressionary subject for yet another Friday.

For now, the short answer is the US trusts India enough, more than NK, more than Iraq or Iran, to play with the big tools. They know that India has a good history with them, helps them out with stuff they need, without external bickering, and is usually very acceptive of the US suggestions. They're a good friend, and the US does take its friendships seriously. Think about your best friend and what you would do for them. Now multiply it by a billion because thats how much more resources they have than you. I'm not saying India is US's best friend, but they fall in the 'good friend' circle. Nepal falls under the 'oh he's such a genuine nice guy and kind, but really poor, we should try and help them sometime' category. Not as equals you know. But thats the way of things, and burning up dolls and tyres is only going to make things worse. 

Now that India has the technologically superior ICBMs they have also successfully become the regional top dog, from china down at least. Think of them as a local gunda who is going to be boss in his small alleyway, but pays shitton of respect to the big dons of the city. 

Such is life, and its not a choice that they made without thinking. its not a cowards or a weak person's choice, make no mistake. They are strong, they are smart, and they understand the system better than you or I. They also know how to work the system. And thats what they're currently doing.

Ok. Have a good thoughtful and productive Friday and weekend folks. Bye now.

US is very happy that India has those missiles.  China is a legit future threat to US.  Would not be surprised id US uses Nepal in future to spy on China & Inidia to protect their interests.  If you look at US foreign policy they are stacking up on investing more and more(defense & bases & new war ships) in Asia Pacific area more than any other part of the world.  

मैले एउटा अन्तर्वार्ता हेरेको थिए जसमा अमेरिकाको राजनितिग्यलाई सोधिएको थियो ठ्याक्कै येही प्रश्न जसमा उनीहरुलाई मात्र आप्पत्ति भनेको ति देशहरुका अमेरिका प्रति लछ्यीत आक्रामक अभिबेक्ति र नीति , जसका कारण उनीहरु चाहदैनन् कि ति  देश हरु आणविक हतियारले सुसज्जित हुन् | खुलम-खुल्ला यो देश र त्यो देशलाई धम्की र त्रसित गराउने नीति लिएका येस्ता देशहरुले भविस्यमा कुनै पनि अनपेछित कदम चाल्न सक्छन | तेसैको हेक्का राखी अमेरिका सकेसम्म बिस्वशान्ति कायम राख्न कुटनीतिक रुपमा एकदम सक्रिय रहेको कुरालाई नकार्न सकिदैन | भारतको missile परिछणले अमेरिकालाई भू-सामरिक दृस्टीकोण ले पनि फाइदा पुराएको देखिन्छ किनभने भारत उसको असल मित्रराष्ट्र मध्ये एक हो र राजनीतिक सन्तुलन कायम राख्न यो उसको लागि एउटा महत्वपुर्ण कदम साबित हुन गएको हुन सक्छ  | म एउटा नेपाली भाको हुनाले भारतको यो परिछणले भने मलाई एकदमै दुखित तुलाएको छ र म भारतको हित कहिले पनि चिताउ दिन |

Georgian Satellite:  Chinese officials were saying the same thing after that Agni missile was tested, "India and China are developing nations that are partners, not competitors, to each other."  But you have to be naive to assume that they are not feeling the pinch.  Rajniti-ma jahiley pani mookha-ma ram ram bagali-ma chura huncha. 

As India and China gain more and more power economically, chances of conflict rise as well, not to mention the on-going border disagreements.  So it behooves their national interest that they arm up militarily as well.  Keep in mind that China and India did have a war back in '60s. 

As a Nepali, I am not worried.  India really does not need a long range missile such as this to attack Nepal.  

As an American, I am glad that India has this capability.  It is not an ICBM.  It has only 5000 Kilimeter range, enough to reach Beijing, but not the US.  I see China as the main competitor to the US.  I am just happy to see that they have a neighbor who can stand up to them should the push comes to shove and contain them somewhat.  For us, India is more than welcome to take proxy role, given how thin our military is stretched and the budget strains.

US is a key player in Nepal, as is India and China.  Because of the geographical happenstance, Nepal will be increasingly important key foothold for the US to keep an eye on China and India.  The US embassy in Nepal is one of the most expensive and most advanced in the world.  There is a reason for that.

 Superb post, Hakim sahab.

 I concur with Cacophonix and greatly appreciate his very thoughtful analysis of the situation. Just to add to his points, US and its allies consider China, like somebody mentioned above, as a legit threat that has started building up its world dominance economically, militarily and hence polictically lately. So, its silence about the incidence is a part of its Check and Balance strategy.

Further more, one cannot simply overlook the real reason behind USA's involvement in the Vietnam war, COMMUNISM !!

 On another note, this missile test in my opinion is India's final nail on Pakistan's coffin. One hand you have India's soft power--technology, bollywood and democracy while other hand you have lawless, theocratic, segregated and failing Pakistan. I think in the last decade, especially since the Taliban resurgence, India has successfully obliterated Pakistan's 'rival' status. The world, and Indians themselves don't view Pakistan as a rival anymore.


To be a world superpower you need to have economic as well as military might. Its a rite of passage and India is doing just that. I know Nepal's 'illiterocracy' (Maoists) try to project India as the devil but India's rise can only help Nepal and Nepalis.
 

 There is no doubt that, India's missile launched has increased the perception of arm race in south and east asia. What China knows is, India's ICBM (well, it can reach some part of europe according to themselves) is nothing but upgraded version of existing AGNIs. Existing Agnis have put Pakistan on its range already so, I dont think its all about Pakistan. India seems to have overestimated its military might by putting China within its range but forgeting weapon alone can not win the war. Choosing 'militarism'  over 'gandhism', (India has displaced china on military spending) will have a grave consequences. Although, newly found wealth has brought some changes on China's foreign policy. Naval activities is on the rise in south china sea in particular and building a naval base in seychelles which is against the China's ' no stationary troops abroad' policy. 

On the other hand, war mongering america is trying whatever it can do to contain China. From Japan to Philippines, Australia to India, Afghanistan to central asia, it is massing up troops and selling arms like it has never done before. America is fully aware of its defeats from where China has involved, Korean war and Vietnam war ( its called 'American war' in Vietnam). China knows who is throwing an object into peaceful waters of the lake. Hence, peace would continue to prevail in our door step if China maintain its gentleness.

And finally, "it doesnt matter whether the cat is black or white, its a good cat while it catches mice". It doesnt matter whether communism or capitalism, what matter most is people's happiness. 

 India might not look like much to us right now. When Nepalis think of India we think of UP and Bihari Bhaiyaas. But imperceptively India is slowly but surely changing.  They have been growing at a steady 7-8% every year.

By 2025 about 700 million of the country will make the leap into middle class-- TV, Fridge, Maruti Car etc. That is a huge consumer base. Indian is eliminating poverty by 2% points every year at current growth rates. This means there will be no poor people in India by 2035. Goldman Sachs predicts that India will be the biggest economy in 2050 (@ 85 Trillion!!!) ahead of China (@80 Trillion) and US @45 Trillion. 

Where will we be in 2050? Our population will be 55 Million from its current 26 million, and still growing!! Our Percapita Income wil be at $3,000 per year compared to India's $50,000,  with US at $95,000, China at $65,000 

हामी नेपाली मात्रै इन्डियनलाई "धोति" भनेर हेप्छौँ. तर येही धोतिहरु एक generation भित्र developed नेशन को category मा फड्को मार्दैछन्.

I think the open border will be closed soon. We will be to Indians what Mexicans are to Americans--- a burden. Indians will resent millions of hungry and poor Nepalis spreaming into UP and Bihar of India and taking their menial jobs! Doesn't seem like a possibility right now does it? But in 40 years this thing is happening folks!! 

Thulo dai ko kura ani Kashi ram ko gula

A North Korean military officer talks speaks at a museum in Panmunjom, North Korea, April 23, 2012. (Vincent Y …

North Korea's military vowed a new and unusually specific threat to its neighbors, saying it would reduce South Korea "to ashes" in less than four minutes.

The statement, released Monday when programming was interrupted on North Korea's state TV by a special report, comes amid rising tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Earlier this month, North Korea was unsuccessful in a long-range missile launch, prompting worries that North Korea may conduct another nuclear test. South Korean officials say new satellite images show that North Korea has been digging a tunnel in what appears to be preparation for a third atomic test.

According to the Associated Press, the statement from North Korea was unusual in promising something soon and in describing a specific period of time.

The North Korean military threatened to "reduce all the rat-like groups and the bases for provocations to ashes in three or four minutes, (or) in much shorter time, by unprecedented peculiar means and methods of our own style."

For months the North has castigated South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and the conservative administration for insulting their leadership and criticizing a new cruise missile capable of striking anywhere in the south.

South Korean officials responded, urging North Korea to end the threats. "We urge North Korea to immediately stop this practice," Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk said, according to the Associated Press. "We express deep concern that the North's threats and accusations have worsened inter-Korean ties and heightened tensions."

Meanwhile, in a meeting Sunday with a North Korean delegation in Beijing, China's senior official on foreign policy praised the leadership shown by North Korea's new young leader, Kim Jong Un.

The meeting follows the April 13 launch of what the United States called a disguised ballistic missile test by North Korea. The rocket disintegrated minutes after launch.

-- With reporting by Ron Recinto