The U.S Won't Bomb Iran, But Another Country Might:- Let's be serious for a moment. President Barack Obama will not bomb Iran. This is not because he is a liberal, or because he is a peacenik, or because he doesn't have the guts to try and "save" his presidency in this time-honored manner, as Sarah Palin said she would like him to do.

The Conflict in Afghanistan:- The largest military offensive since 2002 is now under way in the Helmand province in Afghanistan. At the same time, a consensus is emerging that the conflict in this country can ultimately not be solved by military means. I have consistently advocated the need to prepare the ground for a political process, which could lead to a political settlement. Kai Eide, UN Special Representative, writes.

India's Green Revolution Is Withering:- In the 1970s, India dramatically increased food production, finally allowing this giant country to feed itself. But government efforts to continue that miracle by encouraging farmers to use fertilizers have backfired, forcing the country to expand its reliance on imported food. Popularized during the Green Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, fertilizers helped boost crop yields and transformed India into a nation that could feed itself. But now their overuse is degrading the farmland. 

China Intensifies Tug of War With India on Nepal:-  For years, Nepal never bothered too much with policing its northern border with China. The Himalayas seemed a formidable-enough barrier, and Nepal�s political and economic attention was oriented south toward India. If Nepal was a mouse trapped between elephants, as the local saying went, the elephant that mattered most was India.

Pakistan's Governance Gap Filled By Overzealous Courts :- In one small village in Pakistan�s tribal areas, parents became alarmed when their children came home from the only school available, a madrasa, and told them that they were not �real Muslims�. The predominant Pashtun society of the tribal areas takes a dim view of a maulvi interfering with non-religious matters. The community decided to set up their own school to provide their children a proper education. But after failing to obtain funding from the government or charities, they had little choice: they had to send their children back to the madrasa.

Sino-US Ties Aren't That Bad:- There seems to have been a noticeable shift in tone in the Obama administration�s approach to China, with the statement of intent to meet the Dalai Lama, the announcement of the arms sale to Taiwan and concerns being voiced over Google and hacking from China. Why is this happening now and does it reflect a substantive shift? I don�t think there�s been a major shift in the administration�s approach to China.

Karzai Has Taken Personal Control Of The Electoral Process :-The Afghan president has subverted the intended legacy of the 2001 invasion by seizing control of the electoral watchdog.Hamid Karzai's decision to take control of Afghanistan's electoral watchdog by presidential decree is a terrible blow to the intended legacy of the 2001 invasion � fair elections, democratic institutions and a constitutional government.

Burmese Refugees Prosecuted in Bangladesh:-  Stateless refugees from Myanmar are suffering beatings and deportation in Bangladesh, according to aid workers and rights groups who say thousands are crowding into a squalid camp where they face starvation and disease. In a campaign that seems to have accelerated since October ethnic Rohingya refugees who have been living for years in Bangladesh are being seized, beaten and forced back to Myanmar, which they had left to escape persecution and abuse and which does not want them.

Policing Thought, Not Controlling Terror:- As Union home minister P. Chidambaram grapples with the new architecture for counter-terrorism that he says India desperately needs, here's a suggestion he ought to consider: Dismantle the Department of Bad Ideas. Never heard of it? This is the section of his ministry which recommended that preventing foreign tourists and non-resident Indians from visiting India twice in a two month period would somehow protect the country from the likes of David Headley.

Balancing Act for India as Talks With Pakistan Resume:- The resumption of diplomatic talks between India and Pakistan on Thursday comes at a critical moment, with the United States hoping that even a modest improvement in relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors could help the broader American military effort in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Yet achieving that is likely to prove a challenge, analysts say. Even as the foreign secretaries were preparing to meet in New Delhi, the countries have squabbled over what would be discussed.

Miliband Criticizes The LTTE:- Foreign Secretary David Miliband speaking at the Global Tamil Forum Conference in London a short while ago heavily criticized the LTTE for the violence it created and for its use of child soldiers. Speaking further, Miliband also called for an investigation into war crimes committed by the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government and called for constitutional changes and power sharing in Sri Lanka.

Q&A: Afghan Journalist in Helmand:- Majid Dawari is one of the first Afghan journalists to see first-hand the effects of fighting in the southern province of Helmand, where the biggest offensive in Afghanistan since 2001 is continuing. Unlike his Western counterparts, Mr Dawari was visiting the area without being embedded with foreign troops.

A New Approach To Tackling Climate Change:- The resignation last week of Yvo de Boer, the Dutch diplomat, as executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, reflected his frustration over the Copenhagen meeting andproblems in climate change treaty design. Jagdish Bhagwati writes for FT.

Minister Admits Differences With Special Envoy:- Admitting that there might have been differences between him and former special envoy on Climate Change Shyam Saran, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh today said bureaucracy cannot decide policies as it was ultimately the minister who had to face Parliament."The differences might have been over style or how one approaches the problem, but I was not aware of them. I am a political personality, he (Saran) is a bureaucrat," Ramesh said.