Indian Military

MALE: Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed resigned on Tuesday following weeks of public protests over his controversial order to arrest a senior judge, the military said.
Brig. Ahmed Shiyam told reporters that Nasheed has agreed to step down and hand over the presidency to his Vice President Mohammed Waheed Hassan. There was no immediate comment from Nasheed.
The resignation would come after weeks of protests in this Indian Ocean island nation known more for its lavish beach resorts than political turmoil.
It also would mark a stunning crash for Nasheed, a former human rights campaigner who defeated the nation's longtime ruler in the country's first multiparty election. Nasheed is also an environmental celebrity, traveling the world to persuade government's to combat the climate change that could send sea levels rising and inundate his archipelago nation.
Nasheed fell out of public favor after he ordered the military to arrest Abdulla Mohamed, the chief judge of the criminal court.

New Delhi — Continuing with the government’s efforts to bolster coastal security, the Defence Minister AK Antony is going on a day’s visit to Lakshadweep on Friday to open two Coast Guard establishments. The two establishments are Indian Coast Guard District Head Quarters-12 at Kavaratti and the Coast Guard Station at Minicoy.

A press release issued by the Indian defence ministry said the Headquarters at Kavaratti will facilitate closer coordination among ICG, Union Territory officials and other maritime stakeholders on matters concerning maritime interest. It will be instrumental in executing quick decisions for fast developing situations at sea.

Located between 200 and 400 kilometres away from the Kerala coast, the Lakshadweep archipelago comprises 36 islands with a total area of about 32 square kilometres. Only 11 of these 36 islands are inhabited. The territorial waters are about 20,000 square kilometres and the Exclusive Economic Zone extends to 4 lakh square kilometres.

President Barack Obama has placed the cape of a world power on India and held out the promise of global leadership, complete with matching veto. But after the excited euphoria of television news channels over the US President’s carefully managed actions and typically crafted speeches is strained, and actual deal-brokering measured, India is left with the challenge of crafting compromises to meet this promise.

While the visit saw orders like SpiceJet’s purchase of Boeing 737 aircraft and General Electric Aviation’s F-414 engines to power the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), these were actually decided much before his arrival. And the Indian Air Force (IAF) order for ten strategic lift C-17 aircraft, though understood to be a foregone conclusion, is not quite ready to be placed yet.

Even the removal of Indian defense and space organizations from the US list of entities, subject to Department of Commerce export controls, is as much a business decision that will certainly benefit US companies, as it might be strategic.