US, India discuss China's military power

Source: PressTV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=123149§ionid=351020404


India and the US have engaged in talks over China's upgraded 2.25-million-strong armed forces and its strategic maneuvers in the Asia-Pacific region.

Wary of China's long-term intentions, India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and US President Barack Obama shared their own assessments of what has been described as China's trans-border military capabilities and its growing presence in the Indian Ocean Region.

China has also forged extensive maritime links with regional countries such as Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar, The Times of India reported Monday.

China's ambitious aircraft-carrier-building program was of particular interest in the talks, since it is one area in which the country actually lags even behind India, the daily reported, quoting sources.

Currently, China's fleet comprises of about 62 submarines, with 10 nuclear-powered ones and three armed with long-range ballistic missiles, and 75 major warships.

The two leaders held a one-on-one meeting on the sidelines of this week's 47-nation Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC.

There has been no official Chinese reaction to such discussions by two of Beijing's arch rivals in terms of military and economic assertiveness.

Ahmadinejad in Syria for talks on Israel

Source: PressTV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=119446§ionid=351020101


Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has arrived in Damascus to discuss with his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad the threat that Israel poses to the Middle East and beyond.

Before leaving Tehran on Thursday morning, the Iranian president announced that his talks with Assad in the Syrian capital would focus on regional and global developments.

Ahmadinejad added that Israel's efforts to destabilize the region would also be one of the main topics of their discussions.

He mentioned that Iran and Syria already share the same stance on regional and global issues, noting that both countries stood in “the front line of standing up to” Israel.

“These days, the Zionists are constantly threatening countries and nations surrounding Palestine. They intend to drag the region into an atmosphere of serious tension,” he said

“That is why it is necessary for our two countries to begin a new series of negotiations,” he added.

Winding up, the Iranian president pointed out that talks on economic cooperation and joint investment projects would also be a part of his discussions with his Syrian counterpart.

Netanyahu, Merkel to discuss Iran

Source: PressTV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116437§ionid=351020104


After a secret meeting with US President Barack Obama's advisor Dennis Ross, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting Berlin on a visit focused on Iran.

An Israeli delegation comprising Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have headed to Germany to attend the second German-Israeli cabinet meeting in the German capital Berlin.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle are to host the meetings originally scheduled for November.

Netanyahu last week secretly met with Dennis Ross, a senior advisor to the Obama administration on Iran, who had accompanied US National Security Advisor James Jones to Israel.

“On the agenda is obviously, among other issues, international pressure on Iran,” the prime minster's Spokesman Mark Regev said on Monday.

A spokesman for the Merkel administration had earlier confirmed that Tehran and the failed Mideast peace process would be high on the agenda.

An Israeli official talking to reporters in a briefing ahead of the Berlin talks said Israel feels its time "to act to upgrade sanctions" against the Islamic Republic.

Both the United States and its close ally Israel have refused to rule out the possibility of a military attack against the country of more than 70 million people, should Tehran fail to heed their demands over its nuclear energy program.

Tel Aviv claims Tehran's nuclear program poses a threat to its security. This is while Iran's nuclear activities have been inspected more than that of any other country by the UN nuclear watchdog and there has been no evidence to justify Israeli claims.

Iran has not initiated a war with any country for more than a century.