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 Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee shakes hands with Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov (left) as Russian President Vladimir Putin looks on in Moscow on November 12.
Photo: VLADIMIR RADIONOV/AFP/Getty Images |
INTERNATIONAL NEWS A base abroad? Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Russia, Tajikistan and Syria in November. Vajpayee became the first Indian prime minister to visit Tajikistan since that country became independent in 1991. The Indian Express reported that India had set up an army base in Tajikistan, the first such outside India, The Central Asian state borders Afghanistan, where India is keen to ensure the stability of the Hamid Karzai government. The Tajikistan government has denied the report. The prime minister spent a day in Syria to reassure the Arab world in general and Syria in particular of New Delhi's support, especially in aftermath of the US invasion of neighbouring Iraq and India's growing ties with Israel. Text: Ramananda Sengupta
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