Pakistan is unhappy that major players which could bail it out at the UN are all embroiled in their own affairs – the US trying to quit Afghanistan and China facing a trying time in Hong Kong, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor

Boris Johnson has ended the British stance till now that Kashmir is a bilateral India-Pakistan issue, thereby delivering a lethal blow to India-Britain relations, writes Prakash Chand Katoch for South Asia Monitor

CDS by itself without its essential adjunct of integrated theater commands would be of little avail. It may turn out to be just one more four star-general, without any enhancement in Indian military’s war fighting capabilities, writes  Lt-Gen Harwant Singh ( retd )  for South Asia Monitor

India has rudely shaken China, pushing back the bilateral Wuhan understanding with Beijing. It has hit not just China’s prime ally, but has moved close to Aksai Chin, the Kashmir territory Pakistan ceded to China, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor

Religious leaders should promote interfaith dialogue. They should bring together followers of different persuasions for meaningful conversations. They should promote a dialogue of understanding and a shared sense of community with other faiths, writes Frank Islam for South Asia Monitor

The abolition of J&K’s special status will complete the ongoing process of annexation into the Indian Union, as it was a temporary provision, and will bring misguided and stone-pelting Kashmiri youth into mainstream politics, writes Sudhanshu Tripathi for South Asia Monitor

Experts are divided about the legality and constitutional propriety of the August 5 decisions in relation to Article 3 and the reorganization of states. What is at stake is the sanctity of  constitutionalism  and for PM Narendra Modi the way the Kashmir issue unfolds  will  define his political legacy, writes C Uday Bhaskar for South Asia Monitor

Internationally, the impact has been positive across the international community and, even China, although initially negatively disposed, has chosen not to be too vociferous in its protestations, writes  Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain (retd)  for South Asia Monitor

Haj will continue to be the harbinger of cultural and economic cooperation between India and Saudi Arabia, writes Dr H A Nazmi for South Asia Monitor

Those who have closely watched Modi believe that the prime minister wanted to give a clear signal that his government would be in a pro-active mode to handle long pending issues, writes Arun Anand for South Asia Monitor

The reason Pakistan was afraid of the plebiscite was that the raiders and troops it had sent in “had indulged in loot, arson, rape, and murder in the State. Scores of villages and towns were destroyed and hundreds of thousands of people uprooted, writes Arul Louis for South Asia Monitor

Pakistan can be expected to up the ante on terror, but any misadventure by Pakistan will be suitably responded to by India, writes  Lt Gen Prakash Chand Katoch (retd) for South Asia Monitor

If, in the name of security, the BJP can, with one stroke, undo the federal asymmetry which was a product of the unique circumstances pertaining to the accession of J&K state to India, with a complex set of legal and constitutional mechanisms, the same can be done to the Northeast special powers, but with greater ease, writes Reeta Tremblay for South Asia Monitor

After a decade, these three countries - Nepal, a Hindu majority country, Bhutan, a Buddhist country and Maldives, an Islamic country - make a compelling study in the journey of democracy, writes Rishija Singh for South Asia Monitor

Despite dramatization of Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities, it is quite clear that South Asia has remained safe from any major conflict due to Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, writes Rabia Javed for South Asia Monitor