THIS refers to the report, `From remote outpost, India looks to check China`s Indian Ocean thrust` (July 17); the letter, `Nawaz-Modi meeting,` by H. Arif and your editorial, `Missing foreign minister, both of July 21, plus the missive, `Missing FM` by Mukhtar Ahmed (July 22).

Modi`s muscular approach to both Pakistan and China can be gauged from the report which says India`s earlier plans of expanding its military presence in the Andaman Islands that had largely faltered have seen a fresh energy under Modi, `who wants to reassert New Delhi`s traditional dominance of the Indian Ocean.

So, we must have no illusions about Modi`s real intentions. What can Pakistan, being about 15pc of India in size and resources, wish for but peace? Thus, we must strive for that but without compromising our dignity.

As Mr Sharif, part of the chattering classes, has long held that he has a short attention span. This has been confirmed in his book, Baar-i-Shanasaee by the exambassador Karamatullah Ghori, who`s put it at three to four minutes, compared to seven for a person of average intelligence.

Thus, he`s not at all intellectually qualified to be the FM.

Mr Arif has remarked that Nawaz isn`t a statesman. That`s true. He seems to be a stateless businessman who sometimes lives in Pakistan and sometimes in Saudi Arabia or in Britain. Besides a kingdom here, he`s apparently creating an international business empire for which he keeps dashing off overseas, hence retaining the FM`s post.

Khalid Chaudhry Karachi