President Barack Obama announced 10 billion dollars in trade deals with India to create 50,000 US jobs, on a visit that began with an emotional tribute to victims of the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Kicking off a four-nation Asian tour weighted towards prying open new markets for US goods, Obama also said he would relax technology export restrictions imposed after India's nuclear tests back in 1998.

Afghanistan will continue to bleed until the allies finally recognize that only by engaging the Taliban do they stand a chance of ending the war. But the West will also have to recognize that conflicts with a potent cultural and religious component are simply not susceptible to a military solution - a realization that points toward ending the ostracism of political Islam - Hamas and Hezbollah, for example.