At least five Indian soldiers and two militants were killed on Monday in a series of gun battles in Indian Kashmir, where security forces have stepped up operations after several civilian killings last week, officials said.

China's increased military activity in the Taiwan Strait may have grabbed all the headlines in recent weeks, but thousands of miles to the west, another simmering territorial dispute on the country's borders looks more likely to boil over first.

The Taliban are the most unlikely of populists: brutal, myopic, the epitome of intolerance.

China has stepped up pressure on Taiwan in recent weeks, flying dozens of warplanes near the self-ruled island in a show of strength that has put the entire region on edge.

Taiwan's Defense Minister, former general Chiu Kuo-cheng, stood in front of the island's legislature last week and made a dire prediction -- by 2025, China will be able to mount a "full-scale" invasion of Taiwan.