Mandate. Think she is looking for that mandate. If she squeaks by. She is also trying to squash dissent in her own party. The real mandate that she once, this is true in a different way, for the anti mandate Thatjeremy Corbyn feels, it is about british politics. If she wins resoundingly, it is more a message to the borisjohnsons of this world. Ina way, to the borisjohnsons of this world. In a way, to the far right of the tory party. In other words, in theory, if she wants the so called soft brexit. Which she doesnt . Well, we dont know. Have you heard the Phrase Brexit means brexit . That is all we know. Lets posit the possibility that she once a kind of Lu Kewa Rm Possibility that she once a kind of lukewarm brexit. It is conceivable that if the ideologically rigid side of the tory party knew that they have a tory leader thatjust got a personal mandate to lead, it might change things. She was looking at the polls . Of course. The Opinion Polls . Yes, she was looking at the Opinion Polls. She was also looking at the economic figures. The Economic Situation is deteriorating, rising inflation, unemployment, maybe there might be some trouble ahead. Also, we havent felt the Economic Impact of brexit. That might take another two, three or four years to take place. She wants to have room for manoeuvre so that she was not going to be punished immediately after brexit with a terrible electoral result. So, she is factoring in all of this. Of course, being so ahead in the polls, she is the most popular Prime Minister in 40 years. This is really something incredible. Shes trying to take advantage of this position. She is also creating one of the most boring elections and campaigns in living memory. Ithink boring elections and campaigns in living memory. I think it is up to the opposition parties, some of them ina sore the opposition parties, some of them in a sore condition, a really weak condition, to make it a brexit election. There are lots of questions that the government has not answered. Even labour is confused about brexit, which makes it very difficult. There is a political calculus going on as well, she knows the polls, she knows she has extraordinarily weak opposition in corbyn, who a lot of people in labour cannot tolerate, perfect alignment of the stars. But she is also looking at these very complex Brexit Negotiations, which are going to take a couple of years and thinking, wait a minute, if to take a couple of years and thinking, wait a minute, if i wait until we run out of our mandate, we will be right in the middle of key Brexit Negotiations and we will have to suspend them for an election campaign. If to suspend them for an election campaign. If i do this now, i have a good four year run and we can get this wrapped up before i have to go back to the polls. Will she engage in this . Yes, i have been covering elections in this country since 1979. I see this as a situation where she saw an opportunity, nine months into thejob, she where she saw an opportunity, nine months into the job, she saw an opportunity, the opportunity being Thatjeremy Corbyn is so far down in the polls that it gives her a chance to perhaps enhance her position, strengthen her hand. That said, it is also true that three years down the road, the economy in britain may not be as hunky dory as it is at the moment. So, that was also a factor that played in. More than that, this was an election where she wants to talk about brexit, and brexit alone. The fact that she is the best person to negotiate with the 27 countries that she has to talk to. Whereas jeremy corbyn, i think, will try very ha rd to jeremy corbyn, i think, will try very hard to focus on housing and health. Those are the two areas that labour are seen to be stronger on, compared to the conservatives. A few more weeks to go, june the 8th. It isa more weeks to go, june the 8th. It is a little bit close in france. The French Election is fascinating. Who thought we would be where we are today, and we build up to meder seven . That is true, i think it is going to be very close. We have macron, the most devoted candidate. At 54 of his voters were voting tactically. That means it is not somebody who has a lot of enthusiasm behind him. The french electoral syste m behind him. The french Electoral System has been designed to give the opportunity to voters to come in the first round, vote with their heart, and the second round is to vote with your head. Tactically. So, they are already doing it in the first round, which means some people are very alarmed. His main problem is going to being confusing those voters on the left and right, convince them that Marine Le Pen is a real danger. Enthusing. He has been working on that, he has been campaigning in areas where the Front National is very strong. He has been employing tony blair masochistic tactics, getting engaged in dialogues, some very vivid conversations with voters. I dont know if, in two weeks of the campaign, it will be enough to convince voters. Marine le pen, on the other hand, she is clearly targeting voters on the left. She keeps making references to the Banking Background of macron, using the language of the candidate of the radical left. She might get around 15 of those radical left wing voters. It will be much tighter and extension is going to be the greatest enemy of emmanuel macron. What we think of Marine Le Pen standing back from her leadership of the Front National . And her leader, who has been exposed as believing. The Holocaust Denier . The interim leader. She is chasing her own shadow. Having played this Punditry Game for a while, iam reluctant played this Punditry Game for a while, i am reluctant to predict any margins, any victors, given the outcomes we have seen in brexit and trump. I will predict that corbyn will not be Prime Minister yes, well. That an exception. I think it is hard to see Marine Le Pen, she is such a polarising figure and has a solid base, but when you look at how the votes played in the third and fourth position in the first round of the election, it is very ha rd to round of the election, it is very hard to see how it works. The real danger is people staying home. If You Rememberwhen Marine Danger is people staying home. If you remember when Marine Le Danger is people staying home. If you rememberwhen Marine Le Pens father went through this ballet, you know, they defeated le pen, but they did it with people on the left holding a nose and saying they would vote for anybody apart from him. Exactly, the voters that supported francois fillon, the centre right candidate, are very hesitant of voting for macron. Its a problem, because fillon was campaigning on the margins of the radical right. I think there will be a lot of voters of fillon who will vote for Marine Le Pen. Interesting, it is a new phenomenon that the two major parties have been knocked out. Effectively you have an independent candidate emerging from the centre. And, of course, a well known right wing candidate. I suspected to be closer than what people have been predicting. But we are into new politics these days. An independent could become president. And the youngest president ever . situation, a country like america, the position of president of france isa the position of president of france is a hallowed position in the eyes of the french. For a man of that age to become president is extraordinary. It would be another thing to have legislative power behind him, we would not know that untiljune. Its an interesting point, when you look at trends globally, trump being the guy that is going to time to clean out the swamp, brexit being a vote against the old order, macron very much fits into that trend. He is not from the traditional old line parties. His ideology might be different, he is much more conservative mainstream than trump, much less disruptive than trump, much less disruptive than brexit, but it is this trend of people saying, im fed up with the old order. There is also this trend of the Working Class people, who traditionally vote for left wing parties, veering towards parties which are very much to the right. It has happened in britain, in the shape of ukip, it has happened in the case of trump, and now also, perhaps to a certain extent, in france. We may have proved that the French Election is a little more interesting than the british one. Lets turn to india. Tensions between india and china have been growing recently. Cross border skirmishes, bellicose rhetoric, all making for a very uneasy state of affairs. Ashis, bring us up to date. It has been growing and worsening for some time. Explain what your assessment is where tensions are . There was a lot more tension between india and china these days than what was the case three years ago, lets say. There was a different government them. There is an element of bellicosity between the two belligerents, if you like. More on the behalf of china. The situation is like this. The former ruler of tibet, he went to india, he got sanctuary, and has been in exile in india for more than 60 years, he is a person that china is ultrasensitive about. There is a long standing Border Dispute between india and pakistan, sorry, india and china, which is described by china as south tibet, which india claims as south tibet, which india claims as part of india. That was put on the back burner in 1993, in the form ofa the back burner in 1993, in the form of a treaty which was called the peace and tranquillity treaty. Discussions would continue, but in the meanwhile, economic relations in particular would forge ahead. And they have. Trade between the two countries runs into tens of billions, 100 billion. Having said that, every time the dalai lama visits this sensitive area, which is claimed by china to be south tibet, he goes there specifically to visit a monastery will stop it tells to visit a monastery. It is of tremendous importance to buddhism. He was there in 2009, when china raised objections. Wasnt that his first landing spot when he came from exile . He came through that area. He fled tibet. He came through, and settled in india. He is a person that raises chinas heckles. China tends to go over the top on this matter. India has try to keep a lid on it. The previous indian government, i think, on it. The previous indian government, ithink, did betterthan the present one. There is certainly an element of rhetoric going on, which i dare say will not lead to war 01 any which i dare say will not lead to warorany of which i dare say will not lead to war or any of that kind. But you find the border violations are taking place all the time. Find the border violations are taking place all the timelj find the border violations are taking place all the time. I think it reflects the aspirations of india to bea it reflects the aspirations of india to be a global superpower. The two most populous countries, as neighbours, india in the shadow economically and geopolitically, of china, which is much wealthier, much more powerful, has a much stronger army. India, with its own internal issues of extreme poverty and corruption cannot be an equal player with china. But this bellicosity, as i think you rightly call it, reflects this desire to be seen as not being taken advantage of all taken for granted. There is also rising nationalism in both countries. The ruler in china, the ruling party in china, we have seen nationalism in both countries. I tend to agree, this has been going on since the 19605. No major uproar, 5kirmi5her5, Episodic 5kirmi5he5 that are taking place when something more controversial take5 that are taking place when something more controversial takes place. India5 economy, under the shadow of china, it is interesting because it ha5 china, it is interesting because it has a much more dynamic economy in some places, certainly more high tech. It is more malleable and adaptable, in theory. It is against that background where china is not only A55erting It5elf that background where china is not only a55erting itself with better tie5 only a55erting itself with better ties with pakistan, but also ea5t africa, development projects, trade across africa, development projects, trade acr055 paki5tan. You can understand india5 reticence about this. The wild card, again, is our friend donald trump, who, despite the previou5 administration and the Trans Pacific partnership, the tilt to asia, is basically in a bromance with the leadership of china now, becau5e with the leadership of china now, because of north korea. One of the reasons why tensions have risen between india and china is because india has moved closer to the United States. It certainly did under the 0bama administration. What will happen at the donald trump, one doesnt know. This has offended china. It is india and the United States ganging up against china. That is one of the reasons why tensions are higher today than they we re tensions are higher today than they were a couple of years ago. And your anxieties as well, about kashmir, why we should be more concerned, even more concerned now than we have beenin even more concerned now than we have been in the past . The United States and india, going up against china, china has forged closer and closer to pakistan. It is a Counter Ganging up to pakistan. It is a Counter Ganging up against india, with china and pakistan. What has happened is that this economic commodore, as it is called, a massive corridor through disputed territory, as mandated by the United Nations. The entire area of kashmir is disputed, as far as the United Nations is concerned. So, driving a highway, and economic corridor through territory which is disputed, is something which obviously india is not happy about. He has been mentioned already in the last couple of minutes, you cant avoid that, we must talk about the United States. You probably know that President Trump is completing his first 100 days in office. Jeffrey, you are not too long back from the us. I was very struck that donald trump said he was finding the job harder than he anticipated . Era go figure isnt that a revealing comment . He told Reuters News Agency that the job is comment . He told Reuters News Agency that thejob is much harder than anticipated. He had a good life beforehand, he enjoyed it, maybe he is suffocating . Maybe we should have a whip round and give him his old life back . Exactly, the cocoon, he finds it quite airless, and he misses being able to drive. He ran his Business Empire by decree. By bullying. It just his Business Empire by decree. By bullying. Itjust doesnt work. When you run a business the way he does, it is all about money. It is all about profit. Everybody sits on the table going, how can we make more money . Congress doesnt work that way. You have so many competing interests. You have so many people with regional interests, political interests, ideologies, power bases. Has that been a shock to him, because he didnt come up with the political experience . We saw massive failures, trying to kill 0bamacare, it didnt work. Two efforts to ban muslims from sex, then seven, then six countries, overruled by the courts. Trying to ban muslims from six and then seven countries. The courts have overruled his attem pts the courts have overruled his atte m pts to the courts have overruled his attempts to be an emperor. The question really now is how much he is learning on the job and question really now is how much he is learning on thejob and can he. He almost as four years to go, 100 daysis he almost as four years to go, 100 days is not much. It hasnt been great. He has moved some of the far right fringes, steve bannon and others out of the centre of power in the white house. He has this more Pragmatic Group in the white house advising him. You say it hasnt been great, his administration would say, you mentioned it, the us has come out of the Trans Pacific partnership, all of the things he wa nted partnership, all of the things he wanted to do. He has a new Supreme Courtjustice as well . That is an achievement for his administration . His only concrete achievement. Achievement for his administration . His only Concrete Achievementm you can call it an achievement. But it is. I wouldnt like to state the obviou5, hi5 failure5. But one thing di5turb5 me a little bit. I think he might be trying to raise his rating5 by going a Little Balli5tic externally. On the International Stage . Absolutely. He has tried the mi55ile5 in syria, he has tried a heavy bombing in afghanistan and he ha5 heavy bombing in afghanistan and he has now started being quite provocative in the korean peninsular. It is a dangerous game, but i think it is one way of trying to raise his rating5, which i 5u5pect to raise his rating5, which i suspect is what his try to do. For 24 hours he was going to kill the north American Free trade agreement, and then backed off. The reas