China on Monday successfully test-fired a long-range strategic missile from one of its nuclear-powered submarines in the Pacific Ocean, drawing sharp reactions from Japan and Australia.
Successful interceptor, anti-ship, MIRV and hypersonic technology tests have strengthened India's position among a select group of advanced missile powers.
India is increasingly focusing on long-range weapons capable of reaching targets across China.
In a testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence, also said that the threats to the US were set to expand collectively from more than 3,000 missiles at present to more than 16,000 missiles by 2035.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Pyongyang for his first official visit in seven years, meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to reaffirm their long-standing friendship and pledge further development of bilateral relations amidst Pyongyang's deepening military ties with Moscow and China's assertions against Japan's 'new militarism'.
For India, China's Indian Ocean power projection, maritime domain awareness, dual-use ports, underwater surveillance, antisubmarinewarfare, naval exercises with Pakistan, pose considerable pressure, depleted India's strategic depth and marginalises Indian role, points out Srikanth Kondapalli.
While the Andaman and Nicobar islands serve as a vital, stationary asset for projecting power in the Indian Ocean, referring to them as an unsinkable aircraft carrier ignores key military and geopolitical limitations, explains Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
It is an unusual choice to depute a retired general for the funeral of a revered religious figure but a thoughtful one in an attempt to inject verve into the bilateral relationship and restore the equilibrium in India's West Asian policies, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Delhi must now purge the delusional hopes of being a 'counterweight' to China in the US calculus, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the country believes that dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solutions to resolving disputes and that the continued escalation of the conflict serves no one's interests.
If one has to compare the tenures of the two prime ministers one must credit Nehru with laying the foundations on which Modi is building a grand edifice, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'We won not (only) because we were able to carry out long-range precision strikes.' 'That is, of course, one of the reasons but we had better situational awareness about what's happening than Pakistan.'
On the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor, the Indian military issued a stern warning to Pakistan, stating that no terror sanctuary across the border is safe and that India will continue to dismantle terrorist infrastructure.
This is the first time in decades that China has made its flight test of an intercontinental ballistic missile public in an apparent show of strategic deterrence, State-run China Daily reported.
India has commissioned its new indigenously-built nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine INS Aridaman into service, further strengthening the naval component of its nuclear triad. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also highlighted the Indian Navy's role in securing maritime trade routes.
On Thursday, the Chinese military published its ICBM launch photos, shedding its secrecy.
The delegations from the US and Iran head to Islamabad on Friday, carrying a ceasefire that is already fraying, a Strait that is technically open and practically closed, and a negotiating agenda that would challenge even parties actually negotiating in good faith, which these groups are not. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
We, Indians, forgot that for Pakistan, Kashmir dispute and blood feud with India is the raison detre for its existence. It is also the excuse with which the Pak army keeps its grip over the state. Peace in Kashmir and between India and Pakistan is against the interests of the Pak army, points out Colonel Anil A Athale (Retd).
'Pakistan's is the only military-controlled nuclear weapons programme in the world.' 'As people get radicalised, the risk of a brigadier or pilot taking matters into their own hands is a real concern.'
US President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran if a deal is not reached before the ceasefire ends, while Pakistan urged both sides to extend the truce and pursue diplomacy.
US President Donald Trump has announced plans to clear the Strait of Hormuz to secure the vital oil corridor, citing risks to global energy supplies and criticising other nations' inaction.
The purge in Washington does not pause the war. Strikes continue, Hormuz remains closed, and Brent crude is still dancing around $109 a barrel. For India, the command chaos in the Pentagon is another layer of uncertainty piled on five weeks of conflict that was already straining every buffer Delhi has.
The LPG squeeze on India's restaurant sector is the quotidian face of a deeper crisis.
Iran on Thursday spelled out three conditions to end the war with Israel and the United States, which entered its thirteenth day today. Taking to X, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said he reaffirmed the country's commitment to peace during talks with leaders of Russia and Pakistan.
China displayed a range of new weapons at a military parade, including laser weapons, nuclear ballistic missiles, giant underwater drones, and fifth-generation aircraft.
Taking Kharg would give the US control over virtually all of Iran's oil exports and thus provide significant leverage, notes Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War. It would also put American troops within range of Iran's remaining missiles, drones, and artillery on a piece of real estate that is just eight square miles in size, and just 15 miles from the Iranian mainland.
India successfully test-fired the 'Agni 5' intermediate range ballistic missile, capable of reaching targets up to 5,000 km, validating its operational and technical parameters.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
The logic of war plus the gathering storms in US politics as the midterms loom large leave him with no real alternative but to negotiate, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
US President Donald Trump indicated the possibility of further military operations against Iran's Kharg Island, a key oil export hub, claiming previous strikes had significantly damaged its infrastructure.
'We need to give Pakistan something serious to think about on its eastern front -- that is the only way to actually help Afghanistan right now.'
Iran is fighting a different war: Older, slower, and in some ways more dangerous. Iran doesn't need to shoot down an F/A-18. It only needs to make the Strait of Hormuz feel dangerous long enough for insurance markets, shipping companies, and oil futures traders to do the rest. Prem Panicker continues his must-read daily blog on the war in the Middle East.
In the Indo-Pacific's new era -- where perception shapes reality faster than treaties -- the real entrapment is not of China or the United States. It is the test Japan has set for itself -- and whether partners like India, acting as balancers rather than accelerants, can help ensure that the story ends in stability, points out Varun Arya.
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
'Our diplomacy should have been focused on preventing war and avoiding the inevitable disruptions it would cause, posing a real risk to India's growth story,' asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
Pakistan has backed China's claim that Beijing played a role in defusing tension with India during Operation Sindoor, calling it 'diplomacy for peace' that was part of international efforts.
Will rising tensions between US-Israel and Iran threaten crude oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz, putting India's fuel prices, imports, and economic stability at risk?
In 2025, India launched Operation Sindoor, a multi-domain combat mission against Pakistan in response to cross-border terrorism. The operation involved precision strikes, military retaliation, and diplomatic measures, marking a significant shift in India's security policy.
The Chinese navy has launched an amphibious assault ship that will double up as a drone carrier, integrating the battleship with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The Type 076 amphibious assault ship will play a key role in boosting uncrewed combat capabilities, a navy commander has said. This marks the first official acknowledgement of the warship's widely speculated role as a drone carrier.
US President Donald Trump repeated his claim at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he stopped the war between India and Pakistan, a claim India has consistently denied.
