Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack on Pope Leo XIV over the pontiff's views on American foreign policy and crime, escalating tensions between the White House and the Vatican.
Successful interceptor, anti-ship, MIRV and hypersonic technology tests have strengthened India's position among a select group of advanced missile powers.
The US military is considering a new wave of military operations in Iran, including potential strikes on infrastructure and securing Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium, amid a fragile ceasefire and stalled nuclear talks.
'As result, Netanyahu 'convinced' Trump to go to war with the help of overoptimistic Israeli intelligence assessments, essentially explaining to him that they only need to bomb Iran for 3-4 days, and the regime would then collapse.' 'Rather unsurprisingly, Netanyahu is ever since blaming his own intel service for the entire operation failing.'
India is strengthening the naval component of its nuclear triad with Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi on Tuesday saying that the third indigenous nuclear-powered submarine 'Aridaman' will be commissioned soon and that his force is focusing on boosting its overall combat prowess.
Iran has presented a multi-layered proposal to the US in an attempt to break the deadlock in peace talks, focusing on de-escalation and nuclear programme discussions.
'DRDO has been directed to license missile technologies to the private sector.'
The United States used an array of weapons in the strikes conducted against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday -- which included artificial intelligence services from Anthropic, according to a report by Reuters.
The US-China rapprochement, however tenuous, is not without implications for India. Both China and Pakistan have become closer to the US, notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Experts' worries intensified after Pakistan commissioned its first Chinese-built Hangor-class submarine, PNS Hangor, last month.
Three milestones in three days signal India's growing mastery in next-generation strategic technologies spanning nuclear deterrence, hypersonic propulsion and precision stand-off strike capability.
'India for its survival has to change its doctrine from no first use to a pre-emptive attack in case of any hostile move by Pakistan,' recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
With the fight now having been taken to the seizure of nuclear plants, it is one more warning to Europe that this prolonged war could end up with disastrous consequences, observes Rashme Sehgal
The first issue in engaging with Pakistan is the cessation of terrorism, India's envoy at the United Nations said, underlining that India has been a long-standing victim of cross-border and global terrorism and has zero tolerance towards the scourge.
If Iran and Oman choose to charge a fee for rendering services to vessels using their territorial waters, so be it. The US is indulging in an irrationally self-destructive act, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
US officials say that outreach and public statements from Modi and others helped avert a crisis.
US President Donald Trump received a red carpet welcome in Beijing for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on trade, the Iran war, and other key issues. The visit underscores the importance both nations place on their relationship amid ongoing tensions.
Possible convergence of interest among China, Pakistan, and Bangladesh may result in serious implications for India's stability and security dynamics, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan said on Tuesday.
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The policy unveiled by the home ministry is based on seven key pillars to counter the terror threats emanating from India or abroad -- prevention, responses, aggregating internal capacities, human rights and "Rule of Law"-based processes.
Russia moves forward with the plan as part of the plan to deploy tactical nuclear bombs in the country bordering Ukraine.
Beijing's latest weapon, 15 times more powerful than TNT, signals a new frontier in high-impact, non-nuclear military technology.
The question is whether the clocks allow enough time for two deeply mistrustful sides to get there, and whether the surface calm holds long enough for the paddling to produce something before the ceasefire ends on April 22, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
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).
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
Despite four disarmament section talks and six strategic dialogues between the two foreign ministries, China's intransigence on recognising Indian nuclear status resulted in no confidence building measures in the nuclear field between the two, says Srikanth Kondapalli.
US President Donald Trump's threats against Iran have drawn strong condemnation from Democrat leaders, who are calling for his removal from office, while some Republicans express concern.
Former NSA Shivshankar Menon said the defence minister did not have a right to voice his personal opinion on nuclear policy in public, particularly when that opinion contradicted the country's official policy.
The most likely scenario is that in order to stop Ukraine from retaking any Russian occupied territory, Russia may well use a small (1 to 2 kilo tonne) tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine, warns military historian Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Ambassador Pankaj Sharma, Permanent Representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament (CD), Geneva, said India has been drawing the attention of the world towards these threats and the need to strengthen international cooperation to address them through its annual consensus UNGA resolution titled 'Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction'.
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.
'American stature has been reduced because they have not been able to achieve their aims.'
'The lesson Beijing would have learned is that there is, cost-benefit wise, no better option than to keep the Pakistan military supplied with its most advanced armaments, certain that in hostilities with India these would be used for maximum effect.'
'India should pledge that it will only target those provinces of Pakistan where nuclear weapons are located,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'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.
On the table are additional batches of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, which India used with immense success during Operation Sindoor. India could buy at least two squadrons of Su-57 fighter jets plus joint production of S-500 air defence systems.
At the end of the day, for many worldwide, the ongoing mutual attacks between Israel and Iran would seem a contest devoid of any moral high ground and only a bout between two ordinary adversaries, one that nevertheless risks spinning out of control into a larger conflagration, notes Shyam G Menon.
The intriguing bit is that Trump is likely to attend the talks in Islamabad this weekend -- if he does, it will be the clearest signal yet that the US is ready to exit the war with some sort of win to show, since he cannot afford to go for the talks and return empty-handed, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War
'Some success has been achieved in raising the costs of terrorism for 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.
