The ceasefire is still technically holding, to the extent that no overt hostilities have been reported yet, but the rhetoric has hardened dangerously. The week ahead will also clarify whether the Islamabad failure was a negotiating tactic or whether Washington has genuinely locked itself into a position from which the only exits are climb-down, escalation, or the slow bleed of a new status quo that nobody chose and nobody controls. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Indian men's and women's lacrosse teams, fresh off their gold-winning performance at the Asian Lacrosse Games, have been felicitated by the Sports Minister and urged to focus on qualifying for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump discussed the West Asia crisis and the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open and secure. They also reviewed progress in bilateral ties and anticipated upcoming deals in the energy sector.
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
Aseem Chhabra lists his top 10 films from this year's Sundance festival, a blend of narratives and documentaries made in the US and other parts of the world.
Each time a deadline almost runs out, President Trump hands out a new one.
'I want to show bearded men actually caring and loving for their sons or a woman from Pakistan in a position of power. How radical is that?'
The cost of the war is being counted not in the corridors of power in Washington or Tehran, but in Firozabad's darkened furnace rooms, Howrah's idle casting sheds, and a barbershop in Kochi where the wait is suddenly, inexplicably, an hour long, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
India opener Sanju Samson is among the nominees for the T20 World Cup Player of the Tournament, alongside other top performers like Will Jacks and Sahibzada Farhan.
'What the Americans want is to destabilise Iran. For destabilising Iran, you need access. 'One access is through Iraq. The other access is through Pakistan.'
Former US President Donald Trump claimed victory over Iran, stating they agreed to never have a nuclear weapon and provided a 'significant prize' related to the Strait of Hormuz. He also suggested a change in Iranian leadership and acknowledged Pakistan's role in facilitating talks.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are actively pushing Trump to take the war to its bitter finish and 'erase' Iran's presence in the geopolitics of the region. Simply put, the two most powerful Sunni Arab oligarchies are on the same page as Israel. Such interference increases the risk of a breakdown in dialogue between the US and Iran, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
One of the most uncivilised characteristics of this war has been the total disregard for international law and the laws of armed conflict, asserts Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
US President Donald Trump asserted that the trade deal with India remains intact despite a Supreme Court ruling against his tariffs, while also claiming he used tariffs to stop a war between India and Pakistan.
'Can a nuclear-armed nation sustain itself indefinitely under overt military rule without catastrophic consequences for itself and the region? History suggests otherwise.'
Russia has expressed strong concern over a US-Israeli strike on the Iranian port of Bandar Anzali, a key transit hub on the INSTC, warning of the risk of drawing Caspian states into the ongoing conflict.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
New Delhi might have loudly welcomed an age of multipolarity, hedging and strategic autonomy. But it seems the winner in that game is Islamabad, not us, points out Mihir S Sharma.
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.
Delhi should keep all its options open in what is essentially a transitional period in the geopolitics of energy rather than remain a gatekeeper serving Trump's 'America First', suggests Ambasssador M K Bhadrakumar.
The United States, which entered this war in expectation of a short, sharp win along the Venezuela model, is now preparing for deeper involvement in a conflict it does not fully control, without the allies it typically relies on, against an adversary that is not behaving as expected, in a global environment that is already absorbing economic shock. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
'America holds about 16% of IMF voting rights, giving it crucial influence over Pakistan's desperately needed bailout loans.'
'The background for the Saudi-Pakistan agreement is the fact that the regional security order has collapsed due to the Israeli attack on Doha.' 'The Americans have largely abandoned their security guarantee for West Asia and the region has no choice but to look at alternatives.'
US President Donald Trump announced a new global levy on imported items, resulting in a lower tariff rate for India, following a Supreme Court verdict against his previous sweeping tariffs.
Trump said the prime minister of Pakistan, who visited him in Washington last year, said that "'President Trump saved 10 million people, and maybe much more than that'. They're both nuclear countries."
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.
Netherlands will aim to combine strong batting and disciplined bowling to secure a win against the United States of America in a crucial Group A T20 World Cup match, essential for their Super Eights qualification hopes.
'India is too important to the United States for there to be any kind of a permanent bump in the relationship.'
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'What we need to watch is how Saudi Arabia's financial assistance will be used by Pakistan. If the funds go to build their military hardware and operations, it should worry us.'
'If you fire two missiles at Jamnagar or ten missiles there, what do you think India will do?' 'India will fire 500 missiles on Tarbela and Mangla, destroy the Sukkur Barrage, destroy Karachi port.' 'When you start issuing threats, it should be with some sense and sensibility.' 'You shouldn't just shoot your mouth off just because you have appointed yourself field marshal.'
This weekend, Donald Trump has begun to say the quiet part out loud -- that he wants to take control of Iran's oil, a formulation more in line with his robber-baron style of international relations.
The turning point came with the appointment of Sergio Gor as the US ambassador to India.
After the US Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's global tariffs, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being "compromised", saying his "betrayal" in the India-US interim trade deal stood exposed.
USA name a largely unchanged squad for the T20 World Cup despite board suspension, retaining the core that beat Pakistan and reached the Super Eight last edition.
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.
'The Pakistanis called the US state department and said we agree with India on peace.' 'It was then that US President Donald Trump jumped in and took credit for the ceasefire.'
AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's relationship with US President Donald Trump, alleging that Modi is acting as Trump's 'slave' and jeopardising India's interests on trade, oil and foreign policy.
'No, India and China were not about to go to all-out war over a few rocks of Galwan.' 'The full picture of what went on at the highest level between two heads of State will not be known for a very, very long time and rightly so,' points out Colonel Anil A Athale, former head of the history division, ministry of defence.
