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.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the start of operations to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz, a claim swiftly denied by Iran, leading to increased tensions in the region amidst stalled negotiations between the two countries.
The United States and Iran have reached an agreement in principle to immediately and permanently halt all military operations, lift sanctions, and work towards a comprehensive final agreement within 60 days, including a significant reconstruction package for Iran.
Which are the world's most vital straits, important to shipping?
In a sharp escalation of regional tensions, US President Donald Trump issued a fresh warning to Tehran on Monday, asserting that the American military is prepared to sink any Iranian vessels that approach the newly established naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
The US blockade on Iranian ports is aimed to curb Iranian energy exports, thereby crippling its economy to force Iran back to the negotiating table, points out Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
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.
Iran's ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, has described India as a "reliable and compassionate" partner while asserting Tehran's territorial authority over the Strait of Hormuz amidst ongoing regional tensions.
Sacred spots and soaring peaks: Bucket-listing across the heartland. Roopa Unnikrishnan and her father journey through the heart of India.
The Iranian Embassy in South Africa has launched a biting social media attack on US President Donald Trump, using a viral maritime audio clip to label him an "idiot".
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).
US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that the American Navy will henceforth block all maritime traffic entering the Strait of Hormuz.
A senior Iranian legislator has suggested that Tehran could further escalate pressure on its adversaries by targeting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, raising concerns about global supply chain vulnerabilities.
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?
According to the Pentagon, the vessels were targeted as part of efforts to prevent the deployment of naval mines in the strategically vital passage through which a significant portion of global crude oil shipments transits.
The US torpedo attack on the Iranian warship IRIS Dena in international waters was a lawful act of war between belligerents, not a diplomatic or strategic embarrassment for India, asserts Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
A senior government official confirms that Indian vessels do not require permission to navigate the Strait of Hormuz, despite regional tensions. Several Indian ships, including LPG tankers, have safely crossed the strait, ensuring continued supply of essential commodities to India.
Amid escalating tensions with Iran, President Trump is urging nations dependent on Middle Eastern oil to deploy warships to the Strait of Hormuz to safeguard critical global energy supplies.
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.
India possesses approximately 100 million barrels of commercial crude oil stocks, capable of covering 40-45 days of its requirements if flows through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, according to Kpler.
The LPG squeeze on India's restaurant sector is the quotidian face of a deeper crisis.
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.
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
If as critics point out, the environmental impact assessment study was commissioned only after the auction process got underway with not all the stakeholders getting to know of it, then the government has already compromised the trust it could have enjoyed with Kerala's public including its coastal communities, points out Shyam G Menon.
"...In an era of globalisation and interdependence, the balance between the rights of States and the freedoms of the larger global community is vital for international trade and global security," Defence Minister A K Antony said in apparent reference to Chinese build-up in the area
The world needs to wake up to this new dimension of war at sea and be prepared to face the 'unknown enemy' who have the advantage of attacking at their choice of location and time, cautions Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Lieutenant Commanders Roopa A and Dilna K have completed 3 months at sea and have embarked on the longest and toughest leg of the voyage.
The airport has been stopping operations and rescheduling flights twice in every year for decades to enable the bi-annual centuries-old ceremonial procession of the famous Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram to pass through the runway.
'Even one accident can cause problems for the entire coastal system.'
The trigger that led Japan and the Philippines to ink the deal was because of the deteriorating security situation in the South China Sea. China's coast guard increased the frequency and intensity of incursions into Philippine waters, provoking the Philippines to take countermeasures to deter China, explains Dr Rajaram Panda.
The US is currently Earth's most powerful country and a certain latitude of understanding -- a world view -- is popularly expected from its leadership. From a country identified with freedom, constitution, debate, democracy and the likes of Abraham Lincoln even as it had the most powerful military around, the US, following Trump's actions, seemed repositioned as militarily powerful with other qualities secondary, observes Shyam G Menon.
Why can't the Indian government propose to the Chinese a corridor circumambulating the Holy Mountain where people from both sides could perform the yatra again? asks Claude Arpi.
Those three wickets for six runs, in a manic final 15 minutes of the day's play, undid all the good work that had gone before, asserts Prem Panicker.
'It would be reasonable to assume that Modi 3.0 would be more focused on projects and schemes which do not require any legislative change or which have the support of its coalition partners,' asserts A K Bhattacharya.
It's hard not to get skin tingles when you see these stunning images. They are winning pictures and shortlisted entries from the sixth annual International Landscape Photographer of the Year competition. More than 3,400 photos were entered into the contest from both amateur and professional photographers from around the globe. The shots feature everything from remote beaches to moody mountain ranges.
India and Japan on Friday sought a peaceful solution to the territorial disputes in the strategic South China Sea, saying parties involved in the matter must not resort to "threat or use of force", in remarks that could anger China which is opposed to any outside interference.
China on Wednesday said the US' naval and air incursions in the artificial islands in the South China Sea will be counter-productive leading to "miscalculation" and "crisis", as Beijing summoned the American ambassador to protest the US Navy's sailing of a warship into the disputed waters.
The Pentagon has said that its Navy ship conducting navigational rights within India's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) without the permission of New Delhi was consistent with international law.
Glimpses from the FutureFantastic technology and art festival in Bengaluru that explored the intersections of art, technology and climate change.
It was clear in Brunei at the 8th East Asia Summit that China doesn't want the South China Sea issue to even dominate the discussion, reports Sheela Bhatt, who is part of the prime minister's media contingent to the summit
