Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a joint operation with the US against Iran, citing the threat posed by its nuclear ambitions and support for terrorism.
Chaffing under public ridicule in the US as well as internationally for having 'lost' the war, Trump is under immense pressure to do something, cautions Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
For the world and India, one of the most enduring challenges of the times is for Pakistan's nukes to be neutralised, before they are ever used by the State, their sponsored non-State actors or any rogue elements from the many terror tanzeems dotting Pakistan's unstable landscape, says Lieutenant General Kamal Davar (retd).
With India's growing conventional capabilities and more pro-active military plans, Pakistan's military authorities have begun to emphasise the utility of tactical nuclear weapons, says Michael Krepon.
China's Foreign Ministry has refuted allegations of providing military support to Iran, warning the US against imposing tariffs based on these accusations. The statement follows reports of Iran acquiring a Chinese satellite for targeting US military bases. Meanwhile, a rescheduled meeting between Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping is set for May.
Distrust is on the rise and Asian nations are in the race for acquiring nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons are the deadliest weapons created by man.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday expressed confidence that Tehran would eventually concede to American demands, while simultaneously issuing a stern warning regarding the potential for total military devastation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to continue targeting Iranian leaders, claiming recent successes in eliminating key figures. He asserted that Israel, with US support, aims to undermine the Iranian regime and empower the Iranian people.
In his first major national address since hostilities began, Trump said the ongoing military campaign, dubbed 'Operation Epic Fury', has delivered 'swift, decisive, overwhelming victories'.
Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, special envoy, foreign ministry of Israel, has asserted that the situation has effectively been a "multi-front regional conflict" since its inception, while claiming significant military and strategic gains against adversarial forces.
North Korea on Thursday said it is dropping out of six-party nuclear talks and will "bolster its nuclear weapons arsenal."
India should shift to a 'flexible response' from the current no first use and minimum deterrence posture. Against China it would be a strategy of dissuasion based on survivable second strike force that could threaten Chinese high value targets. In case of Pakistan, the flexible response strategy would be based on ambiguous no first or second use and a 1,000 point targeting with the aim of annihilation of that entity.
Former US President Donald Trump claimed he stopped a war between India and Pakistan and expressed his desire to be remembered as a great peacemaker.
Parliament must insist that the government should direct its Department of Atomic Energy to immediately examine and make recommendations to the government on the structure of an independent surveillance and regulatory authority for the defence nuclear facilities, says Dr A Gopalakrishnan.
'Once the military starts to draw up plans for using nuclear weapons, then nuclear weapons could be used earlier in a crisis than otherwise.'
Amid growing global concerns over Pakistan's nuclear weapons falling in the hands of the Taliban, the top United States military official on Monday said it remains a "strategic concern" but the atomic arsenal of Islamabad are secure as of now.
The US President clarified that these negotiations do not involve the new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
While Pakistan is estimated to possess 70-90 nuclear weapons, India is believed to have 60-80, claims Robert S Norris and Hans M Kristensen in their latest article 'Nuclear Notebook: Worldwide deployments of nuclear weapons, 2009'.
If the Iranian regime needs to be punished for promoting quasi-terrorist outfits like Hezbollah and Hamas, then what about Pakistan which has spent decades exporting terror around the world, killing thousands, particularly in Afghanistan and India? asks M R Narayan Swamy.
Declaring that they consider the avoidance of war between Nuclear-Weapon States and the reduction of strategic risks as their foremost responsibilities, the leaders of the five countries in a joint statement said, "we affirm that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel and the US struck Iran because Tehran had restarted its nuclear programme and it would have gone 'immune within months'. He claimed Iran was building new underground sites to shield its missile and nuclear programmes from attacks.
The urgency for a resolution is underscored by the military situation, as joint operations by Israel and the US have consistently been "targeting Iran's missile systems, launch sites and other critical infrastructure" since the onset of the conflict.
Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said that Russia has successfully tested a nuclear-powered submersible drone with unlimited range.
"The recent arrests here in our own country trace back to Pakistan and trace back certainly in the case of Zazi, directly to an Al Qaeda-originated training camp and training programme. But finally and perhaps most chillingly the fact that Pakistan is a nuclear power raises the stakes enormously," she said.
United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates has claimed that Iran has every intention of developing nuclear weapons. In an interview with ABC aired on Sunday, Gates added, "The question of whether they have made a formal decision to move towards the development of nuclear weapons is in doubt."
The ultimate goal of the United States and its international partners is to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said.
The United States, on Tuesday, denied reports that it has plans to seize Pakistan's nuclear weapons, saying it has confidence on the ability of Islamabad to provide adequate security for their atomic arsenal.
The IRGC had announced earlier that it was carrying out an intense wave of attacks on US and Israeli positons throughout the region since dawn, using missiles as well as drones.
We bring forth to our readers the list of nations sitting on a nuclear stockpile, based on the study findings:
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India, along with the United States and Pakistan, has voted against a provision in a United nations resolution calling on to 'promptly' accede to the Non-Proliferation Treaty as non-nuclear-weapon nation 'without conditions' and to place all its nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards.
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.
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.
The nuclear arms race between India and Pakistan has figured during a Congressional hearing on the New START treaty between the United States and Russia.For the past two days, during hearings on the New START treaty held by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, lawmakers wanted to know from top US officials and experts about other nuclear weapon countries like India and Pakistan and how it can motivate the two countries to reduce their nuclear stockpile.
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.
Latest satellite pictures of Iranian military and nuclear facilities released after Israeli strikes show the sites which were damaged after the operation.
'American stature has been reduced because they have not been able to achieve their aims.'
Hours after ceasefire, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned against any country supplying military weapons to the Islamic Republic, stating that he would impose a 50 percent tariff on all goods exported to the United States.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that recent missile attacks demonstrate Iran's capacity to strike globally, posing a threat to Europe and the rest of the world. He highlighted the need for international action to counter Iran's nuclear and missile programmes.
The United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea possess approximately 16,300 nuclear weapons collectively. A glimpse of nine countries with nuclear weapons.
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