Russia unleashed 35 kamikaze drones on Ukraine as many people slept, hitting critical infrastructure in and around Kyiv.
Ukrainian forces conducted large-scale drone strikes on several air bases deep inside Russia, destroying multiple combat planes, Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) said on Sunday.
Ukraine's capital Kyiv came under a large-scale missile and drone attack overnight on December 27, with multiple explosions reported across the city and surrounding regions, one day ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as diplomatic efforts continue to end the four-year-long war.
It may now be time to question the price India is paying for Israel's disregard of the serious undermining of India's energy security, asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
'Strikes into the Gulf countries are proof that the security guarantees offered by the US are ineffective and that the Gulf countries cannot rely on American security assurances for their safety.'
A Russian missile struck a warehouse belonging to an Indian pharmaceutical company, Kusum, in Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian embassy in India. The embassy alleged that Russia, despite claiming a "special friendship" with India, deliberately targeted Indian businesses in Ukraine. The strike reportedly destroyed medicines intended for children and the elderly. This incident follows a similar attack on a major pharmaceuticals warehouse in Kyiv, which was destroyed by Russian drones, as reported by the UK's ambassador to Ukraine. Kusum Healthcare, the company whose warehouse was hit, has a presence in 29 countries, including Ukraine. This attack comes amidst ongoing tensions in the region as Russia continues its offensive against Ukraine, despite US efforts to push for a ceasefire. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Russia of being the sole obstacle to peace and claimed that Moscow rejected a US-brokered proposal for a ceasefire.
'Without ground troops the US will not be able to oust the Iranian Islamic regime. Political change does not happen just by using bombs or planes.'
US President Donald Trump claims India has significantly reduced and nearly stopped purchasing oil from Russia, citing de-escalation efforts. This follows previous tensions over tariffs and India's energy sourcing.
The Russians struck the Ukrainian capital with Iranian-made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the Shahed-136.
The US-Israeli military campaign, dubbed "Operation Epic Fury" by Washington, has entered its third day, with US President Donald Trump stating that operations would continue "until all of our objectives are achieved."
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.
'The entire US ecosystem built over decades at the bases in the Gulf region, especially the UAE, costing trillions of dollars have been decimated, dealing a mortal blow to the US Central Command's war capability,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
With the Iran war escalating sharply and crisis deepening in the global energy market, India on Monday unveiled a coordinated plan to support exporters and shippers caught in the fallout.
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.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to discuss the escalating tensions in West Asia, emphasising the safety of Indian nationals and the need for regional stability through dialogue and diplomacy.
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.
Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey met in Islamabad in what analysts say is the formal opening of a new diplomatic formation that could reshape the post-war regional order. Their immediate goal is a ceasefire; their larger ambition is to ensure that neither Iran nor Israel emerges from this war in a dominant position. Pakistan's foreign minister then flew directly to Beijing and mooted a Chinese role as guarantor of any eventual agreement. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Indian Armed Forces brought down a number of these drones using kinetic and non-kinetic means.
China appears determined to upgrade Pakistan's military capabilities, sufficient to ensure local parity with India, alerts former foreign secretary Ambassador Shyam Saran.
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.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
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.
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
'Despite the large number of missiles and drones we have already launched, we still possess reserves and missile cities whose doors have not yet been opened,' says Iran's Consul-General Saeid Reza Mosayeb Motlagh.
The LPG squeeze on India's restaurant sector is the quotidian face of a deeper crisis.
Sensex and Nifty post steepest weekly loss in over a year, falling nearly 3 per cent.
Since May 10, when Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a "full and immediate" ceasefire after a "long night" of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated his claim over 60 times that he "helped settle" the tensions between the two neighbours.
'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.
When missiles fly in this region, they are never just aimed at military targets.
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.
When the technology gap between China and India will remain large, cost-effective hardware of the kind that proved their worth in Operation Sindoor should be our priority, points out R Jagannathan.
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.
In the reprisal attacks, several missiles struck the city of Kharkiv with two children among those injured, the Ukrainian military said.
In 2024, Russia made only modest territorial gains, controlling about 18% of Ukraine, while suffering massive casualties and equipment losses.
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
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.
Following the preliminary investigations into the crash of Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8432 in which 38 passengers were killed near Aktau in Kazakhstan, it was revealed that a Russian missile was responsible for the crash, Euronews reported on Thursday, citing sources from the Azerbaijani government.
US President Donald Trump claimed India will stop buying oil from Russia, while also stating China will cut back substantially. He also discussed the conflict between India and Pakistan, reiterating his claim of helping settle the conflict.
The missile was showcased at the recent Dubai Air Show and drew huge interest from potential buyer countries.
Lieutenant General Vinod Khandare (retired), former principal adviser to the Ministry of Defence, discusses the implications of Operation Sindoor, including its impact on India's diplomatic relations and the need for improved civil defense.
