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.
'If attacks escalate, there is a risk the Suez Canal may be closed.'
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.
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.
The missile was showcased at the recent Dubai Air Show and drew huge interest from potential buyer countries.
Russia attacked Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, with missiles and drones on Tuesday, January 2, 2024. Some of Russia's latest weapons were used in the savage attack.
United States President Donald Trump said he could travel to India next year, emphasising that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'wants' him to visit while calling him a 'great man' and a friend.
The Congress party has criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi following repeated claims by former US President Donald Trump that he brokered peace between India and Pakistan.
The Indian Army has released a booklet on Operation Sindoor, which was launched to avenge the April 22 ghastly Pahalgam attack in which Pakistan-backed terrorists brutally killed 26 civilians, mostly tourists, and left many injured.
Whether Trump will actually press ahead with the oil sanctions remains unclear, since keeping Russian oil out of the world market risks high oil prices which could boomerang on the US economy and be damaging politically for Trump, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The US President reiterated his long-held view that Putin wants "ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it," and warned that such ambitions could lead to "the downfall of Russia."
'Trump had done a deal with the current regime minus Maduro. The current regime is giving Trump entry into Venezuelan oil. They are obeying him and doing whatever he says.' 'They are happy because they have saved their heads by sacrificing only two, Maduro and his wife. Thousands of Venezuelan military leaders would have been jailed or killed in American action had Maduro stayed in power.'
Glimpses from around the world that will make you smile and cry.
US President Donald Trump has repeated his claim of "stopping" the conflict between India and Pakistan through trade and tariffs, and suggested he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for settling multiple conflicts.
'When one air force (India's) hits the other's airbases with impunity and that air force (Pakistan's) is not able to respond, then the air force, which has put the other's airbases out of commission, has won.'
'There are only a few countries in the world that have deployed combat-ready laser systems.'
Unless each attack drone can be neutralised, India will be literally deploying elephants to stamp out ants -- and the ants may still survive! points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
A meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the SCO summit is being planned.
'Russia is aiming at demoralising Ukraine as a nation.' 'They want to bomb the infrastructure, the electric stations so that regular citizens will not to be able to live, to cook, to give comfort to their kids.'
'I am worried that Pakistan will still feel compelled to take substantive military action beyond this apparent drone activity.' 'If so, the crisis could persist for a while more and dangerous days are still ahead.'
Glimpses from India and around the world that will make you smile and cry.
Tensions between the United States and Russia have reached new heights amid the ongoing Ukraine conflict, with a series of developments marking a dangerous escalation.
The Iran-Israel conflict has further increased global economic uncertainties, impacting world trade, including India's exports, as it is expected to drive up both air and sea freight rates, exporters say. They said that India's exports to Europe and counters like Russia may get impacted due to this war.
In all likelihood, the next conventional Chinese attack on India would be preceded by a massive cyber attack designed to cripple Indian networks and interfere with our disaster-relief programmes.
Who else will take on the might of Microsoft, Google, and Amazon if not the Adanis, Ambanis, Birlas, or Tatas?, asks R Jagannathan.
Binil T B, an electrician from Thrissur, left for Russia seven months ago, hoping to secure a better job and higher wages while his wife was expecting their first child.
'Putin dreams about his legacy. He wants to forcibly restore the Russian empire.' 'Unfortunately, after three years of large-scale war with massive human losses, Putin will not budge from his goal because human life is the cheapest resource in the Russian State.'
The Indian embassy in Ukraine has asked Indian nationals to leave the country at the earliest in view of a fresh wave of hostilities.
'Pakistan is no longer a front-burner issue for America.'
Ukraine's envoy Sergiy Kyslytsya told members states that he had already lost family members to Russian aggression.
Trump couldn't care less anymore about the Israeli demand for Iran's 'de-nuclearisation' and 'de-militarisation.' Trump pins hopes on a grand bargain with Iran as a partner in America First, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Parents are forced to provide their children to Russian re-education camps in occupied territories and in different parts of Russia, for example, in Chechnya, where Ukrainian children wearing military uniform are taught to use weapons.'
'This strike has certainly enhanced your image.' 'Otherwise, people would have called you a damp squib, capable of doing nothing except talking big.'
Glimpses of Russian ruthlessness during the New Year...
'If they aim to remain aligned with the public sentiment, as any democratic government should, then they must respond. Why else would the prime minister have cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia? And why would he have instructed the home minister himself to travel to Srinagar to assess the situation firsthand? This suggests that something is indeed being planned. I am quite certain of that, although the exact form it will take remains to be seen.'
'He is intrigued by the intractability of Kashmir issue. With his interest in dealmaking and peacebrokering, he sees it as an exciting challenge to tackle.'
An inconclusive end to this war will pose high risk for Netanyahu of a cascading demand for a regime change in Israel, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
"This will be a fair decision that should draw the attention of the whole world to a regime that kills its best people and helps kill Ukrainians," Palkin said in a statement one day before his team plays at Celtic in the Champions League.
Glimpses of Christmas celebrations amid the war in Ukraine...
