The US has reportedly depleted nearly half of its advanced missile-defence interceptors while defending Israel during recent hostilities with Iran, raising concerns about future readiness.
The American military's air-defence missile inventories, including Patriot and THAAD interceptors, are significantly depleted due to the ongoing five-month confrontation with Iran. A CSIS assessment reveals a steep drop in reserve stocks, raising concerns about the US's capacity to maintain Middle East operations and address other global security challenges. This depletion could force the US and its allies to take higher operational risks.
United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has rejected a CNN report claiming that the Pentagon's missile defence stockpiles have fallen to 'dangerously low levels' amid the conflict with Iran.
Successful interceptor, anti-ship, MIRV and hypersonic technology tests have strengthened India's position among a select group of advanced missile powers.
India's dual pursuit of a robust strategic partnership with Washington and a pragmatic, tension-management policy with Beijing represents the essence of modern multi-alignment. By embracing economic pragmatism, learning to compartmentalize political differences, and engaging in continuous dialogue, India can secure its borders, grow its economy, and contribute to a stable, multipolar Asian century, points out Ambassador Rajasekhar.
The United States and Iran are engaged in indirect talks aimed at developing a framework for a possible agreement, according to Iran's ISNA News Agency. Intensive mediation efforts are underway, but it remains uncertain whether a final agreement is within reach.
Karex, the Malaysian company that makes roughly one in five of the world's condoms -- about five billion a year, supplying Durex and Trojan among others -- announced this week that it is raising prices by up to 30 percent. The reason is the Strait of Hormuz.
Far from it; the country's resistance to the US, its nuclear ambitions, and its pursuit of influence and proxies across the Middle East are driven by a constant search for independence and security. Thus, Iran will never capitulate. Trump will learn this home truth ultimately, and it is going to be a humbling personal experience that may even destroy his presidency, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The big question is whether Trump is any longer in command of the situation. For all practical purposes, the war seems set to cascade as the US is preparing for a potential ground operation in Iran and threatens to destroy 'bridges next, then electric power plants', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
16 days into the war, US forces were already running out of ground-attack missiles and Israel is about to expend its entire Arrow interceptor missiles by end March. To be sure, the Iranians are watching closely and that explains their defiant stance that 'Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its conditions are met', notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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.
'I suspect that Bangladesh being given permission stuck in India's official craw, and this story was an attempt to balance the scales by giving the impression that a similar waiver had been given to India as well.'
The United States and South Korea will deploy the advanced THAAD missile defence system on the volatile Korean peninsula as a "defensive measure" to counter the growing security threat from North Korea's weapons of mass destruction. The move has not gone down well with China which said that the move will harm the security of countries in the region.
Deployment of THAAD in South Korea could unfold a new cataclysm in the Korean Peninsula with unwelcome prospects.
The People's Liberation Army Rocket (Missile) Force tested the new missile in the Bohai Sea.
The United States has started deploying the first elements of its advanced Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system at the Osan Air Base in South Korea after North Korea conducted test of four ballistic missiles which broke international sanctions.
The India-Japan joint naval exercises are a strategic signal for China, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
There has been a considerable drop in India's dependence on arms and equipment from Russia but the Indian military cannot operate effectively without Russian-supplied equipment and will continue to rely on its weapons systems in the near and middle terms, a Congressional Research Service report has said.
While trying to persuade North Korea to give up its provocative actions, engaging China is the first hurdle that world leaders will have to deal with, says Rajaram Panda.
Early results suggested that Moon, the Democratic Party's candidate in the election to replace ousted president Park Geun-hye.
Will the unpredictable North Korean leader provoke conflict on the Korean peninsula?
With cruise missile and air strikes being India's most likely response to a hypothetical Pakistani terrorist outrage in the future, retaliation from the Pakistan air force is inevitable. That is where the S-400 will come into play, says Ajai Shukla.
In the most recent show of force, Pyongyang put its military might on display during a parade on April 15 marking the 105th birth anniversary of the country's founder Kim Il Sung, grandfather of present ruler Kim Jong Un.
Faced with allegations that included bribery and violation of sovereignty, Park was accused of colluding with Choi to secure millions of dollars in bribes from the country's biggest enterprises and allowing Choi, a civilian, to interfere in state affairs. Park had apologized, but denied any wrongdoing.
'It's pretty likely that Kissinger, Rice et al came bearing gifts (read Trojan Horses) from McDonnell Douglas, Boeing, Grumman, Northrop, and all the other Military Industrial Complex stalwarts,' argues Rajeev Srinivasan.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has bestowed special honours on a PLA battalion posted in Tibet close to Arunachal Pradesh for its "outstanding performance in safeguarding borders".
An aggressive Pyongyang is likely to force Seoul and Tokyo to build nuclear deterrents and thus thwart Beijing's ambitions.
'The world may be desirous of peace, but not Kim Jong-un.' 'Should we then accept the old adage that to maintain peace, we should be prepared for war?' asks Rajaram Panda.
North Korea is unlikely to strike first, but its response in retaliation, if attacked, could be massive even at the expense of its own destruction, says Rajaram Panda.
