Opinion News - Page 16
Pakistan has few reasons to gloat over a deal where it was used by Trump as a tissue paper
Ten implications of the US-Iran ceasefire deal
How India’s purchase of Iranian oil after seven years signals a shift in global energy politics
The return to Iranian oil in India's energy mix is less a deviation than a continuation of a broader strategy. It reflects a calculated response to a disrupted global landscape, one in which securing supply takes precedence over rigid alignment
From Tokyo to Manila, Asian neighbours move to counter China
The tussle between China and its neighbours has been grinding forward for years, finding a different shape each time it surfaces. This past week produced three fresh manifestations.
How Iran war exposes years of US‑Israeli strategic and intelligence miscalculations
For America, it is no longer just about oil, Iran’s nuclear programme, or Israel; it is about its standing in world politics
As Iran war reshapes West Asia, Bharat perfects the art of strategic autonomy
As West Asian fault lines deepen, New Delhi’s strategic autonomy emerges as a model for navigating a choppy global order
How brain drain persists as India’s silent but severe crisis
India’s silent but severe brain drain threatens its future as the brightest minds leave, even as the country’s historic legacy of attracting global talent fades
From Arihant to Aridaman: How India’s nuclear bite gets sharper underwater
From symbolism to substance, INS Aridaman strengthens India’s second-strike deterrence within the nuclear triad
Pakistan’s chronic debt malaise: Why Abu Dhabi’s patience is wearing thin
A uniform can only take you so far, no matter how lavishly it is bedecked with self-styled decorations
When NGOs stopped asking why: The rise of technocratic development sector
As NGOs shift from rights-driven work to data-led delivery, the focus is moving from questioning power and inequality to optimising interventions, raising concerns that development is becoming more technical, transactional, and detached from the people it aims to serve.
Epic Fury and Operation Sindoor: Stories of thumping triumphalism and chronic pessimism
While American media pivots to blind celebratory coverage once US forces are militarily engaged, in India national security interests are secondary to petty politics, revealing a low-trust society
Myanmar: Military supremo taking over as president could re-escalate the civil war
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing’s taking over as Myanmarese president may apparently mark a transition to a civilian government, but there is no doubt the military will remain in full control while the rebel alliance re-emerges
Shiva beyond borders: How a viral Persian bhajan reveals enduring India-Iran civilisational connect
The Persian Shiva song represents the formation of transnational 'imagined communities', where cultural symbols connect strangers, sometimes even without meeting each other in person. It enforces a sense of civilisational connection between the two countries beyond state-to-state ties
How India’s energy security demands rapid diversification, green transition
The Hormuz crisis is a lesson that India's energy security is no longer just about finding the cheapest barrel; it’s about maritime security, diplomatic leverage, and internal resilience
How all is not well in the Kingdom of Donald Trump
The larger question remains: does placing political loyalty over professional competence jeopardise institutional stability, and how will it affect the future generations of American military leadership?
Pakistan’s mediation in the Iran war is a fool rushing where the wise fear to tread
Pakistan’s attempt to mediate between the US and Iran, including its largely anodyne China-backed five-point peace initiative, shows overambitious diplomacy – an effort that risks overreach in a conflict wiser powers approach with caution
Why modern foreign policymaking needs women-led caucus
Foreign policy cannot be gentle, but perhaps it may learn to see more – from a narrowly masculinised imagination of power, fixated on control and victory, towards a more feminised sensibility attuned to continuity, repair and the endurance of social worlds
How India’s overcoming of Naxalism denies China its covert strategic leverage
Naxalism is being buried not only because its cadres were hunted down but also because the Indian state finally understood what it was facing: not a rebellion in the jungle but a strategic contamination
Iran has caught Trump in a trap; the US President now must harvest the fruits of his folly
US President is torn between escalating and getting caught in the quagmire, or walking away in humiliation
100 AI agents per worker: A productivity windfall for some, not all
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s vision of a 100-agent-per-worker model will likely emerge first in infrastructure-rich environments, boosting productivity there while widening the divide between technology haves and have-nots
The Shroud of Turin: How Indian DNA adds a new chapter to an ancient enigma
Given that India’s trade with the Roman Empire in general, and the Levant in particular, is well recorded, and its cotton manufacturing skills equally well known, the Shroud of Turin’s India connect may not be historically far-fetched
Rules-based order adrift as Iran war tests global norms
Whether in the Russia-Ukraine war or in the US-Israel-Iran war, the legitimacy of military action is increasingly contested both because of facts on the ground and inconsistent approaches to legality
Head-on | From stone age to scorched earth: Trump’s presidential legacy
Donald Trump’s presidency enters its most turbulent phase, driven by war and political survival
The Iran war shatters the ‘axis’ myth in West Asia
The core mistake of the axis narrative is its linearity. It assumes that friendship with A requires enmity towards B. In contemporary geopolitics, this logic has long been obsolete. The Iran war confirmed it once more: there is no zero-sum game here
Fake it till you mediate it: Pakistan’s bizarre bid to broker peace in West Asia
As the conflict continues, Pakistan will likely keep offering tea, hosting meetings, and hoping no one notices that the mediator’s own house is currently made of glass. It is not just comedy; it is performance art
SHANTI Act: India bets big on nuclear energy
The SHANTI Act of 2025 is landmark legislation that will attract significant investments in India’s expanding nuclear energy sector. The Act represents a major structural shift in the country’s nuclear policy
When Bharat speaks, Left-‘liberals’ cry ‘propaganda’: Decoding the Dhurandhar debate
The global outrage over Dhurandhar is less about cinema and more about who gets to control the narrative
US Sutra | The Iran stalemate: Perhaps the answer lies in Moscow
The solution to the Iran impasse lies not in West Asia, but in the hotline between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin
Return to the Moon: How Artemis II marks the start of a new space age
With Artemis II, NASA plans to put humans on the Moon again after over half a century
From WTO to debt diplomacy: India draws a line against China’s hegemonistic influence
As global trade faces headwinds from fragmentation and great-power rivalry, the imperative is clear: reform the WTO with stronger enforcement mechanisms, transparent investment rules, and safeguards against debt-fuelled coercion
West Asia’s sectarian fault line: Where Shia-Sunni divide meets proxy warfare
A new kind of war is emerging in West Asia—one that transcends borders, blending ideology, identity and geopolitics