Opinion News - Page 3

Iran war: America’s old playbook is faltering but Bharat can help reset it

The entire Trumpian policy of the day, riding high on the MAGA bandwagon, is all about rejigging the world order again in favour of America

Kharg Island: The oil lifeline that could ignite a global energy shock

If the conflict intensifies and Kharg’s export facilities become targets, the result could be a severe supply disruption that drives oil prices sharply higher and destabilises energy markets worldwide.

How cheap Iranian drones hitting costly US-Israeli defences is a strategic edge in an asymmetric war

In many ways America did not prepare well for this war before launching into it

The Tehran trap: Intelligence ops look spectacular but are not enough to win wars

While intelligence-based targeted operations may look spectacular, they cannot deliver military victory unless they are backed by a realistic assessment of the enemy, based on operational intelligence

From Kabul to Balochistan: Pakistan’s strategic brutality against Afghan and Baloch civilians

Pakistan’s campaign, framed as counterterrorism, has repeatedly crossed into the deliberate or reckless targeting of civilians—revealing a pattern where strategic priorities override humanity and accountability

Head-on | Why America backs Israel every time: Lessons for India and NRIs from the Iran war

Seven million Jewish-Americans wield disproportionate influence in US politics, while five million Indian-Americans, the country’s most educated and highest-earning ethnic group, remain comparatively underrepresented in political power

From Hormuz to Malacca: China’s long game on energy security

The energy infrastructure being stress-tested under live conditions today is the same infrastructure Beijing would need to survive a Western embargo triggered by its move on Taiwan

How Iran war could mark slow decline of petrodollar era

History rarely occurs in clear-cut moments. Global systems evolve slowly. The petrodollar order has lasted many decades, and its dominance over the energy financial structure remains unquestioned, but the future now appears somewhat less certain

India’s tightrope diplomacy manages the West Asia crisis better than most

Under the Modi government, India’s diplomacy has balanced ties with rival powers, secured energy supplies, safeguarded its citizens, and maintained domestic stability, enabling the country to manage the West Asia crisis better than most

Instead of needling India, here’s why USCIRF should designate United States as a ‘country of particular concern’

Born of Christian evangelical advocacy, staffed by Islamists and chaired by a Christian culture-war activist, institutionally blind to the religious persecution occurring on its own soil, USCIRF functions not as a watchdog of any sort but a tool of geopolitical pressure dressed in the language of human rights

Balen Shah’s premiership: A test of governance and diplomatic balancing for Nepal

The real challenge for Balen Shah’s government will be converting a historic electoral mandate into effective governance at home while carefully balancing Nepal’s relations with India, China and the US

From Gulf to Iran: How China learns and transforms from America’s wars

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army transformed itself after witnessing the First Gulf War, which exposed the power of American high-tech warfare. Today, Beijing is once again studying the Iran war to draw lessons for a future conflict with the US in the Indo-Pacific

How Houthis backing Iran could trigger a double chokepoint crisis

With threats looming over the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, an Iran-Houthi axis could imperil the world’s most vital oil shipping lanes and trigger a major global energy shock

India has now reached a level of influence in West Asia where its voice has real impact: Pramit Pal Chaudhuri

‘Our ties with UAE are at a different level; it is the cornerstone of India’s new Gulf policy’, says Eurasia Group’s head for South Asia

How the Iran war is acquiring global dimensions

What began as a regional confrontation is steadily transforming into a test of the international order itself that is challenging alliances, disrupting markets and forcing major powers to reconsider their strategic assumptions

How China’s cautious diplomacy in West Asia reveals a broader strategy

Beijing wants to avoid being drawn into a confrontation with Washington while still demonstrating that it has an independent voice on major international crises

How Israel could be the only winner in the Iran war

Israel appears to be the only player that entered the conflict with a clear objective, and the only one that may derive any tangible gains from it

Pramit Pal Chaudhuri: US transactionalism on India not a problem, I’m actually happy Landau made that statement

Corporate America has stuck with India, and even on immigration I’d argue the India story continues without too much trouble, says Pal Chaudhuri of Eurasia Group

How French archives in Pondicherry are helping India recover stolen temple idols

The decades-old photographic archives from two French institutes documenting South Indian temples have become critical evidence in proving the provenance of stolen idols and helping India bring its lost antiquities home

How Hormuz crisis exposes global complacency on maritime chokepoints

Energy crises often spark talk of diversification and strategic reserves, but prices eventually stabilise and supply routes resume. Markets call this risk, history calls it a habit

How India can act as a ‘peace architect’ in West Asia

India’s foreign policy framework—built on strong, simultaneous ties with Israel, Iran, the US, and Gulf nations—positions it as a potential ‘back‑channel’ negotiator and peace architect in West Asia

India’s West Asia playbook: The art of not taking sides

As the sands of West Asia continue to shift, India’s neutral hand and unblinking focus on its own national interest will remain its greatest diplomatic asset

Brics is under strain as the Iran war exposes deep divisions

The future of Brics as a leader of the Global South depends on whether it can move beyond 'symbolic alignment' to functional crisis management

Why India must rethink maritime security after Hormuz crisis

It would be naïve to believe that even when the war in Iran ends, the crisis and contestation on maritime trade routes and chokepoints would be over – in fact, a new era of such conflict would only just be beginning

The mirage of Pax Sinica and Pax Americana: How India’s strategic autonomy paves the way for a multipolar world

India offers a values-based vision for humankind. Its strategic autonomy has served it well and positions it to rise, offering the world choices beyond the binary of Pax Americana or Pax Sinica

Gorsam Stupa: A reminder of India’s historic Tibet ties and sovereignty over Arunachal

Gorsam Stupa stands as a powerful reminder of India’s deep historical links with Tibet and Bhutan, firmly affirming India’s sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh

How the Iran war could radical reset the global order

The escalating confrontation between Israel, the US and Iran risks transforming a regional conflict into a crisis with profound global strategic and economic consequences

Trump’s Iran war could accelerate the global push against dollar hegemony

America has benefited immensely from the dollar’s hegemony, but first the Russia-Ukraine war, then the Venezuelan regime change, followed by claims over Greenland, and now the Iran war are all testing its dominance

From frontier to gateway: How the Northeast is now central to India’s Indo-Pacific vision

As the Indo-Pacific reshapes global power and commerce, the Northeast is emerging from the margins to become India’s strategic bridge to Southeast Asia

US Sutra | Power, not principles: What the US strike on Iran reveals about world order

The US far from being a gently receding superpower, managing its own decline gradually and gracefully, has shown that it can still not only growl, but bite