Headlines

US attacks deepen hardship, not dissent, in Iran's restive south

DUBAI, July 20 - Opposition to Iran's clerical rulers has long simmered in the country's impoverished south. But after bearing the brunt of U.S. strikes this month, many residents are directing their anger at President Donald Trump and an air campaign they say has upended their

Asia

China’s mega-oiler could break America’s Pacific base edge

China’s construction of what may be the world’s largest naval replenishment ship signals its growing expeditionary ambitions — and highlights the vulnerability of the US’s base-dependent model of power projection. This month, multiple media outlets reported that satellite

Asia

China-India Great Game taking shape on the Bay of Bengal

While the focus of global news remains on Iran, the Strait of Hormuz and the Russia-Ukraine war, a significant new arena of contestation has opened in the Bay of Bengal. In April this year, India’s National Maritime Security Strategy 2026 (INMSS-2026) identified the eastern

Asia

Australia-India partnership deep on security, shallow on trade

The third India-Australia Annual Summit in Melbourne on July 9 produced outcomes across defense, energy, critical minerals, technology and education — 18 in all. But by far the most significant deliverable centered on Australian uranium exports to India. After nearly 12 years

Asia

Sonam Wangchuk, Indian activist rallying Gen Z against Modi

NEW DELHI, July 20 - Indian social activist Sonam Wangchuk may be pushing 60, but he has become the face of a Gen Z movement demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's education minister over exam paper leaks, drawing wider support after he was forcibly taken

Asia

Child sex case a diplomatic reckoning for UK-Pakistan ties

The debate over whether convicted child sex offender Shabir Ahmed should be deported from the United Kingdom to Pakistan is about far more than one offender. It has evolved into a test of how modern states balance domestic political pressures, immigration policy and

Asia