IndianRepublic.in

India and South Korea on Monday agreed to significantly expand their bilateral partnership across trade, technology, defence-adjacent sectors and the Indo-Pacific, setting an ambitious target to more than double trade to $50 billion by 2030 while launching new institutional mechanisms to deepen economic and strategic cooperation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung; Via: MEA India The agreements were announced following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung during the latter’s state visit to India — the first such visit in eight years — where both sides outlined a transition from an existing strategic partnership to what was described as a more “futuristic” and comprehensive framework. At the core of the outcomes is a broad-based push spanning semiconductors, shipbuilding, artificial intelligence, energy security and supply chains, alongside the launch of an India–Korea Digital Bridge to drive collaboration...

Iran on Friday said it had fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, but U.S. President Donald Trump insisted that the American naval blockade targeting Iranian vessels and ports would remain in place until a broader agreement with Tehran is reached, including on its nuclear program, underscoring continued tensions despite signs of de-escalation. Representational Image: AF Post Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced on X that the strategic waterway — through which roughly 20% of global oil supplies transit — was “now fully open to commercial vessels,” signalling a partial stabilisation in maritime flows as a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group in Lebanon appeared to hold. Trump initially welcomed the reopening, stating the strait was “fully open and ready for full passage,” but within minutes clarified that U.S. policy would not change, declaring that the naval blockade would remain “in full force” and continue “UNTIL SUCH TIME...

Hopes for fresh negotiations and U.S.–Iran talks have risen once again on Wednesday even as the United States tightened its military blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran warned of wider retaliation across the region, underscoring the fragile overlap between diplomacy and escalation in the ongoing war. File Photo: AF Post U.S. President Donald Trump said a second round of talks could take place “over the next two days,” indicating that discussions may again be held in Islamabad as backchannel efforts continue. He also described the war as “very close to over” in remarks from an interview scheduled to air Wednesday, repeating earlier assertions of imminent resolution despite continued hostilities on the ground. At the multilateral level, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said it was “highly probable” that talks would resume, citing recent discussions with Pakistan’s foreign minister, as Islamabad intensifies its mediation push. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected t...

 The United States has begun enforcing a naval blockade targeting ships linked to Iranian ports, marking a significant escalation in the six-week-long conflict between the U.S.-Israel coalition and Iran and shifting the confrontation toward economic warfare.  Representational Image: Visegrad 24 The blockade, which U.S. Central Command had earlier indicated would take effect Monday evening Iran time, applies to vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports or coastal waters, while ships using non-Iranian ports are not being targeted.  Although no formal operational announcement was issued at the time of enforcement, the move effectively seeks to restrict Iran’s maritime trade and energy exports through the Gulf. U.S. President Donald Trump said vessels had continued to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, claiming that 34 ships transited the waterway on Sunday, though no independent confirmation was available.  He also repeated assertions that Iran had reached out seeking a...

U.S. President Donald Trump sharply escalated tensions with European allies on Tuesday, lashing out at countries that have refused to support the war against Iran even as several governments moved to block military cooperation amid growing legal and economic concerns.  In posts on Truth Social, Trump criticised allies including the United Kingdom and France, telling countries struggling with fuel shortages to “go get your own oil” from the Gulf and suggesting they should “ just TAKE IT ” from the Strait of Hormuz, remarks that further rattled already volatile energy markets.  Image Via: @coinbureau on X His comments came as France blocked Israeli aircraft carrying military supplies from using its airspace, Italy denied U.S. bombers landing access in Sicily, and Spain reaffirmed it would not permit U.S. use of its bases, with Madrid declaring it would not “accept lectures from anyone.”  While the U.K. has allowed U.S. use of its bases despite calling the war illegal, ...

One month into the ongoing war, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on March 31 framed the conflict as a decisive and continuing campaign against Iran, saying “in every generation, they rise up against us to destroy us,” and asserting that Israel, alongside the United States, has “inflicted 10 plagues upon the axis of evil—and achieved 10 monumental accomplishments,” even as he acknowledged the human cost, stating that “there are also painful prices” and that “just yesterday… we lost four of our finest sons.” File Photo: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Addressing the nation, Netanyahu said that after “a month into our joint campaign… we are systematically crushing the regime of terror,” describing Iran as a state that for decades called for the destruction of Israel and pursued that goal through “nuclear programs, ballistic missiles, and the funding and arming of terror proxies,” while claiming that the current war has reversed that trajectory, arguing that “before ...

United States  President Donald Trump has said that he would postpone threatened strikes on Iran’s power plants and energy infrastructure for five days. He claimed “very good and productive conversations” were underway toward “a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East” but Iranian officials have publicly denied any negotiations and described the move as a retreat under pressure. File Photo Via: StandUpForTrmp In a statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said that “based on the tenor and tone of these in depth, detailed, and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week,” he had “instructed the Department of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a five day period, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions.”  He later told reporters that Iran wants “to make a deal,” and claimed U.S. envoys, including Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, had ...

Iran’s leadership signalled defiance on Sunday as tensions escalated across diplomatic, military and economic fronts, with President Masoud Pezeshkian declaring in a brief message that “we will bring the enemy to its knees,” while Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi pushed back against Western pressure over maritime security, stating that “the Strait of Hormuz is not closed” and that “ships hesitate because insurers fear the war of choice you initiated—not Iran,” adding that “freedom of navigation cannot exist without freedom of trade. Respect both—or expect neither.”  Netan y ah u  at at the arenas in Arad and Dimona; Via: Avi Ohayon, GPO, Official Channel The remarks come as the United States has issued a 48-hour ultimatum to reopen the Strait, warning of strikes on Iranian infrastructure, sharply raising the risk of further escalation. The statements have now triggered immediate international reactions , with Emmanuel Macron calling for restraint after speaki...

U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a direct warning to Iran , saying that if Tehran does not “fully open, without threat, the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours,” the United States “will hit and obliterate their various power plants, starting with the biggest one first.” The statement, posted publicly, marks one of the most explicit escalation threats yet tied directly to the security of the world’s most critical energy chokepoint . File Photo Via: BRICS Info The warning comes amid an intensifying war in West Asia , where maritime security, energy infrastructure and civilian supply chains have all come under strain. The Strait of Hormuz handles a significant share of global oil and LNG flows, and any disruption has immediate consequences for global energy markets, shipping routes and downstream economies, including major importers such as India. Trump’s latest threat follows a series of seemingly contradictory moves by Washington. Even as U.S. forces have carried out strikes targeti...

Iran launched missile attacks on southern Israel late Saturday, striking the cities of Arad and Dimona, wounding dozens of people and causing extensive damage to residential buildings, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described it as a “ very difficult evening in the battle for our future ” and vowed that Israel would “ continue striking our enemies on all fronts .” Verified Image from the shelling in Arad from Fire and Rescue Agency of Israel Via: Official Channel The Israeli military said it had “identified missiles launched from Iran toward Israeli territory,” with air defence systems activated and the Home Front Command issuing emergency alerts instructing civilians to take shelter. Rescue and emergency teams were deployed across multiple impact sites in southern Israel, with helicopters and ground forces assisting civilians as authorities warned the public to follow safety instructions. 🔴 Aerial footage of the scene in Arad declared as mass casualty event. The wounded...

Iran on Saturday used its highest-level engagement with India to sharply frame the ongoing war as “unlawful aggression” by the United States and Israel, with President Masoud Pezeshkian telling Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Iran “did not initiate the war” and that attacks were carried out “without any justification, logic, or legal basis,” even as Modi condemned strikes on energy infrastructure, stressed freedom of navigation, and called for an early return to peace through dialogue. File Photo of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian; Via: ShaykhSulaiman According to an official Iranian readout , Pezeshkian outlined what he described as the “dimensions of the aggression,” alleging that U.S. and Israeli strikes had resulted in the deaths of senior leaders, military commanders and civilians, including “innocent schoolchildren,” and claimed that a U.S. strike on a school in Minab led to the killing of 168 children.  He rejected U.S. assertions that the campaign was aimed...

The United States Treasury has authorized a limited, time-bound waiver allowing the delivery and sale of Iranian-origin crude oil already loaded on vessels before March 20, 2026, granting a one-month window until April 19, even as broader sanctions on Iran remain firmly in place. File Photo of Kharg Island; Via: Adam Cochran In an official General License  U  issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , the U.S. said that “all transactions… ordinarily incident and necessary to the sale, delivery, or offloading of crude oil or petroleum products of Iranian origin loaded on any vessel… on or before 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time, March 20, 2026 are authorized through 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time, April 19, 2026,” effectively creating a narrowly defined compliance window for cargoes already in transit. The license explicitly covers operational and logistical activities required to complete such deliveries, stating that permitted transactions include those nece...

U.S. President Donald Trump has said Washington is “very close” to achieving its military objectives in the ongoing conflict with Iran and is now considering winding down operations, outlining a five-point framework that includes dismantling Iran’s missile capabilities, destroying its defence industrial base, and preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons. File Photo of President Donald Trump Via: AF Post on X In a public statement , Trump said the United States aimed at “completely degrading Iranian missile capability, launchers, and everything else pertaining to them,” while also targeting “Iran’s defence industrial base” and “eliminating their Navy and Air Force, including anti-aircraft weaponry.” He added that a core objective remained “ never allowing Iran to get even close to nuclear capability ,” while ensuring the U.S. retains the ability to “quickly and powerfully react” if required. Trump also framed the campaign in terms of regional security, saying the U.S. was acti...

Iran has sharply escalated its rhetoric against the United Kingdom after London approved U.S. use of British bases for operations targeting Iranian missile capabilities , with Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi warning that the move amounts to dangerous escalation and could trigger retaliation under Iran’s right to self-defence. File Photo of Seyed Abbas Araghchi Via On u ka on X In a public statement , Araghchi said a “vast majority of the British people do not want any part” in what he described as a U.S.–Israel war on Iran, and accused Prime Minister Keir Starmer of “ignoring his own people” while “putting British lives in danger by allowing UK bases to be used for aggression against Iran.” He added that “Iran will exercise its right to self-defense,” signalling that Tehran views the decision as a direct security threat. The warning comes hours after Downing Street confirmed that U.S. forces would be allowed to use British bases for “defensive operations” to degrade missile site...

The United Kingdom has formally agreed to allow the United States to use British military bases for operations targeting Iranian missile capabilities threatening commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz , while maintaining that it will not directly join the strikes, according to a statement issued by 10 Downing Street after a ministerial meeting on Friday. Representational Image Via U.S. Central Command In a detailed readout, the Prime Minister’s Office said ministers “confirmed that the agreement for the U.S. to use U.K. bases in the collective self-defence of the region includes U.S. defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz ,” explicitly linking the expanded scope of cooperation to Iran’s recent targeting of maritime traffic and energy infrastructure. The decision marks a significant escalation in London’s operational posture, allowing U.S. forces to launch strikes on Iranian missile systems and related...

✍️ Written by Saket Suman India’s LNG import architecture has been hit by a major disruption that could last three to five years as 47% of its LNG imports sourced from Qatar are now exposed to prolonged supply shocks after missile strikes have cut Qatar’s export capacity by 17% , caused an estimated $20 billion in annual losses , and forced the declaration of force majeure on long-term contracts . File Photo of the Russian LNG tanker Arctic Metagaz, which suffered a massive explosion in the Mediterranean earlier this month; Via: OpenSourceIntel An IndianRepublic.in analysis of official disclosures issued within hours by New Delhi and Doha on Thursday points to a widening policy gap, with the Government of India yet to articulate a detailed procurement roadmap, volume replacement strategy or cost framework , stating only that it will pursue diversification without specifying how much supply will be sourced, from where, and at what e...