International Relations
Bilateral ties, multilateral forums, treaties and India's foreign policy
Iran tankers go dark to sail past US blockade laden with crude
Despite a US naval blockade of Iranian ports, at least 34 Iran-linked tankers and gas carriers successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz by disabling or ma...
India, Germany deepen defence ties as Rajnath Singh holds key talks with Boris Pistorius in Berlin
India's Defence Minister held bilateral talks with his German counterpart in Berlin (April 21–23, 2026), during a three-day official visit that marks a signi...
Goodwill is the only saviour for Indian exporters hoping for U.S. tariff refunds
Following the US Supreme Court's February 20, 2026 ruling that struck down reciprocal tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (...
India seen to line up three buffers for its economy amid the Iran storm: Fitch unit
BMI Research (a unit of Fitch Solutions) identified three strategic buffers India is deploying to protect its economy from the spillover effects of the ongoi...
Gujarat-bound ship among two vessels seized by Iran near Hormuz
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seized two container ships — the Panama-flagged MSC Francesca and the Liberia-flagged Epaminondas — in the St...
Hormuz crisis casts long shadow on India growth, inflation risks rise: RBI MPC minutes
The Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), in its April 2026 meeting (April 6–8), kept the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.25% while fla...
The K-pop cash flow: South Korean beats power India's FDI remix
The South Korean President's State Visit to New Delhi (April 19–21, 2026) catalysed a major push for large-scale South Korean Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)...
West Asia crisis, inflation weighed on RBI panel’s decision on interest rate: MPC minutes
The minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting held April 6–8, 2026 (the 60th MPC meeting) revealed that all six members voted unanimously to kee...
Lunar governance should be multilateral
As commercial lunar missions accelerate and multiple nations pursue Moon landings, a critical governance vacuum is emerging: who has the right to extract and...
WTO accepts request of India, Taipei to defer ICT import duty dispute ruling until Oct 2026
At a meeting of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) in Geneva on April 21, 2026, the DSB accepted a joint request from India and Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) ...
Iran says tanker defied US blockade; Maritime data links it to India
The tanker Felicity, operated by the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC), dropped anchor near Sikka on Gujarat's coast — a key crude-handling hub serving ...
Expert Explains | Why China’s new Atlas drone swarm system could worry India and the world
In late March 2026, China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) publicly demonstrated the Atlas drone swarm operations system — a mobile, vehicle-mounted platform...
The Strait of Hormuz blockade, explained
Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz on April 18, 2026, citing the United States' refusal to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports — an esca...
Resolution 47 on Kashmir: When India ran into ‘power politics’ at the UN
UN Security Council Resolution 47, adopted on 21 April 1948, became a defining early test of independent India's engagement with international institutions —...
US-Iran diplomatic road long, arduous but why ‘grand bargain’ remains the goal
Peace talks between the US and Iran have stalled, with the administration holding out for a "grand bargain" rather than incremental agreements — a comprehens...
How a U.S.-Iran deal over Hormuz unravelled
A two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran, agreed on April 7, 2026, began unravelling within days, driven by two unresolved disputes: the status of the St...
India, South Korea expand shipbuilding ties, target ₹2.2 lakh crore maritime push
India and South Korea formalised a comprehensive maritime and shipbuilding partnership framework titled VOYAGES (Vision for Operation of Yard Assisted Growth...
Japan overhauls post-World War II pacifist military approach, lifts restrictions on defence exports
On April 21, 2026, the cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi approved the lifting of a near-complete ban on lethal weapons exports, marking the m...
Development initiatives, capacity building will be in focus at fourth India-Africa Forum Summit
Preparations for the fourth India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-IV) are underway, with India holding consultations with African partner countries on the agenda, ...
Japan approves scrapping a ban on lethal weapons exports in a change of its postwar pacifist policy
Japan's Cabinet approved a new defence export guideline on April 21, 2026, formally scrapping the longstanding ban on the export of lethal weapons — the most...