International Relations
Bilateral ties, multilateral forums, treaties and India's foreign policy
Strait of Hormuz crisis spotlights ship 'flagging' rules as India-flagged vessels face higher compliance burden
The ongoing Strait of Hormuz crisis has brought the issue of ship "flagging" rules into sharp focus, with India-flagged vessels facing higher compliance requ...
India-China SCO talks focus on trade security, connectivity under first bilateral consultations
India and China held their first-ever bilateral consultations specifically on Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) matters in New Delhi on April 16–17, 20...
Ukraine’s top security official holds talks with Jaishankar, Doval on peace prospects
Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council (NSDC) Secretary Rustem Umerov visited New Delhi and held separate high-level meetings with External Affairs ...
India gets invite to join UK-France initiative to secure Strait of Hormuz transit
India received an invitation to join the UK-France led Strait of Hormuz Maritime Freedom of Navigation Initiative ahead of the Paris summit on April 17, 2026...
White House to give U.S. agencies Anthropic Mythos access: Report
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) moved to provide major US federal agencies — including the Treasury, intelligence community, and CISA (...
Venezuela, IMF, World Bank restore relations, paving way for investment
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group announced the resumption of formal relations with Venezuela, recognising the administration of...
Macron, Starmer hold international summit on reopening Strait of Hormuz
French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer convened an international summit in Paris on April 17, 2026, bringing together dozen...
Chirag Paswan flags spice export quality issues, says rejections are “disheartening and embarrassing”
Union Minister Chirag Paswan (Minister of Food Processing Industries) flagged persistent quality issues in India's spice exports, calling overseas rejections...
Sri Lanka's Energy Minister resigns on coal import issue days after surviving no trust motion
Sri Lanka's Minister of Power Kumara Jayakody and the Ministry's Secretary resigned on April 17, 2026 — just days after surviving a no-confidence motion in P...
Iran declares Strait of Hormuz open after Lebanon truce; Trump says blockade to continue
Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz "completely open" for commercial shipping on April 17, 2026, for the duration of the ongoing U.S.-Iran truce. The ceasefir...
India not to host COP 33 in 2028, Government confirms
India has formally withdrawn its offer to host the 33rd Conference of the Parties (COP 33) to the UNFCCC in 2028, as confirmed by the Union Ministry of Envir...
India, Austria launch Fast-Track Investment Mechanism; flag India-EU FTA as key trade driver
India and Austria jointly announced the establishment of a Fast-Track Investment Mechanism (FTIM) during the official visit of Austrian Chancellor Christian ...
Indian refiners pay for Iran oil in yuan via ICICI Bank, sources say
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Reliance Industries — both of whom purchased Iranian crude under a temporary US general licence — are settling trade payment...
West Asia conflict hits India’s seafood exports to Gulf nations
Ongoing conflict in West Asia has caused significant disruption to India's seafood exports to Gulf nations, with industry sources estimating exports to the r...
U.S. cloud dominance a risk to European security: Report
A report published by the Brussels-based Future of Technology Institute (FOTI) on April 17, 2026 found that national security systems in 23 of 28 European co...
House extends surveillance powers until April 30 after late-night revolt sinks GOP plan
The US House of Representatives, in a late-night vote, passed a short-term extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), exte...
China suspends import licences of 3 Indian rice export firms
China's General Administration of Customs (GACC) suspended import licences of three Indian rice export firms, citing alleged presence of genetically modified...
EU spells out how Google must share data with rivals
The European Commission issued preliminary findings on April 16, 2026, specifying the precise data-sharing obligations Google must fulfil under the EU's Digi...
Israel says military operation against Hezbollah ‘still not complete’
A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon/Hezbollah came into effect on April 16–17, 2026, brokered by the United States. Israel's Defence Minister state...
Pakistan starts preparing for next round of U.S.-Iran talks: officials
Pakistan has begun preparations to host the second round of direct U.S.-Iran negotiations, aimed at ending the ongoing West Asian conflict and resolving the ...