(By Khalid Masood) India faces a significant dilemma in its dealings with the United States, particularly crystallized by the interim trade framework announced in early February 2026 between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump. This stems from the fundamental tension between pursuing deeper economic and strategic ties with the world’s largest economy—for accelerated…
(By Khalid Masood) On February 5, 2026, at midnight GMT, the Treaty on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms—commonly known as New START—officially expired. This event marks a profound shift in global nuclear security. For the first time in more than half a century, the world’s two largest nuclear powers,…
(By Khalid Masood) Introduction On 2 February 2026, in a development that unfolded with remarkable speed, US President Donald Trump announced via Truth Social that the United States and India had reached a bilateral trade agreement following a phone call with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The centrepiece of the announcement was an immediate reduction…
(By Quratulain Mahnoor) As tensions in the Middle East reach a fever pitch in late January 2026, U.S. President Donald Trump has issued stark warnings to Iran: negotiate a nuclear deal swiftly or face consequences far more severe than previous actions. In a Truth Social post on January 28, Trump declared, “Hopefully Iran will quickly…
(By Faraz Ahmed) The conclusion of the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on January 27, 2026, during the 16th India-EU Summit in New Delhi marks a pivotal moment in global trade dynamics. Dubbed the “mother of all deals” by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Indian leaders, the pact creates preferential access…
(By Khalid Masood) In late January 2026, the United States has significantly bolstered its military presence in the Middle East, centering on the deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group to waters near Iran. President Donald Trump has described this as a “massive armada” positioned to act with “speed and violence” if necessary,…
(By Khalid Masood) In the first weeks of 2026, U.S. President Donald Trump has returned to the White House with an intensified version of his signature “America First” playbook. Tariff increases on long-standing allies such as South Korea, explicit threats of 100% tariffs against Canada over deepening economic links with China, and unusually blunt military…
(By Faraz Ahmed) Pakistan’s formal accession to the U.S.-led Board of Peace (BoP) on Gaza—formalized at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 22, 2026—represents one of the more intriguing foreign policy moves by Islamabad in recent years. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s signature on the charter, alongside leaders from roughly 19 other nations (including…
(By Khalid Masood) Trump’s Golden Dome represents one of the most ambitious and contentious defence initiatives of the second Trump administration. Announced via Executive Order 14186 in January 2025 as the “Iron Dome for America” before being rebranded in May, the project seeks to establish a comprehensive, layered missile defence shield for the United States…
(By Khalid Masood) The Greenland Crisis of early 2026 has thrust NATO into its gravest internal challenge since the Cold War, pitting U.S. President Donald Trump’s revanchist ambitions against European allies’ defense of sovereignty. Triggered by Trump’s insistence on “complete and total control” of Greenland—a Danish autonomous territory—via purchase, coercion, or force, the standoff has…
