Moneycontrol | Brownfield mining operations are enough to meet India’s rare-earth needs

India does not need a maximalist mining push to meet its rare‑earth goals. A calibrated build via expansion of existing mining projects to roughly 20,000 tonnes of TREO is sufficient.

By Tannmay Kumarr Baid

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Moneycontrol | How Trump and Mastercard are pushing the global financial system to an inflection point

For more than a decade, cryptocurrencies have created a parallel decentralised payments architecture as opposed to the centralised global financial system dominated by select intermediaries. Trump’s championing of stablecoins along with Mastercard’s embrace of blockchain can lead to the convergence of disparate worlds.

By Lokendra Sharma

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Times Of India | Unacceptable, for India

Next month’s global geospatial meeting will be a good occasion to ask why UN’s maps distort Arunachal and J&K. Has it caved to India’s neighbours’ cartographic aggression?

By Dr. Y. Nithiyanandam

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Indian Express | India faces a Russia dilemma

By Amit Kumar

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Times Of India | Our Eyes In The Sky

Damage assessment of conflicts like India-Pak, Israel-Iran is shaped by satellite images. But these can be gamed. Isro & pvt companies in space sector must up the game so that Indians get good domestic data

By Dr. Y. Nithiyanandam

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South Asian Voices | How the United States and India can Promote Responsible Behavior in Cyberspace Through the Quad

Over the last few years, India and the United States have been at the receiving end of anything but responsible behavior in cyberspace by both state and non-state actors. From the Salt Typhoon campaign that compromised U.S. telecom networks in 2024 to the high-profile cyberattack on India’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences in 2022, cyber operations (including ransomware) have hardly left any sector untouched.

By Lokendra Sharma

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ThinkChina | Made in China or spent in China? Beijing’s impossible balancing act

By Amit Kumar

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Deccan Herald | Oil spills call for new response

The absence of mandatory state-level oil spill contingency plans for vessels transiting Indian waters represents a significant policy gap.

By Swathi Kalyani

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Moneycontrol | Reconfiguring supply chains in a world where trust’s eroding

Thinking about supply chains has moved from just-in-time to just-to-be secure following geopolitical turmoil. A risk-based framework for reconfiguring India’s supply chains can address security considerations without jeopardising the country's economic growth.

By Lokendra Sharma and Pranay Kotasthane

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The Hindu | Fathoming America’s plan to manage AI proliferation

The announcement by the United States of the rescission of its Framework for AI Diffusion, a set of export controls for Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology announced earlier this year, has been viewed as a good thing. The Framework was considered counterproductive to AI technology development and diplomatic relations. However, recent developments suggest that controls on AI are likely to persist, albeit in different forms.

By Ashwin Prasad, Bharath Reddy and Rijesh Panicker

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The Indian Express | As Axiom-4 and Shubhanshu Shukla lift off, so does India

An Indian is in space for the first time in over 40 years. This is momentous for more than one reason. It marks the beginning of the era of Indian human spaceflight, with Gaganyaan planned for 2027, and eventually, the Indian Space Station in the next decade. There are ambitious missions that will add India to an elite club of space powers that currently consists of the US, China and Russia (formerly the Soviet Union).

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By Ashwin Prasad

India’ World | The Way to Break China’s Stranglehold on Rare Earths

Donald Trump recently announced a new Rare Earth Element (REE) deal with China. As per the deal, China is set to lift its export controls on any REEs exported to the United States in exchange for exemptions granted to Chinese students amidst the president’s crackdown on immigrant student visas.

By Tannmay Kumarr Baid and Pranay Kotasthane

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MoneyControl | US-China trade war leaves India confronting three negative spillovers

By Manoj Kewalramani and Amit Kumar

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NDTV | Opinion: Inside China's 'Low-Cost' Arms Exports, Serving Everyone From Pak To West Africa

China's arms exports to Pakistan are one part of a complex military production, export, and diplomacy ecosystem that Beijing has built. Over the years, China has focused on becoming self-reliant in the defence manufacturing domain. This process has included making export variants of major weapons. That said, there are challenges that China faces in its defence export agenda. These include political issues and quality-related concerns that make Beijing the lesser-preferred option over the world's top three defence exporters: the US, Russia, and France. Nonetheless, China's defence export market is expanding. And this has significant implications for India.

By Anushka Saxena and Manoj Kewalramani

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StratNews Global | Stuck at Security: The Global Navigation Conundrum and Military Implications

This Oped examines the technical and regulatory landscape of GNSS devices, the security rationale behind their restriction, and the implications for military professionals globally. Drawing on recent developments in India, we explore how outdated regulations and a lack of technical clarity can hinder both civilian and military users, and what lessons can be learned for other nations.

By Dr. Y. Nithiyanandam

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StratNews Global | AI is not India’s Y2K Moment but it does Offer India a Leadership Role in the Global South

I argue that the AI race is not a Y2K moment for India. There are fundamental differences between the Y2K moment of yore and the ongoing AI saga. That said, India can still emerge as a leader in the Global South if it prioritises the development of open software and hardware associated with AI.

By Lokendra Sharma

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MoneyControl | ASEAN in the Crosshairs: Balancing great powers

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Moneycontrol | Geospatial technology and its role in India’s Act East policy

India is enhancing regional influence through infrastructure like KMMTTP, reducing reliance on Bangladesh, while leveraging geospatial technology to manage complex terrains, monitor security threats, and counter China's growing strategic presence.

By Swathi Kalyani

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The Hindu | The political deadlock in Taiwan

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s biggest policymaking hurdle has been that his party had failed to achieve a majority in the Legislative Yuan, with the opposition KMT winning 52 seats out of the 113 parliamentary seats. Subsequently, the KMT has blocked vital steps to secure Taiwan’s internal democratic and legal processes.

By Anushka Saxena

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MoneyControl | Invisibilising Taiwan

A flawed interpretation of a UN General Assembly resolution has allowed multilateral bodies such as the WHO to keep Taiwan from contributing to its work in full measure. Individual countries, too, have used this resolution to limit engagement with Taiwan. To counter China’s influence, Taiwan has to expand its diplomatic outreach to ensure it’s not shut out.

By Anushka Saxena

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