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India has rejected requests by Tesla chief Elon Musk for lower tariffs so it can export electric vehicles to this country. The chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, Vivek Johri, said there is no scope for rejigging the current tariff structure since “some investments have come in … so it is clear that […]Read More

Researchers in Denmark say Greenland has lost enough ice sheets in the last 20 years to submerge the U.S. in half a metre of water. They said the climate is warming faster in the Arctic than anywhere else and the melting of Greenland ice is the main factor in the rise in level of the […]Read More

A PLA officer injured in the head during the Galwan clashes in Ladakh two years ago, was a torchbearer at ceremonies to mark the Winter Olympics beginning on Friday. Global Times named him as Qi Fabao. National television is also carrying a five-part documentary on PLA troops in Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control.Read More

The U.S. will deploy a guided missile destroyer and F-35 jets to help defend the UAE from further Houthi missile and drone attacks. This followed a request from Crown Prince Zayed bin Sultan to Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin. Provision is also being made for early warning intelligence.Read More

Indian intelligence agencies bought the Israeli Pegasus software in a deal pegged at “dozens of millions of dollars,” according to the New York Times. In a report, it said the deal was signed during Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel in 2017 and cleared by Benjamin Netanyahu. The software was described as a high grade cyber […]Read More

A U.S. State Department official said they were in the final stretch of talks with Iran to reach an agreement that would see Tehran return to compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. Meanwhile, the IAEA reported that Iran has removed parts for the production of centrifuges out of a workshop after allowing the UN to reinstall cameras […]Read More

The FBI director says the threat from China is “more brazen, more damaging” than ever before. Speaking at the Reagan Presidential Library in California, Christopher Wray said his agency was probing 2000 cases involving China trying to steal strategic information and technology. The bureau was opening new cases every 12 hours to counter Chinese intelligence operations against the United […]Read More

The Foreign Correspondents Club of China in a report has spotlighted the harassment and intimidation of foreign journalists based in that country. Six have left so far with probably more to follow. The report warns of online trolling, physical assaults, visa denials and hacking, backed up by threats of legal action against journalists.  Read More

A Falcon 9 rocket launched by SpaceX in 2015 is expected to crash on the moon on March 4. Asteroid hunter Bill Gray, who has been tracking the 4-ton booster which placed the Deep Space Climate Observatory into space, says it is tumbling wildly and will slam onto the far side of the moon at […]Read More

The UAE said it had shot down a missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, in the third such incident this month. The defence ministry also confirmed that it had destroyed the missile launch site, which was in the northern al-Jawf region. Photographs showed the explosion and plumes of black smoke.Read More

The U.S. state department has placed a “pause” on the approval of Masood Khan as Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington. Khan is Prime Minister Imran Khan’s choice for the post but critics say he is a “bona fide terrorist sympathiser working to undermine our interest in the region as well as the security of our Indian […]Read More

Israel’s President Chaim Herzog flew into Abu Dhabi on the first ever visit by the head of the Jewish state. He is expected to meet Crown Prince Zayed bin Sultan, have an interaction with the small but growing Jewish community and visit the Dubai Expo. Prime Minister Nafali Bennet was in the UAE last month.Read More

Nato officials will discuss military options on Ukraine on Monday as the UK prepares to offer more troops and equipment to help its embattled European allies. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also expected to speak to Russia’s President Putin and travel to the region in the coming days.Read More

Canada’s prime minister Trudeau and his family have been moved out of the capital Ottawa to an undisclosed location after thousands of truckers poured into the city protesting against vaccine requirements. The protestors are reported to have desecrated the war memorial and danced on the tomb of the unknown soldier.Read More

North Korea has tested what appears to be its most powerful missile to date, travelling 800 km and hitting an altitude of 2000 km before splashing into the sea. This is the seventh missile test this month and seems to be a pressure tactic to get the U.S. to resume negotiations with the aim of […]Read More

As many as 2000 Iranian women were allowed into the Azadi stadium in Tehran to watch the home team play Iraq in a football match. While women are every now and then allowed into stadiums, bans on their watching such events remain given Islamic restrictions.Read More

Ten Pakistani soldiers were reported killed in a night attack on a security post in Kech, Balochistan. The attack took place on the night of January 26 and the army says it has apprehended three terrorists. It’s not clear which group they belong to.Read More

The Philippines has signed a $375 million deal with India to buy three batteries for coastal defence. The sale is interesting since Manila is locked in a confrontation with China over islands in the South China Sea. This is the first export of the BrahMos missile and could open the door to more exports to […]Read More

Wuhan University scientists have warned of NeoCov, a Coronavirus strain that is currently spreading among bats in South Africa and could infect humans if it mutates. It is not a new virus given that it is linked to the MERS-CoV that spread through the Arab world in 2012 and 2015.Read More

Russia is studying the response from the U.S. and Nato to its sweeping security demands. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said there was no positive response to the main question about Ukraine and Nato. The U.S. says it will maintain Nato’s “open door” policy without mentioning Ukraine.Read More