The Quad foreign ministers met shortly after Donald Trump took office at the White House. This ministerial meeting was also the first engagement of the United States (US)’ new secretary of state, Marco Rubio. While speculations were rife about the future of Quad after Trump won the polls earlier last year, the prompt meeting of Quad foreign ministers suggests the grouping is likely to remain a key priority for Trump.
As nations navigate significant disruptions and realignments, 2025 is a crucial year for global economics. The re-election of Donald Trump has brought a resurgence of global trade protectionism, creating substantial volatility in international markets. During his first term, Mr Trump focused on “America First” policies, implementing tariffs, trade restrictions, and stricter visa regulations that had a notable impact on sectors such as information technology (IT) services, textiles, and pharmaceuticals—key drivers of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and employment. In fact, the prospect of tighter H-1B visa rules poses a serious challenge to the IT industry, which relies on US markets for nearly 60 per cent of its revenue.
ON JANUARY 8, Vikram Misri, the foreign secretary of India, held a meeting with the Taliban-led Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, in Dubai. Marking the most high-level meeting between India and representatives from the IEA, the very act of the senior-most Indian diplomat meeting a Taliban leader and its timing in the aftermath of Pakistan’s airstrikes in Afghanistan and India’s strongly worded statement in support of the latter led to debates about an apparent “pivot” and “shift” in how India is engaging with Afghanistan. Three-and-a-half years after the Taliban usurped power in Kabul and orchestrated the fall of the then republic government, New Delhi’s approach towards the country has indeed been evolving.
The era of Trump 2.0 has begun and everyone is busy trying to decipher the multiple meanings of the policy arrows that US President Donald Trump has unleashed from his quiver ever since winning the presidential contest in November.
India’s outreach to the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa can be a game-changer for the Global South
The revised doctrine lowered the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons. Russia further retaliated with the test-launch of a new hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile, Oreshnik, hitting a defence industry production facility in Dnipro. This marked the first time Russia had used medium-range ballistic missiles in combat, opening a new chapter in the conflict and bringing it closer to the brink of nuclear escalation.