Trump Sends Patriot Missiles To Ukraine, Can They Help Turn The Tide In War With Russia?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
25 minutes ago
- Mint
Strategic assets: How to turbocharge India's global hunt for critical minerals
Mint Editorial Board State-run NLC is in talks for a lithium deal in Africa. This will add to the mineral securing efforts of KABIL. Yet, India's strategic acquisitions overseas need a much more powerful vehicle that can draw upon the entire public sector's resource base. Lithium is a key element of climate action and we must not leave any stone unturned to secure its supplies. Gift this article Scouring the planet for access to scarce minerals is new not just for India, but also for other countries. From missiles to solar cells and motors that propel vehicles, some of these play an irreplaceable role. The chase is especially compelling for us since domestic resources are limited and under-explored. Worse, at a global level, these assets are concentrated. For instance, Congo holds about half the world's known cobalt resources, a versatile mineral used in batteries and magnets to drive electric motors. Scouring the planet for access to scarce minerals is new not just for India, but also for other countries. From missiles to solar cells and motors that propel vehicles, some of these play an irreplaceable role. The chase is especially compelling for us since domestic resources are limited and under-explored. Worse, at a global level, these assets are concentrated. For instance, Congo holds about half the world's known cobalt resources, a versatile mineral used in batteries and magnets to drive electric motors. Recent reports suggest that NLC India Ltd (earlier called Neyveli Lignite Corp), a public sector mining and power generation company, is in talks to buy a stake in a Russian-owned lithium mine in Mali, Africa. While this forward-looking approach is welcome, such endeavours call for a larger procurement framework managed by a single entity, one that can draw from the vast talent pool of our public sector across disciplines, enjoin the private sector to participate in India's global hunt for mineral reserves and leverage the state's strengths in other spheres. After all, such deals are clinched by sovereign ownership more than entrepreneurial flair. Moreover, we need the capacity to handle commercial engagements across the globe and maximize the value of all we extract. Amid a global scramble for minerals, these cannot be sourced the same way we get our bulk commodities like oil. Currently, the government does have a dedicated agency for procuring minerals overseas, Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL), but it is owned by other state-run firms in the mining sector and its capabilities are constrained by that. While NLC began commercial operations for electricity supply in the early 1960s, its profitability over the next few decades was held back partly by its pursuit of state objectives. These included the supply of not just power, but also fertilizers and briquettes at controlled prices. However, over the last two decades, it has kept up a remunerative record as a 72.2% government-owned enterprise. Thanks to the Centre's policies, it also enjoys reduced risk exposure to fragile state-level power utilities. Its earnings have thus armed it with funds for acquisitions. This money could largely go into central coffers as dividends so that a larger body can be given a war chest for foreign asset purchases. Such an approach would address concerns of mineral security in a world fraught with geopolitics over scarce but vital resources. Lithium, for example, is a key element of climate action and we must not leave any stone unturned to secure its supplies. The key to our hunt's success, though, lies in how we navigate the global flux of an era that is watching an old order crack up, with deep uncertainty over tomorrow's trade matrix. Even as the US tries to bend trade partners to its will, China has made no bones about weaponizing its hold over minerals. As their rivalry exposes our industrial vulnerability, our own prospects could pivot on outcomes of statecraft combined with knowhow and efficiency. At the turn of the century, in pursuit of oil security, we notched up an oil asset in Sudan that proved to be one of our most profitable overseas ventures. However, India was outrun in that race for African hydrocarbon assets by China, which used a mix of aid and infrastructure projects to lure local regimes. Today, with minerals, securing supplies is just the first step. Refining and processing the stuff is another challenge. Right now, China dominates the whole chain. But others could master it too. Topics You May Be Interested In
Time of India
35 minutes ago
- Time of India
Pakistan to create new paramilitary force ahead of protests by Imran Khan's party
The announcement came after PTI party said it would stage nationwide protests starting on Aug 5, the second anniversary of Imran Khan's arrest ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Monday it was creating a national paramilitary force, prompting concern among opposition parties and human rights groups that it could be used as a tool of political repression. The move turns an existing paramilitary force deployed on Pakistan's northwestern border with Afghanistan into a national security force that will be called the Federal Constabulary, state minister for the interior Talal Chaudhry told a press conference in the eastern city of Faisalabad. Its new duties will include internal security, riot control and counter-terrorism, according to a copy of the amended law reported by the local Dunya News TV. The announcement came after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of former jailed PM Imran Khan said it would stage nationwide protests starting on Aug 5, the second anniversary of his arrest. Several such protests since his Aug 2023 arrest have turned violent, in some cases paralysing the capital Islamabad for days. 'This will be a new force. This will be a stronger force. We need this force for internal security,' Chaudhry said, adding that President Asif Ali Zardari had already approved amendments in the law introducing changes in the paramilitary force. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo The new force replaces the Frontier Constabulary (FC), whose cadres were previously recruited only from tribes in the northwestern province, Chaudhry said. Training of the new force will bring it into line with other national law enforcement agencies, he added. Khan's party spokesperson Zulfikar Bukhari said the changes should be subject to parliamentary discussion. The new force 'should not be used as a gimmick to silence political opponents, as has been previously witnessed when the government applied such laws against a large number of the PTI leadership and supporters,' he said. His concern was echoed by Haris Khalique, secretary of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, an independent body. 'We are alarmed by the changes being made to the security and law enforcement structure of the country without any debate in parliament,' Khalique said. REUTERS
Time of India
39 minutes ago
- Time of India
Zelenskiy thanks Trump for readiness to support Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday he had spoken to U.S. President Donald Trump after his announcement of new weapons for Ukraine and thanked him for his support. "It was a very good conversation. I thanked him for his readiness to support Ukraine and to continue working together to stop the killings and establish a lasting and just peace," Zelenskiy wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Zelenskiy said he and Trump had agreed to speak more frequently and "continue coordinating our steps". by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo He also said he had a very good conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who met with Trump at the White House on Monday. Trump told reporters he was disappointed in Russian President Vladimir Putin and that billions of dollars of U.S. weapons would go to Ukraine. Live Events He also threatened sanctions on buyers of Russian exports unless Russia agreed to a peace deal , expressing frustration at repeated Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities. But the threat of sanctions came with a 50-day grace period. The weapons would include Patriot air defence missiles , which Ukraine has urgently sought. Zelenskiy had earlier met U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where they discussed boosting Ukraine's air defences and Kyiv buying weapons with European help. Trump had said on Sunday that he would send Patriot air defence missiles to Ukraine. "We discussed the path to peace and what we can practically do together to bring it closer. This includes strengthening Ukraine's air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe," Zelenskiy wrote on X. "And of course, sanctions against Russia and those who help it." Trump, who began his second term with a more conciliatory approach to Russia, has in recent weeks signalled disenchantment with Putin as Moscow has stepped up air strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. An air-raid alert was declared in Kyiv shortly after the meeting between Kellogg and Zelenskiy on Monday.
