On Monday, India signed a10-year-long agreement to operate and develop Iran’s Chabahar port. The move is meant to expand India’s agriculture exports to Afghanistan and Central Asia while bypassing existing routes through neighboring Pakistan, New Delhi’s main rival.
Flexing muscles. New Delhi, on track toovertake Japan as the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2025, has only managed the port under short-term contracts since 2018 and has already transported 2.5 million tonnes of wheat and 2,000 tonnes of pulses to Afghanistan. This new longer-term deal with a contractual value of roughly $370 million will reduce transit times between India, Iran, and Afghanistan.
But India is sailing at a risk. Just hours after the contract was signed, the US warned ofpotential sanctions on any country doing business deals with Tehran. Over the last three years, Washington has imposed over 600 sanctions on Iran-related entities.
India has not formally responded to Washington's warning yet, setting up a potential diplomatic clash that may test the limits of India’s willingness to defy its Western allies in order to pursue its own strategic interests in the region.
There are 48 countries involved in this year’s World Cup, but that only tells part of the story of just how global the “global game” has become.
The World Cup is the planet's biggest sporting event, and the most political one. This year, it will also be the most profitable spectacle of all time.
Various groups march along Calzada de Tlalpan to the Estadio Ciudad de Mexico in Mexico City, Mexico, on June 11, 2026.
Mexico cruised past South Africa 2-0 on Thursday in opening 2026 World Cup game at the majestic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Some Mexican citizens used the occasion to highlight issues that the country faces.
Cuba has faced severe fuel shortages since the US imposed a de facto blockade earlier this year, and the halted shipment could have powered the island for about 11 days.