John Mearsheimer Says Russia Ukraine War Will Be "Decided On The Battlefield" And Putin Will 'Win'
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Mint
28 minutes ago
- Mint
US strikes severely damaged just one Iranian nuclear site, new assessment finds: Report
One of the three Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities targeted by US airstrikes last month — the Fordo site — was "mostly destroyed," significantly delaying Iran's enrichment capabilities at that facility by up to two years, according to a recent US intelligence assessment, NBC News reported. The report, based on interviews with five current and former US officials familiar with the matter, also noted that two other sites — Natanz and Isfahan — suffered less damage and could be operational again within several months if Iran chooses to resume activity. 'Iran's key enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated,' President Donald Trump said in a post-strike comments, calling the operation a military success. While Fordo was heavily hit, the same assessment reveals that the Natanz and Isfahan facilities were only partially degraded. US officials said these two sites could resume uranium enrichment operations within months. The news outlet citing one current and two former US officials also stated it has learned that US Central Command had crafted a far more extensive strike plan against Iran, which included targeting three additional sites over a multi-week campaign, rather than the single-night operation that was ultimately carried out. 'We were willing to go all the way in our options, but the president did not want to,' one source familiar with internal planning told NBC News. The news outlet citing one of the current officials and one of the former officials said, Trump opted for a more limited strike due to concerns over potential casualties and a desire to avoid deeper US entanglement in foreign conflicts. Officials cautioned that the current assessment is only a snapshot and could change as intelligence collection continues.
Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Coca-Cola refutes Trump's sugar claim, backs corn syrup as ‘safe'
The Coca-Cola Company has defended its continued use of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in its US beverages, responding to Donald Trump's claim that he had persuaded the brand to switch to using real cane sugar instead. 'I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so,' Trump said in a Truth Social post late Tuesday. 'I'd like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good move by them — You'll see. It's just better!' Coca-Cola initially issued a polite statement thanking 'President Trump's enthusiasm' for the brand, saying it looked forward to 'new innovative offerings within our Coca-Cola product range.' But by Thursday, the beverage giant issued a more detailed defence of HFCS, a sweetener that has long been controversial and blamed by some for contributing to rising obesity rates in the US. 'The name sounds complex, but high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) – which we use to sweeten some of our beverages – is actually just a sweetener made from corn,' the company said in a statement, The Guardian reported. 'It's safe; it has about the same number of calories per serving as table sugar and is metabolized in a similar way by your body.' The company cited the American Medical Association (AMA), saying it 'has confirmed that HFCS is no more likely to contribute to obesity than table sugar or other full-calorie sweeteners,' and added, 'Please be assured that Coca-Cola brand soft drinks do not contain any harmful substances.' In 2023, the AMA had stated that 'insufficient evidence exists to specifically restrict use of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or other fructose-containing sweeteners in the food supply or to require the use of warning labels on products containing HFCS.' As per report by The Guardian, Trump's fondness for Diet Coke is well known — including the installation of a red button in the Oval Office that summoned a butler with a can of the beverage. Diet Coke, however, does not use corn syrup or cane sugar; it's sweetened with aspartame, a low-calorie artificial sweetener.
NDTV
36 minutes ago
- NDTV
"Don't Feel Any Pressure...": Minister On US Sanctions Threat Over Russian Oil
India on Thursday played down the threat of the US imposing sanctions on countries buying Russian oil, saying it is confident of meeting its needs from alternative sources. Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the world's third-largest oil importer should be able to deal with any problems with Russian imports by seeking supplies from other countries. India imports more than 85 per cent of its requirement of crude oil, which is turned into fuels like petrol and diesel in refineries. Traditionally, the Middle East was the main source, but Russia has been the mainstay supplier for nearly three years now. After much of the West shunned Russian crude following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia began offering steep discounts to attract alternative buyers. Indian refiners seized the opportunity, turning Russia, once a marginal supplier, into India's largest source of crude oil, overtaking traditional suppliers from West Asia. Russia now accounts for as much as 40 per cent of India's oil imports. Speaking at the Urja Varta annual conference of the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), Puri said there are many new suppliers coming onto the market, such as Guyana and supplies can also be ramped up from existing producers such as Brazil and Canada. "I don't feel any pressure in my mind. India has diversified the sources of supply," he said in reply to a question on the impact of the US threatening Russia with sanctions. Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump had threatened that countries purchasing Russian exports could face sanctions or steep tariffs if Moscow fails to reach a peace agreement with Ukraine within 50 days. Puri said India is also increasing the hunt for finding new deposits of oil within the country and quickly bringing them to production. "I'm not worried at all. If something happens, we'll deal with it," he said. "India has diversified the sources of supply and we have gone, I think, from about 27 countries that we used to buy from to about 40 countries now." In the event of Russian supplies being hit, Indian Oil Corp chairman A S Sahney said the country could "go back to the same template (of supplies) as was used pre-Ukraine crisis when Russian supplies to India were below 2 per cent." The Oil Minister said prior to February 2022, India was buying 0.2 per cent of overall crude oil from Russia. "Today... It has gone up considerably," he said. Addressing a press conference, Puri said at present the market does not react to geopolitical turmoil, especially in terms of prices as much as there is good availability of oil. Addressing a press conference, he said at present, the price of crude oil is around USD 68.5 per barrel and it is expected to remain around the same levels in the months to come. "I think it will be somewhere around USD 65/barrel," he said. Puri also said that there are discussions and consultations underway with industry stakeholders led by NITI Aayog to increase the percentage of ethanol blending from 20 per cent at present. This was one of the initiatives that we have been talking about for some time called "stratigraphic wells". This is the first of the series which will be carried out. "ONGC has taken the leap to tie up with BP in terms of well design, well location, understanding geology etc," he said. "ONGC will be putting in money, BP will provide expertise," he said, adding that the two entities are looking to work together in Andaman, Mahanadi, Saurashtra Kutch. According to an official statement, Puri said Russia remains one of the world's top oil producers with an output exceeding 9 million barrels per day. He also warned that a sudden removal of this supply from the global market-out of a total of approximately 97 million barrels per day-would have created chaos, pushing prices to between USD 130-200 per barrel. The minister said a series of transformative policy reforms were introduced over the last decade to make India's upstream sector globally competitive Among the major changes, he mentioned the reimagined exploration framework under the Oilfields Regulation and Development Act (ORDA), characterised by a co-designed approach, a single lease and approval mechanism, transparent operational rules, and the introduction of a 'no-sit' clause to eliminate inactive acreage. These measures, integrated with the revised Petroleum and Natural Gas Rules and the Model Revenue Sharing Contracts aim to simplify business operations and attract private investment. The Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy and amendments to the ORD Act have opened nearly 1 million square kilometres of previously inaccessible "No-Go" areas to exploration, thereby unlocking significant resource potential. "In the last five years, India has contributed 16 per cent to the global increase in oil demand and is expected to account for nearly 25 per cent of the incremental global energy demand through 2045. Our demand is not only large, it is structured, predictable, and responsible," Puri said. India has invested over Rs 4 lakh crore in energy infrastructure over the past decade. These investments have not only strengthened national capacity but also created tangible value at the state level. With an envisaged investment of Rs 30-35 lakh crore over the next 10 years, the coming decade will be pivotal for energy infrastructure development across the country (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
