The Annual Report 2025–2026 of the Chennai Centre for China Studies (C3S) presents a comprehensive overview of the Centre’s activities, achievements, and contributions over the past year. It reflects C3S’s continued commitment to advancing research and analysis on China and its implications for India and the broader Indo-Pacific region. During the year, C3S sustained its focus on producing high-quality research, organising discussions on issues of strategic relevance, and fostering informed...

By Annunthra Rangan Image courtesy: AIIA March 28th marks one month since the United States and Israel launched their military campaign against Iran. In the weeks that followed, Tehran has suffered significant losses, including the deaths of key figures within its leadership. Yet despite the scale of the assault, Iran has shown no signs of capitulating and the manner in which Washington has handled this conflict has raised serious questions about the coherence of its strategy. President...

By Harsh Sinha and Dr. Adityanjee Image Courtesy: News X Introduction The expiration of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) in February 2026 brought an end to the last remaining bilateral nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and the Russian Federation. This change represents a fundamental shift from a regulated bipolar nuclear order that was carefully crafted during the post-cold war era to an uncertain, unpredictable and competitive multipolar nuclear...

From the first strike to the burning Strait By Arul Braighta Arulanantham Image Courtesy: The Virginian The Spark: How a War Without a Declaration Began On the night of February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched a massive coordinated strike on Iran under the operational name Operation Epic Fury. The targets were not ambiguous. They explicitly targeted Iranian missile infrastructure, nuclear sites, air defenses, and the leadership of the Islamic Republic itself. Supreme Leader...