Counterview

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak  India has had fourteen Prime Ministers since independence. Gulzarilal Nanda and Manmohan Singh each served twice, while Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi were elected for three terms each. Different ideological traits define their politics. Each Prime Minister brings a certain set of principles and a personal and political framework to the office and to policymaking. Idealism in politics breeds public confidence, and idealist leaders not only earn that confidence but also shape the destiny of millions of people and of the country itself.

By Raj Kumar Sinha   A ceasefire and peace agreement between the United States and Iran would have far-reaching consequences for the global economy, international diplomacy, and the geopolitical landscape of the Middle East. The restoration of uninterrupted oil and gas supplies through the Strait of Hormuz would likely lead to an immediate decline in global crude oil prices, helping to ease inflationary pressures worldwide. The reopening of this critical maritime route would also remove major obstacles to international trade and supply chains, providing much-needed economic stability to Asian and European economies.

By Gisela Cernadas, David Vine, John Bellamy Foster  U.S. President Donald Trump has proposed a $1.5 trillion military budget for the fiscal year 2027, which would increase by 44 percent the acknowledged budget for 2026. While a roughly $500 billion increase would be unprecedented in modern U.S. history, the idea that the military budget only recently hit $1 trillion is incorrect. U.S. military spending has exceeded $1 trillion for many years. Adding $500 billion (and potentially $200 billion more to fund war in Iran), as the president has proposed, would take the total military budget up to $2 trillion to $3 trillion. A new report from the Project On Government Oversight (POGO), written by us, argues that this widely reported number dramatically understates the true cost of maintaining the U.S. military. Using five different methodologies, the report estimates that total military spending in 2025 was between $1.5 trillion and $1.8 trillion and could be as high as $2.3 trillion ...

By Vijay Prashad   In the southern Iranian city of Minab, where the heat rises from the earth in shimmering waves and the reality of imperialism lingers in every port and military installation, a missile struck a school on 28 February 2026. The strike killed 156 people, notably 120 schoolchildren, which the Iranian government immediately called a 'blatant crime.' The United Nations called the attack 'a grave violation of humanitarian law.' The names of the murdered children have not circulated through the centres of global power with the same force as the names of generals, weapons systems, and technology platforms. The dead Iranians remain largely anonymous to those who debate the future of artificial intelligence (AI), which was used by the United States—as it turns out—on this strike.

By Layne Hartsell, Max Wilbert, Ntafakabirhi-Aganze Clovis  Like oil in the twentieth century, lithium is the ‘white gold’ of the twenty-first. Demand for this key element is driving economic growth based on the ‘renewable’ energy provided by lithium-ion batteries. Such batteries are necessary for storing energy from solar photovoltaics in order to make that electricity readily available. A lightweight metal, lithium is generally processed into a white powder after being extracted from brines or salty water ponds and from underground deposits.

By Harsh Thakor*  Walter Hammond gave a new definition to the art and aesthetics of batting, transforming it into a metaphor for perfection. As a cricketer, he ushered in a new era and left a stamp on Test cricket that arguably no other Englishman has matched. Few sights in cricket have been more majestic than Hammond in full flow at the crease, gliding through an innings with the smoothness of a motorboat cutting through calm waters. He was the ultimate embodiment of batting perfection, combining the power of a cannon with the artistry of a sculptor. Few batsmen have ever been as imperious, commanding, or capable of manufacturing strokes at will when the situation demanded.