Now that the Xi Trump Summit in Washington is done with and statements from the leadership’s talks have been released by the Chinese State media, a striking commonality of phrases is evident from what the Chinese President Xi said during his meeting with the US President Donald Trump on 24 September and in his bilateral with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This possibly reflects the common thread of competition and tensions between China and two major powers.

While highlighting provision of services and support for PLA veterans over the next five years, the plan calls veterans as a valuable asset to the Party and the Country and called upon veterans to firmly listen to and follow the Party

War is a medium where there are two opposing sides, one cannot legislate adversaries choice of military strategy or weapons systems – the Houthi sweep of Southern Yemen shows that reliance on non contact warfare alone will be perilous for India’s national security with multiple vulnerabilities.

The ides of October are likely to increase complexities for Pakistan from managing a likely Saudi demand for military support to combat the Houthis in Yemen, relations with Iran, political turbulence in the wake of proposal for splitting Punjab and Sindh and deteriorating internal security while the economy continues to face shock of rising fuel price.

Overall, Bhutan’s PDP government is institutionally stable, but its internal cohesion has been visibly weakened after the August 2026 Speaker election. The Opposition now holds the Speaker’s chair for the first time in Bhutan’s democratic history, signalling a rare institutional setback for a ruling majority

While the aim of the “Correct the Map,” resolution was to overcome the distortions arising from the Mercator Map which was biased towards colonial powers, the new Map while not strictly speaking a cartographic representation of national boundaries is likely to open a pandora’s box of claims and counter claims for countries as India with disputes with key neighbours Pakistan, China and Nepal.

At the 25th SR Talks between India and China, it appears that proposals for “Early Harvest,” discussed during the WMCC meetings have been shelved while the “Package Deal,” is back on the table. Here is a review of the statements and relevant facets-

Space is no longer merely a domain of scientific cooperation but an increasingly contested strategic environment characterized by military modernization, technological competition, and weakening multilateralism as per the SIPRI Report

The main instruments of India’s next war have been outlined as drones, missiles, counter drone and air defence and missile systems and the Narrative. What are the elements that will decide success and is this strategy common for the two main adversaries – Pakistan and China.