Opinion

The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) sweeping victory has opened the door to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second five-year term. Amrita Dhillon, an Indian journalist and founding editor of The Kootneeti, explained the success, giving prognosis on the simmering India-Pakistan conflict and New Delhi's next steps on the international arena.

Spain is due to hold its European Parliament vote on 26 May. However, Spaniards do not look much interested in the upcoming event. Spanish academics Santiago Nino Becerra and Carlos Vidal Prado have explained the phenomenon, emphasising the importance of the EU elections for Spain and Europe in general.

On 26 May, Poland will elect 52 MEPs out of the 705 that make up the EU Parliament. The latest public opinion polls suggest that the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) is still in the lead, although the European Coalition political alliance has narrowed its gap to Yaroslav Kaczynski’s party.

Recently, the "Defence One" website, which belongs to the Atlantic Media Group, revealed that the US State Department is running a project called "The European Recapitalisation Incentive Programme" that aims to deliver US military equipment to five Balkan countries and one Central European state (Slovakia).

On 26 May, Italians will head to the polls to cast their vote in European Parliament elections. Last Saturday, European sovereignty backers rallied with Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini and leader of the anti-migrant party League in the centre of Milan to demonstrate a united right-wing front.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - President Donald Trump’s decision to send 1,500 more troops to the Middle East appears to be the first step of an incremental military buildup to launch a war against Iran and as a partial yielding to his hard-line advisers, according to military analysts.

The United States, while urging other countries to join sanctions against Huawei, is dividing the global community. As a result, the rest of the world unwittingly has become a hostage to the situation, and many American partners find themselves in an uncomfortable position.

With WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange now facing 18 charges in the US, including violation of the Espionage Act of 1917, media outlets are finally attacking the Justice Department’s move - if only out of shrewd self-interest. The indictment’s loose wording threatens to sweep up the entire Fourth Estate, journalist Joe Lauria told Sputnik.

The cooperation of intelligence communities with US Attorney General William Barr’s investigation of surveillance activities during the 2016 presidential election should be welcomed by Democrats, as it’s a significant matter of public concern, Dan Kovalik, a human rights and labor lawyer, told Radio Sputnik’s Loud & Clear Friday.

Julian Assange could face a lifetime in jail, as the US launches fresh espionage charges against the whistle-blower. According to Wikileaks, the 17 charges carry up to 175 years in prison if he is to be convicted. Journalist John Steppling shared his opinion on what this means for Assange and for investigative journalists worldwide.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has announced that she will leave office on 7 June. But has her failure to deliver Brexit already damaged the Conservative Party’s reputation with voters beyond repair?

The potential for engagement between India and Pakistan officially or through back channels is feasible and can be under consideration provided the infrastructure of terrorism in Pakistan is dismantled completely, a former Indian diplomat says.

After almost three years in office and three failed attempts to pass her Brexit plan through Parliament, British Prime Minister Theresa May announced that she would be stepping down as Conservative Party leader on 7 June. She will remain head of the UK government until her successor is chosen.

There is no unity on Iran strategy in the US Congress and the White House, say former American diplomat and GOP foreign policy adviser Jim Jatras and Joshua Landis, an American academic and Middle East expert, commenting on the growing concerns over the possibility of a war with Tehran.

Donald Trump's anti-Huawei crusade is gaining steam with major tech corporations suspending cooperation with the Chinese telecom company. American and British observers have weighed up Huawei's chances of withstanding the pressure and expressed hope that the upcoming Xi-Trump G20 meeting may contribute to the revival of US-China trade talks.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decisive victory in Wednesday’s elections, thumping the opposition Congress Party of Rahul Gandhi and cruising to another five-year term, “drummed up nationalistic fervor,” Dr. Ania Loomba, a professor of literature at the University of Pennsylvania and an expert in postcolonial studies, told Sputnik.

On Thursday, the US brought 17 more charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, including that he violated the Espionage Act by publishing documents leaked by Chelsea Manning. However, the way the Justice Department broaches the subject, most journalism could be seen as espionage, a reporter told Sputnik.

US State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus has warned Turkey about the “very negative consequences” their acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile defense systems will have if it goes ahead. The purchase of the surface-to-air missile defence systems will seriously affect the defence relations of the United States and NATO with Turkey, she said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt and his Omani counterpart, Yousef bin Alawi, have signed the UK-Oman Comprehensive Agreement and confirmed joint efforts to mediate peace in the Middle East, the UK Foreign Office said on Thursday.

The world's largest shoe retailers, including Nike, Adidas and Converse, have written an open letter to US President Donald Trump calling for an end of the trade war with China.