- 2 days ago
On this Special Report, the coverage spans from geopolitical upheavals in Iran and Venezuela to shifting alliances in South Asia. The programme highlights the growing defence partnership between Pakistan and Bangladesh, including talks on JF-17 fighter jets, which raises strategic concerns for New Delhi. Additionally, it addresses the Indian government's stern warning to Elon Musk’s X regarding obscene content generated by its AI chatbot, Grok. An unidentified speaker notes, 'India is drawing a hard line on artificial intelligence and online accountability,' warning that the platform could lose legal immunity. The report also touches on the economic distress fueling protests in Iran and the implications of US foreign policy.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Let's get started.
00:30Well, hello and welcome. I'm Geeta Mohan and you're watching India Today Global.
00:35That's the top story we'll be following, the situation in Iran that completely remains grim,
00:41with at least 36 people losing their lives in the violence.
00:45Amid nationwide protests in Iran over economic distress,
00:48a video has surfaced showing a police officer killed in a drive-by shooting
00:53in the southeastern province of Sistan and Balochistan.
00:56The clip shows an unidentified assailant leaning out of a car window,
01:01with only the tip of the gun visible, firing repeatedly at the officer's vehicle
01:05until it veers off the road and crashes.
01:09Meanwhile, protests and unrest continue across Iran.
01:13In Bandar Abbas, people staged demonstrations against the regime,
01:16while in Tehran, protesters toppled and destroyed a statue of Qasem Soleimani,
01:21former head of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, that's the IRGC.
01:28In Mashhad, protesters tore down the Iranian flag.
01:31This follows clashes between protesters and security forces in Tehran,
01:35where crowds chanted death to Khamenei slogans.
01:51Massive protests in the streets of Iran,
02:11this after the economic crisis that the country faces.
02:14It has been a country that has been facing crisis for many years
02:18because of sanctions by the United States of America.
02:23But of late, after Trump's hardened position against...
02:27And then after what happened in Venezuela,
02:29things seem to have gone from bad to worse.
02:33And now the regime is in a catch-22 situation,
02:36wherein they're looking at how they will either engage the civilians
02:43or should they act against the civilians,
02:46then Trump's administration will act against them.
02:49So a catch-22 situation, what's going to happen from here on,
02:53is the big question because this is where the people have come out in the streets,
02:59not because of the rights question in Iran,
03:03but more so to do with the economic collapse.
03:05Many can't afford basic necessities and that certainly has become a problem.
03:11There are many areas where there have been clashes between police forces and the civilians
03:17and that really has caused a lot of worry.
03:20The international community is watching very closely what happens in Iran.
03:25India Today has been speaking to various experts
03:28and most of them have been saying that after Venezuela,
03:31while all eyes are on other Caribbean and Latin American countries,
03:36the focus should also remain on Iran.
03:39This is a clear regime change playbook of the American state,
03:45where there has been unrest, questions being asked of the regime.
03:50And the next step would be,
03:51should the regime act against the protesters,
03:55America will have a reason then to go in.
03:58So a serious situation.
04:00And in all this,
04:01because of the regional and global instability that this could cause,
04:06the focus is also going to be on how China and Russia
04:10are going to look at the situation,
04:13whether they'll come to the rescue of their old ally and partner Iran.
04:17The truth that you're seeing of protests in Iran,
04:29that's the top story that we have been focusing on
04:32and will be focusing on,
04:34whether if Iran is going to be the next country
04:37in the realm of a Trump target,
04:42or whether if they will be able to manage quelling these protests.
04:48But for that to happen,
04:50the economic crisis has to be tackled with by the regime.
05:03After Venezuela's regime collapsed in record time,
05:07oil snapped back into U.S. control and rivals went silent.
05:11The unsettling reality shaking global politics
05:14is that Maduro may have been only the opening act
05:17before Trump applies the same ruthless playbook to Iran.
05:22Here's Statecraft for you.
05:23Trump has just changed the regime in Venezuela
05:42and it seems like he has already set his eyes on the next target, Iran.
05:47Just one year into Donald Trump's second presidency,
05:50Venezuela didn't just wobble, it collapsed.
05:54Nicolas Maduro wasn't pressured, persuaded or voted out.
05:58He was captured, cuffed and flown out under American guard.
06:03That moment matters not because of Venezuela alone,
06:06but because it exposed the machinery in motion
06:09and history screams what comes next.
06:11The United States doesn't stop after one's success.
06:16It escalates, it tests, it proves, it repeats.
06:20If Venezuela was the proof of concept,
06:23then Iran is the logical sequel.
06:25Bigger prize, higher stakes, deeper symbolism.
06:29Even the streets in Iran are being named after Trump.
06:32People of Iran should be worried
06:34as this might just be the start of America's foreign intervention
06:38and that is not good news in any part of the world.
06:43The playbook has been opened,
06:44the tools have been sharpened
06:46and the signals are already flashing.
06:49So is Iran now staring down the same regime change conveyor belt?
06:53Hello and welcome.
06:55You're watching Statecraft with me, Gita Mohan.
06:56Trump didn't stumble into Venezuela.
07:07He engineered it across phases
07:09that mirror decades of American intervention abroad.
07:12Economic isolation first,
07:15delegitimization next,
07:16covert penetration after that,
07:19then force.
07:20Once the formula worked,
07:22once Maduro was removed with minimal U.S. casualties
07:25and oil flows resumed,
07:28the psychological barrier vanished.
07:31Venezuela became a case study,
07:33a warning shot,
07:34a message broadcast to adversaries everywhere.
07:37And Iran has been hearing that message loud and clear.
07:41From sanctions to rhetoric,
07:43from covert pressure to open threats,
07:45Tehran already sits where Caracas sat
07:48months before collapse.
07:49The only real difference is scale.
07:52Venezuela was the rehearsal.
07:54Iran could be the main stage.
07:57Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's meeting with Trump
08:00at Mar-a-Lago around New Year
08:02only deepened those fears.
08:04The message, Sachs said,
08:06was blunt.
08:07Iran, you're next.
08:10Protests inside Iran,
08:11driven by currency collapse,
08:13inflation,
08:14energy shortages,
08:15and water crises
08:16were amplified
08:17as signs of imminent regime failure.
08:20Trump himself warned that
08:22if Iran killed peaceful protesters,
08:24the United States was locked and loaded.
08:27Secretary of State Marco Rubio
08:28explicitly framed the Venezuela operation
08:31as a warning to other adversaries.
08:33The pattern was no longer subtle.
08:36Sanctions,
08:37media narratives,
08:39covert operations,
08:40warnings,
08:41military posturing,
08:42the talk of rescue and responsibility
08:44all sound hauntingly familiar.
08:48Venezuela was the test case,
08:49the proof of concept.
08:51The question that now hangs over global politics
08:54isn't whether the United States can do it again.
08:57It's whether anyone can stop it
08:59if Iran truly is next.
09:01Thank you for watching, Statecraft.
09:06Venezuela said it remains open
09:08to international energy partnerships
09:10despite rising tensions
09:11after reports
09:12that the U.S. urged Caracas
09:14to expel foreign advisors
09:16while the U.N. offered support
09:18for inclusive dialogue.
09:20Regional unease grew
09:21following a U.S. military strike
09:23with reduced air traffic,
09:25troop mobilizations in Puerto Rico
09:27and reinforced borders with Colombia.
09:30Mahashweta Lala
09:31with this report.
09:37A day after,
09:40a report by the New York Times
09:42stated that U.S. Secretary of State
09:44Marco Rubio
09:45asked Venezuelan interim government
09:47led Delcey Rodriguez
09:49to expel official advisors
09:50from China, Russia, Cuba and Iran.
09:53Rodriguez said
09:54her country is open to energy partnerships
09:56with other nations.
09:58She stressed,
09:59it has some of the world's
10:00largest oil and gas reserves.
10:05Venezuela is open to energy relations
10:11where all parties benefit,
10:13where economic cooperation
10:14is very well determined
10:15in commercial contracts.
10:16That is our position
10:17and the diversity
10:18of our energy relations.
10:20Venezuela has one of the largest
10:21oil reserves on the planet
10:22and has the largest gas reserves.
10:25Those resources must be
10:27at the service of national development
10:28and they must also be
10:30at the service of the development
10:31of other countries in the world.
10:33This is how our oil industry
10:34was born with an export vocation.
10:36Addressing members of the National Assembly
10:40in Caracas,
10:41Rodriguez said
10:42Venezuela is willing to establish
10:44respectful relations
10:45through commercial agreements
10:46that comply with international law.
10:49However,
10:50United States Secretary General
10:51Antinio Guthriex expressed
10:53the U.N.'s readiness
10:54to provide its good offices,
10:56including mediation and facilitation
10:58in support of the
10:59potential inclusive
11:00national dialogue in Venezuela.
11:02Meanwhile,
11:04Venezuela's primary
11:05international airport,
11:06Simón Bolívar International Airport,
11:08saw the number of inbound
11:10and outbound flights
11:11fall to far below
11:13the normal level
11:14after resuming operation
11:15amid fear
11:16from Jan 3 U.S. military strike
11:19on the country.
11:24Amid tensions in the Caribbean,
11:26U.S. Army Reserve soldiers
11:27were mobilized
11:28in Puerto Rico's Guaynabo.
11:30Soldiers were seen
11:31setting up camp
11:32at U.S. Army base
11:33in preparation
11:34for a four-day military exercise
11:36with military vehicles
11:37also deployed on base
11:38as part of mobilization effort.
11:42Following the capture
11:43of Nicolas Maduro,
11:44U.S. President Donald Trump
11:46has slammed
11:46Colombian President
11:48Gustavo Pedro
11:49calling him a sick man
11:50who likes making cocaine
11:52and selling it
11:53to the United States.
11:54He has accused Pedro
11:55of enabling a steady flow
11:57of cocaine in the U.S.
11:58Peace is found
12:03through dialogue
12:04and that's why
12:05I accept President Trump's
12:06proposal to talk.
12:07We'll see what comes of it.
12:09I'll keep insisting
12:10that an alliance
12:10is possible in clean energy
12:12because it brings peace
12:14and life
12:14and love.
12:15The border between
12:20Venezuela and Colombia
12:21has remained calm
12:22despite tensions rising
12:24after a U.S. operation
12:25in Venezuela.
12:26What has changed
12:27is the reinforcements
12:28on the border.
12:29Soldiers have been dispatched
12:31in case of political upheaval
12:32to be able to protect Colombia
12:34in case there is an influx
12:36of Venezuelans
12:37into the country
12:38as there has been
12:39in the recent past.
12:41With Mahashweta Lala,
12:42Bureau Report,
12:43India Today.
12:48A subtle
12:49but consequential
12:51realignment
12:51is underway
12:52in South Asia's
12:53Pakistan
12:54and Bangladesh
12:55explore a defense
12:56partnership
12:57that could reshape
12:58regional equations.
12:59With Dhaka
13:00considering
13:00Pakistan-China
13:01fighter jets
13:02and New Delhi's
13:03influence under strain
13:04after Sheikh Hasina's
13:06exit,
13:06is India facing
13:08a strategic drift
13:09in its eastern
13:10neighborhood?
13:11Here is a report.
13:13There's a quiet
13:17but significant
13:18shift unfolding
13:19in South Asia
13:20and New Delhi
13:21is watching closely.
13:23Pakistan and Bangladesh
13:24are discussing
13:24a potential defense deal
13:26that could see Bangladesh
13:27by JF-17
13:28Thunderfighter jets,
13:30aircraft jointly developed
13:31by Pakistan
13:32and China.
13:33The talks took place
13:34in Islamabad
13:35between the Air Force
13:36chiefs of both countries
13:37and are being projected
13:38by Pakistan
13:38as part of its
13:39expanding arms export push.
13:41The timing is critical.
13:44These talks come months
13:45after the ouster
13:45of Sheikh Hasina
13:46in August 2024
13:47and even that severely
13:49strained Dhaka's
13:50relationship with New Delhi.
13:51Since then,
13:52Bangladesh has moved
13:53closer to Pakistan,
13:55resuming direct trade
13:56for the first time
13:56since ID71
13:57and stepping up
13:59military engagement.
14:00From India's perspective,
14:01this is a clear
14:02geopolitical shift.
14:04For decades,
14:05Bangladesh remained
14:06firmly aligned
14:06with India on security
14:08matters,
14:08especially under Hasina.
14:09Her removal has created
14:11space for Pakistan
14:12to re-enter Dhaka's
14:14strategic thinking,
14:15something unthinkable
14:16just a few years ago.
14:17Pakistan sees the JF-17
14:19as the backbone
14:19of its air force
14:20and a flagship export.
14:22Islamabad is aggressively
14:23marketing it
14:24after claiming
14:25operational success
14:26during last year's
14:27clashes with India,
14:28claims New Delhi
14:29has strongly disputed.
14:31Bangladesh's interest
14:32is not just about jets.
14:34Pakistan has also
14:35promised fast-track
14:36delivery of
14:36Super Mushak
14:37trainer aircraft
14:38along with training
14:39and long-term
14:40technical support.
14:41A full defence ecosystem.
14:43From India's point of view,
14:44this raises three concerns.
14:47First, China's shadow.
14:48The JF-17
14:49is a Pakistan-China
14:50joint project.
14:51Any induction
14:52into Bangladesh's air force
14:53would expand
14:54Chinese-linked military
14:55hardware
14:56in India's eastern neighbourhood.
14:57Second,
14:58strategic balance.
15:00While the JF-17
15:01does not dramatically
15:02alter the regional
15:03air power equation,
15:04deeper Pakistan-Bangladesh
15:06defence ties dilute
15:07India's long-standing
15:09influence in Dhaka.
15:10Third,
15:11political uncertainty.
15:13Bangladesh is heading
15:14into elections
15:14under an interim government
15:15led by Muhammad Yunus.
15:17A future government
15:18that includes
15:18Islamist elements
15:19historically linked
15:21to Pakistan
15:21could further complicate
15:23India's security calculus.
15:25For Pakistan,
15:26this is about money
15:27and messaging.
15:28Islamabad is pitching
15:29arms exports
15:30as an economic lifeline
15:31with its defence minister
15:33even claiming
15:33weapon sales
15:34could free Pakistan
15:36from IMF dependents,
15:37a bold assertion
15:38to say the least.
15:40For India,
15:40the message is clear.
15:42Bangladesh is no longer
15:44a guaranteed strategic partner.
15:46New Delhi will need
15:46sharper diplomacy,
15:48economic engagement
15:49and security outreach
15:50to prevent Pakistan
15:51and China
15:52from filling the vacuum.
15:54In South Asia,
15:55alliances rarely collapse
15:56overnight,
15:57but they do shift.
15:59Quietly
15:59and sometimes
16:00permanently.
16:02With Farhan Khan,
16:03Pure Report,
16:04India Today Global.
16:11And news just coming in.
16:13United States Supreme Court
16:14is likely to pass orders
16:16or give opinion tomorrow
16:17on Trump's executive decision
16:19to impose tariffs
16:20on imports
16:21from various countries.
16:23This is going to impact
16:24India as well.
16:25The arguments in the case
16:26were heard in September,
16:27November 2025.
16:29The U.S. Supreme Court
16:30has notified Friday
16:32as opinion day
16:33on its official website.
16:35That's news
16:35that's just coming in.
16:37It's going to be a huge,
16:38almost a judgment day
16:39in many ways than one.
16:41To discuss this and more,
16:42I'm being joined
16:42by my colleague,
16:43Pranay Upadhyay.
16:44Pranay,
16:45a big day.
16:46Many say that this could
16:47either be a breather
16:49for India
16:49or it could even spell trouble.
16:52In any which way,
16:54everybody's closely monitoring
16:55what's going to happen tomorrow,
16:57especially exporters
16:58in India.
16:59Absolutely, Geeta.
17:00This would be a test
17:01for U.S. President
17:02Donald Trump's
17:03tariff policies
17:04because for long
17:04it's been debated,
17:05it has been challenged
17:06in the lower court
17:07and now the matter
17:07has gone to the U.S. Supreme Court
17:09and now the U.S. Supreme Court
17:11is going to decide
17:12and the verdict will come.
17:14So not only it would,
17:16you know,
17:16India would be looking
17:17at this court verdict
17:19and, you know,
17:19pronouncement
17:20from the U.S. Supreme Court
17:21but the world
17:22would be looking at it
17:24because President Donald Trump
17:25so far has claimed
17:26that this is the success
17:27of his tariff policies
17:29which has brought billions
17:30to U.S. exchequer
17:31but now the court
17:32will rule
17:33whether he has
17:34those powers or not
17:35because as per
17:36the U.S. Constitution
17:37the taxation
17:38lies with the U.S. Congress
17:41and you need
17:41congressional approval
17:42while President Donald Trump
17:44has used emergency powers
17:45to implement
17:46the tariff policies
17:48which he announced
17:49in April
17:50and then implemented
17:51in August and September
17:53and we have seen
17:53how India got impacted
17:55and now President Donald Trump
17:56and his close allies
17:56are calling for
17:58further revision
17:59which has provision
18:00for, you know,
18:01even 500% tariffs.
18:03Right.
18:04Right.
18:05We'll have to now wait
18:06and see how the Supreme Court
18:07opines on this.
18:08It is a major test
18:09for Donald Trump.
18:10Pranav Padhaya,
18:10thank you so much
18:11for joining me.
18:14That's all in this edition
18:15of India Today Global
18:16but before I go,
18:17India is drawing
18:18a hard line
18:19on artificial intelligence
18:20and online accountability
18:22warning Elon Musk's ex
18:24that it could lose
18:25legal immunity
18:26if its AI chatbot
18:28Grok continues
18:29generating obscene content.
18:31With women's safety,
18:32consent and platform
18:34responsibility at stake,
18:35is New Delhi ready
18:36to make an example
18:37of big tech?
18:39Goodbye.
18:39India has issued
18:45a strong warning
18:46to Elon Musk-owned
18:47platform X
18:49and this time
18:49the stakes are high.
18:51The centre says
18:52X could lose
18:53its crucial safe
18:54harbour protection
18:55if it fails to act
18:56against obscene content
18:58being generated
18:59through its AI chatbot
19:00Grok.
19:01So,
19:02what's triggered the alarm?
19:03Authorities say
19:04Grok's so-called
19:05spicy mode
19:06is being misused
19:07to create
19:07and circulate
19:08obscene images
19:09and videos
19:10of women
19:10including celebrities
19:12without consent.
19:14The government
19:14has called this
19:15a grave misuse
19:16of artificial intelligence
19:17warning that
19:18it endangers
19:19the dignity,
19:20privacy and safety
19:21of women and children.
19:23On January 2nd,
19:24the Ministry of Electronics
19:25and IT
19:25sent X a formal notice
19:27ordering the platform
19:28to remove flagged content
19:30within 72 hours
19:31and submit
19:32an auditable compliance report.
19:34The concern goes deeper
19:35than user misuse.
19:37Officials say
19:38Grok is a platform
19:39provided AI tool
19:40meaning X could be seen
19:42as actively enabling
19:43harmful content
19:44not just hosting it.
19:47That distinction
19:47weakens X's legal shield
19:49under Indian law.
19:51If safe harbour status
19:52under section 79
19:53of the IT Act is revoked,
19:55X could face direct legal
19:57and even criminal liability
19:58for content on its platform.
20:01The government
20:01has also flagged
20:02violations of the IT rules
20:042021 and Bhartia Nagarik
20:06Suraksha Sanhita
20:07which deal with obscene
20:08and exploitative material.
20:10This is a new territory
20:11for X.
20:12Back in 2021,
20:13it briefly lost
20:14safe harbour protection
20:15for failing to meet
20:16compliance requirements
20:17in India.
20:18While X says engineers
20:19are working on tighter safeguards,
20:21the message from New Delhi
20:22is clear.
20:24In the age of generative AI,
20:26platforms may no longer
20:27get immunity
20:28without accountability.
20:29And this time,
20:31India appears ready
20:32to take a hard step.
20:33With Shorik Shaha,
20:34your report,
20:35India Today Global.
Be the first to comment