Indian CDS's Admission on Loss of Fighters Triggers Mixed Responses; Two Systems, Two Spheres: The Slow, Painful Divorce of the US and China

A newsletter from The Wire | Founded by Tanweer Alam, Sidharth Bhatia, Pratik Kanjilal, Seema Chishti, Sushant Singh, MK Venu, and Siddharth Varadarajan | Contributing writer: Kalrav Joshi, with additional inputs by Anirudh SK

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Over to Siddharth Varadarajan for today’s Cable

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Snapshot of the day

June 2, 2025

Siddharth Varadarajan

United States prosecutors are investigating whether Gautam Adani’s companies imported Iranian liquefied petroleum gas into India through their Mundra port, the Wall Street Journal reports. A WSJ investigation found tankers traveling between Mundra and the Persian Gulf exhibited traits experts say are common for ships evading sanctions, the report said. The US Justice Department is reviewing activities of several LPG tankers used to ship cargoes to Adani Enterprises, the WSJ said, citing people familiar with the matter.

In a detailed press release, the Adani group has denied having any dealings with Iran in hydrocarbons, including LNG.

Importing Iranian energy products is not prohibited in India. If the WSJ story is true, the US is attempting to enforce Trump’s unilateral diktat: “Any Country or person who buys ANY AMOUNT of OIL or PETROCHEMICALS from Iran will be subject to, immediately, Secondary Sanctions. They will not be allowed to do business with the United States of America in any way, shape, or form.”

So far, there is no indication that the Modi government has taken up or intends to take up this attempt by the US to seek extraterritorial compliance of its own domestic laws. Unlike India, the EU and others have devised countermeasures to protect their companies from this growing menace.

Over the weekend, Chief of Defence Staff Anil Chauhan admitted India lost