The US' 'handling' of war in Iran, and Trump's 'Project Freedom' has sparked a cold war between the allies, the US & Saudi Arabia. According to reports, in May, Saudi Arabia denied US, military access for Project Freedom, the operation to open Strait of Hormuz. However, Saudi Arabia, eventually backed down after US threatened to block delivery of interceptors. But the incident has led to a wider standoff between the two countries. #CutTheClutter Episode XXXX explains what triggered this rift between Trump & Saudi Crown Prince, why it is significant and what's next for US & Saudi Arabia ties. ThePrint Editor-In-Chief Shekhar Gupta also details how a new Middle East Security architecture is now taking shape. Read The New York Times report here: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/01/us/politics/trump-saudi-crown-prince-iran.html Read the Wall Street Journal story here: https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-us-relationship-iran-war-ca0f31a0

ThePrintAM: What are the agreement signed by India & Japan after Modi-Takaichi talks?

ThePrintPod: Born in the USA: What US Supreme Court’s ruling on birthright citizenship means for Indian immigrants

ThePrintPod: Frontier model security risks, an annulled poll, deepfakes—UN report warns AI is outpacing safeguards

Since post-poll ‘reconciliation’, at least 16 ex-ministers, 300 district functionaries and more than 1,000 cadres have quit AIADMK, with many crossing over to ruling TVK.----more----https://theprint.in/politics/as-more-aiadmk-ex-ministers-join-vijays-tvk-spotlight-on-how-eps-velumani-patch-up-crumbled/2976053/

Why has the Middle East witnessed endless conflicts over the last 100 years? How were the region's borders shaped, and by whom? #CutTheClutter Episode 1858 details the fraught history of Middle East, how it sowed eternal conflict & its colonial straight-line borders. ThePrint Editor-In-Chief Shekhar Gupta also explains its link to India's Partition.

https://theprint.in/politics/rss-breaks-silence-on-ram-temple-theft-severe-punishment-thwart-conspiracies-of-anti-hindu-forces/2976718/

BJP has created a political miracle by making India almost a one-party state despite being well short of a Lok Sabha majority. Congress is the only significant Opposition that remains intact. Thereby, Indian politics has also become a two-party contest. The Congress party’s abandonment of nationalism is the most intriguing aspect of its post-2014 politics. The real Congress was never a party of bleeding heart pacifists. Watch this week’s #NationalInterest with Shekhar Gupta.