Tensions between Iran and the United States have sharply escalated after Tehran issued a formal warning outlining its readiness to retaliate against American military assets across the region if provoked. In a strongly worded letter addressed to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Iran accused Washington of unlawful threats and urged immediate intervention by the UN Security Council to prevent further escalation. Tehran emphasized that while it does not seek war, it will exercise its right to decisive and proportionate self-defence under international law if any military action is initiated against it. WATCH

The global security landscape has fundamentally shifted. At midnight, the New START Treaty—the final remaining pillar of arms control between the United States and Russia—officially expired. For the first time since 1969, the world’s two largest nuclear superpowers are no longer bound by any legally binding limits on their strategic warheads.