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Sources had told NDTV that while the aircraft landed safely, it subsequently developed a technical issue that meant it could not leave

It has been nearly two weeks the British F-35B fighter jet made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram airport. Since then there has been no sign the American-made aircraft, from the world’s most expensive fighter jet programme – will take flight soon.

And now the British High Commission in Bengaluru has responded to a question from NDTV about the plane’s status, and also issued a statement on this subject.

The advanced fifth-generation fighter – part of the Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group deployed to the Indo-Pacific – was returning to its base after completing joint maritime exercises with the Indian Navy when it made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram.

“A UK F-35 aircraft was unable to return to HMS Prince of Wales due to adverse weather conditions. Prioritising safety, the aircraft diverted to Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in India, where it landed safely. The aircraft has subsequently developed an engineering issue whilst on the ground which precluded its return to the Carrier,” the High Commission said.

“Engineers from HMS Prince of Wales assessed the aircraft and it was decided that the support of a UK based engineering team was needed. At this time, we do not have a forecast for the aircraft being repaired. To minimise disruptions to the regular airport operations, the aircraft will be moved to a space in the Maintenance Repair and Overhaul facility hangar once specialist equipment and UK engineering teams arrive,” the Commission added. 

Earlier sources had told NDTV that while the aircraft landed safely, it subsequently developed a technical issue that meant it could not leave. Engineers on board the British carrier conducted an initial assessment and then summoned a specialist team from England to carry out the repairs.

Meanwhile, to avoid interference with regular airport operations, the jet will be relocated to the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul, or MRO, facility hangar while repairs are carried out.

Also, the Royal Navy had declined Air India’s offer to allocate hangar space to park the aircraft. Sources said it is highly likely that concerns over “protected technologies” may have delayed any decision on the Royal Navy’s part to take the F-35B inside a hangar.

The High Commission also noted the UK government has been working closely with its Indian counterpart, as well as Air Force, Navy, and airport officials, throughout this time.

“The safe landing, logistics, and continued security support provided by India reflect the close coordination and strengthening defence relationship between our two nations.”

There is no timeline, as of now, for when the jet will take off.

Trump, for his part, likened the conflict between Israel and Iran to “two kids in a school yard” fighting. “They fight like hell. You can’t stop them. Let them fight for about two, three minutes. Then it’Then it’s easier to stop them,” he said.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised US President Donald Trump for brokering the Israel-Iran ceasefire during a press conference in The Hague today, going as far as calling Trump “daddy” in an unusual compliment.

NATO leaders are preparing for a two-day summit that could either unify the 32-member alliance around a new defence spending pledge or deepen existing divisions.

Rutte credited Trump for driving allies to commit more funds, saying it “wouldn’t have happened” without him. Leaders formally agreed to raise annual defence spending to 5% of GDP, meeting a demand Trump has pushed for years.

“Today we will decide to go to 5%,” Rutte declared.

Earlier, he described Trump as “a man of strength” and “a man of peace,” applauding him for securing the ceasefire between Israel and Iran.

Rutte also praised the US bombing campaign on Iran’s nuclear facilities, where 14 bunker-busting bombs, each weighing 13,000kg (30,000lb), were deployed, calling it “extremely impressive.” He said the strikes signalled to other nations that Trump is “a man of peace” prepared to wield the “enormous strength of the US military.”

Trump, for his part, likened the conflict between Israel and Iran to “two kids in a school yard” fighting. “They fight like hell. You can’t stop them. Let them fight for about two, three minutes. Then it’s easier to stop them,” he said.

Rutte added, “Then daddy has to sometimes use strong language.”

“You have to use strong language. You have to use a certain word,” Trump responded.

Trump dropped the ‘f-word’ live on TV when he expressed frustration when Iran and Israel violated the ceasefire. “Israel and Iran have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f**k they’re doing”, the US President had said.

The fragile ceasefire hung over the summit on Wednesday, amid reports that US intelligence assessments suggest the bombing has only set Iran’s nuclear program back by a few months, despite Trump’s claims that it was “obliterated.”

Trump pushed back on the intelligence, saying, “The intelligence says we don’t know. It could’ve been very severe. That’s what the intelligence suggests. It was very severe. There was obliteration.”

He further stated, “That hit ended the war,” drawing a parallel to the end of World War II. “I don’t want to use an example of Hiroshima. I don’t want to use an example of Nagasaki. But that was essentially the same thing. That ended that war.”

Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced an investigation into how those classified intelligence findings were leaked.

You know, we had a little rough times sometimes, but he couldn’t have been nicer, said Trump of the meeting, seemingly referring to an infamous shouting match between the two leaders.

Trump said the meeting with Zelensky “couldn’t have been nicer”. (FILE)

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday his closely watched meeting in The Hague with Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky “couldn’t have been nicer”.

“You know, we had a little rough times sometimes, but he couldn’t have been nicer,” said Trump of the meeting, seemingly referring to an infamous shouting match between the two leaders in the Oval Office

The Iran-Israel conundrum solved, Trump is moving back to the big one – stopping Russia’s war on Ukraine, a promise he made that got him elected to a second term.

Donald Trump – intent on brokering at least one peace deal between warring nations – declared Tuesday he turned down Vladimir Putin‘s offer of help with the Iran-Israel conflict, instead reminding the Russian President he needs his help to bring the war in Ukraine to an end.

Trump, interacting with reporter aboard Air Force One en route to a NATO summit in the Netherlands, claimed Putin called him and asked, “Can I help you with Iran?” The United States President said he shot back, “No, I don’t need help with Iran. I need help with you.”

And indeed he didn’t.

A reality TV star-turned-politician, Trump has been front-and-centre in ceasefire talks to end Tel Aviv and Tehran’s 12-day conflict, which at times threatened to spiral out of control and trigger an all-out war in West Asia, to add to the three years of death and destruction in Ukraine.

Trump and his team reportedly spoke to Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to settle terms of the ceasefire, but still had to talk tough after both sides appeared to violate the deal within hours of it being announced.

Shortly after Trump’s first ceasefire announcement Israel said Iran had fired missiles, only for the latter to insist it had not. Israel then ordered retaliatory air strikes and fighter jets were airborne before a furious American President dropped a bomb, a F-bomb, of his own.

He raged at Israel and Iran for ruining his “complete and total ceasefire” plan, claiming that “they don’t know what the f*** they are doing”. An hour later he posted on Truth Social, “ISRAEL is not going to attack Iran. All planes will turn around and head home… ceasefire is in effect!”

And 48 hours into the announcement, the President’s bluster seems to be holding Tel Aviv and Tehran at arms’ length, with neither side having launched missiles at each other since.

It wasn’t just publicly haranguing Netanyahu and Khamenei that did the trick.

The conflict that began with Israel firing a barrage of missiles – over 330 munitions carried by 200 fighter jets over five waves – at Iranian nuclear facilities, missile bases, and military infrastructure early June 13 ended with a bang ten days later, after the US dropped half-a-dozen ‘bunker busters’.

Israel had attacked claiming Iran was on the verge of developing nuclear weapons – a claim the latter vehemently denied, insisting its programme was for civilian use only.

Trump, negotiating a new nuclear safeguards deal with Iran, was initially hands-off, but set a deadline and was persuaded to act after Israel said it could not strike three nuclear bases buried deep within mountains in Iran. Only the US’ ‘bunker busters’ could do that, Israel said.

The opportunity to simultaneously destroy Iran’s nuclear programme by targeting the Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz facilities – which Trump insists his air strikes did, even though new US intel suggests it only dealt a minor blow – and bully Tehran into submission was too good to resist.

But, after getting away with an air strike on an American base in Qatar – the US recognised a ‘face-saving’ attempt by Tehran and did not respond – Iran hinted its nuclear programme was not destroyed.

The “game is not over”, sources close to Khamenei said this week, after it emerged that a stockpile of 400kg of 60 per cent enriched uranium is ‘missing’.

Trump’s Russia-Ukraine Headache

Meanwhile, the Iran-Israel conundrum solved, Trump is moving back to the big one – stopping Russia’s war on Ukraine, a promise he made that got him elected to a second term but one not delivered so far.

The video of Trump’s press gaggle on Air Force One, posted on X by Ukrainian minister Tymofiy Mylovanov also included Trump talking about meeting Ukraine President Vladimir Zelensky at the summit. Asked what he would say to him, Trump smirked, “I’d say, ‘How you doing?’”

“He’s in a tough situation… should have never been there,” the US President concluded.

Russia and Ukraine spoke face-to-face in May and June, for the first time in over two years, but there has been no real progress on a ceasefire that can actually hold its ground. In fact, missile and drone strikes have intensified, with Kyiv even attacking air bases deep inside Russia.

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is on the way to become the first Indian to go to the International Space Station, said PM Modi.

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla carries with him the wishes, hopes, and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi as India took a cosmic leap this afternoon with the Indian astronaut lifting off for the International Space Station (ISS).

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the four-crewed Crew Dragon capsule blasted off at 12:05 pm (IST) from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

“We welcome the successful launch of the Space Mission carrying astronauts from India, Hungary, Poland and the US. The Indian Astronaut, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is on the way to become the first Indian to go to International Space Station. He carries with him the wishes, hopes and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians,” said PM Modi.

The Prime Minister also wished success to Group Captain Shukla, the spacecraft pilot, and the three other astronauts, mission commander Dr Peggy Whitson of the US, and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary.

His remarks follow President Droupadi Murmu comparing the mission, whose four crew members are from different countries, with the Sanskrit phrase “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, meaning the world is one big family.

“As Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla creates a new milestone in space for India, the whole nation is excited and proud of an Indian’s journey into the stars. He and his fellow astronauts of Axiom Mission 4 from the US, Poland, and Hungary prove the world is indeed one family – ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam‘,” said President Murmu.

The wide-ranging experiments to be performed by the crew will lead to new frontiers of scientific studies and space exploration, she added.

The Axiom-4 mission is a commercial venture between the Houston-based Axiom Space and NASA. During their 14-day mission, the astronauts will conduct 60 scientific experiments, seven of which have been proposed by Indian researchers.

Group Captain Shukla, who has become the second Indian astronaut to travel to space over 40 years after Rakesh Sharma’s 1984 feat, will also participate in a space-to-earth outreach programme and will likely interact with a VIP from space as well.

The mission, referred to as Mission Akash Ganga, paves the way for India’s first human spaceflight. “This is the start of India’s human space program. Jai Hind, Jai Bharat,” the Group Captain said in his first message from the orbit after a successful lift-

At a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union Cabinet observed a two-minute silence as a tribute to those whose constitutionally guaranteed democratic rights were taken away and who were then subjected to unimaginable horrors.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday observed brief silence as a mark of tribute to the victims of the Emergency and resolved to commemorate and honour their sacrifices.

At a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union Cabinet observed a two-minute silence as a tribute to those whose constitutionally guaranteed democratic rights were taken away and who were then subjected to unimaginable horrors.

The Union Cabinet resolved to commemorate and honour the sacrifices of countless individuals who valiantly resisted the Emergency and its attempt at subversion of the spirit of the Indian Constitution which began in 1974 with a heavy-handed attempt at crushing the Navnirman Andolan and Sampoorna Kranti Abhiyan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

“The Union Cabinet paid tributes to their exemplary courage and valiant resistance to the Emergency’s excesses,” Vaishnaw said.

He said the year 2025 marks 50 years of the Samvidhan Hatya Diwas – an unforgettable chapter in the history of India where the Constitution was subverted, the Republic and democratic spirit of India was attacked, federalism was undermined, and fundamental rights, human liberty and dignity were suspended.

“The Union Cabinet reaffirmed that the people of India continue to repose unflinching faith in the Indian Constitution and the resilience of the country’s democratic ethos,” Vaishnaw said.

“It is as important for the young as it is for the old to draw inspiration from those who resisted dictatorial tendencies and stood firm to defend our Constitution and its democratic fabric,” the minister said.

Vaishnaw said India, as the Mother of Democracy, stands as an example of preserving, protecting and safeguarding constitutional values. “Let us, as a nation, renew our resolve to uphold our Constitution and its democratic and federal spirit,” Vaishnaw said.

The decision in this regard was taken during the Cabinet meeting under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The government on Wednesday approved the Rs 5,940-crore revised Jharia Master Plan (JMP) to deal with fire and rehabilitation of affected families.

The decision in this regard was taken during the Cabinet meeting under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The total financial outlay for the implementation of the revised plan is Rs 5,940.47 crore.

The revised JMP lays a much stronger emphasis on sustainable livelihood generation for families being resettled under the plan.

Targeted skill development programmes are to be undertaken and income-generating opportunities will be created to ensure economic self-reliance of the rehabilitated families.

The Jharia Master Plan for dealing with fire, subsidence and rehabilitation in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad district was approved by the Centre in August 2009, with an implementation period of 10 years and a pre-implementation period of two years with an estimated investment of Rs 7,112.11 crore. The plan expired in 2021.

Mr Tharoor led a government delegation to the US, Brazil, and three other countries to carry India’s anti-terrorism message after Operation Sindoor.

Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday said his opinion piece in a prominent English daily this week – on Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s ‘energy, dynamism and willingness to engage (with other countries)’ post-Operation Sindoor – should not be viewed as him ‘leaping to join’ the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

He said the article – which was also shared by the Prime Minister’s Office on X, a show of support that has raised eyebrows – was a statement of national unity, and about standing up for India. In the article Mr Tharoor praised Mr Modi as a ‘prime asset’ for India and called for ‘greater support’ for the PM.

The Congress MP – whose relationship with his party is on shaky ground over positive comments about Prime Minister Modi, comments that seem at odds with the party’s criticism of the Modi government’s foreign policy – also said the article only highlighted the success of the Op Sindoor diplomatic outreach.

“It is not a sign of my leaping to join the Prime Minister’s party… as some people have, unfortunately, been implying. It is a statement of national unity… national interest… and standing up for India,” the four-time Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha MP said.

Mr Tharoor was one of a handful of opposition MPs picked by the government to take part in a global diplomatic initiative after Op Sindoor, India’s military response to the Pahalgam terror attack.

Shashi Tharoor meets Narendra Modi after the Op Sindoor delegation returned to India.

Mr Tharoor led the delegation to the United States and four other countries, and returned to India to be debriefed by a friendly Prime Minister, adding to whispers of a switch.

His appointment to that delegation prompted another wave of criticism too, with sections of the Congress calling him a ‘super spokesperson’ for the BJP’s ‘publicity stunts’.

“I did so to serve India… and I am very proud to have the opportunity to do so… believe that political differences should stop at the borders… there is no such thing as a ‘BJP foreign policy’ or a ‘Congress foreign policy’, there is only ‘Indian foreign policy’ and ‘Indian national interest’.”

“People always tend to see all this in the context of today’s news. It is an article in which I describe the success of this outreach mission, which, amongst other things, showcased the unity of all parties behind the matter of vital national interest,” Mr Tharoor said.

“So, I said the PM himself demonstrated dynamism and energy in engaging… he has travelled to more countries than any other PM, and done so to take India’s message around the world.”

“And, to my mind, what we all did was give his efforts that back-up by bringing to bear the strength of all of India’s different political parties, groups, and religions, and convey to the world that India stands united… today against terrorism, tomorrow it could be something else…”

Tharoor’s Congress Future

Mr Tharoor’s Congress future, many believe, has been under a cloud since 2021, when he joined a group of ‘dissenters’ – the ‘G-23′ – senior leaders who questioned the Gandhis’ leadership style after successive election defeats. He has acknowledged differences of opinion between himself and the Congress leadership; he even met Rahul Gandhi, but nothing seemed to come of that meeting.

Speaking to last week, he again played down any friction with the party, calling such incidents “differences of opinion… with only some elements of leadership”.

When asked him how he would define his relationship with the Congress today, he pointed out he had been loyal to the party and its ideology for the last 16 years.

Congress chief Kharge’s remarks come amid the buzz over an article Shashi Tharoor wrote about India’s outreach in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor

Hours after Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge snubbed party leader Shashi Tharoor over his praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Thiruvananthapuram MP put up a post on X that was widely seen as a reply to his party colleagues’ barbs. “Don’t ask permission to fly. The wings are yours. And the sky belongs to no one,” read the message with a bird’s photograph. 

Weighing in on the chatter over Mr Tharoor’s praise for Prime Minister Modi, party chief Kharge today said it’s “country first for us, but for some people, it’s Modi first”. This is, by far, the strongest snub to Mr Tharoor from the Congress leadership. Earlier, Mr Tharoor’s party colleagues fired barbs at him over his remarks in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor.

Mr Kharge’s remarks came amid the buzz over an article Mr Tharoor wrote about India’s outreach in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor. In the article published in The Hindu newspaper, he said Prime Minister Modi’s energy, dynamism and willingness to engage remained a “prime asset” for India on the global stage but deserved greater backing. His remarks irked the Congress and widened the rift between the leadership and the diplomat-turned-politician. The main Opposition has been targeting the government and is not amused at Mr Tharoor not voicing the party’s narrative.

At an event in Moscow, Mr Tharoor said his article was not a sign of his “leaping to join” the BJP, but a statement of national unity, interest and standing up for India.

The Congress yesterday distanced itself from Mr Tharoor’s remark. “It may be his own opinion, it is not the opinion of the Congress party. It is not the Congress’s view since we have presented our views with evidence and proof,” party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate told the media.

Mr Kharge today said Mr Tharoor is very fluent in English. “I can’t read English well. His language is very good. That’s why we have made him a Congress Working Committee member,” he said.

The Congress chief added that in the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack, which left 26 innocents dead, the whole Opposition said it stands with the Army. “We said the country comes first, party later. Some people feel ‘Modi first, country later’. What can we do?”

Mr Tharoor has been articulating New Delhi’s position to national and international media in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and India’s counterstrike, Operation Sindoor. His sharp remarks endeared him even to critics, who praised him for setting aside party differences in an hour of crisis.

The Congress, which assured full support to the Centre in its action against those behind the Pahalgam terror attack, later changed tack and asked the government to come clean on what led to the ceasefire and questioned what role the US played in it. Against this backdrop, Mr Tharoor’s remarks backing the government and the latter choosing him to lead an Indian delegation did not sit well with a section of the main Opposition.

It was Amit Shah’s second visit to Maharashtra in two consecutive months, which is also seen as an attempt to connect with the local voters, months before the civic body polls kickstart in the state.

In a bid to promote India’s cooperative system and boost the rural economy, Home Minister Amit Shah addressed two high-profile events in Mumbai. The first event was hosted by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED), marked the celebration of the upcoming International Cooperative Year 2025. The second event commemorated 100 years of the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (MACCIA).

It was Amit Shah’s second visit to Maharashtra in two consecutive months, which is also seen as an attempt to connect with the local voters, months before the civic body polls kickstart in the state.

Addressing the gathering, Mr Shah stated that while cooperation is often seen as an economic system elsewhere, in India, it reflects a way of life rooted in shared tradition and collective progress. “To come together, live together, and move towards a common aim – to be together in happiness and sadness – is the soul of our country,” the Home Minister said.

He underlined how successful cooperative models like AMUL, IFFCO, KRIBHCO, and NAFED have transformed lives. “In Gujarat, 36 lakh rural women are part of Amul. None of them invested more than Rs 100, yet they created a turnover of Rs 80,000 crore,” he said, adding that money directly reaches them.

Mr Shah announced that NAFED had already started procuring crops such as corn and pulses on Minimum Support Price (MSP), with an app-based system enabling farmers to choose better prices in the open market if available. He said such digital platforms would help farmers efficiently plan all three seasonal crops and shared examples from Uttar Pradesh, where triple-cropping had increased rural engagement.

He noted that the ministry, long in demand but delayed due to its categorisation under the State List, has created a national cooperative database, increasing the chances of the cooperatives reaching across the country. This includes information about cooperatives in every village and helps identify regions for expansion. Plans are underway to set up two lakh new Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) with integrated services including dairies, fisheries, petrol pumps, gas agencies, warehouses, and even common service centres that offer everything from ticket booking to certificates.

“Corporate and cooperative tax laws have now been aligned,” Mr Shah said, mentioning that even long-standing issues like the Rs 15,000 crore sugarcane mill tax dispute in Maharashtra were resolved under the Modi government.

He also laid out plans for ethanol blending using corn, incentivised with increased procurement prices, reducing import dependence and increasing farmer income.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, speaking at the same event, stated that no other place was more appropriate to celebrate the cooperative movement than Maharashtra, which boasts over 120 years of cooperative history.

Mr Fadnavis said the state had exceeded the central targets and created new rural economic linkages. He urged NAFED to resolve the issue of procurement shortfalls, especially regarding ‘poti’ (grain bags), and assured continued support for cooperative growth.

At the centenary event of the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (MACCIA), all three – Amit Shah, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy Eknath Shinde – underscored the role of cooperative and industrial synergy in Maharashtra’s development.

Mr Shinde praised the government’s proactive style: “Our government takes no-reason, on-the-spot decisions,” he said. Referring to the earlier Maha Vikas Aghadi regime, Mr Shinde said, “The Chamber would meet them and ask them to act – I used to tell them, Amit Bhai would suggest something, we’d do it, and it would get done.”

Amit Shah, speaking at MACCIA, noted that Maharashtra continues to lead industrial investment in the country, housing India’s largest ports and boasting the highest number of women income tax payers.
He recalled concerns over Mumbai’s traffic but said the Centre had allocated Rs 7,000 crore for the Metro project.

Without naming him, Mr Shah appeared to criticise former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, asking rhetorically, “What has been done for Mumbai? What’s your vision?”

Mr Shah traced the shift in governance focus, stating, “When I started in politics, farmer suicides were always being discussed.” He highlighted the implementation of the Jalyukt Shivar Yojana in Marathwada and Vidarbha and contrasted earlier central assistance to Maharashtra – Rs 1.91 lakh crore – with the Modi-era figure of Rs 7 lakh crore.

He concluded by stating that only when both agriculture and industry function efficiently can development be meaningful. “It’s this approach that has helped India become the fourth-largest economy in the world.”