US Senate confirms Indian-American scientist as head of America's top science funding body
Washington: The US Senate has confirmed eminent Indian-American scientist Dr Sethuraman Panchanathan as the Director of the National Science Foundation, a top American body supporting fundamental research in non-medical fields of science and engineering.
Panchanathan, 58, from the Arizona State University, would head the NSF, the top American science funding body that has an annual budget of USD 7.4 billion.
Known as Panch among his friends and family, he is considered as a transformational leader whose human-centered efforts have led to positive changes on a global scale.
His unanimous confirmation on Friday by the US Senate at a time of bitter political divide is rare in the current Congress and reflective of his popularity as a top scientist. In fact, his nomination process was fast tracked by the Senate.
He would replace France C rdova, whose six-year term ended in March, as the 15th director of the NSF. He is expected to take office on July 6.
My personal mission is to inspire, empower and serve humanity through life-changing innovations that have the potential to alter the face of how we view 'different abilities' on a global scale," Panchanathan was quoted as saying on his personal website.
He is the second Indian-American ever to be nominated to the prestigious science position with the first being Dr Subra Suresh who served from October 2010 to March 2013.
He has a universal support with Republicans and Democrats. a unanimous approved confirmation in the Senate this shows a great guy for the job. The Indiaspora community is so proud that someone like him is representing not just us but the greater community, Indiaspora founder and eminent venture capitalist M R Rangaswami told PTI.
Panchanathan, who has been an active member of Indiaspora, is the right person for the job especially at a time when the country is facing challenges from China, Rangaswami said, adding that the NSF needs to play an even more critical role as we move ahead .
Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee said that at this important moment in the Foundation's history, we pause to celebrate the past 70 years of transformative discoveries while keeping eyes on the challenges ahead.
I have great confidence that Dr Panchanathan's proven leadership and vision for disrupting the status quo will help usher in a bright future of scientific breakthroughs for the benefit of the American people. I look forward to working with him to advance the foundation's critical research and STEM education mission in the years ahead, Johnson said.
Panchanathan's years of experience in research and academia have prepared him for this role, said House Science, Space and Technology Committee Ranking Member Frank Lucas.
I'm looking forward to working with him on our shared goal of keeping America the world leader in science and technology.
I'm glad Dr Panchanathan's confirmation was fast-tracked so that he can begin work as soon as possible NSF's work has always been critical to America's scientific progress and technological competitiveness, Lucas said.
Panchanathan is the Vice President for Strategic Initiatives of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). He was Chair of the Council on Research of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities and Co-Chair of the Extreme Innovation Taskforce of the Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils.
He was appointed as Senior Advisor for Science and Technology by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey in 2018.
A Fellow of the NAI, American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and the Society of Optical Engineering, he earned a bachelor's degree in Physics from the University of Madras in 1981 and in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science in 1984.
He then earned his master's degree in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in 1986 and a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from University of Ottawa in 1989.
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Iran offers to reopen Strait of Hormuz if US lifts its blockade and the war ends: officials
Cairo (AP): Iran has offered to end its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for the US lifting its blockade on the country and an end to the war, while proposing that discussions on the larger question of its nuclear programme would come in a later phase, two regional officials said Monday.
US President Donald Trump seems unlikely to accept the offer, which was passed to the Americans by Pakistan and would leave unresolved the disagreements that led the US and Israel to go to war on February 28.
With a fragile ceasefire in place, the US and Iran are locked in a standoff over the strait, through which a fifth of the world's traded oil and gas passes in peacetime. The US blockade is designed to prevent Iran from selling its oil, depriving it of crucial revenue while also potentially creating a situation where Tehran has to shut off production because it has nowhere to store the oil.
The strait's closure, meanwhile, has put pressure on Trump, as oil and gasoline prices have skyrocketed ahead of crucial midterm elections, and it has pressured his Gulf allies, which use the waterway to export their oil and gas.
The closure has also had far-reaching effects throughout the world economy, raising the price of fertilizer, food and other basic goods.
The proposal would push off negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme to a later date. Trump said one of the major reasons he went to war was to deny Iran the ability to develop nuclear weapons.
The two officials, who had knowledge of the proposal, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations between Iranian and Pakistani officials this weekend. The Axios news outlet first reported Iran's proposal.
It came as Iran's foreign minister visited Russia, which has long been a key backer of Tehran. It's unclear what, if any, assistance Moscow might offer now.
Strait of Hormuz remains blocked
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Iran's ability to choke off traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, has proved one of its biggest strategic advantages in a war that has often boiled down to which side can take more pain.
Oil prices have risen steadily since the war began and tankers full of crude became stranded in the Persian Gulf, unable to safely transit through the strait and reach global distribution points.
On Monday, the spot price of Brent crude, the international standard, was trading at around $108 per barrel, nearly 50 per cent higher than when the war began.
Iranian foreign minister holds talks as negotiations with US stall
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Trump last week indefinitely extended the ceasefire the US and Iran agreed to on April 7 that has largely halted fighting. But a permanent settlement remains elusive in the war that has killed thousands of people.
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi landed in St. Petersburg on Monday morning ahead of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It is a good opportunity for us to consult with our Russian friends about the developments that have occurred in relation to the war during this period and what is happening now,” Araghchi said in a video interview posted by IRNA.
It comes as Pakistan has been seeking to revive stalled talks between Iran and the US, and negotiations had been expected in Islamabad over the weekend. Instead, Trump called off a trip by his envoys and suggested the talks could take place by phone instead.
Over the weekend, Araghchi made two stops in Pakistan and a visit to Oman, which shares the strait with Iran. He also spoke by phone with counterparts in Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Iran wants to persuade Oman to support a mechanism to collect tolls from vessels passing through the strait, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to discuss the matter.
Oman's response wasn't immediately clear.
The official, who is involved in mediation efforts, also said Iran insisted on ending the US blockade before new talks and that Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the countries.
Trump says Iran has offered a much better proposal
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Trump told journalists Saturday that after he called off a trip by his envoys to Pakistan, Iran sent a “much better” proposal.
He did not elaborate but stressed that one of his conditions is that Iran “will not have a nuclear weapon”.
Iran insists its programme is peaceful, but the US wants to remove Tehran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which could be used to build a bomb, should Tehran choose to pursue one.
Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,509 people in Lebanon, where fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group resumed two days after the Iran war started. Another 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 US service members in the region and six UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have been killed.
The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has been extended by three weeks. Hezbollah has not participated in the Washington-brokered diplomacy.
