This is apropos a letter to the Editor titled ‘How Ukraine and Iran rewrote the rules of war’ carried by the newspaper on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and yesterday.
Modern warfare is no longer fought exclusively with tanks, aircraft and artillery. It is increasingly fought through drones, cyber capabilities, intelligence networks, financial systems, supply chains and strategic chokepoints. Geography itself has become a weapon.
The implications are profound.
Middle powers throughout the world are closely observing these developments. They see that drones costing thousands of dollars can threaten systems worth millions. They see that intelligence and innovation can offset numerical disadvantages. They see that geography can provide leverage against stronger opponents. Most importantly, they see that determined resistance can frustrate even the most powerful adversaries.
Yet this lesson contains a dangerous paradox. If asymmetric warfare allows smaller states to resist larger powers, what happens when larger powers become frustrated? The answer may lie in the world’s nuclear arsenals.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
The writer is a former Press Secretary to the President, An ex-Press Minister at Embassy of Pakistan to France, a former MD, SRBC Macomb, Detroit, Michigan