Saba Abbasi

Saba Abbasi

Research Assistant

Saba Abbasi

Professional Experience

Saba Abbasi is a Research Assistant at the Centre for Aerospace & Security Studies (CASS), Islamabad. Her research explores the evolving and multidisciplinary dimensions of national security, particularly strategic implications of emerging technologies across military and non-military sectors. She holds an MPhil in Strategic Studies from the National Defence University and earned her undergraduate degree in Space Science from the University of the Punjab, Pakistan.

Publications

Prepared to Prevail: PAF’s Road to May 2025

May 14, 2026

Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos was a watershed moment for the air forces of Pakistan and India. The silent years of Pakistan Air Force (PAF)’s preparation that led to the outstanding outcome of the May 2025 war continue to be of global interest. With international air forces studying PAF’s kill chain model and arms markets prioritising Chinese platforms, because of how they were operated by Pakistani pilots, PAF carries the honour of being a formidable air force that has made the world rethink airpower and the future of air combat.
However, before May 2025, it was 2019’s Operation Swift Retort that had set the tone for PAF’s response to any future aggressive action by the adversary. Pakistan clearly anticipated that India would repeat its tactics and therefore remained prepared. It consolidated its capability and capacity in the face of the perpetual threat of India’s misadventure. Post Balakot incident, PAF continued to crystallise its offensive defence doctrine, in which decisive air actions would be executed to uphold deterrence without triggering uncontrollable escalation.

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The Return of Great Powers: Russia, China, and the Next World War (New York: Dutton, 2024)

April 2, 2026

The Return of Great Powers: Russia, China, and the Next World War is a comprehensive guide that seeks to understand the major global shifts in contemporary times. It provides an analysis of the state of international politics and acts as a guide to navigate the intricacies of the current geopolitical landscape. With an understanding of the role, motives, and aspirations of the key actors involved, the book offers a detailed, nuanced, and in-depth commentary on the current world order and where it is headed.  

The book’s author, Jim Sciutto is CNN’s Chief National Security Correspondent, who also served as Chief of Staff to US Ambassador Gary Locke in China from 2011 to 2013. The analysis in the book is drawn from interviews with the USA’s senior policymakers and military figures. The book incorporates extensive use of the primary data drawn from those interviews.

In his book, Jim Scuitto discusses the ‘flash points’, which

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A Pause in Chaos: Iran’s Unrest on Hold, not Halted

February 19, 2026

Economic dysfunction has been a consistent reason for riots in recent years. Countries such as Bangladesh, Srilanka, Nepal, and most recently Iran witnessed mass protests emanating from economic turmoil. Unemployment, inflation, and mismanagement of resources led the masses to express their discontent through protest and strife.

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Trump’s Coercive Diplomacy: America’s Harder Turn

January 28, 2026

President Donald Trump renamed the Department of Defense (DOD) to the Department of War in September 2025. Then, just a month later, he threatened at least three countries with war. Trump’s economic war was waged on most states, in the form of tariffs, from the day he assumed office, but the threats and signalling toward an armed confrontation have been growing more frequent and explicit.

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