Revisiting Operation Swift Retort: How Pakistan Outplayed India in 2019

The crisis of February 2019 was far more than a transient border skirmish; it was a fundamental clash of two divergent conceptions of strategic thought under a nuclear overhang. Indian objectives were clear: to win the election and try to create space for punitive actions for bigger aims under the nuclear threshold with the pretext of labelling Pakistan as a terrorist-harbouring state. 

Read More »

Seven Years and Counting: How PAF has Reshaped Aerial Warfare

‘What all could have happened if we had Rafale?’ This statement by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi surfaced after the 2019 India-Pakistan aerial showdown. The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) failed airstrikes near Balakot met a swift broad daylight response by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) under Operation Swift Retort.

Read More »

The Space of the World: Can Human Solidarity Survive Social Media and What If It Can’t?

Two to three decades ago, humanity committed an enormous mistake. We handed over the design of our social world to business, something we should have never done. Is it too early to rectify this mistake? Nick Couldry who is a professor of Media, Communications and Social Theory at the London School of Economics and Political Science, in his book, The Space of the World, asks the similar question.

Read More »

The War Below: Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives

In today’s age of technology, marked by ever-increasing digitisation and a new shift towards green energy, the topic of critical and rare earth minerals has become increasingly prevalent. From fighter jet engines and submarines to MRI machines and computer screens, critical minerals such as lithium and cobalt form the backbone of contemporary technology.

Read More »
Security

The Trilateral Shift

On 15 January 2026, the Pakistani defence production minister confirmed that an agreement for a new trilateral defence deal between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and TĂ¼rkiye is in the pipeline, other than the Pakistan-Saudi bilateral deal announced last year. Though no formal accord has been signed as yet, nor have any terms been made public, the countries’ acknowledgement of the long-discussed deal has nonetheless inspired considerable discourse regarding its potential.

Read More »