Positive Public Administration (PPA) is a discourse that recalibrates the perspectives on public administration by refocusing attention towards the optimistic and the good. The recent publication of the volume ‘Pathways to Positive Public Administration’ (2024) offers the broadest coverage of this discourse. The 27 contributions in the book by scholars from five continents make a compelling case for the value of PPA as an intellectual and practical endeavour. Drawing inspiration from the publication, CASS hosted a Zoom webinar as part of its Catalyst Conversation Series on 8 October 2024 titled ‘Positive Public Administration: Lessons for Pakistan.’ The webinar invited insights from Professor Janine O’Flynn, Director, Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University and one of the editors of the book, and Dr Usman W. Chohan, Advisor on Economic Affairs & National Development at CASS, who contributed a chapter on Pakistan’s response to the COVID-19 Pandemic through the lens of PPA. The talk focused on two major themes, ‘Pathways to Positive Public Administration: The Discourse and Compendium’ and ‘Lessons from Positive Public Administration for Pakistan.’ The discussion centred on how PPA principles are powerful and valuable, and how they can inspire reforms and foster effective governance, enhancing public value in administrative systems through positive approaches. Strategies for fostering resilience, innovation, and public trust in Pakistan were explored, with the aim of bolstering public institutions through positivity. The concluding remarks were delivered by President CASS Air Marshal Javaid Ahmed (Retd).
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The West: The History of an Idea
The world is witnessing the collapse of the Western order, if not the emergence of an alternative one. The idea of ‘West’ as against the rest is still at the root of contemporary understanding of world politics. Georgios Varouxakis, a remarkable voice on Modernity and Nationalism, has provided the historical origins and modern connotations attached with the idea of ‘West’. In his book ‘The West: The History of an Idea’, Varouxakis has argued that the West is not an eternal entity, rather it is a modern socio-political construct that emerged in the political philosophy of the early 19th century and evolved with the passage of time. The book provides an in-depth historical analysis of the idea to determine the roots of its modern interpretation.
Space-Enabled Warfare in the 21st Century: Pathways for Developing States
Space has emerged as a distinct domain of warfare alongside land, sea, air, and cyber. Developed countries like the United States, Russia, and China possess offensive and support capabilities in space. In the shadowed expanse of Low Earth Orbit (LEO), where satellites operate like silent custodians, the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine transformed the nature of modern conflict. As Russian troops marched forward, the commercial satellites like Maxar and Planet, which are operated by Western firms, captured high-resolution imagery of Russian troops, providing real-time intelligence to Ukrainian commanders, unlike ever before.
The US-Israel War on Iran: Objectives, Strategy, and Escalation Management
Zahra Niazi
‘States tend to overestimate themselves or the benefits and swiftness of war, and to underestimate their opponents’ capabilities, intentions, or the costs and duration of war.’ If anything, the 2026 war initiated by the United States and Israel against Iran shall be remembered in the annals of warfare among the most visible manifestations of this dynamic.
The war, immediately preceded by the January mass protests in Iran, did not represent a sudden rupture but rather the continuation of a 47-year-long confrontation and a more intense phase of the June 2025 war.
The US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, defined the war’s objectives as being laser-focused: to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities and its security infrastructure, while ensuring that it could never develop nuclear weapons. Beyond these stated objectives, among the priorities on the continuum also lay the objective of regime change, with both President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu explicitly calling on the Iranian population to take over the government at the outset of the war.
