Using Off-Ramps as Game Changers in Modern Warfare

The dramatic escalation and sudden pause in the Israel-Iran conflict is a masterclass in modern warfare, diplomacy, and the strategic games world powers play.

- T K Vineeth @ Kochi

The 12-day war saw Tel Aviv using its superior air power hoping to score a quick win, only to be taken aback by Tehran's powerful counterattacks, and the US entering the war theatre to shock and awe the Ayatollah regime into submission.

To many analysts, the US entry was surprising as it shattered Donald Trump's carefully crafted image as an anti-war president. By dropping the rarely used bunker-buster bombs on nuclear sites, Trump took a risky gamble as the conflict could have worsened and widened, locking America in a war it did not want to get into in the first place.

By pulling off a ceasefire soon after Iran's retaliation against the US through missiles at its military base in neighboring Qatar, Trump managed to take the strategic high ground. Iran's calibrated strike did not cause any damage or casualties as US personnel and key assets had already been moved out, while the missiles were either intercepted or allowed to strike dummy targets.