THE US-Israeli war on Iran is accelerating crises that combine climate-driven shocks and military destruction. It is reshaping how governments frame climate resilience and national security. It has fundamentally changed the global climate debate, moving it from a discussion of long-term transition to one of immediate survival and energy, water, food and ecosystem security.

For Pakistan, situated as it is at the crossroads of energy-import dependence, water stress, food insecurity and shifting trade routes, the supply shocks arising from the conflict are redefining what it means to be a climate-insecure state. The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have blurred the lines between the environment and the battlefield.

The conflict triggered the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market, effectively shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, a corridor that carries 20 per cent of global LNG and a quarter of seaborne oil. This shock has pushed many countries into a ‘relapse’ towards fossil fuels as soaring prices force governments to prioritise short-term affordability over long-term climate commitments.

For Pakistan, an energy-importing country, the war has simultaneously made the argument for energy sovereignty through renewables impossible to ignore. With spiking oil and gas prices, solar and wind — paired with storage — have emerged as the only economically rational strategies for macroeconomic stability.

The direct ecological cost of the Gulf conflict is immediate and enduring.

Pakistan’s massive, people-led solar boom nee­ds further support. It was driven by the necessity of avoiding costly LNG and persistent load-shedding. This surge, which saved us up to $12 billion in avoided energy imports, proves that effective........

© Dawn