One of the renowned military strategists, Carl von Clausewitz, in On War (Book 1, Chapter 7), argued that “Everything is very simple in war, but the simplest thing is difficult.” It is imperative to note how fast the global nuclear order is evolving and becoming more complex when a nuclear-weapon state, an outlier to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), in this case Israel, carries out preventive strikes against a non-nuclear-weapon state party to the NPT, Iran. Similarly, the US also carried out preventive strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025, claiming that it had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear-enriched facilities.

Many security analysts wrongly contextualise the term “pre-emptive strike” without distinguishing it from the phrase “preventive strike”. There is a difference. Pre-emptive strikes are carried out by State A against State B when the threat is imminent, while a preventive strike is used when the threat from the perceived adversary is not imminent and is therefore considered illegal.

Iran’s nuclear programme, largely perceived to be for peaceful purposes, falls under the protocol of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which remains credible enough to keep a check on its development. Many security analysts argue that Iran is not an existential security threat to either the US or........

© The Friday Times