Kautilya stated millennia ago that war is the continuation of politics by other means. Nearly two centuries back Clausewitz repeated it and that proposition appeared self-evident. Military victory usually produced political success. Armies surrendered, governments fell, treaties were signed and new strategic realities emerged. That certainty is disappearing.

The wars of our time tell a different story. Ukraine has entered its fifth year without a decisive political outcome. Israel has repeatedly demonstrated overwhelming military superiority, yet lasting peace remains elusive. The recent conflict with Iran showed that an adversary need not defeat a stronger military force to frustrate its strategic objectives. Instead, it can expand the battlefield into shipping lanes, energy markets, financial systems and international diplomacy, imposing costs that extend far beyond the front line.

The battlefield itself has changed. Military force remains indispensable, but it has become only one instrument of national power. Information, economics, technology, resilience, diplomacy and public perception increasingly determine whether battlefield success can be translated into political achievement.

This issue explores that transformation from three complementary perspectives. Lt Gen Sanjiv Langer reminds us that successful campaigns begin with clearly defined political objectives. Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain examines why modern wars increasingly fail to produce decisive political outcomes despite unprecedented military capability. Maj Gen Jagatbir Singh and I demonstrate how the Iran conflict expanded the very definition of the battlefield, forcing strategists to think beyond armies and territory towards resilience, commerce and strategic systems.

For India, these are not merely academic debates. They hold direct relevance for our military planning, defence reforms and national security strategy. Future conflicts will demand more than battlefield excellence. They will require the integration of military capability with economic strength, technological innovation, diplomatic agility and national resilience.

Winning the war is no longer enough. The greater challenge is winning the peace that follows. In the twenty-first century, wars are won or lost in the broader contest of strategy, resilience, diplomacy and national power.