Editorial: Treatise on war

What the Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu said more than 25 centuries ago, is now extremely relevant for Russia and Ukraine alike

There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare”. What the Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu said more than 25 centuries ago, is now extremely relevant for Russia and Ukraine alike. The militaries of both countries, now engaged in a war that is 200 days old, are known to have studied Sun Tzu’s treatise on war – ‘The Art of War’, but apparently, they do not practice what they study. The protracted nature of the ongoing war has many lessons for every country, not just Russia and Ukraine. The ongoing war teaches us to not only redefine the role of military forces but also to examine the impact of war on the civil side. The world has not yet forgotten the localised conflicts that grew after prolonged wars and how they metamorphosed into global conflicts drawing every country into the cesspool of violence. The prolonged wars fought between Iran and Iraq, the Syrian or Yemini wars have engulfed other countries and forced them to get drawn into prolonged fights against extremism as seen in Iraq and Afghanistan. With a superpower like the United States of America getting drawn into the vortex of war, there appeared to be no end. No sooner did the US decide to pull out of Afghanistan than the Russia-Ukraine conflict began.

With no possibility of a decisive end to the war in sight, it’s now evolving into a political and economic conflict between Russia on one side and the US, the European union and some other countries on the other side. China, which can easily match the economic and military power of the United States, is drawing closer to Russia. China, understandably, will utilise every opportunity to find political and economic ways to exploit any situation in Asia, Africa or in Latin America. Interestingly, the proposed meeting between Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Uzbekistan next week only shows how a realignment of superpowers is taking place and its possible impact on global politics is anyone’s guess. Russia’s action in suspending gas supplies to Germany and Putin’s assertion that his country will not supply anything at all if it contradicted the country’s interests is a reminder that the military conflict is likely to blow into a full-scale political and economic conflict between the West and Russia. It’s prudent for all countries to intervene and find a solution to end the conflict. Indeed, it’s time to pay attention to what Sun Tzu said, “…a clever fighter is one who not only wins but excels in winning with ease.”

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