Geopolitics, in all its manifestations, is now in a state of severe flux. It has reached a critical inflection point where pure, gentle diplomacy is being brusquely replaced by the application of ruthless power, undaunted military force and blatant coercion in interstate relationships. The change, though slow to start with, has now acquired a malign, overbearing momentum of its own. A callous use of brute, overwhelming force to secure national interests and objectives is fast becoming the new normal in regional and global geopolitics. Morals and ethics, in all their definitions, avatars and incarnations, appear to have been sacrificed at the altar of national interests. Portentously, militarily and economically powerful states now tend to dismiss international law, its writ and reach, with downright contempt and disdain. International organisations like the UNO, UNESCO, ICC, etc. have not only been belittled, berated, criticised and starved of funds but also accused of being wasteful and ineffective. The rule of international law has been scornfully derided. The writ of the ICC has been circumscribed and its judgements disregarded. The hubris that emanates from this vile, misplaced megalomania now defines the dynamics of brutal power in interstate relationships as well as the domestic politics/policies of an increasing number of states. The US (currently Venezuela, Iran); Israel (genocide in Gaza, West Bank, Lebanon, Syria); India (Pakistan, Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir Region — IIOJK&R); and a few others are the main exponents of........

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