SINCE the so-called rules-based order is crumbling in whatever flawed form it existed, those with power are asserting themselves in the most unbridled of ways, with the only restraining factor being power itself or its quantum at the disposal of one player or the other. The phenomenon is not limited to the big powers’ actions on the global stage but is mirrored by developments in the region and even within countries, with domestic politics being shaped by the ‘might is right’ principle, if it can be called a principle. The resultant scenario is scary to say the least. This must be the reason that some of the ‘rattled’ middle-ranking economic-military powers are now forging alliances and concluding pacts so that their collective strength or power enables them to better negotiate the challenges and come out relatively unscathed from the reshaping of the world that seem underway. Let me get into the specifics. The US-backed Israeli attack started against the around two million Palestinians in the tiny and largely defenceless Gaza Strip ostensibly triggered by the October 2023 Hamas attack. It has continued, despite the murder of thousands of civilians including children, in the face of worldwide demonstrations and calls for an immediate ceasefire by international institutions such as the UN. (In fact, the US sanctioned International Criminal Court judges and its prosecutor examining war crimes charges against Israeli leaders.) Against the international backdrop, Pakistani foreign policy has so far delivered well. But the October Hamas attack was only an excuse, as before the brutal Gaza bombing campaign was over, Israel also attacked Lebanon, annexed more of the Syrian Golan Heights and not just attacked Iran itself but also sucked in the US to bomb Iranian nuclear sites (by this time Donald Trump had moved into the White House). This was the beginning of the reshaping of the Middle East, the move towards the realisation of the ‘Greater Israel’ dream. Those still defiant and seen as obstacles were attacked too like the Houthis in Yemen; allies were encouraged to increase their influence and footprint in non-Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen from sites overlooking the Red Sea water routes in the southwest to the northeast of the country. The fighting in Sudan and the Israeli recognition of Somaliland across the Red Sea in the Horn of Africa are aimed at the same strategic objective: to have oversight of shipping routes south of the Suez Canal whether for transport of oil or other essential supplies. But in the power game, even states with smaller militaries can apply economic levers effectively to be heard. And this assumes greater significance in the ‘transactional’ Trump era. So when the Israelis attacked targets on Qatari soil, it was seen as an overreach by even those countries in the region which restricted their reaction to lodging verbal protests during the Gaza genocide. It also brought home the truth that American bases and troops on their soil were not there for their protection but served US interests and were there to project US power. This led to a flurry of activity and saw a defence pact inked between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Now a Bloomberg report suggests , citing unnamed sources, that Turkiye may join the pact too. Of late, Saudi Arabia has reasserted its power and re-established itself as the main backer of forces in the non-Houthi parts of Yemen, bombing and evicting the South Transitional Council from areas the latter had taken over from the Saudi-backed Yemeni government in Sanaa after rebelling from the governing coalition. Zooming out of the region, we can see the US reviving the Monroe Doctrine (Trump has rechristened it the ‘Donroe doctrine’) and applying it to Venezuela, after kidnapping its president and his spouse on the flimsiest of charges, some of which were amended between their snatching in Caracas and their indictment a day later in New York City. Trump says the US will “run Venezuela” now, having left the regime in place, after an apparent deal with interim president Delcy Rodríguez and will sell their oil to who he likes but the country itself cannot sell oil, for example, to China, Cuba and Russia. Donald Trump is also making similar noises about ‘hitting’ other South American countries, such as Colombia and Mexico, whose leaders do not conform to his (far) right-wing worldview. He also keeps repeating his desire to take over Greenland one way or another. Given the collapse of the rules-based order and US military might, who knows what he does next. No different is the use of military power by Russia to make inroads into Ukrainian territory. Ukraine is a country that gave up its nuclear arsenal after the collapse of the Soviet Union primarily on account of US security guarantees. Now under Trump, the US is telling Ukraine to pretty much forget about its lost territory and do a peace deal with Russia. It has nearly halted all military aid to Ukraine and also told Nato states in Europe that they must step up their defence spending dramatically because the leader of the so-called Free World is done underwriting their defence. Against this backdrop, one must say, Pakistani foreign policy has so far delivered well with the three major world military powers the US, China and Russia seemingly onside, along with the well-resourced Gulf states. With Pakistan responding robustly and effectively to an Indian attempt to project power in South Asia by missile attacks on Pakistani soil without legal justification in May last year, Islamabad’s stock has risen in the world. With the rules-based order becoming more of an irrelevance, Pakistan too appears to be taking inspiration from how domestic dissent particularly over Gaza has been handled in the US and Europe. Perhaps, Pakistan feels that when established democracies can get away with it, why shouldn’t a hybrid government? The answer is some distance away. The old order may be crumbling but what will rise from its ashes is still to take concrete shape. The writer is a former editor of Dawn. abbas.nasir@hotmail.com Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2026