by Dr. Mohd Shahwaiz and Dr. Shayenaz
The world is in a state of despair as the end of conflict, and the possibility of peace between the US and Iran is seemingly ‘uncertain’ in the near future. On 28 February 2026, the US-Israel air strike on Iran killed prominent government officials, including Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Since then, more than 1500 civilians have been killed in Iran so far. The missiles reportedly caused grave destruction and the massacre of 167 minor girls’ students of an elementary school in Minab, Southern Iran. UNESCO outlined that it is “a grave violation of humanitarian laws and attack against educational institutions endanger students and teachers, undermining the ‘right to education’.”
The effects of war have also engulfed the entire world, in one way or other way, disproportionately as it has endangered millions of lives worldwide by triggering a severe food crisis due to disruption in the energy supply chain after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran.
According to the World Food Programme, about 45 million people could face an acute hunger crisis, and hundreds of millions could be further dragged into the same crisis if war continues. However, the uncertainty of peace, in this regard, is dominating over the feasibility of conflict resolution.
The reason behind this is that the world is dominated by a global power and global leadership is severely lacking.
One of the most notable experts on leadership, John C. Maxwell, emphasizes that leadership is built on adherence to principles and laws rather than talent of dominance and power. He firmly believes that “leaders become great not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others”. However, the world is more characterized by global powers in which power is being used to fuel fear, hegemonize, and disempower others. In addition, such powers have been cherished, glorified, and justified in international politics.
The state with aspiration and assertion of power with wrath is considered as the raison d'état, or in common parlance, a rational act of the state to survive in the international anarchy. Interestingly, rationalizing the urge for power as the need for survival in international politics is greatly contributed to by those who made ‘anarchy’ the fashion in world politics.
This is because the game of war is more suitable for their personal interests than to advocate for world peace. For example, why Ukraine needs to wage war against Russia for the liberation, or why Israel needs to terminate the people of Palestine to justify its occupation and ensure its security, or why the USA needs to kill Iran’s Supreme leader to establish peace and deliver justice to the Iranian people, as proclaimed by the USA.
The celebration of peace cannot be possible and desirable on the corpses of the people. Similarly, the liberation and emancipation of people or a country should not be justifiable at the expense of captivity, subjugation, and remorse of the other. This world is not the ground of zero-sum politics where the situation is always dichotomous, but for a convergence and win-win situation for all.
Therefore, Alexander Wendt rightly outlines “anarchy is what state makes of it,” and the world needs to emancipate itself first from such an illusory world of pessimism, and this could only be possible by the global leaders.
Power creates binaries, contestation, and juxtaposition in politics. Whereas the leadership realizes responsibility over egoism, prioritizes peace over conflict, and emphasizes the principles of justice over complaint for the social construction of international politics as “struggle for power and peace”.
Global leaders fill the vacuum with optimism, peace, and integrate the world. For instance, Franklin D. Roosevelt envisioned the idea of the “United Nations” and kindled the ray of hope of peace even in the darkest times during the ongoing Second World War. Winston Churchill, who came forward and dared to secure his people, also proposed the idea of the “United States of Europe,” which has played a crucial role in uniting Europe under the umbrella of the European Union.
In addition, if we turn to the Global South, personalities like Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi established exemplary leadership in terms of fighting against racism and imperialism with peaceful and non-violent mechanisms, respectively.
However, the world has witnessed that power is often used to defy laws, threaten peace, and impose one’s will upon others. As Michael Hardt and Antonio Negro observed that the existing world order “functions through crisis and even feeds on it,” and crises are instrumentalized to strengthen control and unleash power.
More unfortunate, in addition, is that such traits of pseudo leadership and maneuver of power are worshipped, celebrated, glorified, and admired to establish peace in the world. Therefore, peace is always at the verge of being at stake because it rests on power, and power is uncertain, so is peace.
The war between the US and Iran is the result of that kind of power admiration in the game of world politics. Threatening nuclear dismantlement and behavioral transformation under the ultimatum of 15-points drafted and imposed by Washington upon Iran for mercy and truce was the expression of more power, arrogance, and an instrument of “maximalist pressure” than admirable traits of global leadership and adherence to international law.
On the other hand, Iran’s reaction to the US ultimatum was the demand of reparation and affirming sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz’ led to further escalation of the rift and perpetuated war between these two nations. Mediation was also tried and initiated, reportedly from other countries, like Pakistan, but it remained unfruitful.
The persistence of war is filled with egoism and narcissism, even at the expense of endangering millions of lives affected by this conflict, and keeping aside the responsibility of world peace. The existing situation between the US & Iran, though with a temporary ceasefire, is still antagonistic.
The US is obstinate in establishing victory and reassuring its global hegemony and status as a world superpower. Iran, on the other side, has converted this war into a matter of survival and vengeful obsession, in the short run, but also seeking opportunities to emerge itself as a regional power in the long run.
Apart from it, Israel perceives Iran relentlessly as a ‘threat to world peace’, though it is baseless and vague, and intoxicated with the idea of eliminating Iran, no matter the grave violation of international law and human rights.
Russia and China, as global powers, dared to criticize the US-Israel preemptive attack on Iran, but let the war continue and failed to play the role of responsible leaders to uphold world peace. Nation-States acted according to their national interest and showed their ‘neutrality’.
Paulo Freire has viewed in his landmark work “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” that “washing one’s hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral.” However, this new trend of states’ neutrality in the midst of war showed their commitment to global powers rather than to the moral norms of righteousness and justice.
Whether the Russia-Ukraine war, the Israel-Hamas War, or the US-Iran war, their occurrence might be unfortunate, but their perpetuation was due to the existence of global powers. It has been unveiled that the current world order exists in an ‘illusion of peace’ and with a dearth of global leadership.
Therefore, the world is in a crisis of global peace due to the crisis of global leadership. So, if the world aspires to global peace, then it first aspires to produce and promote global leaders.
The article was published by Counter Currents.
Dr. Mohd Shahwaiz is Assistant Professor (Political Science & International Relations) at the Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Integral University, Lucknow. He can be reached at mdshahwaiz2012@gmail.com.
Dr. Shayenaz is Assistant Professor (Political Science) at the Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Integral University, Lucknow. She can be reached at shayenazkhan786@gmail.com.
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