India, April 8 -- Whether the ceasefire between US-Israel and Iran holds is something beyond the control of anyone other than the three countries directly involved, but there are learnings from the war for those willing to learn - which means any such analysis must perforce exclude Iran and Israel, both of whose positions have remained unchanged over decades. And the starting point for any such analysis must be the acceptance that the ceasefire will likely result, not in an enduring peace but an uneasy detente, the hard positions of Iran and Israel, and the mercurial nature of US President Donald Trump and, thereby, the sobering influence of the US as a superpower.

For the US (and the world), the war is a lesson that a confrontation usin...