New Delhi, Oct. 25 -- As the world enters a period of mounting geopolitical uncertainty, policymakers, scholars, and strategists are increasingly grappling with fundamental questions about the future of the international order. President Donald Trump's second term has intensified debates over power, influence, and the changing nature of global politics. Recent developments have once again underscored the enduring capacity of the United States, as the world's leading power, to shape international affairs. As White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller recently remarked, we are entering a world "governed by strength, governed by force, and governed by power."

For smaller states, these shifts raise difficult and increasingly urgent que...