As force exposure becomes perilous, wars become long.

The growing risks of battlefield exposure, driven by persistent surveillance, drones, AI and precision strikes, are shifting the balance towards defense. Examining Ukraine, Iran and Gaza, this article argues that underground military infrastructure increasingly frustrates technologically superior attackers. Victory may therefore depend less on overwhelming firepower than on disrupting the supply networks that sustain subterranean capabilities, challenging conventional assumptions about rapid, decisive warfare.This article was originally published in The Strategist (Australia) and republished in RealClear Defense (USA).