The mushroom clouds might not have risen over Iran this previous Sunday, however make no mistake—what occurred within the early hours of June 22, 2025, was nothing in need of a declaration that diplomacy is lifeless and America’s military-industrial complicated may be very a lot alive.
Thirty-seven hours. That is how lengthy it took for U.S. B-2 Spirit bombers to fly from Missouri to Iran, refuel a number of instances in mid-air, and ship what President Donald Trump proudly known as a “very profitable” strike on Iran’s nuclear amenities. Thirty-seven hours to doubtlessly push the Center East to the brink of a regional struggle that might engulf the world.
The targets have been as vital as they have been devastating: Natanz, Fordo, and Isfahan—the crown jewels of Iran’s nuclear program. When the mud settled, Iran’s uranium enrichment capabilities lay in ruins, centrifuges destroyed, and years of nuclear analysis lowered to radioactive rubble contained inside facility partitions.
However let’s be brutally sincere about what actually occurred right here. This wasn’t nearly stopping Iran from getting nuclear weapons. This was about flexing America’s army may with weapons that price greater than the annual GDP of small nations. Every B-2 bomber that participated on this mission carries a price ticket of $2.1 billion—that is ₹17,500 crore per plane. The 12 GBU-57 bunker buster bombs dropped on Fordo alone symbolize probably the most highly effective non-nuclear weapons in America’s arsenal, every able to penetrating 200 ft underground earlier than detonating.
The sheer firepower deployed tells a narrative of overwhelming drive: 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from Virginia and Los Angeles-class submarines, F-22 Raptors and F-35A Lightning II fighter jets offering air help, and people large 30,000-pound bunker busters designed particularly to destroy what typical bombs can’t contact. This wasn’t surgical precision—this was shock and awe, 2025 version.
What makes this significantly chilling is how predictable all of it was. Israel had already struck these identical amenities on June 13, claiming Iran was dangerously near weapons-grade uranium manufacturing. Israeli officers spoke of an “speedy menace” and “pressing hazard.” However reasonably than intensifying diplomatic efforts or multilateral sanctions, the response was to double down with much more devastating army motion.
The timing isn’t any coincidence. Iran had been enriching uranium to 60% purity at Natanz—not fairly weapons-grade, however shut sufficient to make Western powers nervous. The power had already survived a number of assaults, together with the well-known Stuxnet cyberattack extensively attributed to Israel and the U.S. This time, nevertheless, there could be no recovering from digital sabotage. The underground centrifuge cascades that have been Iran’s delight and technological achievement have been obliterated when Israeli assaults reduce energy to the positioning.
Fordo, constructed deep underneath a mountain and guarded by anti-aircraft techniques, was speculated to be impregnable. It took America’s most superior stealth expertise and strongest typical weapons to show that assumption incorrect. The power that Iran had secretly constructed beginning in 2007, solely revealing its existence to the UN in 2009 after Western intelligence companies had already found it, now lies in ruins beneath tons of mountain rock.
Isfahan, using 1000’s of nuclear scientists and housing analysis reactors constructed with Chinese language help, rounded out the trinity of destruction. The uranium conversion facility—the place uncooked uranium is processed for additional enrichment—was lowered to rubble, although the Worldwide Atomic Vitality Company confirmed no radiation leaked past the positioning boundaries.
The human price of this technological devastation stays largely unstated. Hundreds of nuclear scientists, technicians, and help workers who devoted their careers to Iran’s atomic program have seen their life’s work destroyed in a matter of hours. The broader Iranian inhabitants, already struggling underneath years of worldwide sanctions, now faces the prospect of even harsher financial isolation and potential army retaliation.
However maybe most annoying is how this operation represents a basic shift in how the world’s strongest army addresses perceived threats. Gone are the months of diplomatic negotiations, UN resolutions, and multilateral stress that characterised earlier nuclear crises. As a substitute, now we have a doctrine of preemptive destruction that depends on technological superiority and overwhelming drive to eradicate issues earlier than they totally materialize.
The stealth capabilities of the B-2, the precision steerage techniques of the Tomahawk missiles, the superior radar-evading options of the F-22 and F-35—all of this represents a long time of army analysis and tons of of billions in protection spending. It is a technological marvel designed for one goal: to undertaking American energy wherever on Earth with minimal danger to American lives. The query is whether or not this functionality makes the world safer or just makes struggle extra tempting for many who possess such overwhelming benefits.
Iran’s response, when it comes, will possible be uneven. Unable to match America’s typical army may, Tehran might flip to proxy forces, cyberattacks, or different types of irregular warfare. The cycle of escalation that started with Israel’s June 13 strikes has now reached a stage the place de-escalation appears nearly unimaginable. Either side has crossed pink strains that can’t be uncrossed.
The worldwide neighborhood’s muted response speaks volumes concerning the new international order. When the world’s dominant army energy can fly midway world wide, destroy one other nation’s strategic infrastructure, and face little greater than diplomatic protests, it sends a transparent message about whose guidelines truly matter in worldwide relations.
President Trump’s description of the strikes as “very profitable” will undoubtedly play nicely together with his political base. There’s one thing undeniably interesting concerning the picture of American technological superiority delivering swift, decisive outcomes in opposition to a longtime adversary. However success in army phrases would not essentially translate to success in strategic or diplomatic phrases.
The actual query is what occurs subsequent. Iran’s nuclear program could also be set again by years, however its authorities stays in energy, its regional affect intact, and its motivation for revenge stronger than ever. The Center East has simply turn out to be considerably extra harmful, not much less.
Because the radioactive mud settles over three destroyed nuclear amenities, the world should grapple with a uncomfortable reality: in an age of technological supremacy, the temptation to make use of overwhelming drive as an alternative choice to affected person diplomacy could also be too robust to withstand. The 37-hour mission that destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities might have solved one downside, nevertheless it has created dozens of others that bombs can’t repair.
The age of bunker busters and precision strikes has arrived. Whether or not it results in lasting peace or perpetual battle stays to be seen.
(Girish Linganna is an award-winning science communicator and a Defence, Aerospace & Geopolitical Analyst. He’s the Managing Director of ADD Engineering Elements India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany.)