Sir Martin Ewans is a retired diplomat with considerable experience of South Asia, including three years as Head of Chancery in Kabul.
"'The principal arguement of the book, has to do with what is called ""asymmetric warfare"", that is how a weak power fights a stronger one. His sensible conlusion is that great modern powers should be wary of embarking on contests with smaller countries and should be much more serious about first exhausting the resources of diplomacy. In the end, he (Ewans) remarks rather sententiously, asymmetric warefare is about hearts and minds.' - Asian Studies 'The authors judgements on each conflict are pursuasive and in line with commonly accepted historical views.' - M. E. Yapp 'The principal arguement of the book, has to do with what is called ""asymmetric warfare"", that is how a weak power fights a stronger one. His sensible conlusion is that great modern powers should be wary of embarking on contests with smaller countries and should be much more serious about first exhausting the resources of diplomacy. In the end, he remarks rather sententiously, asymmetric warefare is about hearts and minds.' - Asian Studies 'The authors judgements on each conflict are pursuasive and in line with commonly accepted historical views.' - M. E. Yapp"