Pakistan, Jan. 16 -- For a moment this week, the world edged perilously close to a confrontation it is still poorly prepared to describe, let alone resolve. Iran's sudden closure-and equally sudden reopening-of its airspace supplied the starkest visual of that brink: a vast empty sky over Tehran with no commercial flights for hours, airlines diverting to avoid perceived danger, and governments scrambling to explain what might be coming next. Advisories were issued and NOTAMs announced as the heads of state in all corners held their breath, waiting for the ultimate countdown.

In this regard, President Donald Trump's announcement that he had been told the "killings in Iran have stopped" and that executions were off the table offered what m...