India, Jan. 6 -- In political speeches, sovereignty is often presented as an emotional idea. It is linked to flags, history, sacrifice, and resistance to outside pressure. These themes matter, especially for countries born out of struggle. But in practical terms, sovereignty is not a feeling. It is a condition. A sovereign state is one that can make decisions freely, revise them when needed, and say no when national interests demand it. When this freedom narrows, sovereignty weakens, even if the language around it becomes louder.

For Bangladesh, this distinction matters more today than at any time since independence.

International relations theory offers a simple but useful insight for small and mid-sized states: power does not come onl...