Geopolitics Quarterly

Geopolitics Quarterly

Techno-Geopolitics and the Transformation of defense Discourse in the Era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Document Type : Original Article

Author
shahed university
10.22034/igq.2026.562686.2153
Abstract
In the past decade, the accelerated convergence of emerging technologies with security and strategic domains has introduced structural challenges to classical configurations of power. Transformations driven by the digital age—through shifts in the temporality and spatiality of military conduct—have highlighted the need to reassess foundational concepts such as deterrence, great-power competition, and security architecture. Within this context, the Fourth Industrial Revolution represents a critical juncture in the reconfiguration of military–defense logic and the redefinition of technology’s position in geopolitical dynamics.This study confirms the hypothesis that the Fourth Industrial Revolution, as a paradigmatic moment, has disrupted traditional military and defense discourse and policymaking, while simultaneously enabling the emergence of a techno-geopolitical framework that increasingly supersedes conventional territorial geopolitics. This transformation is unfolding through the relocation of power infrastructures from spatial domains to technological ecosystems. The research is applied and developmental in purpose and adopts a descriptive–analytical methodology, drawing on library sources and semi-structured interviews with ten experts. Chronopolitics, emphasizing the centrality of temporality, serves as the study’s theoretical framework. Grounded in the notion of the “politics of time,” this approach holds that political power is exercised not only through spatial control but also through the governance of temporal rhythms. From this perspective, the Fourth Industrial Revolution constitutes a chronopolitical moment. The findings are examined across four key domains: the redefinition of deterrence models; the increased likelihood of employing alternative military approaches; the growing reliance on plausible deniability; and the heightened probability of cyberattacks.
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 20 July 2026

  • Receive Date 29 January 2026
  • Revise Date 12 July 2026
  • Accept Date 20 July 2026