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Why is it difficult to determine whether Akhenaten followed a pacifist foreign policy?

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Sculpted head of Akhenaten, ancient Egyptian pharaoh, with elongated facial features and a tall, ornate headdress, displayed at the Alexandria National Museum. — Akhenaten Akhenaten, sculpture in the Alexandria National Museum, Egypt.

Determining whether Akhenaten pursued a pacifist foreign policy is difficult primarily because the primary source material—the Amarna Letters—is challenging to interpret accurately.1

These cuneiform tablets, which record diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian court and various vassals, are often biased. Vassals frequently requested military aid from the king, and their accounts of the local political and military situations were often exaggerated to secure that assistance. Consequently, it is hard to discern the true extent of the crises they faced or the king's actual strategic response.1

While it is known that Egypt’s control over its territories in Syria declined during this period—partly due to the resurgence of the Hittites and the decline of Mitanni—the king's specific role in this loss of influence remains unclear. Although he did mount one minor military campaign in Nubia, his overall use of force abroad is not well understood by historians.1