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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence > Defence strategy, planning & research > General
Perspectives on Strategy examines in depth five aspects of strategy. Strategic thought and behaviour are explored and explained from the perspectives of intellect, morality, culture, geography, and technology. Each perspective has attracted persisting controversy. Perspectives on Strategy is strongly complementary to the author's previous book, The Strategy Bridge: Theory for Practice (OUP, 2010). This new work takes a notably holistic view of strategic phenomena, which serves as a master framework within which detailed examination of strategic history and issues can usefully be pursued in the light of particular perspectives. Foundational for the argument in Perspectives on Strategy is the proposition that distinctive aspects of strategy (e.g. ethics, culture, inter alia) can only be appreciated properly when they are regarded in context. The author shares this view with T. E. Lawrence (of Arabia), who wrote of the 'whole house of war'. Perspectives on Strategy gratefully adapts Lawrence and writes about the 'whole house of strategy'. The book insists that the nature of strategy is best represented by a Venn diagram that shows overlapping perspectives. Thus, the subject of each chapter is shown as having meaning for, and in turn is influenced by, the subjects of the other chapters. For example, the book explores the importance of strategic ideas relative to the significance of the material weapons of war. The author poses the hardest of questions pertinent to each chosen perspective (e.g. do ideas matter more than muscle?-in practice how robust is the ethical code with which warfare is waged?-is geography destiny, as some theorists have claimed?-and do technically superior weapons win wars? Perspectives on Strategy demonstrates that it is possible to look closely at strategic matters from limited but arguably powerful perspectives, without being captured by them. This book asks and answers the most challenging and rewarding questions that can be posed in order to reveal the persisting universal nature, but ever changing character, of strategy.
This book provides the first comprehensive review of the European Union's role in military conflict management beyond its borders and makes an important contribution to debates on the EU's role in global security governance. The EU has launched five military operations within the framework of its Common Security and Defence Policy with the explicit purpose to help manage violent conflicts beyond its borders. This book develops a definition and a set of criteria for success in military conflict management and applies this new analytical framework in a comparative case study of the five EU military operations undertaken in Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad and the Central African Republic. Having evaluated their success the book goes on to explore the conditions under which military conflict management operations conducted by international organizations are successful and explores the implications of its findings for the future theory and practice of military conflict management. The European Union and Military Conflict Management will be of interest to students and scholars of security studies, conflict studies, European Union politics and foreign policy and global security governance.
Security Dynamics in the Former Soviet Bloc focuses on four former Soviet sub-regions (the Baltic Sea region, the Slavic republics, the Black Sea region, and Central Asia) to explore the degree to which 'democratic security', which includes de-politicisation of, and civilian oversight of, the military, resolution of conflicts by international cooperation, and involvement in international organisations. It examines how far states in these regions have developed cooperative foreign and security policies towards their immediate neighbours and key Western states and organisations, explores the interplay between internal and external aspects of democratic security building, and uses case-study examples to show how inter-state bi-lateral and multi-lateral relations are developing.
The essays in this volume are concerned with armed conflicts in South Asia and the conflict management efforts made to mitigate them. Articles in the volume study conflict management, look at the direction armed conflict is likely to take and provide a set of alternative measures that could be perused by the actors. It addresses five key issues: history of the armed conflict, identifying the principal actors of the conflict, describing the course of the conflict and its major trends, evaluating conflict management measures undertaken, if any, presenting appropriate conclusions. It also includes additional chapters on Naxalism and sectarian strife in Pakistan. Designed as an annual series, this important collection discusses India's geo-strategic importance including its common borders with its neighbours; the psychological and economic costs of violence, and the problem of refugee migrants; treaties and ceasefire agreements signed across countries; the role of the UN and other peacekeeping forces; and the future of failed and failing democracies. The book makes an important contribution to analysing armed conflicts and conflict resolution.
The transition from the end of the Cold War to a new world order is both promising and perilous. Security concerns are based more on the prevention or containment of regional and civil conflicts than on fears of nuclear or Eurasian global wars. The antagonists of the Cold War will be the collaborators of the next century in seeking to stabilize the conflict inside and outside Europe and to prevent further proliferation of nuclear weapons. Deterrence characteristics of the pre-Cold War period will in the 21st century again become normative.
"NATO has many European and global partner countries. The political and military utility of all these partnerships is clear; they 'provide' more security than they 'consume.' But the utility for NATO of partners also changes over time. This book scrutinizes these partnerships, both from a NATO perspective and from that of its partners"--
The 9/11 attacks revealed that the transnational terrorist threat facing the US and its partners was far more dangerous than most had previously discerned. It was now clear that al-Qaeda intended to, and could threaten the West's - particularly the US' - political and military leverage, with the aim of shifting the balance of power from the West to Islam after a violent global confrontation. In that sense, the new terrorist threat is strategic, and it has led to a worldwide mobilisation comparable to that required by a world war. This Paper argues that prevailing in the 'war' on terror, much like victory in the Cold War, entails containment, deterrence, outperformance and engagement. Military power is secondary to intelligence, law enforcement, enlightened social policy and diplomacy. Diplomatic engagement with the larger Muslim world is paramount as a means of denying al-Qaeda not merely recruits but the 'clash of civilisations' it seeks. The US-led intervention in Iraq, though intended to introduce democratic reform in the wider Middle East, has so far antagonised Islam and strengthened Islamist terrorism. This suggests that coercive or aggressively ideological diplomacy is unlikely to win over an Islamic population biased by anti-Western propaganda. Successful Western diplomacy will have to be discreet, nuanced and incremental.
The Asia-Pacific region presents one of the greatest challenges to international security in the post-Cold War era. The demise of the Cold War security framework has ushered in a new period of uncertainty as longstanding tensions re-emerge. There are growing doubts as the the future of military commitment of the US and concern with Japan's security roles and aspirations. The widespread build-up of military capabilities in the region and the nuclear ambitions of North Korea have further heightened tension. Using a thematic approach, this volume addresses the concerns of the region.
The Asia-Pacific region presents one of the greatest challenges to international security in the post-Cold War era. The demise of the Cold War security framework has ushered in a new period of uncertainty as longstanding tensions re-emerge. There are growing doubts as the the future of military commitment of the US and concern with Japan's security roles and aspirations. The widespread build-up of military capabilities in the region and the nuclear ambitions of North Korea have further heightened tension. Using a thematic approach, this volume addresses the concerns of the region.
What should military warriors do in peacetime? Such was the theme of an international conference at the Inter-American Defense College in 1992 which brought together diplomats, military officials and distinguished academics to discuss the purpose of military institutions in Latin America in the new world order. The most important message of this book is that the order has by no means eliminated the need for armed forces.
What should military warriors do in peacetime? Such was the theme of an international conference at the Inter-American Defense College in 1992 which brought together diplomats, military officials and distinguished academics to discuss the purpose of military institutions in Latin America in the new world order. The most important message of this book is that the order has by no means eliminated the need for armed forces.
This comprehensive work on security in the English-speaking Caribbean, offers a wealth of information about the history, politics, economics and geography of the entire region. The author examines security problems in the region as a geopolitical unit, not on a selective case-study basis, as is usually done. He assesses Caribbean security within a theoretical framework where four factors are critical: perceptions of the political elites; capabilities of the states; the geopolitics of the area; and the ideological orientations of the parties in power. Political and economic issues are judged to be as relevant to security as military factors. The author identifies safeguards which countries in the region may take in the coming decade.
This book provides a state of the art discussion of the royal prerogative over war powers in the UK. This issue has received particular attention over proposed military strikes against the Syrian regime and it was claimed by many observers and scholars that parliament now controls decisions in war. However, the record has been mixed- and the most recent decision by Prime Minister May on Syria in 2018 shows that the executive can re-assert prerogative powers and effectively sidestep parliament. The author argues that these dynamics should be seen in the context of the declining authority of the executive and the legislature and in terms of a policy solution, and ultimately she suggests a War Powers Act as a firmer foundation for Britain's war powers.
Forty years of confrontation in Europe produced a complex set of
conditioned reflexes in western military thinking. With the end of
the Warsaw pact, planning and analysis specialists have been
compelled to look again at basic principles. The analysis of threat
and response has been transformed, and patterns of likely action
such as the Gulf intervention have been accommodated. In practical
terms, these developments affect what is taught to both new
officers and senior officers about to assume command
responsibilities.
This comprehensive work on security in the English-speaking Caribbean, offers a wealth of information about the history, politics, economics and geography of the entire region. The author examines security problems in the region as a geopolitical unit, not on a selective case-study basis, as is usually done. He assesses Caribbean security within a theoretical framework where four factors are critical: perceptions of the political elites; capabilities of the states; the geopolitics of the area; and the ideological orientations of the parties in power. Political and economic issues are judged to be as relevant to security as military factors. The author identifies safeguards which countries in the region may take in the coming decade.
The war in the Persian Gulf marked the greatest "projection of
power" in history, dwarfing in its scale and speed even the D-day
landings of 1944. It dramatically demonstrated the revolution in
military affairs which has followed the end of confrontation in
Europe. Yet the Gulf War and its aftermath also demonstrated the
vast complexities of the projection of power, even in the favorable
conditions witnessed in the Gulf.
The various essays in this volume aim to provide food for thought and a call for reasoned response to realistic security needs.
This book examines the defence and security challenges facing the new South Africa in the context of development and nation-building priorities. The transformation of security policy during the transition from apartheid and since the April 1994 elections is examined. Challenges facing the defence force and the police service are examined and the relationships between defence, development and domestic and external security are explored in an integrated way which points to a policy framework for security in the developing world.
The thawing of the Cold War has brought new concerns over the
nature of European security to the fore and uncovered major
differences in the approaches of individual states to changed
circumstances.
The period from the 1989 revolutions in Eastern Europe to the
August 1991 failed coup in the former Soviet Union represents a
crucial turning point in the history of Europe. With the end of the
Cold War, new concerns over the nature of European security have
come to the fore, and major differences in the approaches of
individual states to the new circumstances have been revealed. In
"Security and Strategy in the New Europe," a group of international
experts provide the first comparative analysis of the policies of
the major powers towards the future of European security.
First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
Although there is already a wealth of literature that examines the causes and impacts of war on the international system, there has been little analysis of the decisions of leaders who initiate wars they are destined to lose.
The Instant New York Times Bestseller "I could not put this extraordinary book down. Three Days at the Brink is a masterpiece: elegantly written, brilliantly conceived, and impeccably researched. This book not only sparkles but is destined to be a classic!" -Jay Winik, bestselling author From the #1 bestselling author and award-winning anchor of Special Report with Bret Baier, comes the gripping lost history of the Tehran Conference, where FDR, Churchill, and Stalin plotted D-Day and the Second World War's endgame. With the fate of World War II in doubt and rumors of a Nazi assassination plot swirling, Franklin Roosevelt risked everything at a clandestine meeting that would change the course of history. November 1943: The Nazis and their Axis allies controlled nearly the entire European continent. Japan dominated the Pacific. Allied successes at Sicily and Guadalcanal had gained them modest ground but at an extraordinary cost. On the Eastern Front, the Soviet Red Army had been bled white. The path of history walked a knife's edge. That same month a daring gambit was hatched that would alter everything. The "Big Three"-Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin-secretly met for the first time to chart a strategy for defeating Adolf Hitler. Over three days in Tehran, Iran, this trio-strange bedfellows united by their mutual responsibility as heads of the Allied powers-made essential decisions that would direct the final years of the war and its aftermath. Meanwhile, looming over the covert meeting was the possible threat of a Nazi assassination plot, code-named Operation Long Jump. Before they left Tehran, the three leaders agreed to open a second front in the West, spearheaded by Operation Overload and the D-Day invasion of France at Normandy the following June. They also discussed what might come after the war, including dividing Germany and establishing the United Nations-plans that laid the groundwork for the postwar world order and the Cold War. Bestselling author and Fox News Channel anchor Bret Baier's new epic history, Three Days at the Brink, centers on these crucial days in Tehran, the medieval Persian city on the edge of the desert. Baier makes clear the importance of Roosevelt, who stood apart as the sole leader of a democracy, recognizing him as the lead strategist for the globe's future-the one man who could ultimately allow or deny the others their place in history. With new details discovered in rarely seen transcripts, oral histories, and declassified State Department and presidential documents from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Baier illuminates the complex character of Roosevelt, revealing a man who grew into his role and accepted the greatest challenge any American president since Lincoln had faced.
In May 1998, in reaction to India's nuclear weapons tests, Pakistan tested six nuclear weapons. Following this, the country opted for a policy of minimum deterrence, and within a year Pakistan had altered its policy stance by adding the modifier of minimum 'credible' deterrence. This book looks at how this seemingly innocuous shift seriously impacted on Pakistan's nuclear policy direction and whether the concept of minimum has lost its significance in the South Asian region's changed/changing strategic environment. After providing a brief historical background exploring why and how Pakistan carried out the nuclear development program, the book questions why Pakistan could not sustain the minimum deterrence that it had conceptualized in the immediate aftermath of the 1998 test. It examines the conceptual theoretical framework of the essentials of minimum deterrence in order to question whether Pakistan's nuclear policy remained consistent with this, as well as to discover the rudimentary factors that are responsible for the inconsistencies with regard to minimum deterrence conceived in this study. The book goes on to look at the policy options that Pakistan had after acquiring the nuclear capability, and what the rationale was for selecting minimum deterrence. The book not only highlights Pakistan deterrent force building, but also analyzes closely Pakistan's doctrinal posture of first use option. Furthermore, it examines the policy towards arms control and disarmament, and discusses whether these individual policy orientations are consistent with the minimum deterrence. Conceptually providing a deeper understanding of Pakistan's post-1998 nuclear policy, this book critically examines whether the minimum deterrence conceived could be sustained both at the theoretical and operational levels. It will be a useful contribution in the field of Nuclear Policy, Security Studies, Asian Politics, Proliferation/Non-Proliferation Studies, and Peace Studies. This book will be of interest to policy makers, scholars, and students of nuclear policy, nuclear proliferation and arms control related research.
First Published in 1991. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company. |
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