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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence > Defence strategy, planning & research > General
This book provides the first systematic comparative analysis of climate security discourses. It analyses the securitisation of climate change in four different countries: USA, Germany, Turkey, and Mexico. The empirical analysis traces how specific climate-security discourses have become dominant, which actors have driven this process, what political consequences this has had and what role the broader context has played in enabling these specific securitisations. In doing so, the book outlines a new and systematic theoretical framework that distinguishes between different referent objects of securitisation (territorial, individual and planetary) and between a security and risk dimension. It thereby clarifies the ever-increasing literature on different forms of securitisation and the relationship between security, risk and politics. Whereas securitisation studies have traditionally focused on either a single country case study or a global overview, consequently failing to reconstruct detailed securitisation dynamics, this is the first book to provide a systematic comparative analysis of climate security discourses in four countries and thus closes an empirical gap in the present literature. In addition, this comparative framework allows the drawing of conclusions about the conditions for and consequences of successful securitisation based on empirical and comparative analysis rather than theoretical debate only. This book will of interest to students of climate change, environmental studies, critical security, global governance, and IR in general.
The relationship between intelligence organizations and the national security policymakers which they support has its ups and downs. Sometimes the relationship is a good one; communication flows and both sides benefit from the interaction, but sometimes difficulties arise and problems develop. For example, when knowledge is required for decision but is not available or is inaccurate the outcome is frequently described as an intelligence failure. A subset of this kind of intelligence failure occurs when knowledge is distorted in order to reinforce or oppose policymaker preferences or expectations. Another less successful outcome occurs when good, accurate knowledge is not used to improve policy, but is instead set aside or ignored by those who have the responsibility and obligation to make decisions. This collection explores the difficulties that can arise in the relationship between intelligence and policy. The chapters consider both politicization of, and lack of receptiveness to, intelligence on the part of policymakers from a variety of different angles. Readers will find that this book challenges conventional wisdom and offers new ways of thinking about this important but understudied area. This book was published as a special issue of Intelligence and National Security.
The history of bourgeois modernity is a history of the Enemy. This book is a radical exploration of an Enemy that has recently emerged from within security documents released by the US security state: the Universal Adversary. The Universal Adversary is now central to emergency planning in general and, more specifically, to security preparations for future attacks. But an attack from who, or what? This book - the first to appear on the topic - shows how the concept of the Universal Adversary draws on several key figures in the history of ideas, said to pose a threat to state power and capital accumulation. Within the Universal Adversary there lies the problem not just of the 'terrorist' but, more generally, of the 'subversive', and what the emergency planning documents refer to as the 'disgruntled worker'. This reference reveals the conjoined power of the contemporary mobilisation of security and the defence of capital. But it also reveals much more. Taking the figure of the disgruntled worker as its starting point, the book introduces some of this worker's close cousins - figures often regarded not simply as a threat to security and capital but as nothing less than the Enemy of all Mankind: the Zombie, the Devil and the Pirate. In situating these figures of enmity within debates about security and capital, the book engages an extraordinary variety of issues that now comprise a contemporary politics of security. From crowd control to contagion, from the witch-hunt to the apocalypse, from pigs to intellectual property, this book provides a compelling analysis of the ways in which security and capital are organized against nothing less than the 'Enemies of all Mankind'.
Military capability is delivered operationally at a team and collective level, be it a unit as small as a squad or section, or as large as a maritime task group. Modern military forces are required to deal with a potentially wide range of missions frequently involving multiple alliance partners, within a geopolitical environment which can seem to change rapidly. Individual performance, while being important, is not the primary determinant of mission success - force integration, interoperability, adaptability and teamwork are key factors. Team and collective training which fully addresses these factors is fundamental to the development and delivery of military capability. As a consequence, the requirement to determine training requirements and specify effective systems for the delivery of team and collective training is critical to operational success. Training Needs Analysis (also known as Front End Analysis), is a well-established methodology for analysing training requirements and specifying training solutions used extensively by the UK and its NATO partners. However, the analytical techniques employed are optimised for individual training, with little guidance being offered on its application in the team and collective context. Team and Collective Training Needs Analysis (TCTNA) has been developed to close this methodological gap. It addresses the issues of the relationship of individual and team tasks, teamwork, command and control, task and training environments, scenario definition, instructional strategy, team training approaches, instructional functions, and wide-ranging organisational and procurement considerations. Part One of the book develops an integrated set of models which underpin the analytical approach presented in Part Two. Worked examples and case studies illustrate the application of the approach. Between 2005 and 2015 the authors worked on numerous training-related research projects at Cranfield University and Coventry University for the Human Factors Integration Defence Technology Centre and the Defence Human Capability Science and Technology Centre on behalf of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, UK Ministry of Defence.
When NATO took charge of the International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) for Afghanistan in 2003, ISAF conceptualized its
mission largely as a stabilization and reconstruction deployment.
However, as the campaign has evolved and the insurgency has proved
to more resistant and capable, key operational imperatives have
emerged, including military support to the civilian development
effort, closer partnering with Afghan security forces, and greater
military restraint. All participating militaries have adapted, to
varying extents, to these campaign imperatives and pressures.
This book offers a multifaceted, analytical account of counterterrorism argumentative speech. Traditionally, existing scholarship in this field of research has taken a selective focus on issues and actors, concentrating mainly on US state discourse after 9/11. However, this approach ignores the fact that there was counterterrorism speech before 9/11, and that there are other countries and other actors who also actively engage in the counterterrorism discursive field, both within and outside of the Western world. Addressing several thematic, chronological and methodological gaps in the current literature, Arguing Counterterrorism offers a dynamic perspective on counterterrorism argumentative speech. Over the course of the volume, the authors tackle the following key issues: first, historical and cultural continuity and change. Second, the phenomenology of counterterrorism speech: its nature, instrumentalisation, implications and interactions between the various actors involved. The third theme is the anatomy of counterterrorism speech; namely its political, cultural and linguistic constitutive elements. Employing a multi-disciplinary framework, the authors explore these issues through a geographically and historically diverse range of case studies, resulting in a book that broadens the perspective of counterterrorism argumentation analysis. This book will be of much interest to students of critical terrorism studies, counterterrorism, discourse analysis, security studies and IR.
A Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2016 Perhaps the most basic national security question that U.S. leaders and the body politic continuously face is where and under what circumstances to consider and in some cases resort to the use of armed force to ensure the country's safety and well-being. The question is perpetual-but the answer is not. This insightful text helps students make sense of the ever-changing environment and factors that influence disagreement over national security risks and policy in the United States. The book takes shape through a focus on three considerations: strategy, policy, and issues. Snow explains the range of plans of action that are possible and resources available for achieving national security goals, as well as the courses of action for achieving those goals in the context of a broad range of security problems that must be dealt with. However, there is little agreement among policymakers on exactly what is the nature of the threats that the country faces. Snow helps readers frame the debate by suggesting some of the prior influences on risk-assessment, some of the current influences on national security debates, and suggestions for how future strategy and policy may be shaped.
"Fighters Over The Falklands" captures daily life using pictures taken during the author's tours of duty on the Islands. From the first detachments of Phantoms and Rapiers operating from a rapidly upgraded RAF Stanley airfield to life at RAF Mount Pleasant, see life from the author's perspective as the Commander of the Tornado F3 Flight defending the islands' airspace. Font-line fighter crews provided Quick Reaction Alert during day to day flying operations working with the Royal Navy, Army and other Air Force units to defend a remote, and sometimes forgotten, theatre of operations. It will also look at how the islanders interact with the forces based at Mount Pleasant and contrast high technology military operations with the lives of the original inhabitants; namely the wildlife.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) has undergone wide-ranging changes since 2006, when it was given a new maritime warning mission and the NORAD Agreement was signed in perpetuity. Andrea Charron and James Fergusson trace NORAD's recent history, marked by innovations in technology and in command and control, but also by unprecedented threats. The shared defence of North America remains an important issue that should extend to other areas, such as the joint defence of the maritime and cyber domains. Fuelled by a deep curiosity about the command and its decisions made in the face of inevitable geopolitical and technological changes, this book uses a functional lens to evaluate NORAD's options and the technological and organizational solutions needed to defend North America. The authors investigate the ways in which the NORAD command might adapt in the future as it struggles to modernize and keep ahead of new threats. This book comes at a critical time. The rise of new peer competitors requires a fundamental reconsideration of North American defence. As one of very few contemporary analyses of the command and its future, NORAD will be a vital tool for scholars and practitioners.
When NATO took charge of the International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) for Afghanistan in 2003, ISAF conceptualized its
mission largely as a stabilization and reconstruction deployment.
However, as the campaign has evolved and the insurgency has proved
to more resistant and capable, key operational imperatives have
emerged, including military support to the civilian development
effort, closer partnering with Afghan security forces, and greater
military restraint. All participating militaries have adapted, to
varying extents, to these campaign imperatives and pressures.
This book explores the development of the military as an organization and looks at the patterns of civil-military relations that have emerged in modern Nepal, especially after the rise of King Prithvi Narayan Shah, who founded the unified state of Nepal. It combines astute analyses with up-to-date data to present a comprehensive account of the relations between monarchy, military and civil government and their impact on the democratization process in the country. The author underlines the pressing need for establishing civilian supremacy over the military, through developing and strengthening civilian supervisory mechanisms. The book will be an important resource to researchers, scholars, students of politics, military studies, peace and conflict studies, and history, particularly those concerned with Nepal. It will also interest policy-makers, security experts and military personnel.
Intriguing, real-life espionage stories bring to life a comparative history of the Allies' efforts to seize, control, and exploit German science and technology after the Second World War. During the Second World War, German science and technology posed a terrifying threat to the Allied nations. These advanced weapons, which included rockets, V-2 missiles, tanks, submarines, and jet airplanes, gave troubling credence to Nazi propaganda about forthcoming "wonder-weapons" that would turn the war decisively in favor of the Axis. After the war ended, the Allied powers raced to seize "intellectual reparations" from almost every field of industrial technology and academic science in occupied Germany. It was likely the largest-scale technology transfer in history. In Taking Nazi Technology, Douglas M. O'Reagan describes how the Western Allies gathered teams of experts to scour defeated Germany, seeking industrial secrets and the technical personnel who could explain them. Swarms of investigators invaded Germany's factories and research institutions, seizing or copying all kinds of documents, from patent applications to factory production data to science journals. They questioned, hired, and sometimes even kidnapped hundreds of scientists, engineers, and other technical personnel. They studied technologies from aeronautics to audiotapes, toy making to machine tools, chemicals to carpentry equipment. They took over academic libraries, jealously competed over chemists, and schemed to deny the fruits of German invention to any other land-including that of other Allied nations. Drawing on declassified records, O'Reagan looks at which techniques worked for these very different nations, as well as which failed-and why. Most importantly, he shows why securing this technology, how the Allies did it, and when still matters today. He also argues that these programs did far more than spread German industrial science: they forced businessmen and policymakers around the world to rethink how science and technology fit into diplomacy, business, and society itself.
The U.S. military is no longer based on a Cold War self-sufficient
model. Today's armed forces are a third smaller than they were
during the Cold War, and yet are expected to do as much if not more
than they did during those years. As a result, a transformation is
occurring in the way the U.S. government expects the military to
conduct operations--with much of that transformation contingent on
the use of contractors to deliver support to the armed forces
during military campaigns and afterwards.
The Organization of European Security Governance investigates what impact the changing nature of security challenges has had on the organization of security governance in Europe. As the most pervasive security challenges today are difficult to classify as either internal or external, the traditional divide between domestic and international security has become blurred. In response, European leaders have emphasized the need to develop comprehensive and horizontal approaches to security in the European Union. But has the European Union been able to deliver a coherent response to this new security environment? In a detailed comparative study of two crucial policy fields - EU counter-terrorism and post-conflict crisis management the book outlines the scope of the ongoing transformation of Europe's security order, examines its challenges and explains its defects. This important volume will be of interest to students and scholars of Security Studies and European Politics.
Russian annexation of Crimea and the subsequent air campaign over Syria took the world by surprise. The capabilities and efficiency of Putin's armed forces during both operations signalled to the world that Russia was back in business as a significant military actor on the international stage. In this cutting-edge study, Bettina Renz and Hanna Smith combine their respective expertise in strategic studies and foreign policy to offer an in-depth and comprehensive analysis of Russia's military revival under Putin's leadership. Whilst the West must adjust to the reality of a modernised and increasingly powerful Russian military, they argue that the renaissance of Russian military might and its implications for the balance of global power can only be fully understood within a wider historical context. Assessing developments in Russian Great Power thinking, military capabilities, Russian strategic thought and views on the use of force throughout the post-Soviet era, the book shows that rather than signifying a sudden Russian military resurgence, recent developments are consistent with longstanding trends in Russian military strategy and foreign policy. This timely and thoughtful book is a must-read for students of politics as well as anyone interested in current affairs.
This book offers the first comprehensive examination of Russia's Arctic strategy, ranging from climate change issues and territorial disputes to energy policy and domestic challenges. As the receding polar ice increases the accessibility of the Arctic region, rival powers have been manoeuvering for geopolitical and resource security. Geographically, Russia controls half of the Arctic coastline, 40 percent of the land area beyond the Circumpolar North, and three quarters of the Arctic population. In total, the sea and land surface area of the Russian Arctic is about 6 million square kilometres. Economically, as much as 20 percent of Russia's GDP and its total exports is generated north of the Arctic Circle. In terms of resources, about 95 percent of its gas, 75 percent of its oil, 96 percent of its platinum, 90 percent of its nickel and cobalt, and 60 percent of its copper reserves are found in Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions. Add to this the riches of the continental shelf, seabed, and waters, ranging from rare earth minerals to fish stocks. After a spike of aggressive rhetoric when Russia planted its flag in the Arctic seabed in 2007, Moscow has attempted to strengthen its position as a key factor in developing an international consensus concerning a region where its relative advantages are manifest, despite its diminishing military, technological, and human capacities.
Written by the undisputed dean of U.S. denial and deception experts, Practise to Deceive is the most in-depth look at deception as a military strategy. Barton Whaley knew the history of denial and deception across time, disciplines, and culture. He was the foremost authority on the intricacies of denial and deception strategy and tactics. For Whaley, deception was a mind-game, requiring imagination, deep critical thought, a profound understanding of the enemy as well as one's self (a variation of Sun Tzu), and patience and fortitude. This book presents 88 vividly descriptive case studies to serve as a handbook for intelligence and military professionals. In Whaley's analysis, variations in guilefulness between opposing individuals or groups can be crucial in deciding who achieves victory in combat.
Concerns over the changing nature of gangs and cartels and their relationships to states in the late 20th and early 21st centuries has resulted in the emergence of a scholarly body of work focused on their national security threat potentials. This body of work, utilizing the third generation gangs and third phase cartel typologies, represents an alternative to traditional gang and organized crime research and one that is increasingly influencing the US defense community. Rather than being viewed only as misguided youth and opportunistic criminals or, in their mature forms, as criminal organizations with no broader social or political agendas, more evolved gangs and cartels, are instead seen as developing political, mercenary, and state-challenging capacities. This evolutionary process has emerged due to the growing illicit economy and other unintended consequences of globalization. This important anthology of writings by Robert J. Bunker and John P. Sullivan draws upon a collection of their works from the mid-1990s to the present with the addition of new essays written specifically for this publication. The work will be of great interest to academics and students in the fields of political science and criminal justice and to military, law enforcement, and governmental professionals and policy makers. This book is a collection of new and previously published works from a variety of publications, a full list of which is on the Citation Information page.
This edited volume introduces the reader to the role of space in military and defense strategy, and outlines some of the major foreign and domestic actors in the space arena, as well as constraints of law and treaties on activities in space. It also addresses science and technology as they relate to space policy. The book addresses three main questions: How does the realm of space fit into strategic thinking about national security? How does policy regarding space develop and what considerations, both in the United States and abroad, figure prominently in calculations about space policy? How do different states/nations/actors regard the role of space in their national security calculations and how do these policies impact each other? This book fills a niche in the space policy field, providing insights into space and strategy from international experts from the military, academic and scientific communities. A unique feature of the book is the chapter on science and technology, which utilizes the latest information available concerning space utilization and exploration.
"International Security" is a cutting-edge analysis of the key security challenges and developments in the post-Cold War world. Drawing on a wide range of contemporary examples, from the Iraq war to the rise of China, it is an essential guide for students and policy makers seeking to understand the theoretical and empirical debates over the fast-changing nature of international security today.The book is organized into four main parts. Part 1 provides an analytical framework for the book, identifying the most significant post-Cold War shifts in international security and recent theoretical developments in security studies. Part 2 analyses the root causes for contemporary warfare, the dilemmas and debates over military intervention, and the role played by the UN, NATO and other organizations in maintaining international peace and security. Part 3 assesses the challenges of environmental security, including the threat of resource-based conflict, most notably over oil and water, and the perceived security challenges of international migration. Part 4 discusses the new security challenges posed by international terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and cyber warfare. It explores the strategies and policies adopted by the United States, particularly in the aftermath of 9/11 and assesses the implications of the rise of China and other emerging powers.This book will be essential reading for students and analysts of international relations, international security and strategic studies.
Case studies explore how to improve military adaptation and preparedness in peacetime by investigating foreign wars Preparing for the next war at an unknown date against an undetermined opponent is a difficult undertaking with extremely high stakes. Even the most detailed exercises and wargames do not truly simulate combat and the fog of war. Thus, outside of their own combat, militaries have studied foreign wars as a valuable source of battlefield information. The effectiveness of this learning process, however, has rarely been evaluated across different periods and contexts. Through a series of in-depth case studies of the US Army, Navy, and Air Force, Brent L. Sterling creates a better understanding of the dynamics of learning from "other people's wars," determining what types of knowledge can be gained from foreign wars, identifying common pitfalls, and proposing solutions to maximize the benefits for doctrine, organization, training, and equipment. Other People's Wars explores major US efforts involving direct observation missions and post-conflict investigations at key junctures for the US armed forces: the Crimean War (1854-56), Russo-Japanese War (1904-5), Spanish Civil War (1936-39), and Yom Kippur War (1973), which preceded the US Civil War, First and Second World Wars, and major army and air force reforms of the 1970s, respectively. The case studies identify learning pitfalls but also show that initiatives to learn from other nations' wars can yield significant benefits if the right conditions are met. Sterling puts forth a process that emphasizes comprehensive qualitative learning to foster better military preparedness and adaptability.
Commanding Military Power offers a new explanation of why some armed forces are stronger than others. Ryan Grauer advances a 'command structure theory' which combines insights from organization theory, international relations, and security studies literatures to provide a unique perspective on military power. Specifically, armed forces organized to facilitate swift and accurate perception of and response to battlefield developments will cope better with war's inherent uncertainty, use resources effectively, and, quite often, win. Case studies of battles from the Russo-Japanese War, Chinese Civil War and Korean War, based on new archival research, underscore the argument, showing that even smaller and materially weaker militaries can fight effectively against and defeat larger and better endowed adversaries when they are organizationally prepared to manage uncertainty. That organization often matters more than numbers and specific tools of war has crucial implications for both contemporary and future thinking about and efforts to improve martial strength. |
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