Designed as a textbook and interdisciplinary reference for the social sciences, this volume examines key issues in the current global security agenda and relationships between armed forces and society around the world. The book's concise chapters - on a broad range of themes related to national and international security, military sociology, and civil-military relations - were written by experts from 18 countries. This volume also has a groundbreaking section, which - using country studies and regional overviews - discusses civil-military relations in as well as the most salient theoretical and practical features of current means of democratic control of the armed forces in the early 21st century.
A collection of the papers from the 1995 Sandhurst conference presented by leading members of the armed forces, the media and academia. The conference marked a major advance in British thinking on this very topical and fast-moving subject, bringing together authorities from various fields in a multidisciplinary investigation which has been, and will be of great interest to a wide variety of specialist readers.
Shaped by often very dramatic events, international security and the international system have changed significantly in recent years. The conclusion of the Cold War, the emergence of new political systems, the growth of significant threats such as terrorism, and the development of new security doctrines have driven global transformation. These volumes provide detailed information on countries from every geographic region and continent on the globe, evaluating their relationship with the United States and measuring the potential security threats posed by each. The contributors consider factors such as geography and history; the political systems of each state; their human rights records; the ability to maintain law and order and provide security within their own borders; the impact of current administrations, rulers, or regimes on a nation's foreign policy; and the regional factors that often dictate local politics, in order to make their assessments. All of the entries in this set follow a standardized outline and present a concise, but detailed assessment of each country. Each entry begins with a discussion of geography through which the contributors identify the state's natural resources, environmental issues, and the extent of its territorial jurisdiction. The focus then shifts to social and political organizations. Populations are broken down by not only numbers, but by ethnic and religious affilitations, access to health care, education, housing, and income. All of those aspects are often a reflection of the system of government in place. Like the United States, those governments are comprised of different parties or leaders with various interests. The contributors assess those entities and interests within each country. They measure the ways in which factors of religion, nationalism, and globalism impact and shape not only domestic policies but also foreign policy, and, ultimately, the country's relationship to the United States. Other areas, such as military organizations and activities, records on human rights and justice (recognition of and adherence to international conventions), and national attitudes towards security are also considered. Every entry also includes an assessment of current and potential security issues and an analysis of current terrorist threats that may already be in place or that are beginning to develop in various nations. Each entry concludes with a summary of current relationships with the United States. Those relationships are defined by the indentification and brief analysis of formal trade, aid, or military treaties in place between the United States and other nations, the general attitude of a nation's citizenry and its government towards the U.S., and, finally, indentifying any social and cultural links between nations and the U.S. (migration patterns, language, economies). Finally, possible changes and trends that will impact security issues are identified by the contributors. Taken in their entirety, these encyclopedias contain a wealth of information in a concise format that will serve as a valuable reference guide not only for specialists, but general readers as well.
Through an array of theoretical approaches and empirical material, this comprehensive and accessible volume surveys private armed forces and directly challenges conventional stereotypes of security contractors. Private Armed Forces and Global Security: A Guide to the Issues is the first book to provide a comprehensive yet accessible survey of the private military groups involved in conflicts worldwide. Organized around four themes, it covers the history of private military forces since 1600, the main contemporary actors and their defining characteristics, the environments in which private armed forces operate, and provides an analysis of the logic behind privatizing security. This book goes beyond conventional knowledge, offering both a theoretical approach and a new, practical perspective to advance the understanding of the ongoing climate of global instability and relevant players within it. Numerous examples help the reader grasp the full range of real-world challenges and conceptual facets surrounding this fascinating, yet highly polarizing topic.
Through an array of theoretical approaches and empirical material, this comprehensive and accessible volume surveys private armed forces and directly challenges conventional stereotypes of security contractors. Private Armed Forces and Global Security: A Guide to the Issues is the first book to provide a comprehensive yet accessible survey of the private military groups involved in conflicts worldwide. Organized around four themes, it covers the history of private military forces since 1600, the main contemporary actors and their defining characteristics, the environments in which private armed forces operate, and provides an analysis of the logic behind privatizing security. This book goes beyond conventional knowledge, offering both a theoretical approach and a new, practical perspective to advance the understanding of the ongoing climate of global instability and relevant players within it. Numerous examples help the reader grasp the full range of real-world challenges and conceptual facets surrounding this fascinating, yet highly polarizing topic.
This book investigates how states in both the West and Asia have responded to multi-dimensional security challenges since the end of the Cold War, focusing on military transformation. Looking at a cross-section of different countries, this volume assesses how their armed forces have responded to a changing international security context. The book investigates two main themes. First, how the process of military ‘transformation’- in terms of technological advances and new ways of conducting warfare - has impacted on the militaries of various countries. These technologies are hugely expensive and the extent to which different states can afford them, and the ability of these states to utilise these technologies, differs greatly. Second, the volume investigates the social dimensions of military transformation. It reveals the expanding breadth of tasks that contemporary armed forces have been required to address. This includes the need for military forces to work with other actors, such as non-governmental agencies and humanitarian organisations, and the ability of armed forces to fight asymmetric opponents and conduct post-conflict reconstruction tasks. The conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan exemplified how important the relationship between technological and social transformation has become. This book will be of much interest to students of strategic studies, military innovation, Asian politics, security studies and International Relations.
