Based on the author's doctoral dissertation at Oxford, this study examines with a historical perspective the national defence strategy of Finland 1944-1989. The author explores Finland's dilemma with respect to its geographic position and the Cold War politics between the US and the USSR.

The armed forces of Europe have undergone a dramatic transformation since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Handbook of European Defence Policies and Armed Forces provides the first comprehensive analysis of national security and defence policies, strategies, doctrines, capabilities, and military operations, as well as the alliances and partnerships of European armed forces in response to the security challenges Europe has faced since the end of the cold war. A truly cross-European comparison of the evolution of national defence policies and armed forces remains a notable blind spot in the existing literature. The Handbook of European Defence Policies and Armed Forces aims to fill this gap with fifty-one contributions on European defence and international security from around the world. The six parts focus on: country-based assessments of the evolution of the national defence policies of Europe's major, medium, and lesser powers since the end of the cold war; the alliances and security partnerships developed by European states to cooperate in the provision of national security; the security challenges faced by European states and their armed forces, ranging from interstate through intra-state and transnational; the national security strategies and doctrines developed in response to these challenges; the military capabilities, and the underlying defence and technological industrial base, brought to bear to support national strategies and doctrines; and, finally, the national or multilateral military operations by European armed forces. The contributions to The Handbook collectively demonstrate the fruitfulness of giving analytical precedence back to the comparative study of national defence policies and armed forces across Europe.

This book examines the viability of non-provocative defence - the controversial idea that defensive military policies and practices reduce the risk of wars and provide a viable basis for defending a society should war break out. Drawing on case studies from Europe, the 1991 Persian Gulf War, and Asia-Pacific, the author concludes that non-provocative defence concepts remain relevant and that they can help in deterring, conducting, and settling wars.

This new work examines how the European states, the United Kingdom and the United States will approach the defence and Security of Europe in the medium and long-term. It is often assumed that Brexit, the United Kingdom’s departure from the political and commercial European Union, would affect defence and security profoundly, but the basis of that assumption is rarely analysed. Bringing together a panel of specialists from Europe, the UK, the EU, and the United States, this volume evaluates the relative position they play in Europe’s defence in the era of Brexit. It examines the arguments, challenges, and problems in European defence, and tests them against the residual commitment, cohesion, and capabilities of the states concerned, including Anglo-French military co-operation, the silent Anglo-German partnership, the US-UK Special Relationship, and the emergent Northern Group.

'The chapters dealing with the countries' security situation are informative...an informative work.' - Pal Dunay, Deputy Director, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, Budapest The book is a detailed examination of the evolution of the national security policies of the countries of East-Central Europe - Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary - since the East European revolutions of 1989. It also analyses the Visegrad group regional cooperation process between the East-Central European states, their relations with the main European security institutions (the European Union, NATO and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe) and their position in the European security order of the 1990s.