Details the chemical and biological weapons program of South Africa.

Profiles the personalities and strategic cultures of some of the United States' most dangerous international rivals.

The story of a century of conflict and change—from the Second Boer War to the anti-apartheid movement and the many battles in between. Twentieth-century South Africa saw continuous, often rapid, and fundamental socioeconomic and political change. The century started with a brief but total war. Less than ten years later, Britain brought the conquered Boer republics and the Cape and Natal colonies together into the Union of South Africa. The Union Defence Force, later the SADF, was deployed during most of the major wars of the century, as well as a number of internal and regional struggles: the two world wars, Korea, uprising and rebellion on the part of Afrikaner and black nationalists, and industrial unrest. The century ended as it started, with another war. This was a flash point of the Cold War, which embraced more than just the subcontinent and lasted a long thirty years. The outcome included the final withdrawal of foreign troops from southern Africa, the withdrawal of South African forces from Angola and Namibia, and the transfer of political power away from a white elite to a broad-based democracy. This book is the first study of the South African armed forces as an institution and of the complex roles that these forces played in the wars, rebellions, uprisings, and protests of the period. It deals in the first instance with the evolution of South African defense policy, the development of the armed forces, and the people who served in and commanded them. It also places the narrative within the broader national past, to produce a fascinating study of a century in which South Africa was uniquely embroiled in three total wars.

Originally published in 2004. Genocide in Rwanda, massive floods of refugees and displaced people in the Horn of Africa, violent civil wars in the West African countries of Sierra Leone and Liberia - these are testimonies to the tremendous cost to grassroots communities when the authority and legitimacy of national political systems and leaders are called into question. The consolidation of democracy represents one tangible strategy to restore authority and legitimacy of political rule, providing the peace and security necessary for political enfranchisement and economic opportunity. This volume explores the factors that are crucial to the emergence of democratic political systems on the African continent, specifically focusing on Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. It highlights the political challenges facing these countries during this crucial transition period, and provides insights that are applicable to other countries engaged in this process in Africa and beyond.

The threat of biological weapons has been worrying about the armed forces, as well as political leaders for quite some time. With the global recorded deaths from COVID-19 surpassing one million, the biotechnological revolution has heightened the fear of future weaponized pathogens. The COVID-19 virus or its variant could be the most effective weapon for future biological warfare. The indiscriminate effect of such a weapon and its power to cripple economies and devastate the lives of people may make it attractive to rogue States and non-State actors. This book provides an updated analysis of biological warfare agents, including the COVID-19 virus, biotechnological developments affecting biological agents, and the legal regime responsible for preventing the use of biological weapons.

The intensification of the Iranian and North Korean nuclear crises has created new fears that deteriorating security conditions in the Middle East, Northeast Asia, and other regions will lead additional countries to seek their own nuclear arsenals in the years to come. This special issue examines the factors that are likely to shape nuclear weapons proliferation over the next decade. The internationally recognized authors of this issue, many of whom are prominent scholars and others of whom have held influential governmental positions with responsibility for countering nuclear proliferation, bring to light the conditions and events that might drive new countries to pursue nuclear weapons; the indicators and cautionary signs that can provide early warning that a country is interested in building nuclear bombs; and the policy and military measures that can be adopted to prevent or at least dissuade new proliferators. The introductory chapter develops a novel analytical approach focusing on the role of nuclear myths and mythmakers and the subsequent chapters draw on this approach to help analysts better understand and policy makers better manage nuclear proliferation over the next ten years.