Military Strategy of Small States: Responding to External Shocks of the 21st Century

Håkan Edström · Dennis Gyllensporre · Jacob Westberg

sept 2018 · Routledge

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The book explores how small states adjust their military strategies in response to external shocks.

Using primary sources from four Nordic countries, (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden), this volume explores how small states have adjusted their military strategies in response to external shocks of the 21st century. The 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Russian interventions in Georgia and Ukraine, and the rise of the Islamic State have all forced the Nordic states to adopt new strategies. While the responses have not been uniform, their differing relations to the EU and NATO have not prevented these countries from behaving similarly in military affairs. Limitations in military capacity has led all four countries to pursue strategies that include cooperation with more resourceful partners. It is necessary for them to cooperate with others to protect and promote their national interests. Moreover, the Nordic cosmopolitan outlook expresses milieu-shaping ambitions that we generally would not expect small states to pursue against a potential great power aggressor.

This book will be of much interest to students of military strategy, defense studies, security studies, and international relations.

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Håkan Edström is Associate Professor in Political Science and Senior Lecturer in War Studies at the Swedish Defence University.

Dennis Gyllensporre is Associate Professor in Political Science at the Swedish Defence University.

Jacob Westberg is Senior Lecturer in Security Policy and Strategy at the Swedish Defence University.