Human Dimensions in Foreign Policy, Military Studies, and Security Studies – serie

How great powers react to their inevitable decline shapes their own destiny as well as the course of international politics. Leaders can decide to engage with others or isolate themselves; to build alliances or initiate war; to stoke up nationalism or invest in innovation; to focus on economic competition or develop their people's soft power. While some of these coping strategies foster cooperation, others provoke conflict with neighbours. In Coping with Geopolitical Decline leading political scientists, historians, and sociologists explore the strategies adopted by leaders and domestic elites to prevent, reverse, or deny the decline of their country. Analyzing four European cases (Byzantium, England, France, Russia) before turning to the contemporary debate in the United States, they argue that geopolitics is not fate. Coping strategies depend on the context, which includes cultural representations of decline, the experience of military defeat, and domestic politics. Whether elites choose to modernize their economy, bolster their diplomatic status, or launch preventive war makes a difference in the extent and speed of a country's decline. By the same token, coping strategies affect world order. A well-managed decline allows for a peaceful power transition. Some strategies, however, may preserve the peace at the expense of a country's standing, while others will stave off decline but encourage imperialist adventures or precipitate military conflicts. As the United States challenges the liberal international order, fights back China's ascendency, and reconsiders its traditional alliances, Coping with Geopolitical Decline analyzes key lessons from Europe's experience and provides comparative insight into the likely dynamics of cooperation and conflict in the twenty-first century.

As the UK leaves the European Union and as the multilateral order is increasingly under stress, bilateral security links are more important than ever. Among such relationships, the UK-France partnership has become particularly critical in the past decades. Alice Pannier's Rivals in Arms reveals the history of the growing special partnership between Europe's two leading military powers in the twenty-first century. Using an innovative analytical framework rooted in theories of cooperation and negotiation, this book exposes the challenges the two countries have faced to develop, equip, and employ their military capabilities together. Through a decade-long study, Pannier highlights how France and the UK have endeavoured to make their partnership more effective and resistant to domestic and international shifts, including Brexit. Building on more than one hundred interviews with key stakeholders and unmatched access to primary sources, Rivals in Arms takes the reader behind the scenes, investigating the complicated but crucial defence relationship between France and the UK - a relationship that is critical to the future of Euro-Atlantic security.

For decades, the Canadian Armed Forces has used the work of foreign scholars and writers in its professional military education to try to understand the human dimension of warfare: why and how people are motivated to fight, and how they behave once they do fight. Yet the specific Canadian context, experience, and perspective are often lost in favour of appeals to universal truths. The first major Canadian study of combat motivation in almost forty years, Why We Fight redresses this imbalance by presenting some of the best new work on the subject. Bringing together top military practitioners and scholars to discuss some of the most controversial issues of modern warfare, Why We Fight examines the face of battle as experienced by Canadians. It explores sexual violence in war, professionalism, organizations, leadership, shared intent, motivation in extremis, and the toxicity of the "warrior" culture. Its chapters offer key insights on combat motivation theories, the modern operating environment, and the collective and individual identities of the men and women who fight for Canada. Many worry that technology is leading us towards a post-human age, particularly in war. Why We Fight affirms the centrality of the human being in warfare in Canada's past, present, and future.

When the European Union signed an agreement with Turkey in 2016 to end irregular migration from Syria using extraterritorial measures, the media framed it as a radical new low in migrant protection. Similarly, when then presidential candidate Donald Trump called on Mexico to "pay for the wall," critics argued it was an outlandish departure from established norms. Extraterritorial migration control arrangements of this type have become more visible in recent years, but they are not new. Katherine Tennis traces the emergence of these agreements in the Americas, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Grounded in case studies of negotiations between the United States and Haiti and Mexico, Italy's negotiations with Tunisia and Libya, and Spain's negotiations with Senegal, Outsourcing Control argues that while some countries - sharing an interest in ensuring orderly migration or recognizing the opportunity for kickbacks - have been happy to cooperate, others have objected, claiming wealthy destination states are exploiting them to do their dirty work. Tennis shows that these different responses depend on how the government in the partner country secures its power. Autocracies and strong democracies tend to cooperate, though for different reasons and in different ways. The most unpredictable partners are fragile democracies, who are prone to nationalism and populist backlash. The first comprehensive study to trace the emergence of extraterritorial migration control agreements across nations, Outsourcing Control reveals the international and domestic pressures behind the complex, brutal, and often deadly situation facing migrants today.

Canada's statebuilding efforts in Afghanistan are not well documented. After fourteen years of significant investments in humanitarian causes, there are still questions about the impact of these projects and whether they delivered as promised or fell short.In Canada as Statebuilder? Laura Grant and Benjamin Zyla analyze over one hundred and thirty Canadian-led development projects in Afghanistan to illustrate that Canada has a limited capacity to effectively run humanitarian efforts in unstable, insecure, or inaccessible environments. Canadian or Canadian-sponsored development projects were ambitious and highly productive in terms of outputs in the short term, especially in the areas of security, women and gender, health, and education. However, when their outcomes and overall impact are assessed, the authors argue, Canada's record is less impressive. Their analysis contributes to evidence-based discussions of one of Canada's most important foreign policy activities in recent years.Reflecting on Canada's engagement in Afghanistan, Canada as Statebuilder? asks whether Canadian peacekeeping efforts in the region were ultimately worth the economic and human resources invested.

Greater participation by women in peace negotiations, policy-making, and legal decision-making would have a lasting impact on conflict resolution, development, and the maintenance of peace in post-conflict zones. Women, Peace, and Security lays the groundwork for this enhanced participation, drawing from insightful research by women scholars and applying a feminist lens to contemporary security issues.This timely collection of essays promotes the adoption of a feminist framework for international security issues and presents the voices of some of the most inspiring thinkers in feminist international relations in Canada. Women, Peace, and Security provides insightful recommendations to researchers conducting fieldwork, as well as methodological insights on how to develop feminist research design in international relations and how to adopt feminist ethical considerations. Contributions include gender-based analyses of the challenges faced by the Canadian military and by families of serving members. From Canada's Famous Five to the women's marches of 2017, lessons are drawn to inform new generations of women activists, concluding with a clarion call for greater allyship with Indigenous women and girls to support decolonization efforts in Canada.Offering a unique range of perspectives, narratives, and contributions to international relations and international law, this volume brings women's voices to the forefront of vital conversations about fundamental peace and security challenges.

While countries throughout the world rely on immigrants to support their populations and economies, access to the military is limited, denied to those who have not yet acquired citizenship.Precluding immigrants from serving in their host country's armed forces is an issue of moral equity and operational effectiveness. Allowing immigrants to enlist ensures that the military represents the population it serves and encourages inclusivity and cultural change within the institution, while also creating a more effective military force. The Power of Diversity in the Armed Forces investigates how different countries approach the inclusion or exclusion of immigrants in their armed forces and offers immigrant military participation as a pathway to citizenship and a way to foster greater societal integration and achieve a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive military.By surveying international perspectives on immigrant and non-citizen military participation in twelve countries, The Power of Diversity in the Armed Forces introduces and examines a new way to unlock the power of diversity in military organizations globally.

In 2021, a sexual misconduct scandal struck the Canadian military, leading to a profound crisis in leadership. While some more recent allegations came to light before the #MeToo movement, these latest revelations have historical roots in the 1990s, an era known to service members as the "decade of darkness."Due to drastic budget cuts and allegations of serious crimes perpetrated by its members, the last decade of the twentieth century was a tumultuous time for the Canadian Armed Forces. Amid this period, a human rights tribunal ordered the military to open its combat positions to women and reach full gender integration by 1999. Yet by 2021, women made up only 16.3 per cent of personnel; women and LGBTQ+ service members continue to face sexual harassment and abuse at all levels. In The Ones We Let Down Charlotte Duval-Lantoine looks at failed efforts to achieve gender parity during the 1990s. She reveals an organization unwilling and unable to change, and attitudes held by military leaders that fed a destructive dynamic and cost lives.As the military grapples with its failure to address cultural misconduct and change its culture, The Ones We Let Down reflects on whether the right lessons were learned from the decade of darkness.

Visitors to the battlefields of France and Belgium expressed pain and anguish, pride and nostalgia, and wonder and surprise at what they saw. Postcards from the Western Front chronicles the many ways in which these sites were perceived and commemorated by British people, both during the First World War and in the twenty years following the Armistice.Mark Connelly’s definitive and engaging study of the former Western Front examines how different and distinctive sub-communities – regional, ethnic and religious, civilian and armed forces – influenced the depth and strength of the visiting public’s relationship with the battlefields, all the while comparing and contrasting this relationship with the viewpoint of the French and Belgian inhabitants of the devastated regions. Connelly draws from a vast archive a number of interlocking themes, including the lingering presence of the battlefields in the British domestic imagination, the often fraught experience of visiting the battlefields, memorials and cemeteries functioning as part of a historical testimony to wartime realities, and the interactions between visitors and the people living in these former fighting zones. Focusing on French and Belgian sites, Connelly nevertheless provides insight into other major battlefields fought over by troops from the British Empire. Extensively illustrated with black and white photographs, Postcards from the Western Front offers a groundbreaking perspective on landscapes that rarely left anyone – whether tourist, inhabitant, veteran, or pilgrim – unmoved.

Visitors to the battlefields of France and Belgium expressed pain and anguish, pride and nostalgia, and wonder and surprise at what they saw. Postcards from the Western Front chronicles the many ways in which these sites were perceived and commemorated by British people, both during the First World War and in the twenty years following the Armistice.Mark Connelly's definitive and engaging study of the former Western Front examines how different and distinctive sub-communities – regional, ethnic and religious, civilian and armed forces – influenced the depth and strength of the visiting public's relationship with the battlefields, all the while comparing and contrasting this relationship with the viewpoint of the French and Belgian inhabitants of the devastated regions. Connelly draws from a vast archive a number of interlocking themes, including the lingering presence of the battlefields in the British domestic imagination, the often fraught experience of visiting the battlefields, memorials and cemeteries functioning as part of a historical testimony to wartime realities, and the interactions between visitors and the people living in these former fighting zones. Focusing on French and Belgian sites, Connelly nevertheless provides insight into other major battlefields fought over by troops from the British Empire. Extensively illustrated with black and white photographs, Postcards from the Western Front offers a groundbreaking perspective on landscapes that rarely left anyone – whether tourist, inhabitant, veteran, or pilgrim – unmoved.

Total defence, as a concept, combines and extends military and civil defence: in a state of war or emergency, all social institutions mobilize to defend the state. Total defence forces, led by a diverse workforce of defence and security professionals, are critical to both national defence and international security goals.Total Defence Forces in the Twenty-First Century looks at the various groups that make up this workforce: members of the military’s regular force, reservists, defence civil servants, and contractors working for private military and security companies. When civilian staff and military personnel work towards a common goal, their distinct professional cultures and identities can make integration challenging. Despite the often high levels of partnership, underlying differences affect the quality of the collaboration and, ultimately, organizational and operational effectiveness. Defence ministries around the world are increasingly recognizing the importance of optimizing the ways in which they employ and integrate civilian and military personnel.This volume focuses on a critical question: what are the main challenges to workforce integration and collaboration, and how can such challenges be overcome to deliver the full potential of the total defence force? Together, scholars and practitioners provide some answers.

Total defence, as a concept, combines and extends military and civil defence: in a state of war or emergency, all social institutions mobilize to defend the state. Total defence forces, led by a diverse workforce of defence and security professionals, are critical to both national defence and international security goals.Total Defence Forces in the Twenty-First Century looks at the various groups that make up this workforce: members of the military’s regular force, reservists, defence civil servants, and contractors working for private military and security companies. When civilian staff and military personnel work towards a common goal, their distinct professional cultures and identities can make integration challenging. Despite the often high levels of partnership, underlying differences affect the quality of the collaboration and, ultimately, organizational and operational effectiveness. Defence ministries around the world are increasingly recognizing the importance of optimizing the ways in which they employ and integrate civilian and military personnel.This volume focuses on a critical question: what are the main challenges to workforce integration and collaboration, and how can such challenges be overcome to deliver the full potential of the total defence force? Together, scholars and practitioners provide some answers.

In 2003, just before the start of the US invasion of Iraq, military planners predicted that the mission's success would depend on using diverse sources for their workforce. While thousands of US troops were needed to secure victory in the field, large numbers of civilian contractors – many from poor countries in Africa and Asia – were recruited to provide a range of services for the occupying forces. In Contract Workers, Risk, and the War in Iraq Kevin Thomas provides a compelling account of the recruitment of Sierra Leonean workers and their reasons for embracing the risks of migration. In recent years US military bases have outsourced contracts for services to private military corporations who recruit and capitalize on cheaper low-skilled workers. Thomas argues that for people from post-conflict countries such as Sierra Leone, where there are high levels of poverty and acute unemployment, the opportunity to improve their situation outweighs the risk of migration to war-torn Iraq. Examining migrants' experiences in their native country, at US bases, and after their return to Sierra Leone, Thomas deftly explores the intricate dynamics of risk, sets up a theoretical framework for future researchers, and offers policy recommendations for decision-makers and practitioners in the field. Incorporating the voices of Sierra Leonean contractors who were manipulated and exploited, Contract Workers, Risk, and the War in Iraq turns the spotlight on a subject that has remained on the periphery of history and reveals an unexpected consequence of the War on Terror.

How do militants rationalize violence and what are their motives? How do time and space shape their destiny? In Violence and Militants Baris Cayli explores these enduring questions by comparing violent episodes in towns and villages in the nineteenth-century Ottoman Balkans with today's zones of conflict from Afghanistan to the Middle East. Placing history alongside the troubles of the present, Violence and Militants reveals parallels between Christian militants who rebelled against the Ottoman Empire and four jihadist organizations of today: Hezbollah, Hamas, al-Qaeda, and Isis. Drawing on scholarship by political theorists, historians, sociologists, anthropologists, and philosophers, Cayli traces the root of dissent to a perceived deprivation that leads to aggressive protest and action. He argues that the rationalization of violence functions independently of time and geographical location. Through a riveting narrative, this book uncovers how militant groups use revenge, ideals, and confrontation to generate fear and terror in the name of justice. Breaking new ground, Violence and Militants is the first book to address this complex relationship across different periods of history.

Compared with its civilian counterpart - which struggles with delays and uncertain results - summary military justice is efficient. From offence until outcome, 90 per cent of cases are dealt with in less than ninety days. The other side of the coin is that there is no right to representation by defence counsel, no transcript produced, and no appeal to a judge. Nine times out of ten, individuals are found guilty. For service members, consequences can include fines, reductions in rank, confinement, and sentences of up to thirty days in military jail, sometimes with a criminal conviction. Addressing important gaps in legal literature, Frontline Justice sets out to examine summary justice in Canada's military and to advocate for reform. Pascal Lévesque describes the origins, purposes, and features of the summary trial system in the Canadian Armed Forces. He then analyzes the system's benefits and flaws and the challenges it faces in maintaining discipline while respecting the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Lévesque determines that troubling aspects of the system, including the fact that lower and higher ranks are dealt with and punished differently, are clear indicators of a need for change. Criticizing current legislation, the book takes into account the latest developments in military law and jurisprudence to make concrete recommendations for an alternative model of military justice. A thought-provoking and balanced analysis, Frontline Justice seeks to remedy some of the more unfair and arcane proceedings of the Canadian military's summary trial system.

Since 9/11, counterterrorism has become a national and international priority. Research on violent extremism and terrorism, from homegrown threats to foreign fighters, has adapted accordingly but has not always translated into policymaking. Extremism can be traced to no single cause, and yet governments and law-enforcement agencies continue to spend millions on prevention efforts. Contributors to this book identify persistent challenges for counterterrorism and countering violent extremism and provide analysis from a variety of academic and professional perspectives. Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorism cautions against adopting a causal model to understand violent extremism and takes a critical look at how states have managed to cope with the global phenomenon of terrorism. By drawing on the expertise of researchers and practitioners from government, law enforcement, and the military, contributors identify past failures and offer guidance on how to correct these mistakes. With the collective goal of developing more effective strategies, the authors dispel common myths, discard counterproductive tactics, and point to countries in which policies have functioned as intended. As some terrorist organizations' influence wanes, others innovate and thrive, further challenging a state apparatus that is slow to adapt to these mutating threats. An essential and timely book, Countering Violent Extremism and Terrorism seeks to change how governments and policymakers consider and respond to security threats.