scholarly journals Brazil's grand border strategy: challenges of a new critical thinking in a modern era

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Dhenin ◽  
Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino Correa
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Field Trips ◽  
Critical Perspective ◽  
Remote Areas ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
New Challenges ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Military ◽  
Modern Era

This paper aims to offer a critical perspective regarding Brazil's border policies and its military presence. For decades, the Brazilian Armed Forces emphasized the 'Security and Development' doctrine as the solution to solve the many issues of the remote areas of the Amazon. In the late 1980's, even with the end of the Military Regime, such practices continued to dominate the agenda of policymakers. Nowadays, Brazil's young democracy faces new challenges regarding its 'brown areas', as O'Donnell theorized them. Our main goal here is to stress the lack of a critical thinking in the process of transformation of the regional reality. We evaluated the situation according to recent data gathered during several field trips in the Amazon region. The absence of a government presence, often pointed out as a strategic weakness by the military authorities, neglect the presence of various actors (population, NGOs, for example) committed to security. We argue that it is essential for the military to cooperate more with civilians, instead of militarizing the borders, to guarantee a safe presence for the population, and not only the security of a territory.

Nationalist China's Armed Forces

1963 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 35-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce Kallgren
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Personal Freedom ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
Eventual Return ◽  
Nationalist Government ◽  
The Military

Formosa has the unenviable distinction of having proportionally more men under arms than any other country. With resources and manpower being poured into keeping approximately 600,000 men in readiness for an eventual return to the mainland the military presence inevitably pervades Formosan life. Military needs conflict with personal freedom and restrain economic growth. Yet for all the efforts of the Nationalist government—sustained by huge amounts of American aid—the changing international scene and difficulties within the Nationalist forces make a return to the mainland less likely as time goes by.

scholarly journals The Modernization of Poland Defense Forces to Respond Russia Military Presence in Kaliningrad Oblast (2014-2017)

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 183
Author(s):  
Anak Agung Banyu Perwita ◽  
Widya Dwi Rachmawati
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Kaliningrad Oblast ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Russian Military ◽  
Polish Government ◽  
The Military

The geopolitical security condition of Eastern Europe has undergone a drastic shift from Communist to Democratic ideology. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Poland immediately joined the Western alliance, which led to the massive structural changes of the country. The shift has had an enormous impact on Russia where it has made various confrontations to regain its influence in the region. Russia continues to increase tensions by increasing the military capabilities of Kaliningrad Oblast, which is directly bordered by Poland. In response, the Polish government made efforts to modernize its military as part of the Defense White Book 2013 to improve its military capabilities in response to Russian military presence in Kaliningrad Oblast. The role of the global players (EU, NATO, and the USA) is key important to the security stability of the region. Poland on its four pillars specifically calls the alliance with the USA and becomes a member of NATO as an important factor in the formulation of its defense policy, in which Poland could increase the capabilities of its Armed Forces.

Will Biden could withdraw the US forces from Afghanistan?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stanislav Mikhailovich Ivanov
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The United States ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Military

The article analyzes the military operation of the United States and its NATO allies in Afghanistan, which lasted for 20 years, and the prospects for the withdrawal of all foreign troops from this country. The author states that the new US President D. Biden does not abandon the foreign policy course pursued by his predecessors earlier to reduce the US military presence in Afghanistan. Moreover, the new president reaffirmed his commitment to the peace agreement between the United States and the opposition Taliban, reached in the Qatari capital of Doha in February 2020, which provides for the withdrawal of US troops and their NATO allies from the country. However, the author comes to the conclusion that due to a number of objective and subjective factors, the timing of the final withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan may be postponed indefinitely, and even the deadline recently declared by the White House on September 11, 2021, may be far from final and may be repeatedly subjected to revisions. The main obstacle to the implementation of this important clause of the bilateral agreement is the lack of progress in negotiations between the Taliban representatives and the central government, as well as the lack of security guarantees for the withdrawn contingent of the US Armed Forces, NATO and the remaining staff of Western foreign missions in Afghanistan. Not only the radical Taliban wing, but also a number of current ministers in Kabul are trying to sabotage the conclusion of a second peace agreement and the subsequent integration of the Taliban into power. Without a lasting agreement between the Taliban and the central authorities in Kabul and the formation of a new coalition government, the likelihood of a resumption of civil war in the country will remain. New terrorist attacks and outbursts of violence on the part of the radical wing of the Taliban movement against the central government and foreign troops are not excluded. The penetration of Islamic State gangs into Afghanistan, which can undermine the stability of the military-political situation from within and provoke new armed conflicts, also carries certain risks. Much will also depend on the position of one of the main external players in Afghan affairs — Islamabad. Time will show whether Pakistan will be ready to take on part of the functions of a peaceful settlement within the Afghan conflict. The US administration would like more participation in stabilizing the further situation in Afghanistan from other regional forces (China, Russia, India, Iran, Turkey, Uzbekistan).

Threat Construction and Military Intervention in Internal Security: The Political Use of Terrorism and Drug Trafficking in Contemporary Argentina

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 10-24
Author(s):  
Jorge Battaglino
Keyword(s):  
Drug Trafficking ◽  
Military Intervention ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Government Policies ◽  
The Political ◽  
Critical Perspective ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Security Discourse ◽  
Copenhagen School ◽  
The Military

Argentina has a deeply rooted tradition of rejecting participation by the military in internal security and legislation that prohibits such involvement. The current construction of a threat from drug trafficking and terrorism and the proposal of intervention by the armed forces to contend with them is the result of a narrative justifying the implementation of various government policies. Exploration of the mechanism of discursive threat construction, or securitization, from the critical perspective of the Copenhagen School demonstrates how security discourse and practices allow actors and institutions to mobilize resources, control agendas, and use violence with greater discretion. Argentina tiene una arraigada tradición de rechazo a la participación de los militares en temas de seguridad interna y posee, además, una legislación que prohíbe tal involucramiento. La construcción actual de la amenaza del narcotráfico y el terrorismo y la propuesta de intervención de las fuerzas armadas para enfrentarlas son el resultado de un discurso que es funcional a la implementación de distintas políticas por parte del gobierno. Una examinación de la dinámica de la construcción discursiva de la amenaza, o la securitización, a partir de la perspectiva crítica de la Escuela Copenhague evidencia cómo el discurso y las prácticas de la seguridad permiten a actores e instituciones movilizar recursos, controlar agendas y utilizar la violencia con mayor discrecionalidad.

Mali: The Hot and Cold Relationship Between Military Intervention and Democratic Consolidation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florina Cristiana Matei
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Military Intervention ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Democratic Consolidation ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Military Presence ◽  
State Governance ◽  
The Military

Many African countries are praetorian states in which the armed forces routinely meddle with politics, and hence defy civilian supremacy over the military. Mali—a noncoastal country in West Africa, with a population of 14.5 million inhabitants—is no exception. Since gaining independence from France in 1960, Mali has been a praetorian state, as the armed forces have frequently intervened in politics. As such, Mali has experienced four successful military coups (in 1968, 1991, 2012, and 2020). These coups have been caused by an array of interconnected and often overlapping factors, including the following: state formation and the relationship between the military and state institutions; legacies of the colonial times; the dynamic political and security context in north Mali; precarious state governance; history of military intervention in politics; and ineffective international aid and assistance. Mali’s on-and-off relationship with the military intervention in politics has had both positive and negative effects to the surrounding society. If the 1968 military intervention in politics was nothing more than a replacement of an authoritarian regime with another—equally deleterious to the country and its citizens—the other three interventions clearly illustrate how coups can both facilitate and jeopardize democratic consolidation. Certainly, the 1991 coup led to democratization while the 2012 and 2020 coups arrested democratic progress. As a result, Mali’s political institutions in the early 21st century are weak, corrupt, fighting one another, and incapable of governing while the security situation is perilous, despite more than seven years of external military and regional military presence.

Caudillismo and Institutional Change: Manuel Odría and the Peruvian Armed Forces, 1948-1956

1984 ◽  
Vol 40 (04) ◽  
pp. 479-489
Author(s):  
Daniel M. Masterson
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Change ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Military Government ◽  
Institutional Reforms ◽  
The Military ◽  
Modern Era

Abraham Lowenthal in characterizing the Peruvian military government of General Juan Velasco Alvarado cautioned that the regime was not a “typical caudillo” venture but rather an essentially “institutional” effort. His caveat is certainly justified when one considers that Peru was dominated until recent decades by such modern era military chieftains as Luis M. Sánchez Cerro, Oscar R. Benavides, and Manuel A. Odría. Yet when General Odría seized control of Peru on October 27, 1948, the Peruvian army was striving desperately for increased professionalism. In order to retain the army's support, the caudillo was thus compelled to enact institutional reforms that made the officer class more conscious of its modernizing mission and, ironically, far less tolerant of Odría's personalism. This study will analyze the military policies of the Odría regime in order to explain the changing outlook of the Peruvian armed forces during the caudillo's eight year rule.

»Indian Country«. Der Raum als Feind in der Gewaltgeschichte der europäischen Expansion

2014 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-332
Author(s):  
Dierk Walter
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Physical Geography ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Effective Control ◽  
Power Projection ◽  
The Past ◽  
Indian Country ◽  
The World ◽  
The Military ◽  
Modern Era

Abstract More than many other armed conflicts of the modern era, the colonial wars/wars of empire fought by Western powers at the periphery of the world system over the past five centuries were defined by spatial categories. The problems of transoceanic or transcontinental power projection and the economic logic of the imperial system limited the military means employed on the periphery, making them often insufficient for the effective control of extended, inaccessible, and inhospitable spaces. Faced with an adversary capable of using these wide spaces to avoid decisive battle, the imperial military resorted to warfare against entire societies. Cognitively and mentally, Western armed forces experienced the periphery as an alien space, a space in which physical geography and human enemy seemed to be organically connected in opposing the invader. This perception of the peripheral space was not only partially responsible for atrocities, but could also result in warfare against nature itself.

scholarly journals Distance learning in the training of military professionals in the age of the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 201 (3) ◽  
pp. 602-613
Author(s):  
Robert Piotr Woźniak
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Distance Learning ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Military Education ◽  
Specialized Training ◽  
National Defense ◽  
Innovative Teaching ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Military ◽  
Remote Learning

The modern military requires professionals in its ranks. One of the many dimensions of professionalization is education and training aimed at building human capital. Modern equipment or specialized training devices are not sufficient for education to be effective; innovative teaching methods are also needed. Constantly growing needs in the field of education and professional development are determinants in the search for modern education forms, methods and tools adaptable to the military environment. As part of the education and professional development process, the military education units of the General Command of the Armed Forces concentrate their main efforts on the course training of soldiers and staff of the Ministry of National Defense, training of candidates for non-commissioned officers and specialized training of candidates for professional privates. As an organization, the Armed Forces must operate regardless of the emerging threats. Therefore, they must perform tasks in the most difficult and unpredictable circumstances. Paradoxically, the pandemic proved to be a catalyst for military education units to raise the level of teaching and enrich the ways of transmitting knowledge, including the popularization of distance learning. This paper discusses the distance learning model in operation at the Polish Armed Forces. The process of military professionals training using remote learning methods and techniques is characterized. Conclusions and experiences concerning the implementation of remote learning in the pandemic counteracting conditions are presented. The article also indicates the desired directions of transformation in the area of remote learning applied in the Polish Armed Forces.

scholarly journals ADMINISTRATIVE AND LEGAL BASIS OF PROVIDING STATE GUARANTEES OF THE SERVICE OF MILITARY AQUATIC MARINE DEPARTMENTS

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (9) ◽  
pp. 157-160
Author(s):  
O. Sikorskyі ◽  
◽  
V. Alexandrov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Legal Basis ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
The Many ◽  
Facebook Pages ◽  
The Military ◽  
Autonomous Republic

In recent years, the development of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has become an extremely important issue for Ukraine. Among the many important areas in ensuring the country's defense capabilities was the issue of the actual revival of the Marines of the Ukrainian Navy after the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea by the Russian Federation. Within the framework of our work the system of state guarantees of service by servicemen of the Marines of the Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is analyzed and the prospects of further improvement of administrative and legal bases of this direction of activity of public authorities are singled out. Analyzing the historical aspects of the formation of the Marines, we can state that this is a relatively separate unit of the armed forces, aimed at performing special tasks and functions in both offensive and defensive military operations. Nowadays, there is an active development of special units of different purpose and functionality - this is primarily due to socio-political domestic and geopolitical processes. Informatization of society, development of technologies, finds its application in the military sphere. Today, the processes of modernization of the Ukrainian army with the help of modern telecommunication capabilities are actively reflected. To increase the level of awareness of both the general public and the military, official websites, Facebook pages, military leadership at various levels have been created, and the media, in turn, pay special attention to the country's defense capabilities.

scholarly journals Health, Sickness and Medical Services in Spain's Armed Forces c.1665–1700

2006 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Storrs
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Medical Services ◽  
Test Case ◽  
Major Player ◽  
Military Revolution ◽  
Charles Ii ◽  
Early Modern Era ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
The Military ◽  
Modern Era

The early modern era saw important changes in the character of warfare in Europe, including the development of larger, permanent armies and navies. Historians have studied many key aspects of what some call the “military revolution”, whose character and timing have become a matter of debate; but some important features of these emerging military communities remain largely unexplored. One subject which has not attracted the attention it merits is that of the health of soldiers and sailors and of medical provision in the new armies and navies. The issue has not been entirely neglected, either generally, or as it relates to specific states, but focused studies are rare. This is unfortunate, not least because of the importance attached to the issue of sickness and medical provision by contemporaries, and the value of medical provision as a sort of test case by which to measure the effectiveness of medical services and hence to contribute to the “military revolution” debate. For some historians the later seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw the first significant efforts to develop a structure of military and naval hospitals; for others, however, the extent of illness and the inadequacy of medical support services before the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic era suggests that many states failed to meet the organizational challenge posed by the growth of standing armed forces in the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. What follows is an investigation of the extent and nature of illness, and the effectiveness of medical provision in the armies and navies of one major player of the period, Spain in the reign of the last Habsburg, Charles II (1665–1700).

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