1. Small States and (In)Security: A Comparison of Ireland and Slovenia
- Author:
- Daniel R. Sweeney and Joseph L. Derdzinski
- Publication Date:
- 04-2010
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Connections
- Institution:
- Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes
- Abstract:
- This article compares the defense and security policies of two of Europe's smallest states: Ireland and Slovenia. The Irish military has a relatively small permanent force, based in part on their being sequestered from any major threat due to their island location, but there is also the precedent against a large military stemming from the nation's long occupation by the British military. The Slovene military evolved concurrent with the Slovene state: a small, homogenous entity that embraced Western institutions and values. Despite a relative lack of experience in democratic civil-military relations, Slovenia has tenaciously promoted its place in the world, and developed an active and professional military within a democratic state. This essay aims to add to the theoretical understandings of the major security decisions—especially with respect to the civil- military dynamic—that small states make. This comparison is key in understanding overall patterns of democratic governance and civil-military relations.
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Ireland, and Slovenia