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1. Military Security within the Framework of Security Studies: Research Results

Author:
Ryszard Szpyra
Publication Date:
06-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Connections
Institution:
Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes
Abstract:
Abstract: The present article is based on a number of key assumptions as well as a con- ceptual system of military security, which is anchored in the theoretical system of security studies. Since these two disciplines are relatively young, there is a need to analyze them for the purpose of determining the basic theoretical apparatus in the field of security stud- ies. This article presents an original definition and description of the fundamental nature of security as well as a general description of military security. It includes the vital do- main of the subject’s own activity leading to the maintenance of the proper level of secu- rity. The paper contains original definitions of such basic categories as security, state se- curity and military security. Indeed, much of the content is based on theories used in pre- vious research, but these have served merely as “bricks” that are used to fill in the already existing theoretical structure. Thus, through a specific redesign, a structure compatible with the basic tenets of security studies has been devised, also taking into account recent results of other sciences that cover military affairs.
Topic:
Security, Military Strategy, Military Affairs, and NGOs
Political Geography:
Europe and Poland

2. Why Did Poland Choose The F-16?

Author:
Barre R. Seguin
Publication Date:
03-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Connections
Institution:
Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes
Abstract:
This essay provides a comprehensive synthesis of the Polish military's fighter aircraft selection process, assesses the dominant issues, and answers the question, “Why did Poland choose the F-16?” It begins with a brief examination of Poland's military aircraft status and military aircraft industrial production capability from approximately 1990 to 2002, its requirements for an advanced fighter aircraft, and Poland's military hardware procurement and acquisition processes. Analysis then turns to acquisition reforms associated with the F- 16 decision, the institutional structure for purchasing military aircraft, the mechanics of the F-16 decision, and who ultimately made the decision. Given the centrality to the decision process, a capabilities comparison of the three competitors—the Lockheed Martin F-16, Saab/BAE Systems JAS-39 Gripen, and the Dassault Mirage 2000-5 Mk II—is offered and interoperability considerations addressed. This study then outlines the financial construction of the three bids, to include economic issues and pressures from the U.S., French, and Swedish governments and industry, and an in-depth analysis of industrial offsets. Lastly, it will examine political issues associated with the F-16 purchase.
Political Geography:
United States and Poland

3. Beyond the RMA: Survival Strategies for Small Defense Economies

Author:
Ron Matthews and Curie Maharani
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Connections
Institution:
Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes
Abstract:
Life was straightforward during the Cold War. There were the big guys in the bi-polar strategic stand-off—the United States and the Soviet Union—and there were the little guys: the Eastern European countries, such as Poland, Hungary, and Yugoslavia; Chile in Latin America; Spain in Southern Europe; Sweden in Scandinavia; Israel in the Middle East; and Singapore in the Far East. All these countries, big or small, capitalist or communist, possessed comprehensive and diversified defense industrial bases. However, times have changed, and in some senses they have changed dramatically. More than anything else, economics does not favor small countries. Previously, Cold War doctrine was premised on mass formations of artillery, main battle groups of tanks and combat aircraft located on the Central European front. In the twenty-first century, these formations have disappeared. Militaries have been transformed by the need to respond to new, emerging, asymmetrical threats arising anywhere across the globe, a shift that is captured under the umbrella term of the “Revolution in Military Affairs” (RMA). Contemporary doctrine focuses on high-intensity warfare, characterized by sophisticated defense systems, such as telemetry and cruise missiles, fiber optic technologies, sensors, modern telecommunication systems, “stealth” coatings of modern weapon platforms, light-weight composite materials, and the miniaturization of technologies in, for instance, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Political Geography:
United States, Middle East, Israel, Poland, Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Latin America, Spain, Sweden, Singapore, Chile, and Scandinavia