Engelska

Ever since the end of the Second World War, most Europeans have felt fortunate to have lived through the longest period of relative peace ever experienced on the continent. Some now take this for granted. Is their sense of security realistic? Security is no longer perceived not only as the absence of war. It now also includes development, freedom, and justice, all part of a comprehensive concept of security. This book bridges a vital gap between the academic literature, publications of think tanks and EU documents. It gives structure to a comprehensive set of security issues facing Europe in the era of globalization and renewed security threats after the Cold War.<br/><br/>Together with the website www.lelundin.org, structured as the book, it provides vital links between theory and actual cases in real time. The author, currently Distinguished Associate Fellow at Sipri, has an extensive experience as a security policy practitioner inside the EU institutions and as a national diplomat working with a number of international organisations. The value of the book is enhanced through interviews with many officials and academic experts. It provides a unique source of inspiration for all those focussing on the added value of the EU for security.<br/><br/>The book aims at senior level courses in the EU itself, including in the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) context. It is also well suited for those preparing themselves for working on security with and in the EU on all levels from NGO:s, national governments to international organisations.

Despite their different experiences during the Second World War Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are often regarded as, in many ways, similar welfare states. However, their approach to the EU and Nato in matters of security and defence politics, differs and this indicates that they might not be that similar after all. But they have all been active contributors to the efforts of conflict management by the international community. Providing military units to peace support operations all over the globe is consequently yet another similarity. In this book the strategic decision making procedures of the four states are explored and compared.

This book is a detailed and fascinating account of how ministers and generals scrapped Sweden s traditional invasion defence and turned it into an active player in international affairs. Episodes include the creation of the first Nordic Battle Group, how strategy challenged the mighty defence industry and the controversies in government over the war in Afghanistan. Based on in-depth interviews and first-hand sources, this book provides a unique insight into the deliberations and struggles of one of the most dramatic reform periods in Swedish history.<br/><br/>Magnus Christiansson is associate lecturer at the Swedish Defence University. His main research interests are transatlantic security, Baltic Sea security and civil-military relations.

In this book experts from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden examine strategic decision-making for international military engagement in the Baltic region. They provide an essential description of the actors, framework and processes, as well as case studies. They also analyse why decisions went as they did. An introductory chapter examines the notion of strategic culture and its impact. The book will be of value to anyone interested in Baltic security or strategic decision-making.

There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States. <br/><br/>Every generation, a journalist has looked deep into the heart of the nuclear military establishment: the technologies, the safeguards, the plans, and the risks. These investigations are vital to how we understand the world we really live inwhere one nuclear missile will beget one in return, and where the choreography of the worlds end requires massive decisions made on seconds notice with information that is only as good as the intelligence we have.<br/><br/>Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsens Nuclear War: A Scenario explores this ticking-clock scenario, based on dozens of exclusive new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, have been privy to the response plans, and have been responsible for those decisions should they have needed to be made. Nuclear War: A Scenario examines the handful of minutes after a nuclear missile launch. It is essential reading, and unlike any other book in its depth and urgency.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings, Book One of the Stormlight Archive, begins an incredible new saga of epic proportion. Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike.<br/><br/>Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter. It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. <br/><br/>Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them. One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. <br/><br/>In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable. Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity. <br/><br/>Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar's niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan's motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war. The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making.

In today s dynamic geopolitical landscape, Force Commanders in United Nations peacekeeping operations play a pivotal role in the politico-diplomatic process for the accomplishment of the Mission s mandate. Charged with the daunting task of leading multinational forces in some of the world s most complex and often volatile environments, they are the torchbearer of the noble mission of safeguarding peace, protecting civilians, and contributing to the peacemaking and preventive diplomacy process. Lieutenant General Dennis Gyllensporre, drawing from his extensive experience as the Former Force Commander of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), along with the scholarly expertise of Professor Håkan Edström, provides a comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted responsibilities and leadership challenges faced by Force Commanders. The themes covered in this book are not merely academic exercises, but reflections of real-world complexities encountered in peacekeeping operations. From the art of managing nonviolent military measures to the intricacies of military diplomacy and peacekeeping mediation, the book offers a compelling journey into the realm of peacekeeping leadership, drawing upon the rich experiences of former Force Commanders who have served on the frontlines of some of the most challenging peacekeeping missions.