Baltic Security & Defence Review Volume 8, 2006

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION Volume 8, 2006

Editor’s introduction

By Tomas Jermalavičius

Since 1999, the Baltic Defence College has been publishing a bi-annual academic journal, the Baltic Defence Review. With time, this publication has evolved and provided a vehicle for a discussion on broader security issues, not only defence. In the end, this shift of content warranted an adjustment of the title of the publication itself, to the Baltic Security and Defence Review, which highlights both change and continuity in its approach.

The journal will be published once a year and will become more academic in the future, endorsing studies of non-military aspects of security, but at the same doing its best to encourage deeper research in military affairs – the field which remains largely underdeveloped in the Baltic States. In particular, the editorial team of the Baltic Security and Defence Review will vigorously pursue contributions related to various trends in war and warfare, strategic culture, defence reforms as well as armed forces and society.

Acknowledging the realities of how information is distributed and obtained in the time of the Internet, the journal will also be mostly Internet-based, with a very limited number of printed copies produced. The website of the Baltic Defence College (www.bdcol.ee) will continue serving as a primary platform for its online publication, with various databases (e.g. International Security Network – ISN) further enhancing its visibility and accessibility.

This volume - Volume 8, counting from the first publication of the Baltic Defence Review in 1999 – features articles covering a rather broad range of topics. Holger Mölder combines the concepts of security community and cooperative security to elaborate on the role of NATO in the contemporary European security architecture. He demonstrates that security communities, such as NATO, can be very successful in establishing regional peace and security through using cooperative security strategies to deal with their immediate neighbourhood.

In the next article, Toomas Riim employs social constructivism as a theoretical framework to analyse Estonia’s integration in NATO and its adaptation to the shifting focus of the Alliance, expressed in its transformation initiatives. From 4 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION Volume 8, 2006 this perspective, Estonia’s policy is seen as increasingly being driven and shaped by the imperative of becoming part of a common identity, embodied by NATO, rather than by self-interest and threat perception which no longer explain continued existence of the Alliance.

Tine Verner Karlsen analyses how NATO engages civil society of Azerbaijan, using two main youth NGOs as the main examples to illuminate the policy of the Alliance. Her article shows how the dilemma of choosing between democratisation and stability, values and security, leads to an overly cautious stand and support to the pro-governmental NGOs rather than more independent pro-democratic movements. This approach of NATO is contrasted with a more vocal position taken by the EU and the OSCE in support of democratic values and with the very principles underpinning the Alliance and its main projects, such as enlargement and the Partnership for Peace programme.

Liina Mauring and Daniel Schaer produced a very prescient article by casting light on Russia’s energy sector and its possible impact on the security of the Baltic States. It is worthwhile pointing out that since the time the article was actually written, Russia has abruptly cut off its gas supplies to Ukraine, with reverberating effects on the rest of Europe. This makes the findings and conclusions of the article on security implications of energy dependency on Russia not only a matter of academic interest and discussion.

Arūnas Molis, in his article on small states and the ESDP, attempts to determine the extent to which ‘smallness’ can explain national position towards the ESDP. His analysis shows that ‘smallness’ acts only as a factor which prompts to make clear choices between NATO and the ESDP as priorities, but the actual choice is a function of a number of other factors such as a geopolitical position, national experience or public opinion.

The article by Lauri Lugna deals with the question of how the EU institutional framework should be constructed in order to better support its counter- terrorism strategies. It provides a comprehensive analysis of the existing arrangements and their suitability in dealing with the terrorist threat at the EU level. The article demonstrates convincingly that, given the emerging nature and scope of the EU role in combating terrorism, the institutional framework has to cut across the existing EU pillars, if the EU is to become an effective tool for its member states in combating terrorism. 5 Baltic Security & Defence Review Volume 8, 2006

Holger Schabio, a graduate of the Joint Command and General Staff Course of the Baltic Defence College, has contributed with an article on the UN role in future military conflicts, which is based on his academic research paper produced during his studies at the College. Based on the analysis of evolving military methods, applied by the UN in various conflicts, the author concludes that the UN managed to learn the right lessons from its past military involvements, but the ability to employ adequate military tools and strategies in the future will mostly depend upon the political will of its member states.

The volume also presents a number of smaller policy articles. Renatas Norkus, Permanent Undersecretary of the Ministry of National Defence of Lithuania, is focusing on the political and military challenges for small NATO allies when contributing to international operations. In discussing those challenges, the strongest emphasis has been placed on using NATO more effectively as a principal framework for future operations.

Gediminas Kirkilas, Minister of National Defence of Lithuania, having hosted NATO-Ukraine high level defence consultations, shares his vision and insights regarding Ukraine’s NATO membership aspirations. This contribution is very well supplemented by Ambassador Gintė Damušis of the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who details lessons learned from the previous enlargements and extends them to Ukraine’s integration into NATO. Finally, Kristian Nielsen summarises and critically comments upon the seminar of the Baltic Defence College which addressed Ukrainian integration into the Euro-Atlantic structures.

Our journal will be occasionally offering to its readers book reviews. This volume features a book by Marcel de Haas ‘Russian Security and Air Power, 1992-2002’, reviewed by Ole Kværnø and Malthe Mulvad. Hopefully, this will help our readers to navigate among a vast amount of academic literature on security and military affairs.

However, quite uniquely among academic publications but very much in line with our aspiration to familiarise readers with the developments in the Baltic States, the Baltic Security and Defence Review is publishing annual defence policy surveys of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. They highlight major Baltic

6 EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION Volume 8, 2006 trends and events in the field of defence and can serve as a valuable source of information for further research and discussion in the academic community.