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"Great Britain -- Military policy -- History -- 21st century"
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Losing Small Wars
Partly on the strength of their apparent success in insurgencies such as Malaya and Northern Ireland, the British armed forces have long been perceived as world class, if not world beating. However, their recent performance in Iraq and Afghanistan is widely seen as-at best-disappointing; under British control Basra degenerated into a lawless city riven with internecine violence, while tactical mistakes and strategic incompetence in Helmand Province resulted in heavy civilian and military casualties and a climate of violence and insecurity. In both cases the British were eventually and humiliatingly bailed out by the US army.
In this thoughtful and compellingly readable book, Frank Ledwidge examines the British involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, asking how and why it went so wrong. With the aid of copious research, interviews with senior officers, and his own personal experiences, he looks in detail at the failures of strategic thinking and culture that led to defeat in Britain's latest \"small wars.\" This is an eye-opening analysis of the causes of military failure, and its enormous costs.
eBook
British foreign policy and the national interest : identity, strategy and security
\"For over a decade, British foreign policy has been criticised for lacking strategic thinking. Academics describe a 'strategy gap' and note that old ideas about Britain's role in the world continue to be recycled even today. This collection aims to address this issue by re-examining the ideas of Britain's national interest and their impact on strategy, to challenge current thinking and practice in the making of foreign policy. Applying interdisciplinary approaches to British foreign policy, this volume analyses a range of issues asking: Whose interests does British foreign policy serve? Is the national interest a useful explanatory tool for foreign policy analysts? How can policymakers reconnect with this idea to devise better strategies to cope with the complex policy environment of the twenty-first century? Drawing on links between academics, policymakers and other stakeholders, it provides a practical discussion of theories on global change, globalization, ethics, and security to enliven debate about how to forge a foreign policy that advances the interests of the UK whilst also holding policy-makers and officials to account for their actions\"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
New Public Diplomacy in the 21st Century
This book examines the concept of new public diplomacy against empirical data derived from three country case studies, in order to offer a systematic assessment of policy and practice in the early 21st century.
The new public diplomacy (PD) is a major paradigm shift in international political communication. Globalisation and a new media landscape challenge traditional foreign ministry 'gatekeeper' structures, and foreign ministries can no longer lay claim to being sole or dominant actors in communicating foreign policy. This demands new ways of elucidating foreign policy to a range of nongovernmental international actors, and new ways of evaluating the influence of these communicative efforts.
The author investigates the methods and strategies used by five foreign ministries and cultural institutes in three countries as they attempt to adapt their PD practices to the demands of the new public diplomacy environment. Drawing upon case studies of US, British, and Swedish efforts, each chapter covers national policy, current activities, evaluation methods, and examples of individual campaigns.
This book will be of much interest to students of public diplomacy, foreign policy, political communication, media studies and international relations in general.
eBook
Losing small wars : British military failure in the 9/11 Wars
This new edition of Frank Ledwidge's eye-opening analysis of British involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan unpicks the causes and enormous costs of military failure. Updated throughout, and with fresh chapters assessing and enumerating the overall military performance since 2011-including Libya, ISIS, and the Chilcot findings-Ledwidge shows how lessons continue to go unlearned.
Book
A Question of Security
Britain now faces fundamental choices in organising its armed forces and military strategy - more so than at any time since the 1930s. This vital new book prepares the ground for a major government review of UK defence and security policy, analysing every important facet the review will face: from the spending constraints created by the financial crisis, to the decisions the country has to take on matters of war, peace and terrorism. The analysis covers the military equipment Britain should procure; the industrial implications of defence procurement decisions; the relationship with allies and partners; the intelligence sources; and, not least, the moral and ethical dimensions of modern security policy in a globalised but disordered world. Written by the foremost independent security and defence experts in the field, this book is the result of RUSI's Future Defence Review research initiative. 'A Question of Security' sets the core agenda for all wishing to understand the defence and security problems Britain now faces, and also for those in government and parliament who have to answer these difficult questions at a generational moment for UK defence policy.
eBook
New Labour and the New World Order
The war on terror has shaped and defined the first decade of the twenty-first century, yet analyses of Britain's involvement remain limited and fragmentary. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of these developments. It argues that New Labour's support for a militaristic campaign was driven by a desire to elevate Britain's influence on the world stage, and to assist the United States in a new imperialist project of global reordering. Ostensibly set within a political framework of promoting humanitarian values, the government’s conduct in the war on terror also proved to be largely counter-productive, eroding trust between the citizenry and the state, putting the armed forces under increasing strain and ultimately exacerbating the threat from radical Islamic terrorism. This book will be of interest to teachers and scholars of British foreign policy, international relations and security studies. It will also appeal to anyone interested in Britain’s role in the war on terror.
eBook
Defence Management in Uncertain Times
From the impact of the attacks on New York and Washington in 2001, to the problems of military uncertainty and the role of women in combat, this collection of essays explores the changing face of militarism from the perspective of defence management experts.
eBook
Pockets of resistance
The most detailed, sophisticated and theoretically grounded analysis of wartime media coverage written to date. Describes and explains how British news media variously supported, and dissented from, coalition propaganda campaigns during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
eBook
Britain and the Bomb
Drawing on primary sources from both sides of the Atlantic, Britain and the Bomb explores how economic, political, and strategic considerations have shaped British nuclear diplomacy. The book concentrates on Prime Minister Harold Wilson's first two terms of office, 1964-1970, which represent a critical period in international nuclear history. Wilson's commitment to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and his support for continued investment in the British nuclear weapons program, despite serious economic and political challenges, established precedents that still influence policymakers today. The continued independence of Britain's nuclear force, and the enduring absence of a German or European deterrent, certainly owes a debt to Wilson's handling of nuclear diplomacy more than four decades ago. Beyond highlighting the importance of this period, the book explains how and why British nuclear diplomacy evolved during Wilson's leadership. Cabinet discussions, financial crises, and international tensions encouraged a degree of flexibility in the pursuit of strategic independence and the creation of a non-proliferation treaty. Gill shows us that British nuclear diplomacy was a series of compromises, an intricate blend of political, economic, and strategic considerations.
eBook