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This poster addresses the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks. Unconventional conflicts – hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors such as insurgents or terrorist organizations – are among the trend topics of defense and security. Since jihadist terrorism broke out in in Europe, security has become a main concern, occupying the front pages of newspapers and the agendas of governments. Therefore, the debate on the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks became central. The primary responsibility for protecting life and property and maintaining law and order in the civilian community is vested in police forces; supplementary responsibility is vested by statute in specific agencies other than the Ministry of Defense. Military forces may be used to support law enforcement agencies. In emergency situations, the Parliament may authorize the use of the military as a police force on home soil. Police departments are much larger in major metropolitan areas and much smaller than the average in rural areas, but in catastrophic attacks that affect large areas in several states simultaneously, there will not be enough police officers to do what has to be done. Since lateral reinforcement is not feasible when all adjacent areas are involved, the only source of augmentation for local departments will be from the Armed Forces. Subsidiary operations of the Amy in support to civil authorities – e.g. military aid in the event of a catastrophe – are one of the ordinary duties of the Army, whose main mission is to ensure security and defense of the territory. Although the readiness of use for the defense of the territory is reduced, the maintenance and development of this important primary mission is to guard the long-term, in anticipation of events imponderables in the military and security policy. In Western liberal-democracies the executive power is limited in the use of the military in domestic security operations because of legal norms. ...

This poster addresses the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks. Unconventional conflicts – hybrid, asymmetric, and transnational conflicts which involve state and non-state actors such as insurgents or terrorist organizations – are among the trend topics of defense and security. Since jihadist terrorism broke out in in Europe, security has become a main concern, occupying the front pages of newspapers and the agendas of governments. Therefore, the debate on the employment of the Armed Forces in homeland security tasks became central. The primary responsibility for protecting life and property and maintaining law and order in the civilian community is vested in police forces; supplementary responsibility is vested by statute in specific agencies other than the Ministry of Defense. Military forces may be used to support law enforcement agencies. In emergency situations, the Parliament may authorize the use of the military as a police force on home soil. Police departments are much larger in major metropolitan areas and much smaller than the average in rural areas, but in catastrophic attacks that affect large areas in several states simultaneously, there will not be enough police officers to do what has to be done. Since lateral reinforcement is not feasible when all adjacent areas are involved, the only source of augmentation for local departments will be from the Armed Forces. Subsidiary operations of the Amy in support to civil authorities – e.g. military aid in the event of a catastrophe – are one of the ordinary duties of the Army, whose main mission is to ensure security and defense of the territory. Although the readiness of use for the defense of the territory is reduced, the maintenance and development of this important primary mission is to guard the long-term, in anticipation of events imponderables in the military and security policy. In Western liberal-democracies the executive power is limited in the use of the military in domestic security operations because of legal norms. ...

It is widely assumed, at least from a Western perspective, that the armed forces provide national defence against external threats. In reality, within many consolidated Western democracies the armed forces are assuming an increasingly wide range of internal roles and tasks. These can include domestic security roles and the provision of humanitarian assistance in situations of natural or humanitarian catastrophe, often under the command and control of different civilian agencies. This SSR Paper seeks to make sense of this complex reality. Different internal roles of armed forces are analysed, drawing on the cases of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Through carefully examining evolving internal roles and identifying patterns and lessons from these experiences, this SSR Paper provides an important contribution to understanding the evolving nature of contemporary armed forces.

It is widely assumed, at least from a Western perspective, that the armed forces provide national defence against external threats. In reality, within many consolidated Western democracies the armed forces are assuming an increasingly wide range of internal roles and tasks. These can include domestic security roles and the provision of humanitarian assistance in situations of natural or humanitarian catastrophe, often under the command and control of different civilian agencies. This SSR Paper seeks to make sense of this complex reality. Different internal roles of armed forces are analysed, drawing on the cases of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Through carefully examining evolving internal roles and identifying patterns and lessons from these experiences, this SSR Paper provides an important contribution to understanding the evolving nature of contemporary armed forces.

Civilian management and democratic control over the army do not only consist in establishing organs and mechanisms of control and optimising their activity. It is significant to determine and respect the role of the armed forces in the society, which would allow making the army a politically neutral instrument of legally functioning forces as well as appropriate organisational structures with strictly defined protection measures allocated to carry out the undertakings of the state and the nation. The position and function of the army in society should be based on the fact that it reflects the features of the society it comes from. In order to facilitate the effective progression of the process, the following aspects should be taken into account: in what manner the army reacts to the decisions and actions of civilian society; whether there are intermediary bodies between these spheres; to what extent the armed forces represent the interests of the society; and whether a soldier-citizen exists or if the two notions should be treated separately

In November 1997, the United States Army War College joined with the U.S. Southern Command, the Inter-American Defense Board, the National Guard Bureau, and the Latin American Consortium of the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University to cosponsor a conference entitled "The Role of the Armed Forces in the Americas: Civil-Military Relations for the 21st Century." The meeting was held from 3 to 6 November in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and was hosted by the New Mexico National Guard. The conference brought together over 150 prominent civilian governmental and military leaders and some of the most noted scholars from throughout the Americas. It was designed to support the Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Southern Command's objectives of strengthening democratic institutions, assisting nations in eliminating threats to their security, supporting economic and social progress, and enhancing military professionalism. In addition, the meeting sought to promote the Army Chief of Staff's goals of conflict prevention through peacetime engagement, strategic outreach to organizations and institutions outside the Department of Defense, and the enhancement of Active and Reserve component integration. Included in this publication are the papers and speeches delivered at the conference, rapporteurs' synopses of the working group discussions and an analysis, with recommendations, of the implications for civil-military relations and U.S. policy. These presentations, the level and scope of participation, the candor of the dialogue, the outstanding support provided by our cosponsors, and the charming atmosphere of Santa Fe all contributed to making the meeting a success. ; https://press.armywarcollege.edu/monographs/1860/thumbnail.jpg