Suchergebnisse

There were attempts to develop the defence cooperation between the Nordic states often were interrupted by one or two of the Nordic states. The end of the Cold War opened up opportunities for new defence projects. But the Nordic defence identities which were shaped since the Second World War, remained the same. Therefore, Nordic states had to wait for 20 years for the new common defence cooperation initiative to emerge. Still it is not clear whether it will be successful, because the success of cooperation in the field of defence development depends not only on the overlap of parties' interests, objectives, threats, security, but also on the compatibility of their defence identities compatibility. The object of this paper is the common elements of defence identities of the Nordic states, and the possibility for them to ally. The aim of this paper aim is to distinguish the characteristic features of defence identities of the Nordic states. To achieve the aim the following goals are settled: to define the concept of the defence identity, highlight its essential elements and analytical variables on the basis of constructivist theory of international relations; to single out and examine the essential variables of the defence identities of he Nordic states; to analyze the similarities and differences between defence identities of the Nordic states, to assess the favor on the development of cooperation in the field of defence, and the possibility to construct a collective Nordic defence identity. The hypothesis of this paper proposes that the current defence identities of the Nordic sates are too different to be able to form a collective Nordic defence identity. Whereas the analysis is performed on cultural variables, it is difficult to measure the exact values, therefore only those variables that have implications for collective identity formation and development of defence cooperation are considered. In accordance with logic of constructivism defence identity is a behavioural models, concepts, and expectations related to the use of the military instrument. The main variables that indicate the nature of defence identity are the perception of threats, the goals for the use of force, the way in which force used, preferred mode of cooperation, threshold for domestic and international authorisation, foreign policy objectives and preferred partners in defence cooperation. The opportunities of collective defence identity formation are reflected in the meanings of these variables. The compatibility of the defence identities of the Nordic states is high enough for successful collective defence identity formation. However, the differences of defence identities have a significant negative impact on the successful development of cooperation. Collective Nordic defence identity will not be formed without strong institutions of defence cooperation.