The Evolution of Baltic security and defence strategies
ENSince regaining their independence in 1991, the three Baltic states have constituted an intriguing research subject. Bordering an assertive great power, and in spite of many doubts and their Soviet past, these fiercely independent small nations have managed to join the key European and transatlantic security structures. In order to understand this group of small states, and in the process to strengthen international security, their policies and security prospects have been studied by various strategists from the perspectives of different major international relations theories including realism, constructivism, and alliance theory. ... The perplexing international environment, the limited capability for strategy formulation, and the resource constraints typical of small states have made the strategies of the Baltic states more snapshots of their situation at different moments in time, rather than visionary documents looking painstakingly into the future. The utility of any further analysis of Baltic strategic thinking, which is the subject of this chapter, may be questioned, as a number of studies have dealt with it already, and identified numerous shortcomings, mistakes and problems. It is beyond any doubt that the Baltic states will have to work hard to harmonise their national policy objectives with the ways of achieving them and their existing resources. ... A second aspect that this chapter will consider is the overall approach of the Baltic states to the role of the military instrument in enhancing their national security: how important is it and what are its applications? How have these views changed? The third aspect of Baltic strategic thinking to be examined here is the presence of traits traditionally associated with small state behaviour and policies.In particular, it has been stated that (modern) small states tend to rely on superpowers for their protection, that they try to hold the attention of their large allies to avoid abandonment, and that they generally prefer to avoid the use of force as a technique of statecraft. These considerations should together provide a context for a better under standing of the depth of self-reliance, and of the self-confidence of the Baltic states to take care of their own security after 20 years of independence. The study uses a qualitative content analysis of the key strategic documents of the Baltic states. This entails a “systematic, directed search of selected documents for presence or absence of desired bits of significant information.” ... The remainder of this chapter is organised so as to form a continuous narrative of the evolution of Baltic strategic thinking from their first period of independence. The following section sheds light on the security-related activities of the Baltic states between the world wars. It is followed by an outline of the re-birth of strategic thinking at the end of 1980s, and the formulation of the first more or less strategic documents. Subsequently, attention is focussed on the security and defence concepts of the three states before and after their accession to NATO and the EU. The chapter ends with a summary of findings. [p. 13-16].
