Overcoming Threats to Europe: A New Deal for Confidence and Security (SIPRI Monograph Series)

Europe, although politically stable, is growing increasingly unstable in the military arena. This book attributes the widening rift between the political and military spheres to the imposition of superpower rivalry on Europe and the militarization of political thinking. Examining how France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, and Yugoslavia perceive threats to European security, Lodgaard and Birnbaum conclude that the fear of inadvertent war constitutes the common, and dominant, theme. The book recommends a Europeanization of international affairs in the region to build confidence and security, including less provocative force postures and overall arms reductions, reduced reliance on nuclear weapons, greater vigor in relation to Third World conflicts, and expanded East-West cooperation in economic and other fields.