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A Top Global Think Tank
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Civilians in the firing line: the ugly reality of modern conflict
One of the most shocking aspects of modern armed conflicts is their heavy toll on unarmed civilians. Among the human rights abuses civilians suffer in conflict zones, they are routinely knowingly or carelessly put in the line of fire and even directly targeted by all types of armed actor—from government forces to, increasingly, rebels, state-aligned militias, local powerbrokers and other non-state actors.
A new lease on life for nuclear disarmament?
According to SIPRI estimates, eight states possess more than 23 300 nuclear weapons. Of these, around 8400 are operational. The rest are spares, held in storage or scheduled for dismantlement.
Military spending and arms sales keep rising—but for how long?
Military expenditure, arms production and arms transfers* all continued to rise, according to the latest SIPRI data. Many factors have driven these trends—including, in recent years, the USA’s spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a combination of regional and global power aspirations, and several years of strong economic growth in many parts of the world.
Legitimacy: peacekeeping's fatal flaw?
Peacekeeping has become increasingly ambitious in recent years—larger operations, taking on more challenging tasks. But this has brought with it a range of problems. Among these, it has made peacekeeping increasingly vulnerable to questions about the legitimacy, not just of individual missions but of the ways in which peacekeeping is planned and carried out.
Afghanistan: fragile hopes
Debates about Afghanistan’s future take place against a backdrop of increasing insurgent attacks, slow political and economic progress and negative perceptions within the international community and the Afghan people about the country’s prospects. Even the most sanguine analysts suggest that it will get worse before it gets better and that an intensification of fighting is virtually guaranteed. Any progress made in the next few years is certain to be fragile.
How could the EU become a more efficient player in global security?
On 1 July, Sweden takes over the Presidency of the EU. In 2008, the EU made real contributions to global efforts to stabilize and rebuild war-torn countries: for example, mounting its second peace operation outside Europe (EUFOR Tchad/RCA) and having the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia up and running within a few weeks of the end of the South Ossetia conflict. Yet the challenges are immense.
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