Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, deterrence is back at the heart of Europe’s security debate. NATO’s 2022 Strategic Concept defines ‘deterrence and defence’ as the first of the alliance’s three core tasks. Countries across the continent are reinvesting in their military capabilities. Finland and Sweden decided to join NATO.
However, the details on how to effectively deter Russia remain yet unclear. Policymakers, military planners and analysts currently face the challenge of conceptualizing, operationalizing and implementing the political decision to place deterrence at the centre of Europe’s defence efforts.
This work in progress must acknowledge that the geopolitical, military and technological contexts have evolved considerably since the end of the cold war. Another starting point needs to be an awareness of the risks involved. Finally, attention needs to be given to the societal and non-military dimensions of raising the costs for any adversary with malign intentions, in an era in which hybrid threats abound.
Against this backdrop, SIPRI’s 2024 Stockholm Security Conference was intended to help decision makers answer these questions and navigate current debates.
2024 Stockholm Security Conference
The 2024 edition of the Stockholm Security Conference took place in October of that year, with the title 'Deterrence. Securing Europe, Managing the Dangers’. Attendance was by invitation only. Read more.
The event was hosted by SIPRI in cooperation with the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sweden. SIPRI would also like to express its gratitude for the generous support provided by the Munich Security Conference, the Embassy of Ireland and the British Embassy.
Contact
The programme and concept of the conference were developed by Dr Barbara Kunz, Director of SIPRI’s European Security Programme. For enquiries, please contact Stephanie Blenckner, Director of Communications (blenckner@sipri.org, +46 8 655 97 47).