Suchergebnisse

"From war campaigns to peacekeeping operations, The Portuguese at War presents an overview of the conflicts, wars and revolutions in which Portugal was involved from the nineteenth century to the present day. From the French invasions to the civil wars, from the African Empire to the wars of decolonisation, from belligerence in the First World War to neutrality in the Second, from participation in the Atlantic Alliance to peacekeeping operations in Kosovo, East Timor, Lebanon and Afghanistan. The book addresses the military interventions in politics and the role of the country's political regimes in military reform: from the Liberal Revolutions to the Republic, from the military dictatorship and authoritarian regime to the 25th of April Revolution and the transition to democracy. The historical record of Portugal's war involvement is not only closely aligned to international and European circumstance but to internal factors: the economy, society, public opinion and political/military power. A historical perspective must of necessity link Portuguese war excursions with the military institutions in place at the time: their recruitment system, social composition and organisation of the army, navy and air force; the military ethos; the evolution of equipment, weapons and military technologies; strategic military doctrine and how this impacted on tactics and military operations; and of course the war outcomes. Special attention is given to the effects of international isolation after the Estado Novo, and post-Cold War europeanisation"--

Examines the international dimensions of democratization processes, showing the degree to which international actors have an influence on what were once thought of as exclusively domestic processes of political change.

In all the previous crises, economic recession and budget crisis have affected the financing capacity of the State and reflected on the Welfare State. The political debate and the reform of public policies have mainly centred in the social function of the State. What appears to be new, today, is that, at least in Portugal, the debate has widened and spread to the sovereign functions of the State and, therefore, to its very foundational core. The present paper argues that, even though there has not been a growth in sovereignty-related expenditure, there is room for a reform of the sovereign functions, namely in the scope of national defence and Armed Forces. The paper concludes proposing some principles and methods for the reform. Adapted from the source document.

This working paper argues on European Defense issues, considering a triple perspective: Past Legacy, Present Changes and Future Challenges. The first part looks at European defense from an historical perspective; from its European integration origins to the foundation of a European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP), reviewing its decade in existence. The second part analyzes the changes brought about by the Lisbon Treaty, as well as the most significant developments of a Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP): solidarity clauses, mission enlargement, European Defense Agency (EDA), news forms of cooperation, CSDP democratic control. Thirdly, this paper considers future challenges and concludes the need for new developments: at the institutional level, the strengthening of European defense parliamentary control through the creation of a CSDP inter parliamentary assembly and the EU´s external action inter and cross pillar coordination; at the capability level, the need to strengthen EDA and implement new cooperation mechanisms foreseen in the Lisbon Treaty; at the strategic level, the drive to clarify the EU´s international identity and define a new international strategy enabling the EU as a global security producer.

Portugal has always lived an unstable balance between the continental pressure and the search for a maritime option. In this way some movements had defined the continuities in the strategic options and in the historical features of the Portuguese foreign policy, which we may define as structures or international insertion models. Historically, Portugal has known three models of international insertion also connected with three different historical periods. Adapted from the source document.

With the coming into force of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union has become better suited institutionally to respond to the challenges, with the aim of endowing the Union with a global & integrated vision towards the promotion of security & stability. This article reflects firstly, on the evolution of the EU defense policy, secondly, on the changes & challenges introduced in this domain by the Lisbon Treaty & finally analyses European defense within the framework of the Atlantic Alliance. Adapted from the source document.

The new Lisbon Treaty is a crucial moment in the history of European integration. With the new treaty, the European Union will have at its disposal important instruments to consolidate its internal & external policies. The most important changes deal with foreign, security & defense policies, creating new mechanisms that should strengthen those dimensions. The article argues that the new security & defense policies will become a major catalyst of European integration & that Portugal must be at the core of CSDP right from the start. Adapted from the source document.