The Arctic, Global Commons and Maritime Strategy
Geopolitics is normally about the conditions for security that do not change in time: the waymountains or oceans define borders or how natural resources are distributed. In the Arctic,these timeless truths no longer stand. Climate change and technological development iscreating a ‘New North’ were natural resources can be utilised, goods transported from East toWest and the local populations get an unprecedented chance for development. Greenland is inthe middle of these developments and this raises a number of issues for the people ofGreenland in particular as well as for the Kingdom of Denmark in general which the Centre isparticularly well suited to address.Developments in the Arctic region should be studied in their prober political, historical andglobal context in order for a real evaluation of their impact to be made. Our challenge will beto place the exciting events in the Arctic in a context that translates them into more mundaneoptions of present action. Establishing such a baseline for action also entails the facilitation ofdialogue between actors in the region as well as actors within the Kingdom of Denmark. TheCentre’s competences in facilitating strategic dialogue and developing policy-options based onresearch is thus be able to be realised in this area because the Arctic is not regarded inisolation.The Centre will thus combine the focus on the Arctic with a focus on Maritime strategy ingeneral. As one of the world’s largest seafaring nations freedom of navigation and Maritimesecurity is a general Danish focus that has particular manifestations in the Arctic. The focus onMaritime Strategy includes Maritime Security Operations and maritime capacity building.Small State Strategy, European Armed Forces in a time of Austerity
and the Danish Defence Model
How to punch above your weight is the key question in small state strategy that focuses onhow to create options and gain influence disproportionate to your national resources. TheCentre’s intimate knowledge of Danish security and defence policy makes us particularly well-qualified to investigate models of small state activism. Traditionally, small states have beenregarded as the pawns of the international system; however, globalisation, technologicaldevelopment and international institutionalisation have empowered small states, along withfirms, NGOs and individual actors in an increasingly complex international system. We seek todescribe these megatrends and identify the way in which they are redefining the role of smallstates.Defence studies traditionally focuses on great powers because, in the 20thcentury, the use andutility of armed force was defined in terms of economics of scale, which made the use ofarmed force prohibitive expensive for small states. In a time of austerity, however, the waysmall states have learned to generate capabilities from limited resources serves as importantexamples and inspiration for other countries. This is especially the case in Europe were themajority of the members of NATO and the EU are either small states or large states with asmall military. Since the end of the Cold War the Danish armed forces have developed a modelfor making military capabilities more effective on a shrinking budget.We study this Danish Defence Model in a comparative perspective. This means investigatingthe nexus between defence economics and military planning from a strategic perspective.