How might Democratisation Affect Military Professionalism in Africa? Reviewing the Literature

The search continues for methods to improve security for development in Sub-Saharan Africa. One of the important actors in this security arena is Sub-Saharan African governments’ armies. Much of their capability to meet security challenge depends on how militarily professional they are. The wave of democratic evolution in Africa since 1990 also affected military professionalism. This article reviews three models for assessing how democratisation might affect military professionalism in Sub-Saharan Africa, with special attention to post-conflict states. This should make it possible to decide which analytical methods are most appropriate to measure military professionalism in the particular circumstances of Sub-Saharan African post-conflict democratisation. Depending upon the particular nation-state in question, this decision on analytical methods may be useful for other Sub-Saharan states as well.     

Governmental Re-organization in Counterinsurgency Context: Foreign Policy Program Transfer and Operation Switchback in South Vietnam

Foreign policy program transfer, the shifting of implementation responsibility for a foreign policy program from one organization to another, is a ubiquitous, yet under-studied, counterinsurgency phenomenon. This article conceptually develops program transfer as an important object of study; analyzes, using archival sources, an empirical case of program transfer, Operation Switchback, drawn from US counterinsurgency practice in South Vietnam; and formulates two preliminary theoretical claims related to program transfer: (1) transferred programs will tend to be altered in accordance with the characteristics of the gaining organization, and (2) program transfer may act as a signal or early-warning indicator of foreign policy change.     

Learning ‘Under Fire’: Israel’s improvised military adaptation to Hamas tunnel warfare

What organisational attributes enhance a military’s ability to effectively adapt on the battlefield? Upon the outbreak of war in July 2014 between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) encountered an expansive network of tunnels from which Hamas was launching large-scale assaults into Israel. This article illustrates that the IDF’s ability to successfully adapt ‘under fire’ to this battlefield surprise was facilitated by several important attributes related to its organisational learning capacity: a dynamic, action-oriented organisational culture, a flexible leadership and command style, specialised commando units which acted as ‘incubators’ for learning and innovation, and a formal system to institutionalise and disseminate lessons learned.     

当前战区陆军预备役部队民用运力动员初探

我国民用运力资源丰富.自2020年7月1日零时起,预备役部队全面纳入军队领导体制,改由党中央、中央军委集中统一领导.在此背景下,本文对民用运力动员的含义进行了深入剖析,分析了民用运力动员的主要任务和战区陆军部队对民用运力动员的要求,指出了预备役部队民用运力动员所面临的矛盾和困难,提出了推进民用运力动员的几点对策,如健全...     

Implementing sustainable mission command in the Hellenic Army

The modern Mission Command philosophy in military operations originated with the German concept of Auftragstaktik (mission tactics). It emphasizes in general terms the exercise of disciplined initiatives by subordinates during the execution of mission-type orders in the course of military operations that are conducted within the overall intent of a commander. The present paper contains an overview of the historical evolution of the mission command concept and its application. The paper compares the mission command concept with the detailed or linear method of command. This paper focuses on the relevance of the mission command concept for the Hellenic Land Forces (HLF) in Greece. The paper provides a historical account on when and where mission command was successfully exercised by the Hellenic Armed Forces in the modern military history of Greece. The authors support the premise that the mission command concept is essential for safeguarding Greek national security in the current environment of evolving symmetric and asymmetric threats, and in meeting operational challenges in a diverse and difficult terrain. The paper examines the cultural reasons that have impeded the adoption of the mission command concept within the HLF and recommends a three-phase model for its permanent implementation.     

The evaluation of a possible future Sino-Japanese armed conflict through the application of the ACEI-model

There is relatively little formal modeling of the economic effects of armed conflicts even though they have substantial economic effects. We set forth a new model, namely the armed conflict economic impact model – ACEI-Model. The model looks at the economic effects of war in three different stages: (i) pre-conflict stage; (ii) armed conflict stage; and (iii) post-conflict stage. The model is based on economic desgrowth (-δ) and other new conceptual indicators. We evaluate an imaginary armed conflict between China and Japan by applying the ACEI-Model.     

刑法修正案（七）中军用标志犯罪立法完善研究

《刑法修正案（七）》对原刑法规定的侵犯军用标志的犯罪进行了修正,但其规定还存在一些立法疏漏和缺陷,有必要予以改进。《刑法修正案（七）》中的罪名应立法化,由立法机关确定;增设非法生产、伪造、变造、盗窃、抢劫、抢夺、破坏、侮辱武装部队专用标志的行为和伪造、变造、盗窃、非法提供、使用、非法出租、出借、赠送武装部队制式服装的行为;犯罪对象应包括制式服装的标志服饰、军服专用材料和军服仿制品;刑罚种类应增加剥夺政治权利;增加非法生产、买卖武装部队制式服装罪的情节加重犯的法定刑。     

从《人民武装警察法》看武警部队执行任务的职权

《中华人民共和国人民武装警察法》（以下简称《人民武装警察法》）经十一届全国人大常委会第十次会议通过。《人民武装警察法》的颁布标志着武警部队正规化建设迈上了一个新的历史台阶。武警部队的任务与职能,在法律上有了明确的依据。为更好地促进武警部队依法完成各项任务,探讨武警部队执行任务的职权是十分必要的。     

对武警院校实施“特色办学”的前瞻与思考——以武警工程学院为例

在建设现代化武警的系统工程中,武警院校建设处于优先的地位。为了发挥好院校在建设现代化武警中的重要作用,必须确立“特色办学”理念,努力开创“特色办学”的新路子。本文论述了特色办学的重要意义,以武警工程学院为例,分析了武警院校特色办学的现状,对进一步实施特色办学、以特色拉动院校创新发展进行了前瞻与思考。     

浅析武警部队心理管理的基本途径

部队心理管理针对被管理者的心理活动规律,从激发被管理者的心理潜力入手,充分调动他们的主观能动性,实现部队的和谐管理。本文从心理管理的管理起点、建设重点、主要突破口、实现目标四个方面加以分析和阐述,试图对武警部队心理管理的本质和具体做法作以有益探索。