The modern naval fortress: an additional sea denial option for coastal states

As fixed facilities, naval fortresses seem unlikely to be important in a sea denial strategy which is usually about mobility, but new defence technologies and the changing geostrategic environment may revive the concept of the fortress. Extended ranges of anti-ship means allow onshore firepower to engage enemies over distance, even beyond the economic exclusive zones where most maritime territorial disputes occur. In the face of size limits on missile warheads that constrain their destruction of hardened targets, various active and passive defence technologies against missiles can enhance the survivability of onshore fortresses. Furthermore, onshore locations give fortresses the advantage of being unsinkable and able to accommodate greater energy and firepower capacity in contrast to vessels, as well as other mobile platforms. The onshore nature of fortresses also gives a different political meaning to being attacked, for the clear violation of sovereignty, as opposed to vessels and aircraft in a disputed space. However, the fact those fortresses are not invincible means cooperation with other existing capabilities still necessary. The case of Vietnam demonstrates how fortresses could strengthen the inferior defence capability of a coastal state vis-à-vis. a stronger sea power.     

目标自动跟踪参数辨识模型的工程化动态辨识

为解决机动目标参数辨识模型工程应用问题,采用扩张状态观测器等先进的非线性滤波算法,从实测的含有观测噪声的目标位置数据的序列中,直接估计出机动目标运动的一阶、二阶、三阶导数,并结合目标运动模型辨识的理论算法,在工程应用上首次实现了机动目标运动模态和运动模型的双重动态辨识,完成了目标模型动态辨识的工程化设计.     

Militias and the Politics of Legitimacy

Abstract

Militias and rebels depart from different angles when it comes to the politics of legitimacy. While rebels have to address the issue of legitimacy early on in order to gain popular support, militias can rely on some kind of ‘borrowed legitimacy’. Based on this observation, the paper introduces militias as special form of organised violence visible in many civil wars and fragile states as well as elaborates on the politics of legitimacy typical for militias. By distinguishing different forms of militia violence (counter-insurgency, counter-rival and counter-crime), the articles shows how militias respond to major challenges in legitimizing violent actions.     

MONGOLIA

Formed according to broad principles laid out by the United Nations, nuclear-weapon-free zones (NWFZs) play an important role in promoting nuclear nonproliferation, paralleling and complementing the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. But the traditional regional treaty-based path to establishing NWFZs is not open to all states. Owing to various factors, some countries cannot realistically follow the path of states that have established traditional NWFZs. Mongolia, having declared itself a single-state NWFZ in 1992 and gained UN General Assembly recognition of this status in 1998, may provide an example for other countries to follow. This viewpoint presents Mongolia's case as a state seeking to acquire a nontraditional nuclear-weapon-free status despite unfavorable geopolitical circumstances. The case of Mongolia clearly demonstrates that the creation of a credible, single-state NWFZ status is possible, but demands the support and flexibility of both neighboring states and the nuclear weapon states.     

Empirical Investigation into the Determinants of Terrorism: Evidence from Fragile States

Abstract

This study investigates the determinants of terrorism in countries that are in the top category of the Fragile States Index (FSI), and are also prone to terrorism. Panel data for 38 countries mainly from Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia for the years 2005–2014 are used. Findings from the negative binomial and fixed effects estimation show that fragile state, number of refugees and youth unemployment have positive and significant impacts on terrorism. Military spending is positive but less robust across models. Conversely, FDI and remittances have a negative impact on terrorism with the former less robust. Governance and foreign aid are negative and insignificantly related to terrorism. Policy implications follow from the findings.     

EDITOR'S NOTE

The Nonproliferation Review (NPR) recently interviewed Ambassador Sergio de Queiroz Duarte of Brazil, who presided over the 2005 Seventh Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Ambassador Duarte discussed his views on the outcome of the conference and the future of the treaty. He provided NPR with valuable insights into the outcome of the conference and also shared his thoughts on some of the most pressing issues confronting the NPT today, including the Middle East, nuclear terrorism, elimination of the threat of highly enriched uranium in the civilian nuclear sector, proposals to limit access to the nuclear fuel cycle, nuclear disarmament, and negative security assurances. Blaming the failed conference on a general lack of political commitment among states parties and their unwillingness to negotiate common solutions, Ambassador Duarte stressed that “the conference should face squarely its own failure without my attempting to disguise or sugarcoat the deep differences of view, which must be resolved with courage and determination by the states parties if they want the treaty to remain effective.”?He emphasized that if states fail to act on their overriding interest in upholding the NPT, especially if states parties continue to ignore or disregard their nonproliferation and nuclear disarmament obligations, some states might come to believe that their security interests are no longer served by the treaty. The future prospects of the NPT would then “look dire indeed.”     

弹道导弹关机点状态估计的指数加权递归最小二乘方法

在双星预警条件下,将指数加权递归最小二乘算法应用于目标关机点状态估计问题中。通过引入加权因子对目标助推段运动的局部拟线性特性进行描述,从而在一定程度上克服了一般的线性多项式模型难以准确刻画整个助推段运动的难题。通过对助推段目标动力学特性的分析,考察了目标在垂直射面方向上的运动特性。在此基础上,提出了一种更为准确的助推段运动模型。仿真算例表明,所提出的关机点状态估计方法相对于传统的方法具有一定的优越性。     

局部状态检测的GPS/INS组合导航转发式干扰检验方法

针对GPS/INS(Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation System)组合导航中GPS转发式干扰问题,在分析故障变化特性与故障诊断函数特性之间关系的基础上,提出了一种基于局部状态χ2检验的方法。通过观测值的变化、观测模型的变化和χ2检验中x赞1k的变化论证了方法的可行性,并得出组合导航受到转发式干扰是判断系统发生故障的充分而非必要条件的结论。最后通过在仿真轨迹中加入诱偏来模拟转发式干扰,仿真实验证明该方法能够以较高的灵敏度和较高的准确性判断转发式干扰的发生。     

Small world,big guns: globalization,interstate security networks and conventional weapons imports

With the burgeoning influence of emerging markets in Asia, a tectonic shift is taking place in the global security landscape. Asian states are concomitantly arming as their economic clout grows. In light of these developments, security analysts would benefit from a formal means of placing these arms acquisitions in a structural context. Are arms acquisitions on par with the expectations of Asian states, given their structural dispositions, or are recent acquisitions beyond anticipated levels? By using a dynamic panel regression of 187 states from 1950 to 2011, this research predicts arms import volume using the degree of interstate arms linkages, the size of a state's military, and its level of economic development. The technique offers analysts a formal means of distinguishing orthodox behavior in importing conventional weapons from extraneous security motivations. The article concludes by generating near-term forecasts of Asian arms imports and discussing the implications of the technique.     

伴随维修组维修模型聚合方法

面向装备维修保障系统的多分辨率建模问题,提出了一种装备维修模型的聚合方法,为装备维修保障系统模型的聚合研究提供了一种新的思路。该方法通过聚合故障输入和推理维修状态实现维修模型的聚合。最后通过基于MATLAB的仿真实验验证了该方法的可行性。通过实例验证可以看出,该方法缩短了仿真时间,减少了复杂系统底层建模的工作量。