The market and the military profession: competition and change in the case of Sweden

The rise of private military and security companies (PMSCs) challenges our notion of military professionals. PMSCs bring new claims to professional status and legitimacy outside military institutions and represent an increasing diffusion of - and competition over - military and security expertise. In light of this development, understanding the formation of professional identities in military and private security organisations is as an important undertaking. This paper contributes to this endeavour by analysing professional self-images in the Swedish Armed Forces and how these relate to PMSCs. The study is based on data collected from official documents, semi-structured interviews and a small-scale survey among senior military officers. Focusing on military understandings of PMSCs and contractors, the analysis provides much-needed insight into relational aspects of professional identity formation outside the US context. Furthermore, it points to discrepancies in organisational and group levels in understandings of commercial security actors, and paves the way for future research.     

改革军事高科技培训质量评价办法的思考

文章通过梳理20年来开展军事高科技培训质量评价工作的情况,分析了取得的成绩和存在的不足,指出要将培训效果和课程体系的整体质量评价与具体课程的教学质量评价相结合,构建完善的评价体系。提出了改革军事高科技培训质量评价体系的基本原则,并结合培训工作的主要环节和特点,借鉴柯氏模型提出了一种军事高科技培训质量评价体系的主要结构。最后给出了构建质量评价体系和提高评价实效的有关思考。     

美军试验鉴定技术发展研究

众所周知,美军的装备试验鉴定技术一直处于世界领先地位,对其进行深入研究有利于试验鉴定的发展。本文主要对美军试验鉴定的管理部门、类型、发展历程以及技术领域进行详细研究,系统梳理美军试验鉴定的整个过程,在此基础上,结合我试验鉴定的发展现状,取其精华,去其糟粕,为试验鉴定的发展提出了几点思考和建议。     

China’s Search for a ‘Strategic Air Force’

Once dismissed by many outside observers, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has undergone an impressive transformation over the past two decades, emerging as one of the world’s premier air forces. As it continues to modernize, it is focused on becoming a ‘strategic air force.’ PLAAF strategists suggest this means it should play a decisive role in protecting Chinese national interests, field modern capabilities commensurate with China’s standing as a major power, and enjoy the institutional status befitting its role as a ‘strategic service,’ an important consideration given the historical dominance of the ground force in China’s military.     

基于战备完好率的军用飞机维修费用需求确定方法

军用飞机维修费用需求与战备完好率要求密切相关,为保持飞机一定的战备完好率水平,必须投入一定的维修费用。维修费用投入多,则维修设备齐全,维修人员维修能力高,维修备件充足,飞机故障修复时间短,战备完好率高;维修费用投入少,会造成维修设备短缺,设施破旧,维修人员培训不到位,维修备件供应不足等各种问题,直接影响战备完好率水平。     

Transforming the Spanish military

The article analyses the Spanish military transformation. This process started in 2004 as a means to adapt the force structure, organization and capabilities of the Spanish military to meet present and future threats in compliance with NATO’s initiatives, thus ensuring the continuity of the equipment modernization, professionalization and the adjustment of the country’s defence architecture to the post-cold war environment. A decade later, although transformation is still a priority for the Ministry of Defence, limited political will, a lack of strategic guidance, poor resource management and the effects of the economic crisis are compromising its development. This article describes the Spanish military transformation and assesses its value in adapting the country’s armed forces to the current and prospective security environment.     

Country survey: Angola

This paper is a survey of Angola’s defence sector and policy from 1992, the year the civil war ended, to 2012. Angola achieved its independence upon the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) defeating National Union for the Total Independence of Angola. Since then, fuelled by its rich natural resources, the country has grown steadily. The MPLA military forces were a central factor behind independence and maintain their central role to this day. Moreover, Angola’s support for African peace with monitoring military missions is a clear indication that the country aims to intervene in African security and military issues, with its military capabilities funded by oil revenues.     

推进舰队舰船装备保障军民融合深度发展

文章就推动装备保障军民融合深度发展,提出应正确把握和领会其基本内涵,客观分析其发展现状,着力解决制约装备保障军民融合深度发展的深层次矛盾和问题,并从创新体制机制、构建管理系统、健全法规标准三方面提出了相关的对策思考。     

军事仿真训练系统体系架构改进研究

现有军事仿真训练系统多基于传统C／S架构进行体系设计,在大规模战术训练仿真部署时,存在并发访问能力弱、可靠性差等问题。通过对仿真系统的体系架构进行研究,结合云计算技术提出增加访问控制服务器、仿真数据共享服务器以及仿真引擎虚拟化等改进方式,并通过对比分析,总结了三种方式对仿真训练系统的可扩展性、并发访问性以及数据可靠性等方面能力优化和提升的异同,并提出仿真训练系统传统体系向云计算体系逐步过渡的思路。     

The causes of trust and distrust in the military

Trust in institutions is an important issue of political science and sociology. This article contributes to the discussion by exploring public trust in the military at the global, regional and national levels, and the causes of trust and distrust in the military. Analyses of public opinion data reveal that the military is a highly trusted social institution across the world. In Slovenia, the trust in the military is high as well; however, it is lower than international data would suggest, averaging at 50%. Against this background, the article focuses on the causes of trust. The original empirical survey was accomplished and shows that the most significant causes of a high level of trust in the military are its frequent and successful involvement in disaster relief, its professional qualifications and high performance, as well as its national defense role. Whereas the key causes of distrust are: the poor levels of transparency in its procurement process; the politicization of the military and organizational problems.