The 9/11 and its impact on the threat scenarios of the Baltic Sea southern rim states: Poland, Germany and Denmark

Kirjoittajat

• Yrjö Lehtonen Puolustusvoimat

Avainsanat:

The 9/11, impact, Poland, Germany and Denmark

Abstrakti

The terror attacks of 9/11 had a large impact on the threat scenarios of a1l the states on the southern rim of the Baltic Sea. After the end of the Cold War, the threat of a military confrontation had more or less vanished. After the 9/11, a new enemy suddenly emerged: international terrorism. Polands threat assessments in the nineties had reflected the concern caused by the security-political instability of the neighbouring countries. International co-operation and expansion of both NATO and the EU has improved the situation. Poland became a member of NATO and the EU in 1999 and 2004 respectively. The trans-Atlantic link between Poland and the USA was an important security provider.
Germany and Denmark considered their post-Cold War security situation positive, despite some sources of uncertainty in the Baltic area. Threat of a direct military assault had vanished with the end of the Soviet Union in 1991. Both Germany and Denmark started to reduce the strength of their Cold War armed forces. Denmark has placed great emphasis on international operations since the early nineties. Germany took part in it's first NATO-led operation in Kosovo in 1999. At the time of writing, Germany is an active participant in the operations in Afghanistan.
Viewpoint and theoretical frame of reference of this article is political realism with its centricity of state and neorealism, which puts emphasis on the influence of international organisations in international politics. Poland, Germany and Denmark are studied as parts of international organization. States are considered to be security organizations. Foreign policy is more important than internal policy.