Accession Number:

ADA326631

Title:

Central European Security: Looking Ahead.

Descriptive Note:

Research rept.,

Corporate Author:

ARMY WAR COLL CARLISLE BARRACKS PA

Personal Author(s):

• Sutter, Eleanor B.

Report Date:

1997-04-07

Pagination or Media Count:

37.0

Abstract:

For centuries, the peoples of Central Europe have suffered wars of conquest and internal repressions by rulers beyond their control. This history has shaped the attitudes of todays Central European voters -- masters of their own destiny virtually for the first time. The United States has an interest in stable security for the region, having been drawn into two major wars in this century stemming from instability there. At the same time, U.S. taxpayers are less and less willing to assume a lions share of the risks and expenditures for European security arrangements, and will increasingly demand solutions that do not strain shrinking American resources. After 1989 Central European states looked westward for security guarantees that would prevent a return to repression. Though several actively sought NATO membership, with time a complicated mix of factors elicited the emergence of alternate security arrangements within the region. Because a benign Russia is the key determinant of the regions security for the foreseeable future, U.S. policy must focus on strengthening moderates there. The United States should also seek to strengthen moderates in Central Europe itself, to discourage demagogues from pursuing destabilizing policies that exploit extreme nationalism and socio-economic frustration during the transition from communism to prosperous market economies.

Descriptors:

• *FOREIGN POLICY
• *WESTERN SECURITY(INTERNATIONAL)
• *CENTRAL EUROPE
• NATO
• STABILITY
• WARFARE
• UNITED STATES
• ECONOMICS
• SOLUTIONS(GENERAL)
• GUARANTEES
• RESOURCES
• RUSSIA
• COMMUNISM
• SOCIOLOGY
• DETERRENCE

Subject Categories:

• Government and Political Science
• Military Intelligence

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE