NATO - Narratives and Interpretations

Abstract

NATO is commonly recognized as the principal body of Euro-Atlantic security governance. Its moves toward extra-European security responsibility (most obviously in Afghanistan but also off the Horn of Africa) and an emerging role as a provider of humanitarian relief (in the former Yugoslavia and, more recently, Pakistan) suggest an aspiration toward a global role. The viability of this role is, however, fundamentally challenged by different role conceptions among the Allies and differing degrees of enthusiasm for an extended NATO among external audiences. The working through of NATO's adaptation in these circumstances has given rise (within the Alliance) to an ongoing narrative of 'transformation' and (from without) various attempts to explain the trajectory of development which the Alliance has undertaken. That said, NATO still attracts relatively little theoretical attention and this lacuna is particularly apparent in efforts to consider how the organisation contributes to global (security) governance. This panel will include papers which interrogate the narrative of change in NATO and which seek to apply theoretically-derived frameworks in explaining the material forms of that change. Papers which utilize approaches (e.g. Critical Theory) thus far under-exploited in the study of NATO are especially welcome.

Title	Details
NATO – A Provider of Collective Goods	View Paper Details
Realist Explanations of NATO''s Endurance in the Post-Cold War Era	View Paper Details
NATO after the Lisbon Summit: A Security Governance Approach	View Paper Details
The Two Faces of EU-NATO Cooperation- The Case of Counter-Piracy	View Paper Details