Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark
The article demonstrates that the Danish Armed Forces based its decision to establish the Joint Arctic Command in 2012 on a desire to rationalise and cut defence spending in general rather than in an attempt to strengthen Denmark’s military posture in the Artic. We make this argument by employing th...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Scandinavian Military Studies
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Scandinavian Journal of Military Studies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://account.sjms.nu/index.php/sms-j-sjms/article/view/228 |
| _version_ | 1797202845295968256 |
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| author | Jeppe Strandsbjerg Rasmus Dahlberg |
| author_facet | Jeppe Strandsbjerg Rasmus Dahlberg |
| author_sort | Jeppe Strandsbjerg |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The article demonstrates that the Danish Armed Forces based its decision to establish the Joint Arctic Command in 2012 on a desire to rationalise and cut defence spending in general rather than in an attempt to strengthen Denmark’s military posture in the Artic. We make this argument by employing the concept of strategic culture to make sense of these decisions and to provide an understanding of the overall strategic logic behind Denmark’s military presence. Based on eight interviews with key informants involved in the establishment of the new joint command, supplemented with published and other written sources, we argue that cost-cutting arguments weighed heavier than strategic rationales during the process leading up to the creation of the Joint Arctic Command. Using strategic culture as our analytical framework allows us to provide an alternative explanation to that usually found in the literature, in which the establishment of JACO is held to be an index of a stronger Arctic focus in Danish foreign and security policy. This analysis prompts further consideration of what we can expect from the Danish Armed Forces in the years to come. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:09:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e3992ae0b27a421da1ca57ef1c6dc533 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2596-3856 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:09:54Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Scandinavian Military Studies |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scandinavian Journal of Military Studies |
| spelling | doaj.art-e3992ae0b27a421da1ca57ef1c6dc5332024-04-17T07:01:15ZengScandinavian Military StudiesScandinavian Journal of Military Studies2596-38562024-03-017148–6148–6110.31374/sjms.228221Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of DenmarkJeppe Strandsbjerg0https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0450-933XRasmus Dahlberg1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3971-1347Center for Arctic Security Studies, Royal Danish Defence College, DK; Associate with Nasiffik, Centre for Foreign & Security Policy, University of GreenlandCenter for Arctic Security Studies, Royal Danish Defence CollegeThe article demonstrates that the Danish Armed Forces based its decision to establish the Joint Arctic Command in 2012 on a desire to rationalise and cut defence spending in general rather than in an attempt to strengthen Denmark’s military posture in the Artic. We make this argument by employing the concept of strategic culture to make sense of these decisions and to provide an understanding of the overall strategic logic behind Denmark’s military presence. Based on eight interviews with key informants involved in the establishment of the new joint command, supplemented with published and other written sources, we argue that cost-cutting arguments weighed heavier than strategic rationales during the process leading up to the creation of the Joint Arctic Command. Using strategic culture as our analytical framework allows us to provide an alternative explanation to that usually found in the literature, in which the establishment of JACO is held to be an index of a stronger Arctic focus in Danish foreign and security policy. This analysis prompts further consideration of what we can expect from the Danish Armed Forces in the years to come.https://account.sjms.nu/index.php/sms-j-sjms/article/view/228arcticsecuritystrategyjoint arctic commandstrategic culturedanish armed forces |
| spellingShingle | Jeppe Strandsbjerg Rasmus Dahlberg Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark Scandinavian Journal of Military Studies arctic security strategy joint arctic command strategic culture danish armed forces |
| title | Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark |
| title_full | Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark |
| title_fullStr | Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark |
| title_full_unstemmed | Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark |
| title_short | Creating the Joint Arctic Command: Cutting Cost or Preparing for the Future? Strategic Culture, Arctic Security and Strategic Reasoning within the Kingdom of Denmark |
| title_sort | creating the joint arctic command cutting cost or preparing for the future strategic culture arctic security and strategic reasoning within the kingdom of denmark |
| topic | arctic security strategy joint arctic command strategic culture danish armed forces |
| url | https://account.sjms.nu/index.php/sms-j-sjms/article/view/228 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jeppestrandsbjerg creatingthejointarcticcommandcuttingcostorpreparingforthefuturestrategicculturearcticsecurityandstrategicreasoningwithinthekingdomofdenmark AT rasmusdahlberg creatingthejointarcticcommandcuttingcostorpreparingforthefuturestrategicculturearcticsecurityandstrategicreasoningwithinthekingdomofdenmark |