Reconceptualizing Total Defense

Strategy and Security in the Greater Baltic Sea Region
Erscheinungsjahr 2026
ISBN: 978-3-032-31585-4
Verlag: Springer

Buch, Englisch, 303 Seiten, Format (B × H): 155 mm x 235 mm

Reihe: Baltic Security and Defense

This Open Access book examines how Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have adjusted their security strategies in response to increasing geopolitical threats. Moving beyond traditional deterrence, these states have adopted a Total Defence approach as an inclusive strategy that unites the military and civilian sectors to bolster national resilience.

Drawing on insights from scholars and military leaders, the book examines how Total Defence is understood, communicated and implemented across the region. Through detailed case studies, it reveals the shared objectives and distinct national models that influence defence policy.

The book shows how cross-border cooperation and community-based defence efforts are creating a unified operational space in the Greater Baltic Region. Offering valuable lessons for countries facing similar security challenges, it also contributes to broader discussions on NATO’s evolving role in regional defence.

Zielgruppe

Research

Autoren/Hrsg.

Veebel, Viljar

Armstrong, Eden Elizabeth

Fachgebiete

• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften Interdisziplinär Friedens- und Konfliktforschung
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politikwissenschaft Allgemein
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Militärwesen
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Internationale Beziehungen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Totalizing Defense: The Discursive Conscription of Society.- Chapter 3. The Moral Shield: Towards an Ethical Total Defense.- Chapter 4. Russia’s Total War Against Ukraine and Lessons for the Baltic States: Russian Influence Activities and Strategic Narratives during Russo-Ukrainian war 2022–2025.- Chapter 5. Gender and Total Defense: The Paradox of Inclusiveness.- Chapter 6. Small State’s Strategic Adaptation: Lithuania’s Integration of Collective and Total Defense.- Chapter 7. Volunteers in the Estonian Security Sector as Actors in the Comprehensive Defense and Countering Hybrid Threats.- Chapter 8. National Strategic Communication in Comprehensive National Defense System: A Case of Latvia.- Chapter 9. Self-Initiated Resistance in the Context of Total Defense: Estonian Needs and Ukrainian Lessons from 2022-2025.- Chapter 10. Poland’s National Security: Striving for a Total Defense Notion?.- Chapter 11. Efforts or Circumstances? Explaining the Outcomes of the Baltic States’ Burden Sharing Behavior in NATO.- Chapter 12. Comprehensive Defense Under Pressure: Balancing Force Build-Ups with Civil Defense in the Baltic States.- Chapter 13. Conclusion: Reconceptualizing Total Defense in the Greater Baltic Sea Region.

Über Autor(innen)

Viljar Veebel is a Lecturer in the Department of Political and Strategic Studies at the Baltic Defence College and at the Estonian School of Diplomacy. He also works as an Associate Researcher for the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR). Dr. Veebel has been an active researcher and lecturer since 2004 after graduating with a Master’s in International Relations from the University of Tartu, Estonia. Since 2012, he holds a doctoral degree in political science (PhD) from the University of Tartu. In recent years, he has also been a guest editor for the Journal on Baltic Security.

Eden Elizabeth Armstrong is the Publications Editor at the Baltic Defence College, and she is one of the Editors-in-Chief at the Journal on Baltic Security. Eden holds an MSc from the University of Edinburgh, UK, and an MA from the University College London's School of Slavonic and East European Studies, UK.