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The primary purpose for NATO enlargement, covering first three countries of the so-called Visegrad Four and later Slovakia, was the necessity to fulfil "security vacuum" in Central and subsequently in Eastern Europe which came into existence after the fall of Soviet empire. Membership of those countries helped to fix criteria for admission of other states to the Alliance. Today, the NATO alliance stands in front of new important challenge: to work out a New Strategic Concept agreement in late 2010, based upon the idea saying that the security of Euro-Atlantic region is tied with and depends on the safety of the whole world. This safety concept will able to be realized only by means of global strategical governance. More then predicting expected security and defence ideas, the author reopens a broader discussion about the real meaning of NATO membership. He also repeats and enumerates risks and threats we are facing today.

The Provincial Reconstruction Team of Czech Republic operates in very complicated conditions and environment that are in fact hostile. It can't be excluded that growing scepticism, today common among Afghanistan security experts, more or less could affects even Czech members of ISAF missions. This study deals with existing knowledge end experiences of Czech PRT in Afghanistan. It is divided into two parts. The fi rst one concerns with outside and inside factors infl uencing ISAF missions. It brings in details characteristics of geographical, historic ambiances in which ISAF mission are performed. The second part concentrates on tangible experiences of Czech PRT members, both in political and military spheres. Here the authors summarize conclusions and upon them they outline challenges for the future.

The second part of this short serial deals with the theory of the operational art focusing on the centre of gravity (COG). The article emanates from Carl von Clausewitz's ideas, doctrinal publications analysis and many study projects of the operational art theorists. The author especially aims on disunity and heterogeneity of comprehension of the centre of gravity theory in confrontation of contemporary doctrinal publications and original Clausewitz's theory. He compares operational manuals (those of U.S. and NATO), and finds similarities concerning characteristics, capabilities or localities from which a military force, nation or alliance, derives its freedom of action, physical strength or will to fight. Finally, he himself defines enemy's centre of gravity and highlights coherences that can affect fulfilling political and military objectives in current and future military operations.

Operations by Lt.Col. Ing. Jaroslav Moravčík. NATO's current operational experience and that from other operations indicates that purely military actions cannot resolve a complex emergency of crisis. The requirement for the military to interact with non-military actors shows a new, more comprehensive approach. In response, NATO's Effect-Based Approach to Operations was highlighted. The four functions of EBAO and their related activities are mutually supportive. The functions are carried out in a continuous, interactive, parallel process and should not be regarded as sequential steps. They are as follows: Knowledge development; Effect-based planning; Effect-based execution; and Engagement space assessment. EBAO recognizes the importance of applying the various instruments available to the Alliance to create overall effects that will lead to crisis resolution. Achieving synergies amongst NATO and non-NATO actors will enable to identify better how it may best harmonize its contribution with other actors involved in a crisis.

The Document ESS 2003 laid down foundations of our present-day security and strategy culture. It was formed as a summary of several historical and political factors that are introduced in two starting chapters, followed by the more detailed analysis into ESS 2003, its main characteristics influencing EU security and strategic culture. The ESS 2003 is compared with the American doctrinal document NSS 2002. The European security strategy of 2003 is not compared with following American strategical documents, as they were unknown in time of its drafting. The author comes into the conclusion that in spite of indisputable differences, the EU shares the same values as the US, and the EU as an American strategical ally is facing the same threats and challenges as the US does, and in case of need, there is a possibility of combined military actions.

The overall purpose of this paper is to describe the way the Alliance and the also the Czech Army is going to apply the leverage of powers while conducting operations in the future. The article shows in details that the relative combat power analysis requires an assessment of factors either directly or indirectly affecting the potential outcome of the operation. In order to improve military knowledge and operational thinking within the Czech Army it is recommended to improve the quality of officers' military training and personnel preparation in accordance with Czech MoD White Paper on Defence. The views expressed in this assessment are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of Alliance or the Czech Ministry of Defence.

The existence of the Czech Army is at state. We need to get over present cut in military budget, ill-advised savings, without searching for new appropriate financial and material sources. To save something important means always to sacrifice or to give up something. Some security and military experts wish to dissociate themselves with approved methods. They think that the White Paper doesn't express opinions on many important things. It assumed that after five years there will be need to revise this White Book. So, proposes the author, wouldn't be better for us to regard the White Book only as an analytical document containing certain proposals for the following Defence Strategy of the CR, as originally intended?

The White Paper on Defence is a frame document that only points out main directions of military activities that further must be worked up in detail at all levels of defence department. This study presents all possible themes in the field of public procurements. As he set principles in the Whiter Paper correspond to those set in governmental document Public Procurements, it depends only on MoD experts to what measure they meet governmental requirements and implement them into drafted concept materials, incorporating rules for placing, assignment, rating, examination and audit.

Czech dailies and weeklies publicised their analyses of the diplomatic dispatches released by WikiLeaks. Some were concerned in world's politics, but higher attention was paid to 1,271 dispatches from Prague. According to the dispatches, the U.S. Navy wanted to purchase 23 Russian anti-ship missiles to obtain the weapons from Belarus through Ukraine, with a Czech arms dealer. However, the Czech government decided to derail the plan by not granting the Czech middleman the needed permission to export weapons from a dictatorship like Belarus. Various cables also detailed a dispute in the area of arms technology. Some observations from the dispatches dealing with characteristics of Czech prominent politicians are amusing. Overall, the United States evaluated the CzechRepublic positively, as an economically mature country and as an ally.

There is an urgent need to recognize changed priorities and evolve new approaches to non-proliferation and disarmament objectives for a sharper focus on the real and present dangers to international peace and stability. The focus must now shift to more effective monitoring and verification of compliance at various levels. The proposed ROOT system (Responsible Ownership of Technology) might be one of such means to meet above mentioned challenges that could eliminate present-day dangers and contribute to international peace and stability. It is the technology for security in the 21st century.

People commonly imagine terrorist attack as hijacking or improvised explosive device hidden in crowded place. However terrorists can also attack against food, cattle, farm crops or water resources. These kinds of attacks can be ranked among agroterrorism or food terrorism, whereas agroterrorists attack against cattle, farm crops or water resources; food terrorists attack against foodstuffs. This paper is intended to provide information about agroterrorism and food terrorism as possible forms of wilful violence. Food security became discussed issue especially after anthrax incidents in 2001. There are many authorities that deal with these issues, for example EU, NATO or World Health Organization.

In his new book, Geopolitics, its author Štefan Volner examines geopolitical theories as if through the prism of new images. It is in fact a free sequel to his previous books on political science. He puts geopolitics somewhere in between natural and social sciences, which is rather ambivalent attitude, namely in cases of using terms thermodynamics, chaos theory and so on. He mentions names such as Huntington, Brzezinski, Friedman, but surprisingly he pays his attention also to less known - at least in our country - Aleksandr Dugin, as a representative of 'new Eurasianism', a new ideology of present-day Russian 'national patriots'. In the second part of his book, Štefan Volner lays down theoretical and methodical foundations for forming geopolitics as scholarly discipline; the third part of this book is concentrated on the EU.

The article familiarizes readers with theoretical fundamentals of the key element of operational design, i.e. decisive point that is described as "a point from which a hostile or friendly centre of gravity can be threatened". It may exist in time, space or the information environment. As a tool of operational art, it helps commander and his staff to unlock the path to the centre of gravity. The concept is further evolved via example of peace support military operation planning process. The close understanding to terms decisive points, lines of operations, centre of gravity, kinetic effects, non-kinetic operations, doctrine is for military planners fundamental. The aim of this article is therefore to explain this basic terminology, to describe connections with other element of operational planning that could be used during all steps of operational planning. Basic theoretical Jomini's implications are introduced and their doctrinal interpretations are highlighted.

When the Czech Republic joined NATO, some structural changes in the national security sector were expected. Actually, changes in national defence strategy were declared by national strategic documents, such as military and security strategies. In addition to it, since 2002 the Czech Republic has been taking part in Global War on Terrorism and, generally speaking, it implies higher expenditures spent on security purposes. Surprisingly, many things have remained the same. The strategic documents were mostly ignored, deep changes did not happen due to fiscal policy based on a traditional incremental budgeting. Proportions between expenditures for internal and external security were only fluctuating.

Although private military companies like the former Blackwater were regarded as a relatively new phenomenon in international security, their history is not new. The participation of private individuals, and /or groups of private individuals, soldiers of fortune, in "foreign" armed conflicts is at least as old as the history of wars by itself. It is impossible to open a debate about the scope and possible impact of the current use of private military and security companies without knowing and evaluating their long-term historical developments. The goal of this study is therefore to map the history of the use of private military forces, their involvement in various conflicts, services they offer, among others, from the point of international law.

This paper analyses some of the accesses to developing modular structures of task forces, built not only on a base of combined arms, but also even the base of special units, formations, Czech Chemical Corps. The analysis is derived from documents, doctrines, at both political-strategic level and military-strategical level within state defence command. Moreover, the article offers information related to operational-tactical level of command and control. At the end, the author evaluates some possible impacts of modular structures on practical activities of forces. It is necessary to define those impacts in a framework of particular projects, dealing with the formation of modular structures.

With the running changes in methods of modern operations within NATO framework, there are also changes in demands and tasks in the scope of civil-military operations-CIMIC. They are incorporated in many documents, such as the Comprehensive Political Guidance, New Concept of Civil-Military Cooperation or Field Manual 3-07 Stability Operations. The CIMIC capacities ought to be used for active impact on impending security situation, crisis development, impact implemented more sooner then crises might escalate to conflicts, eventually they could be used to halt the conflicts, in the places where they are a threat to Alliance security. We must create new rules of co-operations between civil and military sections, with the use of Alliance materials, resources and documents from conferences, seminars and field working shops. Today we have also abundant experiences that the Army of the Czech Republic, its CIMIC section, have acquired in preceding ten years.

There are no military conflicts without deception, as it is among others a very cheap method how to contribute to the successful accomplishment of the assigned mission. Military deception (MILDEC) is applicable across a wide range of military operations. MILDEC can be conducted during all phases of military operations at strategic, operational, and tactical levels. It is defined as being those actions executed to deliberately mislead adversary decision makers as to friendly military capabilities, intentions, and operations, thereby causing the adversary to take specific actions (or inactions) that will contribute to the accomplishment of the friendly mission. According to he author, the operational deception is to be explained in more detail, basic rules are to be outlined, including fundamental principles and methods of deception for operational planning.

The problem of obesity is most frequent metabolic disease rising from unhealthy life style of contemporary population. Cardiovascular and metabolic disorders are pressing even in the AČR, so the authors could describe monitoring the risk factors of non-infectious diseases of mass incidence and the implementation of preventive programme with excessive weight losses, using dietetic, psychological, movements and pharmacological approaches that offer real stimulant for decrease in overweight and obesity prevalence within the Czech Army and concurrently decrease in morbidity of Czech servicemen.

The thing that authors regard as most important and that needs attention before anything else is the modernization of logistics in the Czech armed forces, as well as within the whole Sector of Defence, as we are facing now the topical problem-decreasing amount of financial resources from defence budget. This decrease has been enforcing logistics to find new and non-traditional approaches and ways how to solve tasks related to material and technical support. This article is aimed at the description of undertaken measures in the performance of logistics tasks in 2011 and following years. The conception and vision of the Czech Armed Forces future, including its logistics, should be involved in the White Defence Paper. The specification of the targets and the abilities in bigger detail will is involved in the White Paper on Defence.

The article deals with nutritious conditions of professional soldiers of the army of the Czech Republic in foreign operations. The way of food subsistence in KFOR and ISAF missions was evaluated. Results reached of performed investigations were summarized; collected data of respective observations were used for processing. The article is supplied by the description of various methods used for above mentioned measurements and data processing. The second part of study also contains the interpretation of

It is a book review over the book by Prof. F. Ochrana (editor). Its authors tried to define dimensions and leading actors of the so-called strategical governance in the conditions of the Czech Republic with a special respect to strategical planning in public policy. Two chapters of this book are concentrated on military and defence problems. Predispositions for strategical control are backed by the creation and implementation of strategical documents. Among further themes discussed belonged also the White Paper on Defence. We specifically need single or comparative case studies that examine the process of formulating security strategies and their implementation, the interaction between respective processes at national and international levels, and the results of security policy implementation in respective cases.

The author Jan Eichler works at the Institution of International Relations Prague, so those are the themes he is professionally involved in. His publication deals with security threats and their assessments at the beginning of 21st century. This second edition of his book is amended by several wars taking place since the first edition was released. They were wars between Russia and Georgia 2008-2009, Israel vs. the Palestinians 2008-2009, several conflicts in Africa, Columbia, and Sri Lanka; ISAF operations in Afghanistan; in Iraq the new attitude of the USA towards conflict solution. Somalia represents a typical failed state with warlords, criminal gangs, Somalia and sea piracy is a mutually tied problem the word community was not able to solve. Last but not least, there are dangerous activities of Islamists in North Africa. Even though those mentioned conflicts are only regional, their consequences are global. They therefore need the involvement of international organizations, the EU and the UN respectively.

The book consists of papers by eleven authors, members and fellow members of the Centre for Social and Economy Strategy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University Prague. At present, we must prepare to face socially unwelcome phenomena. We must arrange preventive projects, so that we could solve prospective crises. The authors therefore pay their attention to methodology of crisis scenarios, or how they are to be prepared. Predicted nine worst-case scenarios anticipate prolonged crises, failure in education policy, rise of extremism, climate changes, energy collapse, lack of international balance, and separation of the Czech Republic from Europe.

International situation lies still in the middle of our attention. Public is still interested in current security situation. The publications dealing with security threats are sold out, that's why the Karolinum Publishing House issued the second edition of this reviewed book, Chapters on Security. Nineteen security analysts amended and brought up to date their original papers; the book was enlarged by fifty pages. The monograph covers both inner politics and international organizations. Inseparable are prediction of world's development till the year 2020. The book is also involved with the so-called humane security and the system of complex security control in the Czech Republic.

Article deals with new insights into the Alliance missions for the upcoming period of five to ten years that are to be conditioned by achieving higher level of future military capabilities for provision of defence and security within the Alliance and its Partners. Some initiatives are described that are needed to be implemented to achieve the required capabilities and also necessary resources and process measures imposed to the Alliance member states and the Alliance as a whole are indicated. The new Strategic Concept aims to define NATO as a modernized Alliance and a cooperative team player in a globalized world. It gives a comprehensive framework for preserving the core ideals of NATO while transforming it into a dynamic Alliance capable of confronting the unconventional and unpredictable threats that define today's international security environment. The article refers to the ideas and thoughts mentioned in a study of the US NDU's Center for Technology and National Security Policy.

The NATO Washington Summit in 1999 discussed Defence Capability Initiatives to increase Alliance defence potential together with capacities for accelerated deployability and mobility of NATO forces. This fact was underlined during Prague Summit 2002. One of Prague Capabilities Commitments is the requirement of deployability and sustainability in operations. Among others, this requirement is met by Memorandum of Understanding and bilateral agreements. The Czech Republic is involved in activities of international organizations, enumerated in this article. We support a principle of specialization, the concentration to limited, part-time scale of transport capacities operating for Czech peacekeeping missions. Active participation in the Movement Coordination Centre Europe could be the leading pattern for synergic cooperation in the field of strategic transport.

The PTSD is an emotional, anxiety disorder that might develop after exposure .to a terribly frightening, life-threatening, or otherwise highly unsafe experiences. Recently, we have witnessed quite inappropriate behaviour of the Czech Army soldiers in Kosovo (KFOR) and Afghanistan (ISAF). The Ministry of Defence came to the conclusions the Czech Army soldiers ought to be immune to PTSD, but so far there has been is no serious psychological research, no survey conducted by Czech Army Mental Health Services and no information how many Czech soldiers returning from the duty in Afghanistan or other missions abroad are suffering from PTSD. It is high time to take important initial steps in the care over Czech army veterans, because competent professional soldiers, with years of experience, can also often break down from accumulated stress. This was illustrated by the events in KFOR and ISAF last year.

Army personnel are ranked according to level, from the lowest (privates, sergeants, WOs) to the highest (officers, generals). A total of 80 per cent of professional soldiers, in lowest ranks, are hired at labour market. They form the core of our military personnel, so that they have to be properly taken care of. But in ours, we have still the mentality of mass armies of cold-war period. There have been professional armed forces in the Czech Republic for more than five years, nevertheless the question how to build up the other rank corps is still opened. This article deals with this problem and the method how to cope with the need to form more professionalized NCOs. Broadly speaking, it is the question of the quality overpassing the quantity. Author insists that the British model of NCO's career path should be easily applied into the Czech Armed Forces to get rid of the obsolete recruiting related more to a model of conscription forces.

He was born in 1919 at problem region Silesia. He was very sorry to be placed on the so-called Volksliste File No 3, together with his parents, but he was warned by his friends not to oppose to local authorities decision, otherwise the could be send to a concentration camp. Shortly after that he was enlisted into German army and sent for Russian front. He deserted immediately. He joined the First Czechoslovak Army Corps at a position of radio operator. He took part even in the fights at the Dukla battlefield, he suffered injuries and was transferred into military hospital where he stayed for four months. After war he worked at Třinec Iron Works till his retiring age. He was awarded several medals for bravery and received the Certification of War Veteran.