RP1: Changing Notions and Practices of Defence and Security in Finland and the Baltic States since 2014
The Russian aggression against Ukraine has global and regional repercussions and increases threat perceptions in neighbouring states. Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania share land borders with Russia and are by now all members of the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). The project investigates the evolution of comprehensive defence efforts in these four Northern states in the wake of the Russian aggression against Ukraine since 2014. It aims to assess the implications of these developments for state-society relations. A central aspect is the increasing expectation that citizens share responsibility for the defence and security of the state. Two key research questions are explored: (a) How do these states seek to reinforce their military-based promise of security, including through collective defence and security frameworks (NATO, EU)? (b) How, where, and when do they engage citizens and civil society actors to support and complement these efforts?
To address these questions, the study examines both coercive and incentivising measures that shape citizens’ contribution to national defence and societal resilience. Furthermore, the project problematises the ambivalent consequences of these developments. It scrutinises the reallocation of state budgets under conditions of resource scarcity, the risk of excluding Russian-speaking minorities and dissenting citizens who might perceive these efforts as “militarisation”, and the potential for conflicts among state authorities and different levels of governance regarding the implementation of these changes. By analysing these dynamics, the study provides a nuanced understanding of evolving “co-productive” security promises in the region and their broader socio-political ramifications in catastrophic times of existential threats.