Yes / The Gambia has experienced three significant political crises in its history: the attempted coup of 1981, the successful coup of 1994, and the latest events in 2016-17 when President Yahya Jammeh, having exercised semi-authoritarian power since 1994, was defeated at the ballot box but refused to step down until he was finally forced to do so. Using academic, media, social media and interview material, this article examines all three processes and their aftermaths, in particular the latter, through the lens of ‘small state’ politics. The article demonstrates that the small size of the population, elite, and landmass indeed matters in driving Gambian political processes. In 2023, several post-2017 processes, including constitutional change, transitional justice and elections, are playing out within the confines of the small state. This article then assesses to what extent a ‘New Gambia’, to use current President Adama Barrow’s phrase, has emerged. / The full-text of this article will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 21 Aug 2025.

This thesis presents a case study of small state diplomacy. It investigates the international approaches of Guyana from 1966 to 1992, to the territorial controversy with Venezuela. The Anglo-Venezuelan dispute over the boundary with British Guiana was settled by arbitration in 1899, but was reopened in 1962. British Guiana gained its independence in May 1966, after an agreement was signed in Geneva, which designated the once settled dispute a "controversy". The foreign policy strategies deployed by Guyana demonstrate the extent to which a small state can effectively utilize diplomacy. The thesis challenges those interpretations which have viewed Guyana's foreign policy mainly in terms of a mechanism used by the government to secure legitimacy. Such arguments fail to consider the multifaceted characteristic of foreign policy and the threat to Guyana's territorial integrity from the more powerful Venezuela. It is contended that it would be more accurate to state that during periods of tensions with Venezuela, preservation of the Guyanese state was the principal goal of foreign policy. When relations improved, this goal was of continued importance, but other goals became prominent. The thesis analyses Guyanese-Venezuelan relations as Caracas pursued its claim. It evaluates Guyana's international response as its main defence strategy, given that state's military and economic weaknesses vis-a-vis Venezuela. It assesses the effectiveness of Burnham's vitriolic diplomacy 1966-1985 and the more subtle form during the Hoyte administration, 1985-1992. An examination of the foreign ministries' archives in London, Washington, Caracas and Port-of-Spain was conducted to gain insights into the interaction of the of the dispute's re-emergence and cold war concerns over Guyana. The measures taken by the USA, Britain, Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago to ensure that Venezuelan action did not affect Burnham's rule are revealed. Burnham's role in the signing of the 1966 Geneva Agreement is also explored.

This thesis stems from academic research following my MPhil in 1992. It presents a portfolio of fourteen selected papers offering insights on major issues affecting the accountancy-related areas of external auditing (EA) and corporate governance (CG) in the small state of Malta. The commentary (Chapter 1) presents a background to the development of the portfolio and overviews the theoretical framework and methodology. It then introduces each paper, underlining common sub-themes. The contributions of the papers to knowledge are then indicated by (i) overviewing the development of each sub-theme contributing to the academic discourses in EA and CG, and (ii) laying out the relevance to the wider debates relating to small state literature. The commentary concludes by looking at the follow-up research agenda and the beckoning future. Chapters 2 to 15 then reproduce fourteen papers an introductory paper and thirteen others in two parts. The introductory paper includes most major small state sub-themes recurring in different ways in the subsequent papers: issues relating to close relationships and independence, discipline, resistance to change, regulation, secrecy, small business units and other small state issues. The following first part includes seven papers on Maltese external auditing in owner-managed companies, auditor changes, auditor perceptions, qualified opinions, first-time auditor selection, fee development and dysfunctional audit behaviour. The second part then comprises six papers on Maltese CG including the CG statement, internal audit benchmarking, conflicts of interest in co-operatives, the board/management relationship, a CG index, and small shareholder participation in the AGM. The portfolio contributes to literature notably by its original highlighting of the significance of the above-mentioned sub-themes on various aspects of EA and CG in a small state. Furthermore, the portfolio impacts Maltese EA and CG practices, particularly by emphasising the need to go beyond the adoption of imported regulatory frameworks.

This diploma thesis is puzzled with influence of NATO on Army of Czech Republic (ACR)'s armaments and if this influence is key factor in decision making regarding new acquisition projects or if other factors have bigger impact on decision making in question. NATO with the USA as its main sponsor is more benevolent than Warsaw Pact of which The Czech Republic was part during Cold War. Even though we can observe attempts to force member states into increasing their defense budgets from position of power, the main principle in new armament acquisition is standardization, which is based on semi-voluntary bases. However, in case of The Czech Republic standardization is not starting factor for new acquisition project. Change in security environment after Russian aggression in Ukraine in 2014 forced states to into increasing their defense budgets, which was manifested itself in summit in Wales in 2014, where NATO member states promised to allocate 2% of GDP by 2024. However, it was observed that not all states will meet this deadline and that size of state do not play significant role. Increasing of defense budget allowed ACR to start long awaited modernization projects. This diploma thesis found that not NATO but outdated equipment with fear from being dependent on Russian provisioning plays a key role.

Europos Sąjunga, didžiausias viršvalstybinis projektas pasaulio istorijoje, tampa tarptautiniu saugumo aktoriumi. Daugelį metų išorinės ir vidinės jėgos jai neleido šia linkme padaryti pažangos. ES buvo griežtai ekonominis projektas. Po SSRS žlugimo, JAV iškilus kaip vienintelei didžiajai galiai, naujame vienpoliame pasaulyje Europa pradėjo ieškoti savo naujos tarptautinės tapatybės. 1993 m. pradėta Europos Sąjungos sutartimi, prieš tai vadinta Europos politiniu bendradarbiavimu, Bendroji usžeinio ir saugumo politika (BUSP) atrodė kaip reikšmingas žingsnis link naujos Europos integracijos eros. Tačiau, naudodami tarptautinių santykių ir Europos integracijos teorijas: racionalizmą, liberalizmą, funkcionalizmą ir federalizmą, matome, kad „aukštosios politikos“ ypatumas neleidžia ES pasiekti reliatyvios integracijos „žemosios politikos“ sferoje sėkmės. Todėl BUSP yra griežtai tarpvyriausybinio pobūdžio. Vietoj to, kad būtų didžiąja galia, ES yra tik pilietinė ar normatyvinė galia. Mažosios valstybės sudaro ES narių daugum��. Tačiau, akivaizdu, kad dauguma su BUSP susijusiu iniciatyvų yra inicijuojamos didžiųjų Europos valstybių. Prancūzija, Vokietija ir JK dominuoja ES užsienio politikoje. Pagal požiūrį į BUSP, nepaisant problematiškos mažos valstybės koncepcijos, galime išskirti 3 šalių grupes ir teoriniame lygmenyje apsvarstyti jų užsienio politikos veiksmus. Kai kurios neutralios, taip pat kaip keletas, JAV įtaką siekiančių atsverti mažųjų NATO narių, remia glaudesnę... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / European Union, the biggest supranational project in World’s history, is becoming the international security actor. For many years the endogenous and exogenous forces prevented it from advancing in this direction. EU had been a strictly economical endeavor. After the collapse of Soviet Union and with the rise of the U.S. as a single super-power in the new unipolar word, Europe started to search for its new international identity. Launched by the Treaty of European Union in 1993, preceded by European Political Cooperation, The Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) seemed as a decisive step towards the new era of European integration process. However, by utilizing the most established International Relations and European integration theories: rationalism, liberalism, functionalism and federalism, we see that particularity of “high politics” does not allow the EU to match the relative success of integration in “low politics” areas. Therefore CFSP is of strictly intergovernmental nature. Instead of being super or great, EU is only civilian or normative power. Small countries constitute the majority of the EU members. However it is quite obvious that most of the CFSP related initiatives come from the big European powers. France, Germany and the UK have been dominating the foreign politics of the EU. Within the framework of CFSP, despite the awkward nature of the small state concept, we can distinguish 3 groups of countries and theorize about their foreign policy behavior... [to full text]

Technology and innovation offer a unique opportunity for an allied small state to influence the United States. The changing security environment and increased great power competition leads the United States to rely more on its allies, which the latter may use to increase their value to defence cooperation with the U.S. and gain influence on security-oriented decision making. Since, a large part of modern defence strategy is aimed at arriving at innovative, technology-based solutions for complex problems, even system-ineffectual states in alliances may be valuable to the United States and can devise an influencing strategy through an established field of defence research and development paired with other unique selling points they might have. This thesis looks at the Netherlands, a small state with a traditionally strong relationship to the United States, with defence industry potential and proven willingness to contribute to acute defence challenges. The fast evolving, widely carried and technology based field of defence selected is that of Integrated Air and Missile defence (IAMD). Through careful analysis of two regional threats within the great power competition framework and the state of the global missile defence infrastructure that the United States is contributor to, this thesis identifies...

Small states have limited ability to influence the security environment and other states in the rivalry over scarce resources. How can a small state adapt to changes and challenges in the security environment and protect the state from perceived threats? The purpose of this thesis is to understand how a militarily non-aligned small state's threat perceptions adapts to changes in the security environment and how these developments affect its strategic adaptation. The thesis explains how some 21st century changes of the security environment have affected the Finnish threat perceptions and strategic adaptation of a small state.  The problem is solved by conducting a qualitative content analysis of Finnish security and defence reports of the 21st century and by utilizing an analytic framework constructed for this purpose. The question is answered by presenting the main changes in the Finnish security environment and threat perceptions, and by explaining how policy has been adapted to these changes. The questions are answered both conceptually with theoretic models from a small state perspective and with in-depth analysis utilizing the theoretic models for contextual understanding in a structured manner.  As a result, conceptual frameworks are presented as tentative explanations for a small state’s threat perceptions and strategic adaptation. The contextual results suggest that from a change perspective the Russian aggressions in Ukraine 2014 and 2022 have had the biggest impact on Finnish strategic adaptation in terms of conceptual changes, use of resources and alignment strategies.

With the aim of contributing to the theoretical discussion of small state behaviour, this thesis investigates the Nordic state’s security strategies concerning the Arctic region. The applied theoretical framework is based upon a traditional state-centric understanding of security to investigate if the predicted behaviour derived from small state theory can be captured in the Nordic states' security strategies in the Arctic region. The study is conducted by a qualitative content analysis utilising Jacob Westberg’s theorisation of security strategies through the categories of context, ends, means and ways. The state-centric security focus is steered by the traditional realist focus of small states and motivated by the deteriorating geopolitical sphere currently occurring in the Arctic region, where the small Nordic states operate next to great powers. The results demonstrate that several aspects can be argued to coincide with the assumptions derived from small state theory, albeit some do not fully conform. Most apparent are the aspects relating to the importance of alliances and cooperation. Differences are also deductible between the small state's strategies, primarily between Denmark and Norway vis-a-vis Finland and Sweden. This incoherency enables a discussion of the relevance of states' size in the case of the Arctic theatre and of the noticeable shift in the states' referent security object. The analytical framework captures issues that point towards a more state-centric security understanding, presenting new threats to the state's survival in the Arctic region.

In December 1979, NATO adopted Dual Track. This resolution had two tracks: the modernisation of NATO’s Theatre Nuclear Forces and an offer to arms control negotiations with the Soviet Union. At the time, the Netherlands conditionally accepted Dual Track. Dutch opposition to nuclear modernisation was too great. The government postponed the decision for two years, linking it to the results of arms control negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union. In the end, the postponement would last for six years. The crisis that followed the Dual Track decision would become known as the Euromissile Crisis. The goal of this thesis is two-fold. On the one hand, the goal is to explore the reasoning behind this postponement. It will look into the domestic and international factors that influenced Dutch decision-making. The Dutch public did not want to deploy new missiles, whereas the NATO allies pressured the government to make a decision. This thesis has shown that domestic pressures were incredibly influential at the beginning of the crisis. That is why Dual Track was conditionally accepted. However, international factors, such as the need for solidarity within NATO, increased significantly over time. On the other hand, it researches how Dutch margins for manoeuvre were increased during the Euromissile Crisis. In line with New Cold War History, this thesis argues that the Netherlands was not just a small state that had to follow the path the bigger NATO states decided. There was the opportunity to push its own agenda.

Scholars tend to approach small states’ military strategies in terms of restraints and opportunities in the external security environment, largely overlooking the influences of a state’s domestic particularities. This thesis aims to explore how the theory of strategic culture, regarded here as an inherent, domestic context in which strategy is formulated, can add nuance to such realist analyses of how small states build and adjust their defence capabilities. Through a comparative case study design and a qualitative content analysis method, this thesis examines the adjustments in Denmark and Sweden’s military strategies following the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, and the central similarities and distinctions between those. The influence of strategic culture on the respective states’ strategies is examined based on three foundational elements, dominant threat perception, approach to strategic partnerships, and geographical patterns and strategic exposure. The findings of this thesis demonstrate that the neorealist perspective of adjustments in small states’ military strategies can indeed be complemented with a view of the states’ unique strategic cultures, particularly with regard to the differences between the two empirical cases. Most notably, such a view allows for a deeper understanding of distinctions in the underlying rationales which guide the development, organisation and mission of the respective states’ Armed Forces.