How armed forces adapt to operational challenges has been a salient subject in War Studies in recent years. However, the process of institutionalization of such lessons post-conflict has received... Show moreHow armed forces adapt to operational challenges has been a salient subject in War Studies in recent years. However, the process of institutionalization of such lessons post-conflict has received less attention. This study seeks to examine military learning processes during missions and beyond. By synthesizing organizational learning theories with the literature on military innovation, it argues that there are distinct but related forms of learning during and after operations that are subject to peculiar dynamics. Specifically, this research analyzes Dutch and British learning processes during operations in southern Afghanistan and their enduring impact on the respective military organizations. The Dutch and British experiences and institutionalization efforts are reconstructed based on archival records, policy documents, official evaluations and over one-hundred interviews with service members, civil servants and scholars with direct involvement in the Uruzgan and Helmand campaigns during the most volatile years in the Afghanistan war and their aftermath. Show less
Recent examples of international military intervention have shown that the strategic thinking behind the deployment of military forces in crisis situations is changing. Military intervention no... Show moreRecent examples of international military intervention have shown that the strategic thinking behind the deployment of military forces in crisis situations is changing. Military intervention no longer serves an exclusively military objective, but is part of a broader range of activities conducted by military as well as non-military actors. This trend stems from the vision that international military intervention in a crisis situation is merely one component of a broader nation-building mission drawing on a variety of instruments of power. In other words, military intervention is only one of a number of activities aimed at a country's economic, political, infrastructural and social (re)construction.This integrated approach to resolving international crises is commonly known as the Comprehensive Approach (CA), and the role of the military is known as Effects-Based Approach to Operations (EBAO). The research covers t he theoretical aspects of EBAO and the application of EBAO in the practice of NATO's mission in Afghanistan (International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Show less
