He wants to address the biggest weaknesses in the armed forces

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Former Chief of Defense Sverre Dessen hopes the new book will bring more knowledge and insight to the table on an important question for the public.

On Tuesday 5 September, former Defense Minister Sverre Diesen will launch his new book: War, Conflict and Military Power. Norwegian defense in a changing world.

According to Dessen, the idea for the new book was approached by Gyldendal Publishers because the war in Ukraine had created a huge interest in society to understand more about the whole complex picture of war and the use of military force in our time. .

– They asked me if I could imagine writing such a book, and I thought it was a good idea, so I said yes, says Dessen.

War, Conflict and Military Power is a review of how the nature of war and warfare changed after the end of the Cold War, and how this changed the conditions of the Norwegian Armed Forces.

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This is what is often called the character of war, Desen explains. Meaning, who are the actors, what is the purpose of using military force, what are the methods used, and what are the means. The former defense chief says the latter is particularly about modern military technology.

Dessen hopes that the book will contribute to providing the public with greater knowledge and insight on an important question.

At the same time, I wanted to draw greater public attention to what I consider to be the biggest weaknesses of the Norwegian defence. Precisely as a result of the fact that we have not taken into account all the consequences of the evolution that I am describing, he says.

“I hope the public will realize, in addition to the public view they get on defense and security issues, that the biggest weaknesses in our defense will not necessarily require more money to fix,” Dessen adds.