ForcesWatch » military in society

Checking in with the neocons

The recent visit to the US by the Secretary of State for Defence provided the opportunity for a speech to the neoconservative American Enterprise Institute, laying out the UK's new strategy for defence and foreign policy.

Embedding the Covenant

Over the last decade, local authorities and thousands of private and public organisations across the UK have pledged to promote the military through events such as Armed Forces Day. We explore how the Armed Forces Covenant enables this and how plans to further embed it in law are more widely problematic.

Pinkwashing War: Pride and Militarism

With June's Pride events underway we look at their sponsorship by the armed forces and defence industry and how activists have challenged this.

Warrior Nation podcast – War & memory: Statues

June 2021

In the wake of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, and the Conservative Government's attempt to impose a maximum sentence of 10-years for vandalising statues, we speak with academics Natasha Danilova and Adam Elliot-Cooper on the national histories constructed through memorials and statues, and the spaces of reconstruction opened up by their removal.

The Integrated Review: enmeshing and strengthening the military

The government’s new defence and foreign policy review prioritises military thinking and interests at the expense of other international approaches and vital human security goals. Here we look at some of the Review's key elements and the implications of this new vision.

A tough year but business as usual

‘Tough year’ doesn't quite capture the extent to which our lives have been shaped by crises in 2020. Militarism, however, has not been locked down. Here is some of what we have been keeping an eye on this year as we look towards 2021.

Warrior Nation podcast – Filling the void in defence journalism: Phil Miller in conversation with Joe Glenton

December 2020

Joe Glenton is joined by Phil Miller, staff reporter at Declassified UK and author of 'Keenie Meenie: The British mercenaries who got away with war crimes', for a wide ranging discussion on defence journalism and coverage of the UK military in the media.