ABSTRACT
The editors of the present book, Dr Wolfgang Biermann and Lt. Gen. (retd.) Martin Vadset, first met in Bonn in Spring 1993 at an international hearing on the former Yugoslavia. 1 The discussion there on use of force by NATO and the UN revealed a wide gap between the 'cautious' approach common to military officers and the interventionist arguments of several politicians and academics. To put it baldly, the traditional justification for political control over the military was put into question by the heated debate, where 'calm generals' tried to tame 'wild politicians', rather than the other way around. Part of the background for this debate was the vast increase of UN operations after the end of the Cold War – often accompanied by unrealistically high expectations.
