Warrior Nation

Whether it is Brexit or historical allegations, the colonial legacy of Northern Ireland haunts British politics. With a controversial bill on the war having just been approved in Parliament, Forces Watch found three unique voices whose lives and work have been profoundly shaped by the so-called Troubles.

What is it like to be occupied by the British military? In episode two of our special mini-series on Britain's war in Ireland, we speak to Fiona Gallagher. A proud Derry woman, Fiona grew up in a Catholic family during the worst years of the so-called Troubles.

She told us about the growing up amid riots, house raids and checkpoints in an aggressively securitized city, the killing of her brother by a British soldier and her hopes for the future of her country.

You can hear more about Fiona in the BBC's Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland.

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Music by Esion Noise. 

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Whether it is Brexit or historical allegations, the colonial legacy of Northern Ireland haunts British politics. With a controversial bill on the war having just been approved in Parliament, ForcesWatch found three unique voices whose lives and work have been profoundly shaped by the so-called Troubles.

In the first episode of this three part special series, we speak to former British soldier Lee Lavis. Lee served in Ireland as an infantryman and settled there after leaving the military. We discuss the prospects for peace and reunification, the class dynamics which sectarianism obscures, Lee’s work with former paramilitary prisoners and the dangers and inequities of the new Northern Ireland legacy bill.

You can read more about Lee's story and reconciliation work here.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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Music by Esion Noise. 

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In our final episode of Series 4, we speak with Paul Rogers on the parallels and differences between the invasions of Iraq and Ukraine, and reflect on some of the key themes that have emerged across the past five months.  Paul is Emeritus Professor of Peace Studies in the Department of Peace Studies and International Relations at Bradford University, and an Honorary Fellow at the Joint Service Command and Staff College.

You can read his rich body of work as  openDemocracy’s international security correspondent by following this link.  He is on Twitter via @ProfPRogers.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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It cannot be denied that the police are becoming more militarised - not just in the United States but here in Britain. Yet this focus on hardware presents the cops and the military as separate entities. In reality, they are built from the same foundations.

In this episode we speak with academic and activist Chris Rossdale about the colonial history of the police, how the military is overwhelmingly used in policing roles and why we should see the two institutions as part of the same apparatus of oppression.

Part of the discussion centres around the chapter Chris wrote for the book Abolishing the Police. To get a copy, head over to the Dog Section press website now!

You can also read Chris' article on the Black Panther Party approach to militarism, co-authored with Nivi Manchanda, in the journal Security Dialogue.

And to learn more about Adam Elliot-Cooper's book Black Resistance to British Policing, check out this excellent review on Abolitionist Futures.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

Or follow us on Instagram (@forceswatch) and Twitter (@ForcesWatch).

You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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Think-tanks are a key part of the political process in the UK - indeed globally - but do they actually promote democracy? Which ones have influence, how are they funded, and what role does legacy media have in amplifying their ideas.

In this episode we speak with Rethinking Security coordinator Richard Reeve and  academic Kjølv Egeland, experts in the multifaceted world of defence and security think-tanks. They discuss how funding plays a key role in think-tank output, constraining critique and ensuring the most dominant ideas remain within the boundaries of the status quo.

You can read Kjølv's latest research into think-tanks here or catch up with Richard's work over at the Rethinking Security website.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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As the impacts of the climate crisis escalate, there is a growing trend for securitised responses that foreground the role of militaries in tackling the fallout. But whose interests do these militaries serve and what role have they played in bringing about environmental catastrophe.

In this episode we speak with Nick Buxton, a communications specialist with 20 years experience in climate sustainability and international development, to pick his brain on the intersection between climate change, the military and security. Nick has produced an incredible body of work for the Amsterdam-based Transnational Institute, covering climate change, border securitisation, Big Tech and much more.

Follow this link to read Nick's  Primer on Climate Security | Transnational Institute (tni.org). You can also follow him on Twitter via @nickbuxton.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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As the sentiment goes, there always seems to be money for warfare but never quite enough for welfare. So what's the picture in the UK - that tiny collection of islands with its towering defence expenditure. In this episode, we're joined by Matt Fawcett from the Global Campaign on Military Spending UK to discuss the dark economics of Britain's war machine.

Matt talks about the troubling gaps between what Britain spends on its military and what it spends on climate mitigation or carbon reduction targets. Not to mention international aid budgets. He also adds the GCOMS take on NATO spending commitments and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, arguing against the dominant Atlanticist notion that Putin's aggression is due to NATO underspending.

You can access all of GCOMS resources via their website.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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Foreign and military policy doesn’t cut through to voters, or so it is said. What matters to the public is bread and butter economic policy or GP surgery hours. Yet, is it really the case that people simply don’t care about, for example, Yemen? And if not, why not?

Is it the case that the main parties are so alike on these matters that there appears to be no space for debate? Much was made of Qatar's human rights record during the men's World Cup, but where was any critique of the RAF's role in training Qatari pilots? And what would it take to put the military industrial complex front and centre, where it arguably should be?

In this episode we speak with journalist Mark Curtis, founder and editor of Declassified UK, on the issue of reporting critically about British foreign policy and why think-tanks and the mainstream press help perpetuate a myth of Britain's role in the world.

To learn more about Mark's work head over to the Declassified website.

Support the show via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) is the preeminent anti-arms trade organisation in the UK. Their advocacy for a safer and fairer world extends into many realms, including Parliament – where defence firms wield unchecked influence over elected politicians.

In this episode we speak with Katie Fallon, CAAT’s Parliamentary Coordinator, to discuss the difficulties of working in spaces where militarism and war are seen as inevitabilities. Our discussion is wide-ranging: from the revolving door to the multi-faceted opportunities for lobbying in a broke political system.

You can keep up to date with CAAT's incredible work here.

Support us via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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When it comes to critiquing and analysing how Government works to support the military, the focus is always on politicians and the lobbying work that seeks to influence them. But what about the people in Whitehall who oil the political machine? Civil servants out-live the ministers, cabinets and governments they work for, and have more influence than we fully understand. If the overall culture within the civil service is pro-military, then it stands to reason that the mechanics of government will naturally support the armed forces.

In this episode we speak with Hannah Wright, a scholar who has looked in great detail at how militarism and militarist assumptions infuse and shape security and foreign policy. Hannah is an ESRC Postdoctoral Fellow in the School of Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary University of London but also worked as an advisor for Saferworld, PAX and other peace-focused NGOs. Her PHD examined the civil service through the lenses of coloniality and feminism.

You can discover Hannah's work on the Queen Mary website.

Support us via the Warrior Nation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/WarriorNation

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You can discover Housmans Bookshop's amazing selection here: https://housmans.com/

Music by Esion Noise.

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