Swiss Narratives on the Evolution of European Security, 1990-2016

Abstract

The relationship between Russia and the West is worse than it has ever been since the end of the Cold War. Substantially contradictory interests are at the core of this new constellation of conflict. But a far-reaching mutual lack of understanding also contributes to the fact that even entering into serious dialogue has become difficult for the different sides. Key terms, such as security or stability, mean something quite different to each of them. This precarious situation has led to a new interest in the “narratives” of states, elites and populations. Every attempt at mediation between the different security narratives is doomed to fail. This volume is intended to contribute to the different storytellers understanding better what the other sides mean. As a result, the 13 security narratives published in this book paint a much more differentiated picture than the bipolar East-West pattern would suggest.