National Repository of Grey Literature 39 records found  1 - 10nextend  jump to record: Search took 0.01 seconds. 
The Wagner Group's counterinsurgency operations in Mali
Murgia, Nicolò ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Aslan, Emil (referee)
This research focuses on analyzing the Wagner Group's counterinsurgency operations in Mali. First, it reviews existing literature on the use of Private Military Companies (PMCs) in counterinsurgency campaigns. Then, it examines the dynamics of the Wagner Group's activities in Mali, particularly its relationship with the Russian state, the services it provides, and the impact of these services on Mali's security crisis. The study thoroughly analyzes the specific modus operandi of the Wagner Group and its relationships with local armed forces to understand the implications and outcomes of their counterinsurgency operations. The research findings reveal that the PMC's efforts were ineffective in mitigating the crisis caused by Islamist armed groups. Moreover, the Wagner Group's presence in Mali led to an increase in violence, resulting in severe consequences for civilians. On a broader scale, the research demonstrates how the Wagner Group serves as a tool used by Russia to exert influence in Mali. The close ties between the Russian state and the PMC have enabled the manipulation of the local population through disinformation campaigns, targeting previous Western partners such as France and the U.S. As a consequence of these actions, Mali, which experienced a military junta rising to power through a...
The role of PMSCs in boosting the erosion of state sovereignty
Cirrone, Beatrice ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Bureš, Oldřich (referee)
The end of the Cold War accelerated the privatization of security and the proliferation of private military security companies (PMSCs) in conflict-ridden areas, challenging the state's role as the sole and legitimate security provider. This thesis explores whether deploying PMSCs has resulted in the erosion of state sovereignty - understood as the monopoly of violence - in a country with weak state institutions, such as Sierra Leone. To address this, the methodology employs process tracing to examine if and how the hypothesized causal mechanism unfolds under specific circumstances, resulting in a change in sovereignty status. This change is measured through three indicators: political stability, control over territory, and control over natural resources. By conducting an in-depth case study of Sierra Leone during PMSCs deployment (1991-1998) in the fight against the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), this thesis reveals significant adverse impacts of PMSCs on the state sovereignty indicators. Firstly, PMSCs involvement led to an internal power redistribution, fueling competition among contractors, the army, and local militias. Secondly, while PMSCs provided short-term territorial gains, the Sierra Leonean army proved unable to maintain territorial stability, resulting in prolonged vulnerability and...
Jihadism in Post-2011 Libya: The Tale of Three Cities: Benghazi, Derna and Sirte
Ben musa, Nuran Hassuna Abdulhamid ; Rivetti, Paola (advisor) ; Anceschi, Luca (referee) ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (referee)
After the collapse of the regime in Libya, many groups were formed, and jihadist groups were among those. This thesis focuses on Jihadism in post-Qaddafi's Libya. The research examines the different Jihadist groups, Ansar Al-Sharia and the Islamic State in Libya, and the factor that led to the rise of those jihadist groups. This research mainly concentrates on three Libyan Cities, Benghazi and Derna to the east, and Sirte to the centre. This study aims at understanding the composition of Jihadist groups operating in Libya since 2011 and discuss their significance and relevance in the scene of security fragmentation and state failure. Moreover, this research examines the interception between the different jihadist groups in Libya and the global jihadists organizations and networks, Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Keywords: Al-Qaeda Affiliates, Benghazi, Derna. Jihadism, Jihadist groups Libya, Sirte, the Islamic State.
The UK's Executive Counter-Terrorism Measures: A Critical Analysis of Strategy and Implementation
Wentworth, Matthew ; Fitzgerald, James (advisor) ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (referee) ; Butler, Eamonn (referee)
Since 2001, numerous national security threat developments have contributed to a significant increase in powers governing the use of coercive executive measures for use in a counter-terrorism context. The existing literature on the topic recognises the dynamic nature of the threat environment and the potential utility of executive measures but tends to focus on human rights and rule of law debates regarding the features of individual measures. This paper evaluates and critically analyses the changes in the UK's strategy behind, and implementation of, these executive measures with a specific focus on those employed to manage the terrorism-related risk of domestic individuals. Through assessment of domestic court and Strasbourg jurisprudence, strategy documents, oversight reports such as those from the Independent Reviewers of Terrorism Legislation, Parliamentary debate records, and official counter-terrorism figures, the paper analyses the ways in which the design and levels of use of the measures have been influenced by legal, political, and security-related factors. It argues that the along with the normalisation of these measures there has been accompanying policies to both restrict and extend them, resulting in a system which is strategically unclear and operationally insufficient. The research...
Non-state actors and their behaviour during the pandemic of COVID-19
Hůlka, Tomáš ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Kocmanová, Markéta (referee)
This diploma thesis focuses on the qualitative study and analysis of non-state actors during the Covid-19 pandemic. Particularly, it aims on researching the amendment of the behaviour of the gangs in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from the emergence of the pandemic in Brazil for the following 6 months. The goal of the thesis is an in- depth and comprehensive analysis of the chosen actors through the lenses of theories of violent non-state actors. The analysis is established on the concept of rebelocracy defined by Anna Archona, and the shift of behaviour, leverage and autonomy of the VNSA is evaluated through the optics of the ARI framework created by Ersel Aydinli. That framework focuses on three main analytical categories- autonomy, representation, and influence. Primarily, this thesis aims to discover and reveal the reaction and adaptation of the VNSAs under the circumstances of the global pandemic, mainly on the local and regional levels. Secondly, the aim of the thesis is to contribute to and broaden the existing knowledge and understanding of the VNSAs globally and particularly in Latin America. This work offers a detailed study on the adaptation of VNSAs to the emergence of the pandemic. The thesis scrutinizes the growing legitimacy and autonomy of those actors. Moreover, the thesis provides the...
French counterinsurgency: case study of Mali
Strnad, Jan ; Karásek, Tomáš (advisor) ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (referee)
This thesis is dedicated to French intervention in Mali between the years 2013 and 2022. Insurgency in Mali led to the deployment of French forces in Operation Serval from 2013 to 2014. However, because of the unstable situation was French presence in Mali prolonged, and Operation Serval was succeeded by Operation Barkhane. In this case is tested claim of a group of authors that French counterinsurgency became similar to the US counterinsurgency after their cooperation in Afghanistan. In order to answer the research question Has French counterinsurgency become similar to the US counterinsurgency? by proving/disproving settled hypothesis are conducted qualitative analyses of Operations Serval and Barkhane. The theoretical framework is provided by the concept of Counterinsurgency's Impossible Trilemma by Lorenzo Zambernardi. The results of both analyses and thus the overall result is disproval of the hypothesis because the French nature of counterinsurgency has not changed, however, the writing of current French doctrine was inspired by the US counterinsurgency doctrine.
The Implications of the Collapse of the Caliphate for Southeast Asia
Clancy, Jean-Patrick Christian James ; Aslan, Emil (advisor) ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (referee)
Following the announcement of the establishment of a Caliphate in 2014, individuals and groups from all corners of the world pledged their allegiance to the Islamic State. Of particular interest to this study are violent terrorist groups based in Southeast Asia. The thesis focuses on this region as, despite obvious geographical constraints, local bay'ah pledges have allowed ISIS to suddenly emerge in the region with a large and well organised force allowing for an increase in terrorist activities and ultimately the capture of Marawi, the largest city to fall under the ISIS banner outside of Syria and Iraq. But a question remains too often unanswered - why do terrorist groups ally? While the dynamic is rare and paradoxical due to groups' illicit and clandestine nature, strategic alliances between terrorist groups are far from being a new phenomenon. While a handful of scholars dared to explore this complex field, it remains under-theorised to this day. This thesis uses an available list of studies and analyses on terrorist alliances and complements it with theories related to alliances between states in order to understand the rationale behind Southeast Asian Islamists alliance with ISIS. While there lacks a consensus as to why groups ally, the study finds it to be a multi-dimensional and mutually...
Fragmentation of Kurdish Identity? The Case of Syrian Kurds
Skladanová, Nikola ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Aslan, Emil (referee)
The discussion on the Kurdish question has often connected the Kurdish struggle to the idea of an independent Kurdish state. While there are significant external factors that inhibit the possibility of establishment of a common (pan)Kurdish political project, within this thesis I focus on the internal inhibitors - specifically, on intra-Kurdish fragmentation, with a focus on the case of the Syrian Kurds. The work presents three main aspects of Kurdish fragmentation - political, territorial, and cultural/linguistic. This fragmentation, as presented in the thesis, is a product of competing identities, interests, and future goals of various Kurdish actors. The purpose of the thesis is to offer a detailed and comprehensive analysis of disunity and existing cleavages within the Syrian Kurdish national movement. The thesis asserts that Kurdish in- fighting, rivalries, and competing parochial interests present a significant obstacle to the creation of a (pan)Kurdish national movement and, therefore, also to the goal of the establishment of an independent Kurdish political entity.
Regional and sub-regional organizations and peacekeeping in Africa
Dušková, Kateřina ; Ludvík, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Karásek, Tomáš (referee)
The thesis deals with evaluation of missions lead by regional and sub-regional organizations in Africa. The cases for the study are the ECOMICI mission in Ivory Coast lead by the ECOWAS and the AMIS mission lead by the AU. The regional peacekeeping operations developed mainly the during the 1990's. Peacekeeping is the dynamic field and the evaluation of outcomes is important for future missions. The evaluation framework used fot this study was designed by Diehl and Druckman and described in their book The evaluation of peace operations. The thesis is structured into the four main parts, In hte first part of the study there is an introduction into the field of peace operation, the regional organisations and their security frameworks and also the peacekeeping evaluation field. In the second part the analytic framework for the evaluation is described, the third part deals with the evalution of the two missions, ECOMICI and AMIS and last part is devoted to conclusions. By analysing these two operations we are able to conclude if the regional organisations are able to deploy peacekeeping missions, if they are successful and what are the main challenges and advantages for the regional peacekeeping. Keywords peacekeeping, evaluation, AMIS, ECOMICI, regional organisation, sub- regional organisation,...

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