The Soldier-citizen

Since the collapse of communism, the relationship between the Polish armed forces and the Polish government and society has been undergoing a transformation. This book examines that relationship, inspecting the institutional design of the defence establishment in Poland, and focusing on the process through which a former Warsaw Pact "coalition warfare" partner becomes a Western-style national army. The author uses Poland as a case study to mark the outer limits of change that the West can reasonably expect from post-communist countries with regard to the relationships between the military and civil society. The attempts to identify the general preconditions necessary for democratic civilian control over the military in countries where there is no historical precedent for civilian oversight.