Czech Journal of International Relations (Dec 2010)
Czech Republic and Military Operations Abroad
Abstract
Czech Republic started deploying its soldiers abroad shortly after the fall of communism. However, there are still questions which need to be answered: What were the main motives for sending out these operations? Did they change in time? How strong is the political consensus in this matter? These questions are answered by conducting a content analysis of political debates in the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament from 1999 to 2009. Based on theoretically founded analytical categories, the article conducts a quantitative survey of the discourse, which is then interpreted in relation to key variables (e.g. the positions of supporters and opponents of the missions, types of operations). The resulting findings reveal the motives which helped legitimize the decisions on deployments during the period under review and demonstrate the tensions which threaten to undermine the existing political consensus.
