Parliaments in Security Policy

In democracies, the power to de­ploy the military abroad generally lies with the government. Parliament does not always have a say, and only in a minority of states are its compe­tences as strong as those of the Bundes­tag, which can veto any deployment of the German armed forces. 

Involving parliament in such key decisions can be seen as an im­portant contribution to the democratization of security and defence policy. In the view of many ob­servers, involving parliament makes se­curity policy more democratic, effective and peaceful. This is because parliamenta­ry participation promises trans­parency and open discussion of security policy de­cisions. And a parliamentary right of veto can further re­duce the danger of risky military operations, at least according to theore­tical expectations. 

However, the involve­ment of parliament might also weaken the efficiency of military opera­tions. Parliamentary procedures slow down the de­cision-making process and make it easier for other states to gain insight into de­ployment plans. Moreover, greater public involvement may even lead to premature mili­tary operations before all other means of solving the pro­blem have been ex­hausted if public opinion favors a swift military res­ponse to a situation.

In light of these contra­dictory expectations, the project empirically examines the role of parliaments in security policy. What opportunities for partici­pation do parliaments actually have today, how does their partici­pation affect security policy and how does it affect the de­mocratic discourse of security policy? 

The project examines the role of national parlia­ments in deployment decisions, on the one hand, and trans­national cooperation between parlia­ments across borders, on the other. 

Foto: European Parliament via flickr. CC BY-NC 2.0.