How Much Peace Can the Military Instigate? Anthropological Perspectives on the Role of the Military in Peace Intervention

Abstract

The last two decades have seen a normalised involvement of military actors in peace operations, as Afghanistan exemplifies. This chapter analyses the military point of view, and its emic assessments and experiences in peace interventions. Ethnographic Peace Research (EPR) conducted among important players, like the armed forces, working in conflict areas at the local level towards stability and development can help gain a more profound understanding of the taxing path towards sustainable peace. Ethnographic research accentuates that the military, such as the German Bundeswehr, is not simply an armed and neutral force that “merely” provides security in the initial stages of a mission. Instead, it is deeply intertwined with (inter)national and local partners during general training, pre-deployment preparation and in the course of a mission.