Deterrence icons as status symbols: American forces in NATO’s eastern flank

Abstract

How can a signal of extended deterrence, such as prepositioning of foreign military forces, signify status for the beneficiaries of the allied deterrence/reassurance chain? This article explores how the manifestation and communication of allied deterrence can concurrently constitute an affectively charged status symbol for the protégé states of this international security practice. It does so on the example of the Baltic states and Poland, probing the presence and functionality of the American forces as a status marker in North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)’s eastern flank states after 2014. Engaging discourse analysis and expert interviews, the article shows (1) how the intersubjectively determined success of deterrence is dependent on historically potent symbols which have become emblematic of extended deterrence and (2) how deterrence icons can simultaneously serve as multifarious status symbols in intra-alliance politics. The self-identification of protégé states as worthy stakes to deter over emerges as an ambivalent status position defined by the shortage of attributes, rather than a function of their tally. The article contributes to the understanding of the symbolic form of (allied) deterrence and the multivocal status value ascribed to the American ‘boots on the ground’.