Strategic Survey 2008 - Now launched!

The Adelphi Papers monograph series is the Institute's flagship contribution to policy-relevant, original academic research.

Eight Adelphi Papers are published each year. They are designed to provide rigorous analysis of strategic and defence topics that will prove useful to politicians and diplomats, as well as academic researchers, foreign-affairs analysts, defence commentators and journalists.

From the very first paper, Alastair Buchan's 'Evolution of NATO' (1961) , through Kenneth Waltz's classic ' The Spread of Nuclear Weapons: More May Be Better' (1981), to influential additions to the series such as Mats Berdal's 'Disarmament and Demobilisation after Civil Wars' (1996) and Lawrence Freedman's ' The Revolution in Strategic Affairs' (1998), Adelphi Papers have provided detailed, nuanced analysis of key security issues, serving to inform opinion, stimulate debate and challenge conventional thinking. The series includes both thematic studies and papers on specific national and regional security problems. Since 2003, Adelphi Paper topics have included 'Strategic Implications of HIV/AIDS', 'Protecting Critical Infrastructures Against Cyber-Attack', 'The Future of Africa: A New Order in Sight', 'Human Rights and Counter-terrorism in America's Asia Policy', 'Somalia: State Collapse and the Threat of Terrorism', 'Counter-terrorism: Containment and Beyond', 'Japan's Re-emergence as a "Normal" Military Power', and 'Weapons of Mass Destruction and International Order'.

Longer than journal articles but shorter than books, Adelphi Papers permit the IISS both to remain responsive to emerging strategic issues and to contribute significantly to debate on strategic affairs and the development of policy. While the format of Adelphi Papers has evolved over the years, through their authoritative substance and persuasive arguments recent issues have maintained the tradition of the series.

Recent Papers

Abolishing Nuclear Weapons
George Perkovich and James M. Action

Ending Terrorism: Lessons for Defeating al-Qaeda
Audrey Kurth Cronin

Iran under Ahmadinejad: The Politics of Confrontation
Ali Ansari 

The Search for Security in Post-Taliban Afghanistan
Cyrus Hodes and Mark Sedra