Non-Aligned State Decisions to Grant Access During War

Access decisions play a crucial role in war, with belligerent states employing various methods to gain access into neutral states. Yet, the decision-making process of potential host nations has largely been unexplored for modern, large-scale conflicts. This gap is addressed by exploring three themes — political survival, economic consequences, and the risk of retaliation through two historical cases, Greece in World War I and Sweden in World War II. Internal division in Greece enabled access through inaction, while Sweden denied access to maintain neutrality. These cases emphasize the importance of understanding historical access decisions to inform future engagement strategies in potential conflicts. Read Full Article »