This book explores the profound reorientation of the Czechoslovak military during a time of sweeping political change. Emerging from decades of totalitarian control and Soviet dominance, in the late 1980s and early 1990s Czechoslovakia turned instead toward the West – a shift that reshaped not only its foreign policy but also the internal structures and mindset of its armed forces. Combining analysis of institutional developments, operational deployments, and personal narratives, this monograph offers a multifaceted account of military transformation. It provides theoretical insights into ideology, revolution, and nationalism, while also offering historical context for readers unfamiliar with the era. Accordingly, the book is an invaluable resource for historians, political scientists, military scholars, and anyone seeking to understand the causes and consequences of NATO’s enlargement and the security realignment of Central Europe.

Dr. Petr Janoušek is a historian and researcher at the Military History Institute Prague (Czech Republic). He studies contemporary military history, especially Czechoslovak/Czech foreign operations and missions, the enlargement of NATO into Central Europe, and the transformation processes in the military after the fall of Communism. His long-term focus has been on international relations in the 20th century.