Abstract
"Since 1720, all the Nordic countries have remained minor powers on the international stage. As such, the Nordic states have had to adapt to the constraints that are usually beyond their control." This statement could summarize the geopolitical situation which has shaped the security policies of the Nordic countries for the last two centuries. However, it is too general, as it considers the Nordic states as one single entity, without drawing attention to the diversity of the region. Indeed, the Nordic countries, which comprise Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland , neither have the same historical background nor the same geo-strategic situation. In fact, they can be classified into two categories: the former empires, Sweden and Denmark, and the former colonies, Finland, Norway and Iceland . Moreover, for centuries, the Nordic region was far from being the peaceful region that it is now: between 1563 and 1720. Denmark and Sweden struggled for regional hegemony and were involved in not less than seven wars. Actually, the 1814 Norwegian-Swedish war, which resulted in a Swedish victory, was the last war that took place between two Nordic countries, even though at the Norwegian independence in 1905, the use of military force was seriously considered (Nyhamar 2004: 228). However, even in the absence of any inter-Nordic war, the Nordic region, as the rest of Europe, was known, throughout the 20th century, wars and military threats, which only disappeared with the end of the Cold War in 1989. Indeed, since the beginning of the 1990s, war and even the potentiality of war seem to have left Western Europe for good, giving the "small" Nordic states an opportunity to shape their security policies not only according to constraints but also according to choice. Consequently, it seems legitimate to wonder whether the tendency of the security arrangements of the Nordic states has been existant since 1991 towards greater similarities or differences.
First, we will present the background information for the present security arrangements in the Nordic countries, by outlining the security policies they adopted until the end of the Cold War. Then we will assess the differences and similarities of their post-Cold War choices.
