526 Revista del Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos Núm. 2 / 2013 processes and customs through the use of a language and vocabulary, a culture, a set of technical and legal standards etc. The framework of references includes culture, education, the system of values, beliefs, and experience. Whoever wins the war of ideas imposes his system on the defeated party – who then has to adapt to new game rules which aren’t his own and which perhaps do not suit him. By way of example, we can quote the initiative of George Soros’ Open Society Foundations which finances, with a very obvious proselytising objective, think tanks and NGOs that promote the liberal model of democracy in eastern European countries. As a conclusion, the description by Federico Aznar Fernandez-Montesinos of the role of the media in times of war as an analogy for the actions of think tanks is, we feel, particularly relevant: “It is worth pointing out that if the international community can legalise an armed intervention through the Security Council – a political and not a legal body – then it is public opinion that confers legitimacy, which is precisely the root of legality. The position that many countries on the continent took during the second Iraq war or during the Vietnam conflict is a good example on a global scale. This is why they are called upon to be important players in conflicts, by influencing the emotional consciousness of millions of people. And in fact they can even tilt victory towards one of the parties because victory is very often – particularly in limited wars which seem to have returned in the 21st century – just a question of perception. And morals are based on trust, legitimacy and justice of the own cause – elements which must be protected within our own environment and achieved in the rival one. It is essential to protect one’s own society to avoid the breakdown of hope”.45 A new paradigm: welfare vs. warfare In times of economic crisis, repercussions on the army are multiple, differing and complex: on the budget and related annual expenditure (military interventions, maintenance, infrastructure, pensions, resources, renewal of equipment), on society’s perception of humanitarian or armed interventions, on knowledge from the side of the people as regards defence, economic interests or national firms carrying out economic intelligence activities, etc. It is thus essential for the military to have a global and precise strategic vision of the role that think tanks play and of the influence that they have on policy-making and on the acceptance (or not) of defence policies. The recent political context has complicated the management of defence policies. The economic crisis that spawns major budget cuts; the new real-time media that details the agonies of war, causing a flood of pacifist movements since the 60s; as well 45 AZNAR FERNANDEZ_MONTESINOS, Federico, Conflicto y opinion publica, Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos, Opinion Paper 35/2013, 06/2013, p1-13
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