CALL FOR CHAPTERS

Africa in the Theatre of War: Rethinking Strategic Positioning and Geopolitics in Contemporary Conflicts

In an increasingly volatile global context, strategic positioning has emerged as a central element in the conduct, prevention, and interpretation of warfare. Contemporary conflicts are not only defined by direct military engagements, but also by multifaceted strategic considerations spanning political, legal, and economic spheres. These considerations include shifting alliances, evolving military doctrines, economic sanctions, cyber operations, and information warfare. Africa’s security environment is increasingly characterised by intricate conflict patterns, encompassing insurgencies, civil wars, transnational terrorism, global conflicts, and geopolitical rivalries. Strategic positioning—by nation-states, regional organisations, and external actors—plays a decisive role in shaping conflict trajectories, influencing not only military outcomes but also legal responsibility, state sovereignty, and regional stability. However, the implementation of legal frameworks governing armed conflict remains inconsistent. The interplay among international law, regional legal instruments, and domestic legal systems prompts critical inquiries into issues of alliance formation, legal compliance, enforcement mechanisms, and the pursuit of justice within African conflict settings. This call for papers seeks scholarly contributions that critically examine the intersections of strategy, warfare, and law in Africa and in the broader global context, with particular attention to African strategic positioning, global conflicts, legal norms, conflict dynamics, and political realities. Interdisciplinary submissions are welcomed, including those from political science, international relations, law, security studies, history, and development studies.

Themes and Topics

Submissions are invited from academics, researchers, policy analysts, military strategists, legal professionals, international law experts, graduate students, and early-career scholars. Relevant topics may include, but are not limited to, the following areas:

• Strategic positioning and regional security architectures – alliances, peace enforcement, and regional mechanisms
• Sovereignty, intervention, and use of force – tensions between sovereignty, military extraterritorial intervention, responsibility to protect, and legal justification for intervention.
• Geopolitics, external powers, and strategic rivalries – great power competition and shifting global alliances
• Military strategy and doctrine – evolution of warfare, including hybrid and asymmetric conflicts
• International law and armed conflict – legal frameworks governing war, including humanitarian law and accountability
• Economic warfare and sanctions – trade restrictions, resource control, and financial strategies in conflict
• Cyber warfare and information operations – digital strategies, misinformation, and technological dimensions of war
• Regional security dynamics – conflict and strategic positioning in regions such as Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe
• Case studies of contemporary conflicts – including the Russia–Ukraine War, USA-Israel-Iran war, and other ongoing or recent wars
• Non-State actors and asymmetric warfare – legal status of armed groups, militias, and transnational networks and human rights implications
• Peacebuilding, diplomacy, and conflict resolution – strategic negotiations, mediation, and post-conflict reconstruction
• Climate change, resources, and conflict – environmental stress as a driver of war and strategic competition

Submission Guidelines

• Abstracts: 250–400 words outlining the research focus, methodology, and key argument
• Full Papers/Chapters: 5,000–8,000 words (including references)
• Referencing Style: APA 7th Edition
• Submissions must be original and not under review elsewhere
• Include a brief author biography (100–150 words) with institutional affiliation

Important Dates

Abstract submission deadline: Monday, 20 April 2026

Notification of acceptance: Wednesday, 20 May 2026

Full paper submission: Monday, 21 September 2026

Submission Process

Please submit abstracts and papers to: pmasake@nust.na [or] Victor.Ojakorotu@nwu.ac.za [or] kmabuku@nust.na

Scientific Committee

Prof Pilisano Masake (NUST), Prof Victor Ojakorotu (NWU), Dr Kaumba Mabuku (NUST)