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Articles

Bouris,D., Kenny, S., & Mühlenhoff, H. L. (2025). Queering European Union Foreign and Security Policy: Invisibility, Heteronormativity and Binaries in the EU’s Approach to Women, Peace and Security. JCMS: Journal of Common MarketStudies, Early View. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcms.13750

Drawing on critical scholarship, this article applies a queer lens to the EU’s engagement with the WPS agenda. It finds that the Common Foreign and SecurityPolicy understanding of WPS is characterised by queer invisibility, heteronormativity, and binaries, failing to acknowledge and incorporate diverse gender and sexual identities. The authors seek to create synergies between queer and feminist IR scholarship with the aim of fostering greater inclusiveness in the EU’s foreign policy.

Drumhiller,N. K. (2025). Women in intelligence: a limited systematic review. Intelligence & National Security, Latest Articles, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2025.2506278

This article focuses on the contributions and experiences of women in intelligence. Having conducted a review of extant works spanning multiple disciplines, the author finds that existing literature on this topic deals primarily with the First and Second World Wars and that the scholarship is heavily Anglosphere-centric. In her review, Drumhiller zooms in on various subtopics such as female intelligence networks, punishment for spying, media portrayal, or workplace inequalities. By identifying blind spots in the literature, the paper concludes by suggesting promising avenues for future research.

Maraqa,T. (2025). Gendered Orientalism and the politics of protection: rethinking the Women, Peace and Security agenda in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 27(2), 454–477. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616742.2025.2477533

Situated within feminist and postcolonial literature, this paper investigates the interplay between Palestinian and donor countries’ protection discourses within the WPS agenda. Its examination of donors’ engagement with Palestine shows that their discourse is characterised by gendered orientalism, particularly with regard to gender-based violence. While NAPs of countries such as Sweden or Ireland aim to benefit Palestinian women, the author posits that they ultimately reinforce problematic stereotypes and overlook violence perpetrated by Israel, thus disconnecting them from the recipient’s objectives.

Roberts,A. J., & Nowacki, J. S. (2025). Structural Gender Inequality & Women inPolicing. Justice Quarterly, Latest Articles, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/07418825.2025.2529347

Studying American police agencies between 2013 and 2020, the authors demonstrate that structural gender inequality on the county level is negatively associated with the share of female police officers. The paper argues that the barriers posed by gender inequality are troubling, especially considering the positive effects of greater gender diversity, including improved police-community relations. Based on these findings, the authors recommend targeted recruitment strategies and adoption of more inclusive policies.

Rosman,E., & Rickover, I. (2025). When Professionalism Is Not Enough: On Public Discourse Regarding Women’s Combat Service in Israel—the Case of Iron Swords (2023–2025). Armed Forces & Society, OnlineFirst. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327x251349185

While female soldiers have proved themselves to be as capable as men in the conflict following October 7, the Israeli discourse towards women in combat positions has not changed significantly, with segments of the public remaining opposed. Drawing on examples from WWII and the Israeli War of Independence, the authors therefore argue that it is societal and political factors, rather than functional arguments regarding women’s performance that determine the pace of women’s integration into the armed forces. It concludes with an outlook on how women’s position might evolve after the end of the war, emphasising that records of women’s successful performance are unlikely, on their own, to accelerate their integration into combat roles.

Sahin,B., & Sengul, I. (2025). Mobilizing the women, peace and security agenda for refugee women’s participation: Committees and cooperatives in Turkey. Women’s Studies International Forum, 109(March–April 2025), 103052. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2025.103052

This article explores the potential of applying the WPS agenda to refugee women’s political participation in Turkey, highlighting how this segment of the population has been overlooked.Specifically, the paper examines refugee women’s committees and cooperatives as useful tools, where the former provides platforms for discussion, while the latter is instrumental in supporting women’s socio-economic emancipation. The authors conclude that, despite its limitations, the WPS agenda plays an important role in affirming the agency of women suffering from conflict. This demographic group should thus be involved in the development and drafting of WPS NAPs.

Tornius,K., & Kolling, M. (2025). Parallel Worlds: The Theory and Practice of “Ownership” in Women, Peace and Security. Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding, Latest Articles, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/17502977.2025.2481682

Examining NAP creation processes in East Africa, this article interrogates the extent to which these documents foster local ownership of the WPS agenda. The authors find that the NAP drafting and implementation processes are characterised by top-down localisation efforts, whereby actors in the capitals strategically decide on who will be involved in the preparation of the document. This leads the authors to emphasise the importance of the participation of a broad spectrum of local actors so as to ensure ownership by local communities. Based on this, the authors suggest differentiating conceptually between localisation and local ownership, with the latter being the objective.

Zalietok,N. (2025). “Beauty is your duty?” The issue of appearance in Ukrainian media discourse about servicewomen. Women’s Studies International Forum, 112(September–October2025), 103128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2025.103128

This paper discusses the role of physical appearance in the discourse about Ukrainian women’s participation in the conflict with Russia. Examining women’s media representation since 2016, Zalietok points out the sexist and paternalistic portrayal of female soldiers, whereby unduly attention was paid to their appearance. This treatment is argued to be representative of women’s broader role within the Ukrainian armed forces. The author also finds that, while a shift occurred following the full-scale invasion, with the discourse gradually moving away from the emphasis on the beauty of servicewomen, the representation of female soldiers is not unproblematic.

Books

Björkdahl,A., & Mannergren, J. (2025). The Production of Gendered Knowledge of War. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003530411

This volume explores the gendered ways in which knowledge about war is produced, narrated, and often marginalised. Drawing on various case studies, it highlights women’s epistemic agency and the gendered dynamics of knowledge production. By engaging critically with the WPS agenda, the book offers new theoretical perspectives on the relationship between epistemic power, violence, and gender in war.

Goetze,C., & Rathore, K. S. (2025). The Contemporary Reader of Feminist International Relations. Routledge.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of feminist approaches to international relations.  The volume opens with discussions of feministIR with preeminent scholars of the field such as Enloe or Tickner, proceeding to explore various topics ranging from feminist theorising of security, the connection between gender and world order, to politics of care.  Two chapters are also dedicated to discussing the WPS agenda.

Joachim,J., Annica Kronsell, & Dalmer, N. (2025). Handbook on Gender and Security. Edward Elgar Publishing.

The editors of this volume have compiled a comprehensive collection of texts dealing with the varied links between gender and (in)security. The book explores how gender intersects with various security-related phenomena such as war, climate change, crime, as well as post-conflict settings, offering a multidisciplinary perspective throughout. Several chapters also address “new” topics such as the rise of anti-gender movements or feminist foreign policy.

Reports

Carlsson, K., & Schöb, M. (2025). More Than a Mandate? Making Gender Training in Security Institutions Matter.DCAF – Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance. https://www.dcaf.ch/more-mandate-making-gender-training-security-institutions-matter

This DCAF paper reviews extant literature on gender training within security sector institutions, a key vehicle for the implementation of the WPS agenda. The authors detail the reasons for conducting gender training, good practices as well as blind spots. The report concludes with actionable recommendations to improve the effectiveness of gender training within relevant institutions.

Johnson, M. (2025). Analysis of Women, Peace and Security References in Country-Specific Briefings by Senior UNOfficials (1 January – 31 December 2024). NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security. https://www.womenpeacesecurity.org/wps-senior-official-briefings-2024/

This report offers a comprehensive analysis of all briefings from 2024 delivered by senior UN officials in terms of their engagement with the UNSCR 1325. The author finds that, while almost 75% of all briefings included at least one reference to the WPS agenda, most of them failed to meet at least some of the WPS expectations, emphasising an inadequate emphasis even on the part of the UN.

Skoog, E., Bosheim, S., & Tryggestad, T. L.(2025). Experiences of war and women’s changing roles in Ukraine: GPS Policy Brief 2. PRIO. https://www.prio.org/publications/14480

This PRIO report presents the findings of an original survey conducted in Ukraine in early 2025, which gauges the attitudes of Ukrainians towards the role of women in the armed forces and politics, but also regarding care responsibilities. This study specifically details women’s participation in national defence in the context of the changing gender roles inUkrainian society. The authors find that, amid conflict, Ukrainians are more accepting of women in the military but that, in a hypothetical post-conflict scenario, these views would roll back somewhat.