Colloquium – Jason Dittmer

Jason Dittmer, University College London, Department of Geography

Title: NATO interoperability and geopolitical assemblages

Abstract: NATO has had, since its origins, a policy of attempting to produce interoperability among its national militaries. In this paper I examine the concept of interoperability through the lens of assemblage theory, and look to the diplomatic sites and processes through which it is negotiated. I then examine the two fields in which interoperability can be seen to emerge: procedures and war materiel. These differing materialities (of bodies, and of weapon systems) are key to how interoperability has emerged over time in ways that shape both political subjectivities and the form of international relations over time.