The Journal of Strategic and Military Studies (JSMS) is committed to maintaining high standards of academic excellence, scientific integrity, editorial independence, and ethical scholarly publishing. All research manuscripts submitted to the journal are subject to a rigorous and impartial peer-review process designed to assess their originality, scientific relevance, methodological rigor, and contribution to the advancement of knowledge.
The journal adopts a double-blind peer-review system, in which the identities of authors and reviewers are concealed from one another throughout the evaluation process. This system aims to ensure objectivity, fairness, confidentiality, and transparency in editorial decision-making.
Upon submission, each manuscript undergoes a preliminary assessment by the editorial team to determine whether it meets the journal's academic and editorial requirements.
This initial screening considers:
Relevance to the journal's aims and scope;
Originality and scientific contribution;
Clarity and coherence of the research objectives and arguments;
Compliance with the journal's submission and formatting guidelines;
Adherence to academic integrity and publication ethics;
Quality of academic writing, citations, and references.
The editorial team may use plagiarism-detection and similarity-checking software to identify potential textual overlap with previously published material.
Manuscripts that fall outside the journal's scope, lack sufficient scientific quality, or fail to meet the journal's ethical or submission requirements may be rejected at this stage without external peer review.
Manuscripts that successfully pass the initial editorial assessment are submitted to two qualified and independent reviewers with recognized expertise in the relevant scientific discipline.
The journal follows a double-blind review procedure, ensuring that the identities of authors and reviewers remain confidential throughout the evaluation process.
Reviewers are selected by the editorial team according to their academic qualifications, subject expertise, independence, and ability to provide objective and constructive assessments.
To safeguard the independence of the process, the journal does not accept reviewer nominations proposed by authors. Reviewers with institutional, professional, financial, or personal conflicts of interest must not participate in the evaluation of the manuscript.
Reviewers are required to assess manuscripts according to the following criteria:
Originality, significance, and contribution to scientific knowledge;
Relevance to the aims and scope of JSMS;
Strength and coherence of the theoretical and conceptual framework;
Engagement with relevant scientific literature;
Appropriateness, validity, and rigor of the research methodology;
Quality of data analysis, interpretation, and discussion;
Logical consistency of arguments and conclusions;
Clarity, structure, and quality of academic writing;
Accuracy, relevance, and completeness of references;
Compliance with research ethics and publication standards.
Reviewers must provide objective, evidence-based, constructive, and confidential reports within the deadlines established by the editorial team.
Following the completion of peer review, the editorial team examines the reviewers' reports and evaluates the manuscript in light of the journal's academic standards.
The editorial decision may take one of the following forms:
Accept: The manuscript meets the journal's scientific and editorial requirements and is accepted for publication without substantive modifications.
Minor Revisions: The manuscript requires limited corrections or clarifications before final acceptance.
Major Revisions: The manuscript requires substantial improvements to its theoretical framework, methodology, analysis, discussion, or presentation before a final publication decision can be reached.
Reject: The manuscript does not meet the journal's scientific, methodological, ethical, or editorial standards and is not suitable for publication.
The final publication decision rests with the Editor-in-Chief or the designated handling editor, in accordance with the journal's editorial procedures.
Reviewers provide scientific recommendations, but their opinions do not automatically determine the final editorial decision.
When revisions are requested, authors must carefully address the comments and recommendations provided by the reviewers and editorial team.
Authors are expected to submit:
A revised version of the manuscript incorporating the requested changes;
A detailed, point-by-point response to the reviewers' observations;
Clear explanations of any recommendations that have not been implemented.
Authors must submit their revised manuscripts within the deadline communicated by the editorial office, in accordance with the journal's publication guidelines.
Depending on the extent and nature of the revisions, the manuscript may be reassessed by the original reviewers or evaluated directly by the handling editor.
A request for revisions does not constitute a guarantee of final acceptance.
All manuscripts submitted to JSMS are treated as confidential scientific documents.
Editors, reviewers, and other individuals involved in the editorial process must respect the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and must not disclose, reproduce, distribute, or use unpublished research materials for personal or professional advantage.
Reviewers must:
Declare any actual or potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment;
Decline assignments where impartiality or independence may be compromised;
Evaluate manuscripts fairly, objectively, and without discrimination;
Respect the intellectual property rights of authors;
Report suspected plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, duplicate publication, or other forms of research misconduct;
Maintain the confidentiality of authors' identities, manuscript content, and editorial communications.
Any suspected violation of publication ethics is examined in accordance with the journal's ethical policies and applicable standards of scholarly publishing.
JSMS seeks to conduct the peer-review process efficiently while preserving scientific rigor, impartiality, and the independence of reviewers.
The duration of evaluation may vary according to the availability of qualified reviewers, the complexity and disciplinary specialization of the manuscript, and the extent of revisions required.
Authors are informed of editorial decisions and revision requirements through the journal's official communication channels.
The journal endeavors to ensure timely communication and to minimize unnecessary delays throughout the evaluation and publication process.
All editorial decisions are based exclusively on the scholarly merit, originality, methodological quality, relevance, and ethical compliance of submitted manuscripts.
The journal is committed to ensuring fair and impartial evaluation, regardless of authors' nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, ethnic or cultural background, religious beliefs, political opinions, or other personal characteristics unrelated to scientific quality.
The editorial team and scientific committee are responsible for protecting the integrity, confidentiality, and independence of the peer-review process.
Through this rigorous evaluation system, the Journal of Strategic and Military Studies seeks to promote high-quality academic research, strengthen international scholarly dialogue, and advance scientific knowledge in strategic and military studies, security and defense, geopolitics, international relations, development planning, territorial governance, public policy, and related disciplines.
We inform researchers that the deadline for submitting manuscripts for Issue 33, Volume 9, is December 10, 2026.
We remind you that you can submit your manuscripts on the journal's website after registering. You can also send your manuscripts directly to the journal's email address:
strategy@democraticac.de
