What
is Security?
The
Security Dilemma
Resort
to Armed Force
Causes
of War
International
Characteristics of Search for Security through Military Means
Towards
a Re-definition of Security?
What
is Security?
A classic attempt to define the
term provides some insight into its elusive nature. Arnold Wolfers argued that
“security in any objective sense, measures the absence of threats to acquired
values and in a subjective sense, the absence of fear that such values will be
attacked.”
The Security Dilemma
A central tenet of realism and the
realist paradigm, the security dilemma arises from a situation of perceived
international anarchy that states find themselves in. By striving to increase
their own security, by following policies that enhance their military capabilities,
sovereign states inadvertently make others feel less secure. As a result of
this behaviour, states find themselves caught in a vicious spiral of security
and insecurity to which there appears to be no lasting solution.
The Resort to Armed Force
During the Cold War, the world was
spared from conflict on a global scale.
But there was no shortage of local or small wars. Between 1945 and 1990, 140 wars took 25
million lives. Most of these conflicts
occurred in the Third World. While the incidence of inter-state conflicts has
declined with the end of the Cold War, intra-state hostilities have sharply
increased. In the 12 year period between 1989 and 2001, there were 57 different
major armed conflicts in 45 locations. All but 3 of these conflicts occurred
within states.
Possible General Causes of War
International Characteristics of Security through Military means
Towards a Re-definition of Security?
Has the end of the Cold War
fundamentally changed the nature of security? Observers are divided on this
point. Michael Renner says there is an
urgent need for a new more comprehensive approach towards security which
addresses issues such as environmental decline, demilitarisation and poverty. But
Michael Quinlan disagrees. He says the
notion of common security depends on the convergence of political norms and
values. At present, that remains
unrealistic.