7.6: Student Resources

Key Terms/Glossary

• Balance-of-power system: where a state of equilibrium develops among powerful countries. In this system, no country is permitted to become so powerful that it can threaten the security of another major power.
• Balancing: denotes the act of forming alliances with other states as a strategic measure to counterbalance the influence or dominance of more powerful states.
• Bipolar order: where the world is organized based on two centers of power or influence.
• Collective security: an arrangement where an act of aggression against any individual state is regarded as aggression against all other states. In response, these states collaborate to collectively thwart and repel the aggressor.
• Defensive realism: where states seek to maximize power to ensure their own security and contend that wars with other states are unlikely to be beneficial.
• Defensive strategy: where states implement a program of containment, which is designed to limit or hinder an opponent's ability to exercise power.
• Global insecurity: occurs when the security of any individual nation threatens the security of all nations.
• Global security: type of security grounded in the principle that the security of any individual nation is inseparable from the security of all nations.
• Human security: type of security that centers on the physical safety of an individual regardless of where they live.
• International security: refers to the actions taken by nations to secure the well-being and defense of their citizens, boundaries, and strategic concerns through cooperation amongst states.
• Levels of analysis approach: an analytical framework positing that occurrences in international relations can be elucidated by examining individuals, states, or the global system, and that causative factors at each level can be distinguished from those at other levels.
• Liberal internationalism: an International Relations theory that focuses on cooperation
• Multipolar order: a world with multiple centers of power or influence.
• National security: type of security defined as a state's capacity to safeguard its interests, confidential information, and populace against both external and internal perils that have the potential to jeopardize its existence.
• Neoliberal institutionalism: a branch of liberalism that stresses the importance of international institutions and international law in shaping behavior as a better way to ensure the survival of the state.
• Offensive realism: also known as aggressive realism, where states seek to maximize power to achieve dominance. This is often accomplished by increasing their offensive capabilities.
• Offensive strategy: where states considered it better to fight terrorists abroad rather than at home.
• Realism: an International Relations theory that  focuses on competition between actors.
• Security: the condition of being exempt from peril or threat.
• Security dilemma: occurs when a state is driven by its security and seeks to acquire more power than its enemies. This leads to insecurity in other countries, which prompts these countries to acquire more power, which in turn drives the original country to seek more power. This spiral can continue unabated.
• Unipolar order: the post-Cold War geopolitical scenario in which the United States emerged as the world's only superpower.

Summaries

7.1: Introduction to Global Security

Security is defined as the condition of being exempt from peril or threat. Generally speaking, when one hears about security, it can be understood at several different levels. This is referred to as the levels of analysis approach, an analytical framework positing that occurrences in international relations can be elucidated by examining individuals, states, or the global system, and that causative factors at each level can be distinguished from those at other levels. The first level is at the individual or personal level. This is often referred to as human security, and it centers on the physical safety of an individual regardless of where they live. The second level and the more traditional approach to security is national security. National security is defined as a state's capacity to safeguard its interests, confidential information, and populace against both external and internal perils that have the potential to jeopardize its existence. The third and final level is the global level. Global security is grounded in the principle that the security of any individual nation is inseparable from the security of all nations.

7.2: Background - The History of Global Security

Global security has its roots in the two World Wars. The League of Nations and the United Nations were both created to help create global systems that promoted collective approaches to security, rather than state-centered approaches. However, both institutions struggled to accomplish the establishment of security at the global level. While the UN has been more successful than the League regarding addressing security related global issues, it has also struggled to achieve this objective. For the first 50 years, the UN was hampered by the superpower rivalry between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. The demise of the Soviet Union led to the end of the Cold War and ostensibly the end of the stalemate in the UN and efforts to promote global security. The U.S was left as the world’s remaining superpower and it largely supported multilateral efforts. The UN has again become paralyzed, this time with great power conflict occurring between the U.S., Europe, and its allies on one side, and Russia, China, and its growing list of aligned countries.

7.3: Theories and Approaches to Global Security

Global security can be researched through International Relations (IR) theory. In IR, there are two traditional theories that help in contextualizing global security: realism and liberal internationalism. Realism and liberal internationalism are often considered oppositional, as realists focus on competition between actors, whereas liberal internationalism focuses on cooperation. However, both theories share some assumptions that make them comparable. Alternatively, there have developed several newer approaches, most notably social constructivism, which focuses on the relational aspects of identities to understand how one state views another state. Tere are also critical theories, which places primacy on the role of economics in explaining global phenomena, and are rooted in the writings of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, and other early political economists, as well as feminism.

7.4: At Home and Abroad - The War in Ukraine and Why it Matters for Everyone

This section explains how the war in Ukraine has increased global security. The 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia has has several global impacts, including potential security threats to Europe, the exacerbation of hunger to the blockades of Ukrainian grain exports, the displacement of over 11 million Ukrainians from their homes, attention to the vulnerabilities inherent in just-in-time supply chains, and dramatic increases in the price of hydrocarbons, such as oil and gas. In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine with a direct attack on Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. This attack failed and Russia proceeded with an invasion of the country on all three sides, conquering about 25 percent of the country. Ukrainian forces produced a counter-offensive the following Autumn, recapturing thousands of square kilometers. Ukrainian forces have struggled to recreate their impressive gains in 2023. Russian forces have been able to fortify their territorial gains, greatly frustrating Ukrainian efforts. 

Suggestions for Further Study

Websites

• Council of Foreign Relations, The U.S. War in Afghanistan (A in-depth timeline of the War in Afghanistan, 1999-2021)
• Council on Foreign Relations, War in Ukraine, Global Conflict Tracker (Up to date news on the War in Ukraine)
• RAND Corporation, Global Security (Explore a series of Global Security issues)
• United Nations Development Programme, Human Security: A Stronger Framework for a More Secure Future (More detailed resource on understanding human security)

Books

• Browning, C.S. (2013). International Security: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press
• D'Anieri, P. (2023). Ukraine and Russia: From Civilized Divorce to Uncivil War. Princeton University Press
• Matthews, E.G. & Callaway, R.L. (2017). International Relations Theory: A Primer. Oxford University Press.

Journal Articles

• Aitken, C., & Ersoy, E. (2023). War in Ukraine: The Options for Europe’s Energy Supply. World Economy, 46(4), 887–896.
• Howard-Hassmann, R. E. (2012). Human Security: Undermining Human Rights? Human Rights Quarterly, 34(1), 88–112.
• Jervis, R. (1999). Realism, Neoliberalism, and Cooperation: Understanding the Debate. International Security, 24(1), 42–63.

Review Questions

1. What are the three different levels of analysis when it comes to security?
   1. Human, national, and global.
   2. National, international, and global.
   3. Human, national, and international.
   4. Individual, human, and national.
   5. None of these answers are correct.
2. In this decade, global security is moving towards 
   1. a bipolar order.
   2. a unipolar order.
   3. a multipolar order.
   4. hegemonic stability.
   5. collective security
3. As an international relations theory, realism is focused on
   1. security.
   2. maximization of power.
   3. both of these answers are correct.
   4. neither of these answers are correct.
4. Social constructivism focuses on
   1. the maximization of power.
   2. cooperation among international institutions.
   3. the relational aspects of identities of states.
   4. social divisions, such as gender.
5. How has the war in Ukraine contributed to global insecurity?
   1. Potential security threats to Europe.
   2. Displacement of over 10 million people from their homes.
   3. Vulnerabilities inherent in just-in-time supply chains.
   4. Dramatic surge in oil and gas prices.
   5. All of these answers are correct.

Critical Thinking Questions

1. What are the seven elements of human security in the definition provided by the UN Development Programme? How could they help policymakers in developing security policy?
2. Russia and China seek a multipolar order, or a world with multiple centers of power or influence. Is this achievable?
3. Of the two major IR theories presented in this chapter, realism and liberalism, which one do you think best describes global security approaches today?