Global Security Assignment PDF

Running head: GLOBAL SECURITY
GLOBAL SECURITY
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GLOBAL SECURITY 1
Essay question: Which theoretical approach to the study of global security best explains
the contemporary security challenges faced by states and non-state actors?
Introduction:
Global security is the diplomatic and military measures that the global organisations
like United Nations and NATO undertake in order to ensure a global security and mutual
safety. Security is a value laden concept that often creates a disagreement in theory and in
practice and it suggests more than just physical security like securing from physical attack.
Global and international security often refers to the security of individual citizens and the
communities from the various threats and attacks. In the view point of Lundestad and
Jakobsen, (2013), both realists and the liberals are found to focus on the global security and
their major aim remains to address the international threats by the action of the military
forces. However, the states always have to maintain a diplomatic situation to maintain a level
of peace and harmony. Global security attempts to address both interstate and national
security challenges and protects individuals as well as communities in war and peace. The
essay attempts at understanding the concept of global security and its role in the
contemporary situation. The theoretical approach of the global security that explains the
security challenges faced by the states shall be taken into account in understanding the
various reasons of wars and the role of the organisations responsible for the global security.
The role and challenges faced by the state and non-state actors shall be discussed throughout
the essay.
Theoretical approach towards global security:
The theoretical approach towards the global security helps to understand the
complexities of the security and insecurity and the value dilemma that actually helps in
solving the issues of the security. Rationalism, the positivism approach explains that the

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social and the political phenomenon can be explained by the means of explaining the natural
world and it does not depend on the empirical validation and falsification (Noortmann,
Reinisch & Ryngaert, 2015). Thus, it is the common belief of the actors and non-actors that
the reason of war and conflict depends on the demands of the instrumental reason rather than
any other predetermined causes. If the theoretical concepts of global security are taken into
consideration, it can be said that the security issues between USA and USSR during the Cold
War is a dominant realism approach; it was in response to the liberal idealism. In contrary to
this concept, Carr believed that the reason behind the World War I was a reason of the
utopian thinking that actually leads to the World War II (Lundestad, & Jakobsen, 2013). It is
a common observation that the realists and the liberals disagree over the mix of law,
diplomacy and enforcement to be used as way of dealing with certain threats. Realists on the
other hand argue that the law and the institutions are the one who are capable of dealing with
the threats and undue violence against a particular state or country.
Political realism is considered as the oldest international theory that deals with
international politics and global security. According to the theories of realism, it provides
self-help and primary motivation because a state can help them and that no other state or
international system can actually help another country (Fukuyama, 2017). However, there
always remain an innate desire for power and political stability and so the issue of the
security system persist. Also, realism set the strategies for the countries to remain more
powerful by maximising the power by making international alliance (Noortmann, Reinisch &
Ryngaert, 2015). For example, the North Korea’s war with nuclear weapon that resulted in
mass destruction is a valid example for the realism approach undertaken by a nation for
increasing their power in the international forum. It was found that in the late 1990s North
Korea delegates its relationship with the other nations including China, Russia, Japan to
provide them nuclear facility in return of fuel aid and normalisation (Fukuyama, 2017). Other