Security as a Political Concept

International Studies Review, 2003

Jadavpur Journal of International Relations, 2017

Generally speaking, the traditional approach of security mainly regards states as a sole referent object of security and refutes any attempt to broaden the concept of security. This understanding is known as a realist approach. This approach, however, has been recently challenged by the Copenhagen School, the Welsh School, and the human security approach. The Copenhagen School assumes that there is now a duality of security: state security and societal security. However, both the Welsh School and the human security school look at individuals as a sole referent object of security. This article critically reviews the traditional approaches of security, the Copenhagen School, the Welsh School, and the human security approach. This article finally argues that the Copenhagen School could successfully broaden the concept of security, and therefore, it is more convincing when compared to other schools.

Imperial Springs International Forum, 2020

As the purpose of a polity (and the government comprising it) is to secure the well-being of its citizens and those residing within its territory, one should not ring-fence elements of security inappropriately. National security is meaningless in the absence of human security within the state. Regional, or indeed, global security cannot be achieved in a space fractured by fear and mistrust. Just as periods of relative peace in history have been characterised by agreement on the norms constituting the legitimate order, and a balance of power that enabled accommodation of the vital interests of each state, so a peaceful and prosperous national society depends on the satisfaction of the vital interests of its citizens. We need to reintegrate the dimensions of security, recognising that the purpose of all security interventions is the reduction of threat and vulnerability. And, as crisis brings opportunity, we must seize this moment to reassess and recalibrate our responses, recognising that security is indivisible.

Security can be defined as the process of support of a satisfactory control by the subject over harmful effects of the environment. In this aspect it is a political and social value of the same type as justice, democracy and freedom. Following the analysis of the existing conflicts in the world today, we conclude that the notion of security in its neoliberal interpretation has collapsed and it could be rejected and defended successfully only as a communitarian value. In: Dialogue and Universalism N2, Journal of the International Society for Universal Dialogue, Warsaw, Polish Academy of Sciences, 2017, pp.141-150.

2012

Legal Studies, 2003

The pursuit of security as a matter of domestic policy stands high on the political agenda of many Western nations and is a booming area of private investment. This repays close attention to what is meant when the concept of security is invoked as a justification of public policy or private practice. This paper examines the various meanings and differing constructions of security as a negative or positive presence, as a material or symbolic good, as a public good or private service, and as a response to external or internal threats. It observes how the language of security is differentiated also according to local legal cultures and calls for comparative analysis of the meaning and usage of the term in different jurisdictions. It suggests some possible differences in the structural arrangements for the pursuit of security that arise from differing relationships among the state, private sector and civil society. And it concludes by mapping out some apparent variants on the public-pri...

This contribution takes up the security-democracy nexus from a conceptual point of view. Against the background of the complex relationship between security and democracy, the analytical difficulties of its two separate building blocks -- that is, security and democracy -- are assessed. While putting forward a number of theoretical propositions regarding the study of these concepts, in the context of the European Union and beyond, the discussion ends by pushing further the avenues for future research on security and democracy in the European Union.

Essays in Security in the New Millennium, 2001

The seminal book is divided into two major parts, with various themes under each of them. However, the book will be subdivided into 15 topics. Part A Concepts and Context of World Politics Part B Substantive Issues in the Politics of States