International Security: A Very Short Introduction

International security is never out of the headlines. War and peace, military strategy, the proliferation of nuclear weapons and revisionist states remain central to the discussion, but concerns such as climate change, migration, poverty, health, and international terrorism have complicated the field. So what really matters: the traditional prioritization of state security or the security needs of individuals, humanity, and the biosphere?

Using a broad range of international examples, Christopher Browning outlines the nature of the key debates about contemporary international security challenges, and discusses the inherent difficulties that exist in tackling them. He also asks to what extent such debates are infused with questions of power, politics, justice, morality, and responsibility.

About the Series:
Oxford's Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects--from Islam to Sociology, Politics to Classics, Literary Theory to History, and Archaeology to the Bible. Not simply a textbook of definitions, each volume in this series provides trenchant and provocative--yet always balanced and complete--discussions of the central issues in a given discipline or field. Every Very Short Introduction gives a readable evolution of the subject in question, demonstrating how the subject has developed and how it has influenced society. Eventually, the series will encompass every major academic discipline, offering all students an accessible and abundant reference library. Whatever the area of study that one deems important or appealing, whatever the topic that fascinates the general reader, the Very Short Introductions series has a handy and affordable guide that will likely prove indispensable.

Christopher S. Browning, Associate Professor of International Security, University of Warwick

Christopher S. Browning is Associate Professor of International Security at the University of Warwick. He has published widely on his core research interests of identity politics, critical approaches to security and critical geopolitics and has a particular interest in the politics of civilisations, the performance of nationhood and the constitution of security communities in the Nordic region, Europe and the West. His most recent books include: Constructivism, Narrative and Foreign Policy Analysis: A Case Study of Finland (2008) and The Struggle for the West: A Divided and Contested Legacy (2010).