International Security Studies：Theory and Practice

Fully revised to incorporate recent developments, this third edition of International Security Studies provides students with a comprehensive and accessible textbook on security with a particular emphasis on the use of case studies to illustrate theoretical debates. In addition to presenting the major theoretical perspectives, the book examines a range of important and controversial topics in covering both traditional military and non-military security issues such as nuclear proliferation, humanitarian intervention, food security and environmental security. Unlike most standard textbooks, the volume also offers a wide range of case studies – including chapters on the US, China, the Middle East, Russia, East Africa and the Arctic – providing detailed analyses of important global security issues and the application of theoretical debates to major contemporary issues.

This textbook will be essential reading for all students of Security Studies and highly recommended for students of critical security studies, human security, peace and conflict studies, foreign policy and International Relations in general. Key concepts of International Relations and Globalization are defined and explained. Hence this textbook introduces students to the full range of security issues in a clear, concise accessible format.

The thirty-six chapters contain pedagogical features such as textboxes, summary

points and recommended further reading, and are divided into five thematic sections:

– Conceptual and Theoretical

– Military Security

– Non-Military Security

– Institutions and Security

– Case Studies

Specific updates for the third edition include the following:

· Recent developments - particularly the Ukraine War and covid-19 pandemic - are reflected upon in the opening chapter.

· The concern that the first section is partisan or overly-critical is addressed in the new versions of these chapters. A change in authorship of this section allied to the need to reflect on the recent revival of state-to-state wars has prompted a reappraisal of the relevance of traditional concepts such as the balance of power, deterrence and collective defence.

· The Africa chapter has been replaced with a more focussed chapter on the Horn of Africa with a new guest author.

· A new Middle East and Security chapter has been formed from merging and updating the two previous chapters on The Arab Spring and Israel-Palestine dispute.

· The covid-19 pandemic features prominently in a radically reformulated health chapter.

· The full Russian invasion of Ukraine features prominently in a new version of the Russia / Black Sea case study chapter.

· A broader Latin America case study chapter with a new author.

· More focus on energy security and water security is incorporated in the chapter on Environmental Security.

· More coverage of hybrid warfare and developments in Artificial Intelligence are incorporated in the chapter on Cybersecurity.