Globalization and National Security

In this book, top scholars of international relations assess the consequences of globalization for national security, identifying three distinct ‘processes’ of globalization - the intensification of economic exchange, the flow of information, and marketization (the expansion of the set of social relations governed by market forces)-exploring how they can affect the capacity and power of states as well as conflict within and among them.

Though much has been written on the topics of globalization and national security, there has been relatively little in the way of a systematic examination of the impact that globalization has on a state's national security. These essays deal with how state-less actors, such as terrorists, utilize the benefits of globalization, changing the nature of the security game. Failure to account for the influence of globalization will make it increasingly difficult to understand changes in the balance of power, prospects for war, and strategic choices embraced by states.

Though much has been written on the topics of globalization and national security, there has been relatively little in the way of a systematic examination of the impact that globalization has on a state's national security. In Globalization and National Security top scholars of international relations assess the consequences of globalization for national security? The volume identifies three distinct "processes" of globalization - the intensification of economic exchange, the flow of information, and marketization (the expansion of the set of social relations governed by market forces)-and explores how they can affect the capacity and power of states as well as conflict within and among them. Most importantly, the essays deal with how state-less actors, such as terrorists, utilize the benefits of globalization changes the nature of the security game. Failure to account for the influence of globalization will make it increasingly difficult to understand changes in the balance of power, prospects for war, and strategic choices embraced by states.

Jonathan Kirshner is Associate Professor of Government at Cornell University. He is currently a Visiting Professor for the 05-06 academic year at Princeton University. In addition, he is the director of the International Political Economy program at the Einaudi Center for International Studies. He is the co-editor of Cornell University Press series' Cornell Studies in Money.