1st Edition

National Security Cultures Patterns of Global Governance

Edited By Emil J. Kirchner, James Sperling Copyright 2010
    340 Pages 17 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    336 Pages 17 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This edited collection examines changes in national security culture in the wake of international events that have threatened regional or global order, and analyses the effects of these divergent responses on international security.

    Tracing the links between national security cultures and preferred forms of security governance the work provides a systematic account of perceived security threats and the preferred methods of response with individual chapters on Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, UK and USA. Each chapter is written to a common template exploring the role of national security cultures in shaping national responses to the four domains of security governance: prevention, assurance, protection and compellence. The volume provides an analytically coherent framework evaluating whether cooperation in security governance is likely to increase among major states, and if so, the extent to which this will follow either regional or global arrangements.

    By combining a theoretical framework with strong comparative case studies this volume contributes to the ongoing reconceptualization of security and definition of threat and provides a basis for reaching tentative conclusions about the prospects for global and regional security governance in the early 21st century. This makes it ideal reading for all students and policymakers with an interest in global security and comparative foreign and security policy.

    1. National Security Cultures, Technologies of Public Goods Supply and Security Governance James Sperling  Part I. Europe  2. France: A Departure from Exceptionalism Bastien Irondelle and Sophie Besancenot  3. Germany: The Continuity of Change Sebastian Harnisch and Raimund Wolf  4. Italy: Hard Tests and Soft Responses Paolo Foradori and Paolo Rosa  5. United Kingdom: How Much Continuity? How Much Change? Martin Smith  6. European Union: Moving Towards a European Security Culture? Emil J Kirchner  Part II. North America  7. Canada: Facing up to Regional Security Challenges Osvaldo Croci  8. Mexico: Current and Future Security Challenges Roberto Dominguez  9. United States: A full Spectrum Contributor to Governance? James Sperling  Part III. Euroasia  10. China: Power, Complementarity and Reflexivity Anthony Coates  11. Japan: From Deterrence to Prevention Haruhiro Fukui  12. Russia: A Global Power? Derek Averre  13. Conclusion: Structure, Agency and the Barriers to Global Security Han Dorussen, Emil J. Kirchner and James Sperling

    Biography

     Emil J. Kirchner is Professor of European Studies and Jean Monnet Chair at the University of Essex. His current main interests include European security policy, regional and global governance, and cross-border cooperation. His recent publications include (co-authored) EU Security Governance (Manchester University Press 2007); (co-edited) Global Security Governance (Routledge 2007); (co-author) Studies on Policies and Policy Processes of the European Union (Law Press Renmin University 2003); (co-authored) ‘The New Security Threats in Europe: Theory and Evidence’, European Foreign Affaires Review 2002.

    James Sperling is Professor of Political Science at the University of Akron. His recent publications include (co-authored) EU Security Governance (Manchester University Press 2007); (co-edited) Global Security Governance (Routledge 2007) (editor) of Germany at 55: Berlin ist nicht Bonn? (Manchester University Press 2004) (coeditor) EU Enlargement and New Security Challenges in the Eastern Mediterranean (Intercollege Press 2004) and Limiting Institutions? The Challenge of Security Governance in Eurasia (Manchester University Press 2003).

    National Security Cultures offers a tightly argued, deeply researched, and empirically encompassing analysis. It establishes the enduring imprints Westphalian and post-Westphalian state structures have on governance in East and West. And it tracks the variable effects of national security cultures on policies spanning the full governance spectrum. An impressive achievement that will become required reading in the field of security studies. - Peter J. Katzenstein, Walter S. Carpenter, Jr. Professor of International Studies, Cornell University, USA

    The result of empirical research conducted by an impressive international team of scholars, this is a rigorous and systematic examination of national security cultures across a wide swath of the world. The authors follow a common framework in an exemplary collaborative project which reveals important insights into the fundamental question of the relationship between culture and security policy and the extent to which security concepts in the West can be transferred to other regions. - Stephen F. Szabo, Executive Director of the Transatlantic Academy, USA

    Emil Kirchner and James Sperling have produced a welcome addition to the literature on national security cultures by applying the concept to the pressing problem of global and regional security governance.Country experts, area specialists, and international relations theorists with an interest in these topics will all want to consult this volume. - John S. Duffield Professor of Political Science Georgia State University, USA

    Interest in security governance has risen and fallen in the past ten years; now again on the rise, the concept is in great need of theoretical exposition and empirical grounding; and that is what this book achieves. In a welcome and highly ambitious study, the focus on security governance - so often constrained to Europe - is examined globally. In all these contexts, it is an exceptionally important book. - Stuart Croft, Professor of International Security, Warwick University. UK

    'The collection of essays and the book’s overarching framework make a positive and rich contribution to the international debate on security cultures, strategies and policies.' - The International Spectator, Vol. 46, No. 1 (March 2011), 161