Understanding International Security: Theory and Practice

International security is an ambiguous concept – it has many meanings to many people. Without an idea of how the world works, or how security is defined and achieved, it is impossible to create effective policies to provide security. This textbook clarifies the concept of security, the debates around it, how it is defined, and how it is pursued. Tracking scholarly approaches within security studies against empirical developments in international affairs, historical and contemporary security issues are examined through various theoretical and conceptual models. Chapters cover a wide range of topics, including war and warfare, political violence and terrorism, cyber security, environmental security, energy security, economic security, and global public health. Students are supported by illustrative vignettes, bolded key terms and an end-of-book glossary, maps, box features, discussion questions, and further reading suggestions, and instructors have access to adaptable lecture slides.

Dr Michael John Williams is Associate Professor of International Relations at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and Faculty Affiliate of the Institute for Security, Policy, and Law at the Law School at Syracuse University. He is also the editor of the International Politics journal. He studies strategic aspects of international relations, with a regional focus on Europe, and his thematic research interests include Cold War Europe, transatlantic relations, technology and war, and the armed forces' relationship to society. He is the author of four books, two edited collections and numerous scholarly articles, as well as extensive international affairs commentary featured in outlets such as the New York Times and Washington Post.

Dr James Wesley Hutto is Associate Professor of Strategy and Security Studies at the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies (SAASS), as well as a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute. His research interests include drone warfare and its intersection with International Relations and International Relations theory, regional powers and comparative regional security, military strategy, and multinational military exercises. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles in the European Journal of International Security, Journal of Regional Security, International Politics, and Defense Studies. His article on coercion and drone warfare was awarded the 2024 Christopher Coker Prize for best paper in strategic studies.

Dr Asli Peker Dogra is a Clinical Professor in the Program in International Relations at New York University. Trained in Political Science and Middle Eastern studies, her work sits at the intersection of International Relations, Comparative Politics, Regional Studies, and Critical Security Studies, with a particular focus on sovereignty and statehood, state–society relations, and statecraft. Her writings have appeared in both academic and non- academic outlets in Turkish and English.