The Development of the Concept of Securitization as a Response to the Global Security Crisis in the XXI Century

Abstract

This article explores the dissemination of the concept of securitization in the context of profound transformations in the system of international relations. The goal of the article consists in identifying the interrelation between the development of the concept of securitization and the transformations in the system of global security in the 21st century. Within the framework of this study the author addresses two major objectives: to show the subjective nature of securitization constructing the core elements of security; to establish the connection between the spread of securitization and the transformation of the system of global security. The object of the study is global security, and the subject is the concept of securitization as a response to the problems of global security in the XXI century. To investigate the process of securitization the author employs the analysis of speech acts revealing international actors’ collective perceptions of global security.

Building on the research into the national security strategies of the leading world powers, it is suggested that due to the subjectivity (intersubjectivity) of the securitization process, and the significant opportunities for the manipulative influence on the audience, the spectrum of threats to global security can be constructed based on national interests of the strongest international actors. All abrupt transformations in the spectrum of threats to global security could be accounted for by the changes in the political and socio-economic context.