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The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is poised to profoundly reshape the regional geographical landscape. While existing communication studies on BRI have focused on the official and media narratives to frame the initiative, the overall orientation of the topic in academic circles is not well understood. By conducting a bibliometric literature review, this paper addresses this gap by answering the research question: How is the BRI reflected in the academic literature? In the review, we divide all academic studies on BRI into four cohorts (studies from scholars based in China, in Quad countries, in the rest of the world, and cross-collaborating scholars) and use structural topic model to understand the themes and trends on BRI scholarship from scholars from these regions. Our results show that scholars in different cohorts understand BRI differently, specifically, with China-based scholars projecting ideas of development, growth and sustainability, while Quad-based scholars mostly focus on the geopolitical impact, security implications and debt sustainability of BRI. The findings also show a divergence between popular narratives on BRI and academic research on the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In December 2020, Singapore made global headlines by being the first country to approve the commercial sale of lab grown meat. This approval was part of an effort by the city state to intensify the development of novel foods on the island. This paper describes this recent growth of novel food companies in Singapore. Singapore's novel food policies ostensibly aim to create food security for its citizens. We argue that the embrace of the technology that surrounds novel foods also aligns with Singapore's vision of building a "smart nation." Although food is not a digital technology, the approaches to novel foods being taken in Singapore share many parallels with the rollout of digital technology. These parallels can be seen in the domains of standardization, regulation, intellectual property, data-gathering, and training. We anticipate that these shifts in procurement, regulation, consumption of foods, may ultimately challenge traditional food pathways and Singapore's food identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the developments witnessed by the concept of security in strategic studies, based on the insights of the Egyptian thinker Bahgat Korany, who formulated the concepts of high and low politics. The former is linked to traditional military and security domains, while the latter is associated with social, economic, and cultural spheres, which current historical contexts have highlighted the importance of, particularly for countries described as lagging behind. The study adopts the cultural security model through analyzing the contemporary Arab world's reality, demonstrating that cultural security plays a fundamental role in securing various other sectors, especially in preserving identity and cultural distinctiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we examine the television series about global surveillance Person of Interest (POI) (aired on CBS, 2011–2016) to reflect on popular understandings of surveillance and account for its representation of artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic surveillance. Drawing on television, media, and surveillance studies, we focus on the power of representations of social relations and diegetic technologies in possible and imagined futures to explore the role of cultural representations in shaping social order. Through the character of the AI Machine representing algorithmic surveillance, we evaluate the show's critique of algorithmic autonomy and contend that, as a media technology of surveillance, the show participates in the hype of big data as a panacea while banalizing surveillance. We argue that POI could facilitate a comprehensive analysis of the politics of algorithmic surveillance but fails to do so due to its uncritical representation of artificial intelligence agencies in detecting security risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While many scholars find that security cooperation increases the foreign aid that allies receive from a major power, other studies show that an alliance also has negative effect and its terms can change over time. This article argues that a donor's security environment impacts its participation in security cooperation and, subsequently, foreign aid allocation to allies. When the security environment is competitive, a donor will concentrate its resources on strengthening its ties with allies. In contrast, when the environment is favorable to a donor, it can use security cooperation as leverage to obtain policy concessions from allies, thus reducing its own foreign aid expenditures. This paper analyzes the aid allocation of three major power donors as well as 72 formal defense pacts and 70 bilateral defense cooperation agreements, and it finds that a favorable security environment allows a donor to reduce its economic contribution to its allies by 19 percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Militaries around the world are a major source of carbon emissions, yet very little is known about their carbon footprint. Reliable data around military resource use and environmental damage is highly variable. Researchers are dependent upon military transparency, the context of military operations, and broader emissions reporting. While studies are beginning to emerge on global militaries and their carbon footprints, less work has focused on wartime emissions. We examine one sliver of the hidden carbon emissions of late-modern warfare by focusing on the use of concrete "blast walls" by US forces in Baghdad over a five-year period (2003-2008). This study uses a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to study one of the world's largest military carbon footprints of concrete, an infrastructural weapon in late-modern urban counterinsurgencies. Moving beyond dominant discourses on climate-security and "greening", we present one of the first studies to expose direct and indirect military emissions resulting from combat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semiconductors play a major role in U.S. and international economic activity and in national security policymaking. They are tiny electronic devices based primarily on silicon or germanium, facilitating multiple industrial activities including systems foundational to U.S. technological competitiveness and national security. This industry is a key U.S. exporter with this product's design and manufacturing being a global enterprise with design, fabrication, assembly, testing, and packing distributed globally. Semiconductors are essential building blocks for emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, 5 G communications, and quantum computing. This article aspires to inform librarians and others about governmental and commercial literature produced on this subject. It aspires to enhance understanding of this topic and its intersections with economics, consumer goods, technology politics, and international security. (Platzer, Sutter, & Sargeant, 2020; Summary, 1–3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article uses the case of Zimbabwe to explore the interface between militarisation and state capacity, and through that critique the emancipatory potential of the human security concept. It argues that militarisation undermines state capacity to provide emancipatory security as envisioned in the human security concept. A militarised state is severely incapacitated and challenged to deliver emancipatory security because it lacks the functional capacity and legitimacy of a state that is capable of safeguarding the security of the individual. The Zimbabwean case shows how the nature of the struggle for the country's independence conditioned the political elite's siege mentality and concomitant predisposition to use militarisation to safeguard their interests while ignoring those of the broader citizenry. By underscoring the adverse effects of militarisation on state capacity and legitimacy, the Zimbabwean case reinforces critiques of the state-centric approach of the human security concept, which severely constraints the latter's emancipatory potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The text discusses two recent books that examine the rise of stabilization in UN peacekeeping and international interventions. The first book, "Stabilization and Human Security in UN Peace Operations" by Alexander Gilder, explores how UN peacekeeping can provide a holistic approach to ending armed conflicts and building peace. Gilder argues that while some peacekeeping practices align with a human security approach, the focus on stabilization and increased militarization often undermines this approach. The second book, "Stabilization as the New Normal in International Interventions: Low Expectations?" edited by Roberto Belloni and Francesco N. Moro, provides a broader analysis of stabilization across various actors and locations. The book highlights the negative implications of stabilization, such as its security-focused nature and retreat from human rights and democracy. Overall, both books offer critical appraisals of stabilization interventions and raise important questions about its effectiveness and future use. [Extracted from the article]

Since 1997, the Chinese Party-state has engaged in a campaign of transnational repression against the Uyghur diaspora. This campaign has grown in severity since the 2014 declaration of the People's War on Terror and Strike Hard campaigns, which, taken together, involved a program of mass incarceration for the Turkic peoples of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). This article examines the everyday impacts of extraterritorial persecution on the Uyghur diaspora and their ability to successfully integrate into their new host societies and exercise their political and cultural agency. The article draws from nineteen in-depth interviews with Uyghurs living around the world and a dataset of over 7,000 incidents of China's targeting of Uyghurs globally since 1997. We examine how Chinese practices and the everyday effects of transnational repression vary between different regime types. We argue that Uyghurs experience both marginalization in their host country and the threat of transnational repression from China, a particularly precarious situation that we term double precarity. This double precarity is felt most acutely in more authoritarian contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the U.S.-Japanese relationship and the challenges it posed to the United States in Southeast Asia during the 1970s. The United States pursued a contradictory foreign policy approach toward Japan, simultaneously trying to collaborate and compete with its ally. While the United States wanted Japan to play an active role in Southeast Asia, it also feared Japan's economic expansion and its impact on U.S. competitiveness in the region. The article highlights the inconsistencies in the U.S.-Japanese relationship and the United States' efforts to maintain regional influence as ASEAN developed closer ties with China and Japan. The United States sought to counter Japan's growing economic dominance in Southeast Asia and ensure that ASEAN's actions did not threaten U.S. regional power. The article also explores the U.S.-Japanese economic rivalry and Japan's role in Southeast Asia, focusing on trade disputes and the normalization of relations with China. The United States pursued a contradictory approach, encouraging Japan's involvement in Southeast Asia while also trying to contain its economic power. The article concludes that the United States could not reconcile its conflicting objectives, resulting in an inconsistent foreign policy toward Japan that alternated between cooperation and economic tension. [Extracted from the article]

Migration is often explained as either forced or economic. But what if people leave, as the state's ability to govern declines? I examine whether changes in a state's governance impact the number of asylum applicants from the country to Europe. I measure state fragility using the Fragile State Index (FSI) from the Fund for Peace (FFP). The dataset's granularity permits analysis of the relative importance of push factors. I use Eurostat data to measure the European Union's asylee applications. I control for conflict with the PRIO dataset. My findings suggest asylees may be leaving because of deteriorating security institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the combined impacts of COVID-19 and sanctions on Afghans in Iran. It draws on semi-structured interviews with Afghans and experts that were analyzed thematically using the human security framework. Findings indicate that Afghans without access to the internet and social media received no detailed and accurate information through national TV and radio. Patients with COVID-19 had difficulty accessing imported medicines, which were not affordable for Afghans with middle and lower economic backgrounds regardless of their immigration status. We argue that sanctions in combination with the COVID-19 pandemic have negatively affected the economic and health conditions of Afghans in Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the migration agreements between the European Union (EU) and Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. These international policy frameworks were negotiated in tandem with one another, and all were announced in 2016. Drawing on fieldwork conducted in the three countries, the article argues that they fuse humanitarian elements with a bloc‐based security logic in an ad‐hoc mix that lacks substantive legitimacy in the three states, rendering the frameworks unstable. The article introduces the idea of hybrid migration governance which we have developed inductively to conceptualise the empirical findings from our fieldwork, building on existing work on hybridity in the conflict and security studies literature and Nora Stel's conception of governance as the ability to shape the field of action of others. In our usage, hybrid migration governance refers to the efficacy of EU intervention in the institutional management of migration in the three case study countries ('shaping the field of action'), the 'frozen' character of the societal relations formed through this process and their underlying lack of domestic legitimacy. In conclusion, we argue that hybrid migration governance poses problem for the EU's 'Barcelona' conception of human security, because rather than expanding the bloc's 'zone of security' to the international neighbourhood, these policies have generated downstream security‐risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considerable attention has focused on Ukraine as a divided country along ethno-cultural lines. But regional economic differences and trends over time are the primary drivers that influence citizens' wellbeing and likewise contribute to a sense of place. This article focuses on how Ukraine's economic development has unfolded across the country during a time of conflict and how these changes can be understood. Using the framework of state capacity, aggregate data reflective of human security are adduced to illustrate and suggest reasons for these shifting patterns and the implications thereof for a postwar Ukraine. Findings suggest that the spatial realignment of Ukraine's economy has been and will continue to be a function of location, markets, and human capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses how the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) held in January 2024 highlighted the growing connection between technology and human security. CES, held annually in Las Vegas, is one of the largest technology conferences in the world. In recent years, the organizers recognized the role of technology in addressing major social challenges and partnered with the World Academy of Art and Science and the UN Trust Fund for Human Security to promote the theme of "Human Security For All." At CES 2024, there were over 135,000 attendees from around the globe witnessing innovations in areas like AI, smart cities, health tech, and more that have implications for human well-being and security. The event reflects how technology is increasingly shaping all sectors of society. It also serves as a platform for policymakers, industry leaders, and academics to discuss opportunities and challenges related to ensuring technology benefits humanity. The article also provides examples of new partnerships between diverse companies enabled by technological convergence. In conclusion, CES has become an important forum for moving the agenda of human security and technology forward in a collaborative way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the issue of localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and how this is critical for achieving human security globally. It notes that while the SDGs have been successful in generating consensus around sustainability, progress has been lacking and many targets may not be met. A key obstacle is that the SDGs have not been properly localized, which is essential given that real change needs to happen at the local level. The author argues that a bottom-up, localization-driven approach is needed to complement the existing top-down monitoring approach. This would empower local actors and allow them to develop diverse solutions through connecting and sharing ideas. A proposed solution is a digital platform that is co-created with local stakeholders and facilitates the networking of local actors as well as access to expertise. This could help drive cultural and social change from the bottom-up in support of the SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the concept of European strategic autonomy in the context of security and defense. It emphasizes the need for Europe to act independently in an interdependent world, particularly in traditional security fields where it has relied on US support. The COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the changing European political landscape, and the upcoming US presidential elections are identified as key factors driving the necessity for greater strategic autonomy. The article discusses the changing perception of Europe's security and the efforts being made to reduce dependence on Russian gas and oil. It also highlights the controversy and different interpretations surrounding the concept of European strategic autonomy. The article concludes by emphasizing the importance of Europe investing in its own defense capabilities while maintaining a strong alliance with the US. [Extracted from the article]

"The Gendered Face of COVID-19 in the Global South" by Jean Grugel, Matt Barlow, Tallulah Lines, Maria Eugenia Giraudo, and Jessica Omukuti examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women and girls in the Global South. The authors argue that the pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities and disproportionately affected women and girls due to limited access to healthcare, increased exposure to domestic violence, and economic hardships. The book advocates for a feminist political economy approach to policy development that addresses these gendered impacts and promotes equitable and inclusive policies. The authors emphasize the need for courageous leadership and a commitment to dismantling systems that perpetuate inequality in order to build a more equitable society. [Extracted from the article]

This article explores the concept of energy regionalism and its significance in understanding global energy politics. It emphasizes the need to study different types of energy sources and their infrastructures, as well as the role of various participants such as international organizations, governments, and non-state actors. The article also discusses the importance of energy security and sustainability. It concludes by calling for further research in the field, including comparative analysis, case studies, and policy analysis. Overall, the article aims to advance understanding of energy regionalism and its implications for energy policies and outcomes. [Extracted from the article]

Why have Central American states been able to deliver public goods in the energy sector when most experiences of energy regionalism in Latin American have run into deadlock? Through process‐tracing the different factors that transformed the Central American Electric System (SIEPAC) from a policy‐idea into a fully operative supranational market, this article finds that the Interamerican Development Bank was the orchestrator of governments, national utilities, and extra‐regional state and market actors resulting in the production of energy infrastructure and improved energy security for Central American countries. Through three mechanisms—brokering, agenda‐setting, and assistance—the Interamerican Development Bank kept the cooperation agenda ongoing despite coordination problems and member states' divergent preferences. The article concludes that regional development banks are particularly well‐suited orchestrators of highly technical regionalism initiatives, such as energy integration, because they combine the input‐legitimacy of an intergovernmental organization, the know‐how of an epistemic community, and the resources of a bank. More research is needed to compare the role of various regional development banks in regionalism initiatives in the global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The February 2022 UNDP Special Report (SR) on Human Security, "New threats to human security in the Anthropocene: Demanding greater solidarity" marked a welcome return by the UN body to the field in which, in 1994, it had provided the seminal text. The SR stimulated a great deal of academic and policy debate, featuring prominently in the HDCA Human Security Thematic Group's sessions at the 2022 HDCA Antwerp conference. Conversations between the UNDP HDRO and HDCA led to the 2023 Human Security Policy Forum published in the Journal of Human Development and Capabilities. The papers produced in this forum have emphasised a broadening of the human security discourse and policy prescription to consider the SR's additional focus on the Anthropocene, agency, and solidarity. Several of the papers have also drawn attention to the interconnectivity of threats and spillover between them. While there is consensus among the papers on these issues, they are limited in the extent to which they address how such foci also lead to contestation, how they are situated in the wider policy discourse, and how they might best be operationalised. This paper revisits these discussions, adding additional insight on these points of reference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scope of this article is to make a synthesis of the theory of geopolitics with new trends and characteristics of the new global environment. Traditional geopolitical theories are established on the basis of sovereign states. The starting point of many theories is for sovereign states to compete for world hegemony, or to gain an advantage in competition with their opponents. Geopolitical research also mostly starts from the interests of the country. However, as global environmental changes, transnational crimes, terrorism, information security, and other non-traditional security threats have become common threats to human society, their impact also crosses borders and has global characteristics, which also means solving geopolitical issues. Thinking needs to change from a national perspective to a global perspective. On the other hand, as the international community pays more and more attention to human rights, the challenge of human rights to sovereignty has become an unavoidable reality in current international politics. With the progress of the times, the protection and respect of civil rights has become the basic consensus of the international community. Nowadays, the issue of virtual rights such as carbon emission rights have also been included in the geopolitics theory, creating a strong shift of paradigm towards a renewed theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Saudi-led coalition of states initiated an on-going-armed conflict in Yemen on 26 March 2015. Meanwhile, Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Though no two armed conflicts are exactly alike, there is reason to compare US media coverage of the two because: (1) civilians have been victims of both conflicts; (2) both conflicts have undermined food security; (3) the US has provided military support to a party to each of the conflicts; and (4) the conflict in Yemen is in the Global South whereas the conflict in Ukraine is in the Global North. This article comparatively analyses US media coverage of the conflicts in Yemen and Ukraine, via New York Times headlines, by documenting the number of stories and their placement; assessing the types of media frames used; reviewing headlines for attribution of responsibility; and conducting a content analysis to identify the descriptive and normative terminology used. We find extensive biases in coverage and framing, rooted in peripheralism, culturalism and differential geopolitical US positioning. This results in reduced coverage of the war in Yemen, shielded in neutral language and lacking responsibility attribution—serving to devalue the suffering of victims and condemning the crisis to be functionally forgotten. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The year 2024 marks the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Türkiye and Japan. The Republic of Türkiye and Japan established diplomatic relations on August 6, 1924. The legacy of the Ertuğrul incident was firmly entrenched between the two countries. On the other hand, although there is no conflict between Türkiye and Japan due to their geographical distance, it is also difficult to foster a concrete cooperative relationship. For this reason, the relationship between the two countries was often referred to as "romanticism." Furthermore, to take a deeper look at the relationship between Türkiye and Japan, it is essential to better understand the issues that each other faces. This article looks back at the past relationship between the two countries, in which it was difficult to see a concrete cooperative relationship despite the good relationship, and examines the diplomatic constraints and public opinion that Japan faces and what areas the two countries will pursue in more concrete ways in the future. The study considers whether such cooperation is possible, mainly from Japan's perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the establishment of a trilateral cooperation mechanism between the U.S., Japan, and the Republic of Korea (ROK), emphasizing their commitment to consult on security threats and expand joint military exercises. Topics include the historical context of U.S.-Japan-ROK relations, their evolving cooperation from the Cold War to the present, and the implications of this trilateral mechanism for regional dynamics, particularly in the context of China's rise.

The article delves into the evolving Africa policy of the European Union (EU) against the backdrop of global changes. Topics discussed include shifts from crisis management to long-term strategic goals, influenced by geopolitical dynamics, pandemic, and crises like the Ukraine conflict. It also examines the EU's aim for a geopolitical turn, emphasizing partnerships and competition, yet risks treating Africa as an arena for rivalry rather than an equal partner.

Through a documentary analysis, this article explores the definition of human security and its implementation in Armed Forces management. It seeks to answer how to protect freedoms and rights encompassed in human security by the institutions of the social State under the rule of law. Through a documentary review, it is shown that this is not exclusive responsibility of a single institution but requires an articulated work by all the actors committed to these freedoms, based on a comprehensive state policy. It is concluded that the debate is based on how to achieve the human security through the military performance without overlooking its constitutional mission of protection. Therefore, it is necessary to align human development and the Armed Forces capabilities without compromising their constitutional mandate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the strategic significance of security in critical water infrastructure, an essential resource for human life. Focusing on Spain, it explores the security system of this infrastructure and the existing legislation against threats to critical infrastructures, particularly drinking water supply. The study describes potential types of attacks, the preparedness of passive and active security systems against these threats, and the legislative developments to penalize them. Despite the increasing importance of this issue, as water infrastructure can be a target for terrorism with unimaginable impacts on life, health, economy, and society, the paper concludes that there are gaps in the classification and definition of sanctions against such attacks in Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the economic impact of severe natural disasters in Africa using the generalised synthetic control method. In other words, it assesses how gross domestic product (GDP) would have been affected, had severe natural disasters not occurred. Moreover, it explores the determinants of the destructiveness of the impact of natural disasters, focusing on the role played by capital. We find that severe natural disasters induce a significant and continuous reduction of GDP many years after the event. Indeed, economic losses caused by disasters depend on the level of capital (human capital, employment and capital stock) and aspects of governance quality (political stability and absence of violence). In other words, negative synergies are apparent because while capital stock, employment and human capital unconditionally reduce the macroeconomic impact of natural disasters, the corresponding conditional or interactive effects with political stability are also negative. Policy implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to analyse the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and its potential to unleash the development of women in Africa. The envisaged benefits of the AfCFTA include increased trade diversification, regional integration, enhanced human security, increased foreign direct investment and technological advancement. Despite optimism about the prospects of the agreement as a local innovation spearheaded by the African Union, pessimists raise questions about the extent of stakeholder engagement. The agreement must be gender-responsive to enhance outcomes for women cross-border traders. The paper concludes that the lack of gender sensitivity confirms the need to address the specific needs of African women, especially those involved in informal cross-border trade. Hence, for AfCFTA, the policy focus should be on ensuring the formalisation of women who participate in informal trade, thus helping increase access to markets, information and growth opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines whether increased intelligence capacity improves global security, a key assumption in intelligence theory. Using the partial least squares structural equation modelling method, the research statistically analyzes data from the U.S. International Intelligence Behaviour dataset and Global Terrorism Database. Grounded in intelligence studies and international relations theory, the study integrates a constructivist human security framework. Surprisingly, the results show a significant correlation between increased intelligence capacity and the degree of terrorism, suggesting intelligence may undermine rather than enhance human security. This finding challenges traditional assumptions, though it must be viewed cautiously due to potential endogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the fight against ideological warfare of the Islamic State (ISIS) would not be possible without an effective counter ground operation led by the Kurds, these unique players in regional stability have contributed to the mitigation, and in some cases the elimination of Islamist extremist ideology, conducing to the human security of the region. Viewing these actions within a pro-democracy approach, this paper will demonstrate why the international community, led by the United States and EU, needs to, indeed ought to consider the Kurdish de facto autonomous region model as an element for stability. The resulting outcome could help contribute to the regional security of the Middle East, and also prevent the perpetration of any future atrocities against the Kurds and other minorities. Through a collective case study and a qualitative set of data, this paper will evaluate the de facto autonomous governance experience of the Kurds, its impact, and its potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to determine the formulas and levels of analysis of the Links between security and development in parallel with the discussion related to the development of the concept of security, through the crystallization of the concept of Human Security, which integrated dimensions that remained absent from the security field and was linked to the development field in its various dimensions. Based on this, the problem of the study attempts to clarify the links between development and the components of security in light of the change and expansion witnessed in the fields of security and development studies. Perhaps one of the fundamental questions that require study and analysis is those related to determining the levels of analysis of the security and development nexus, and how development interacts with the different dimensions of security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigating cyber conflict is enormously difficult. The domain is complex, quality data are sparse, international affairs are shrouded in secrecy, and despite its seeming ubiquity, cyber power has only recently entered the battlefield. In the face of these challenges, we must rise to meet the challenges of cybersecurity research by deploying creative methods that collect verifiable and probatory data, and which allow for predictive models of cyber behavior. Against this backdrop, our special issue offers a vision of cybersecurity research that embraces a culture of rigorous inquiry based on theoretically robust, and policy relevant investigation. We highlight two key features. First, research at the intersection of cybersecurity and political science must incorporate the human dimension of cyber conflict. A human security approach to cybersecurity places people as the primary objects of security and recognizes that individual-level analyses can shed light on macro-level trends. Second, cyber research must adopt rigorous, empirical methods. We embrace a broad tent of empirical data collection techniques – spanning qualitative and quantitative, experimental, and observational research. What is integral is that all scholarship abides by the highest standards of replicability and falsifiability. The articles contained in this special issue collectively form a proof of concept that expands the horizons of cybersecurity research from a substantive viewpoint (adding a human dimension to the prevalent military/strategic analyses), and from a methodological perspective (propounding the importance of empirical scrutiny). Together, these 10 pieces of scholarship collectively affirm that there is now a critical mass of substantively diverse and empirically rigorous research in the field of cybersecurity, and that we as a community are capable of making bold, theoretically grounded, and empirically tested claims that verify how cyber power is or is not altering the nature of peace, conflict and international relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the development of the existing conflicts encompassed in the historical development of Colombian society, the year 2020 marked a turning point for citizens and institutions as a result of social upheavals that had been occurring and that demanded responses in order to reformulate the functions of the Public Force. This article explores the historical context that gave way to this process of reflexivity and, in turn, assumes a theoretical and political position concerning the perspective of the security forces in the current process of transformation towards a culture of institutional and social peace. This is carried out by means of a qualitative methodology of a comprehensive hermeneutic nature that allows us to explore, based on the Colombian experience, the ways to contribute to the construction of a culture of peace. Thus, finally, Human Security is presented as a concept and practice that allows for the strengthening of Human Rights in the institutions and works towards their promotion and respect, generating trust between the security forces and society, and a change in the institutional and social paradigm that reconciles us as a country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article by Hellmut Hoffmann titled "Is the Security of the West Now Defended on the Dnieper? Russia's Aggressive War and NATO's Two Percent Defense Spending Goal" deals with the security landscape following Russia's attack on Ukraine in February 2022. NATO has already initiated a defense spending program in 2014, which obliges alliance partners to increase their defense expenditures to two percent of their gross domestic product by 2024. It is argued that Russia's attack on Ukraine poses a threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic region. An analysis of the military balance of power shows that NATO has a significant advantage. However, it is pointed out that the media often only present the defense budgets of NATO partners in relation to their gross domestic product, while comparisons of the armed forces between NATO and Russia are rarely presented. The presence of the United States remains essential for many, as they are better able to enforce joint military action. [Extracted from the article]

During the ongoing decade, the importance of security as a topic has heightened, not least because of the health and broader implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian attack on Ukraine. We have also seen a rapid acceleration in extreme weather events influenced by climate change, including forest fires in Australia, the United States, and Europe; severe flooding in many parts of the world; and extreme heat waves in, for instance, India and Pakistan. These demonstrate how climate change is also increasingly a matter of human and national security. Therefore, climate change as a policy issue and a political topic reaches beyond the remit of sectoral climate or environmental policy. It should be seen as a horizontal cross-government policy area that increasingly affects the security of the whole society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kidnapping for ransom is a serious organized crime and has the potential of transforming into other felonious offenses, such as physical violence, financial victimization, and murder. This paper examines the phenomenon of kidnapping in Nigeria with a view to exposing its implications on human security thereby projecting the trends if not nipped. This study was prompted by the rising incidence of kidnapping, and its attendant consequences. The study made use of documentary evidences of cases of kidnappings and use of descriptive qualitative method of data analysis to explain the phenomena of K4R in Nigeria. We adopted the queer ladder theory to explain the political economy dimensionof kidnapping that is motivated and sustained by the criminal quest for material accumulation. The paper amongst other findings observed that kidnapping for ransom in Nigeria is a lucrative organized crime. On the other hand, K4R is a chain of high-risk crime that involves threat to life, extortion, trauma, and fear of breach in negotiation. Therefore, the study suggests among other recommendations a whole of government approach to K4R and preparedness of security agencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article measures human security in a China-Kenya project under UNDP's framework through questionnaires. We compare the perceived human security of Chinese employees with that of their Kenyan counterparts and reveal an imbalance in human security. Both groups perceive most insecure about community and politics and the Kenyan group exhibits a greater overall sense of insecurity. The company provides a highly-imbalanced level of support to each group. Payment, working time, and working environment threaten both groups, and the Kenyan group remains particularly concerned about job security. Irrespective of nationality, individuals in managerial roles perceive more security and supports compared to regular workers. These trans-hierarchical disparities in human security intersect with transboundary differences during globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws on qualitative approach comprising interviews and relevant archival materials to examine how oil theft in Nigeria's Niger Delta has degraded the environment with dire consequences on environmental and socio-economic sustainability as well as human security. The purpose of this paper is to interrogate the unexplored dimensions of the linkage between oil theft, environmental degradation and human insecurity in the face of apparent state nonchalance and weakness. Specifically, the primary data were generated from the interview of twenty-six key informants, who were purposively selected as well as four focus group discussions (FGDs). The complementary secondary data were extracted from journals, books, government documents and web-based materials. The paper finds that the operations of oil thieves and artisanal refiners have worsened environmental challenges and aggravated human insecurity in the region. The implications include among others, the emasculation of the local economy due to the destruction of traditional means of livelihoods, deepening impoverishment, and heightened prospects of restiveness with negative impacts on Nigerian economy. This paper recommends strengthening the surveillance and response capacity of relevant state institutions, legitimising artisanal refining, and developing sustainable welfare packages to cushion socio-economic deprivations being suffered by oil-bearing communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relationship between climate change and security, with a specific focus on the Arctic region. It highlights the rapid warming of the Arctic and its implications for security, including resource scarcity and potential conflicts. The article discusses the role of NATO in addressing climate change and adapting its strategies, emphasizing the need to prioritize the Arctic region. It also examines the absence of the Arctic in NATO's recent Strategic Concept and suggests that the region should be included in future official documents. The author argues for cooperation between NATO and the Arctic Council to ensure a safe and secure environment in the region. [Extracted from the article]

Nigeria today faces a variety of security risks that are threatening to undermine its status as an independent republic. These include armed robbery, urban violence, smuggling of weapons, kidnapping, trafficking in people, and disputes between communities and religions. A strong intelligence system that can readily gather and analyse data to precisely predict the movement of criminals and other unwanted elements inside society might alleviate all these concerns. However, it appears that the government, security, and intelligence agencies are caught off guard by the on-going attacks by militants, herders, and incidents of ethnicreligious strife. These unexpected attacks might not be unrelated to incorrect and insufficient information provided about these acts. The study employs qualitative methodologies and draws on secondary sources like newspapers, the internet, and published academic works. The paper's findings show, among other things, that a number of intricate and interconnected problems can be blamed for the Nigerian intelligence system's lack of efficacy. These problems, which include an apparent lack of data, under-use of the data that is already available, and improper data, are made worse by inconsistencies in data management and sharing across the numerous security agencies operating in the nation. The article concludes that it is important for the various security apparatuses to be data-driven and exchange intelligence with one another in order to promote early response to any threat to the security of citizens' lives and property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fishery resources account for almost one sixth of the total volume of animal protein consumed by people and provide livelihoods for some 820 million people worldwide. However, global fisheries are at risk due to increasing global demand for fish, declining ocean health and continued illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. According to the United Nations, more than 90 per cent of fish stocks remain fully exploited, overexploited or even depleted. The reasons are a combination of legal exploitation and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing - which accounts for about 20 per cent of global fish catches. More than 40 per cent of the cases between 2010 and 2022 were recorded in West African maritime areas, notably in the Gulf of Guinea. This article analyses illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing in the Gulf of Guinea. The findings highlight that this illegal activity is currently the greatest threat to the human security of coastal communities and to the maritime security of the whole region. Furthermore, without good order at sea, it will not be possible to take concrete measures to address the problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Rohingya refugees rehabilitated in Bangladesh present a unique case bearing human and environmental security cross complications. Forced to flee from Myanmar due to military atrocities and ethnic violence, they took refuge in neighboring Bangladesh from 2017 onwards. These refugees are standing at the crossroads of converting from Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMNs) to potential climate refugees in the near future due to their rehabilitation in the environmentally sensitive island of Bhasan Char, which is regularly ravaged by cyclones, sea level rise and other climate challenges. This paper argues that Bangladesh is a case study of paradoxical human settlement. On the one hand, the host country is giving refuge to conflict victims while, at the same time, it is triggering climate-induced displacement within their own country. From conflict-ridden areas to climate-sensitive zones, such rehabilitation of refugees invites deeper crises and calls for immediate policy attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper converts the six reasons for inclusive development proposed by Gupta into a heuristic device for evaluation of inclusive development in road infrastructure projects in Nairobi. The Gupta Rationale entails six key evaluative elements of, that is, whether the project has achieved: Welfare of the poor and marginalized, Human rights, Economic Sustainability, Human security and livelihood support, Inclusive decision-making and Non production of poverty. This study subjected the Nairobi-Thika Road Improvement Project to this evaluative criterion as case study. The results of the evaluation are that the project mainly focused on enhancing the comfort of the private motorist, no serious violations except on few occasions when structures used by informal SMEs were demolished without offers of viable alternatives, the project led to improved infrastructure with significant economic benefits, densification and crowding occasioned by high land prices has led to overstretched infrastructural services thereby threatening the human security in the neighbourhoods along the corridor, the project was not inclusive in terms of decision-making but was a top-down outfit that did little to incorporate local governments and communities, and that it caused production of poverty by destroying livelihoods of petty traders and employees of SMEs that were operating along the corridor. The paper demonstrates that the Gupta Rationale can clearly assess the extent of inclusive development in a project and help to reach the conclusion as to whether a particular project's processes and outcomes engender inclusive development. In the case of Nairobi, for instance, the device has helped reach a rational decision that development is not inclusive. Recommendation is made that the Gupta Rationale should be used in the ex-ante and ex-post evaluation of road improvement projects or any other urban development project for that matter. This would help mainstream inclusive urban development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iraq adds to the poor track record of externally promoted security assistance in conflict-affected and fragile contexts. By taking a long-term perspective, this article examines and problematizes the shift in paradigms from Security Sector Reforms (SSR) as a pillar of the liberal statebuilding intervention in Iraq to Security Force Assistance (SFA) as the remedy that the post-interventionist turn endorsed since the 2010s. In discussing this shift, the article also shows that in successive phases of externally promoted security assistance, different notions of security prevailed. As the intervention unfolded, human security instead of guiding SSR was quickly put to the side, as donors' security (2003–2008) and later regime's security (2009–mid 2014) prevailed. The late 2014–2019 prevalence of SFA in Iraq was instead characterized by the disjuncture of security assistance from other governance aspects in the country while it later became part of a tense geopolitical context (2020–2023). Overall, Iraq proves to be a laboratory for testing out concepts relating to security whereby external actors and factors are key to explaining the shift in security assistance, while internal local needs for security are largely ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The security of the Uyghur ethnic community in Xinjiang became an international concern after media reports about the existence of re‐education camps. History has recorded that the Uyghur often experienced violation of their human security rights. This violation worsened when the Chinese Community Party (CCP) succeeded in controlling the entire mainland. The three pillars of human security that should be ensured by the state, freedom from fear, freedom from want and freedom to live in dignity were violated by the CCP. Using the theory of social construction process, the finding of the research was that the violations aimed to insert socialist and communist values into Uyghur's identity and to control their province, which rich in natural resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]