Digital BABA

Topic of Discussion: Common Security
Moderator: MADHUCHANDA
Contributors: MADHUCHANDA, MARAT, JU, TIN, SITTHATTHA
Reactors: NAOKI, PENG, KAMEI, CITRA, MAKY

The genealogy of the idea of common security can be traced back to the breakdown of U.S.-Soviet detente and the subsequent nuclear buildup of the 1970s, as Europe became aware of its role as nuclear battlefield. It was a radical shift in thinking -away from security through competitive antagonism, to one of regional cooperation, away from threat-based deterrence to one of mutual trust.

Originally the term addressed the problem of military security -how to minimize the possibility of war by way of verification, confidence-building measures, better communication and the like.
In this era of globalization when the world has become a global village, even a small skirmish can escalate into global crisis. Peace and common security are thus, central to the realization of development of both the states and individuals.

The attempt to develop a common security policy in the light of the global and regional crises and challenges was first made by the European Union.

The common security thinking was fostered in the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). Global and regional crises and challenges, coupled with developments within the EU, made new demands on the EU’s external activities. Therefore it was
decided to develop a Common and Foreign Security Policy (CFSP) for the European Union. The CFSP was established as the second pillar of the European Union in the 1993 Treaty on European Union signed at Maastricht .

Such thinking emphasizes efforts to achieve the security

of the whole region through multilateral security cooperation, on the basis of the view that regional security is indivisible.

In this context it needs to be noted that the second commission of the 1980s, the Independent Commission on Disarmament and Security Issues (chaired by Olof Palme), authored the famous “common security” report which drew attention to alternative ways of thinking about peace and
security. While it focused on military issues and the staples of national security, it acknowledged that in the Third World security was in addition threatened by “poverty and deprivation, by economic inequality.” The Report also noted that “Common security requires that people live in dignity and peace, that they have enough to eat and are able to find work and live in a world without poverty and destitution.” Common security, therefore, includes the aspects of human security .

Human security can be regarded as the component of common security concept given that human security is no less linked to human rights and democracy than common security itself. If human security is regarded as the source of basic rights pertaining to citizens and communities, that legitimises joint policy responses to specific short-term situations of disruption and tension, it can result in common considerations and a degree of common ground.

In Asia, two things are vital for realising common security : the speedy achievement of regional economic integration, and spreading the desire for further development and prosperity within a borderless Asia.

Among the reactors of the group, Mr. Kamei Aphun pointed out that in the contemporary interdependent world, states, which function as units in the international system, can ensure their security not in isolation but through promotion of collective security . He viewed that the need for collective security has led to the formation of many unions and the creation of forums which offer conducive platforms for exchange of socio-economic, political, cultural and educational activities.