Trade policy and security policy are linked in complex ways that play a vital role in determining the nature of international politics. These linkages are not a new phenomenon; some analysts and practitioners have recognized the interconnectedness of trade and security policy since the days of 16th and 17th century mercantilism. However, contemporary international relations scholarship tends to deal with economics and security as separate spheres, largely neglecting the ways that these two areas affect one another.
To address this shortcoming, this project examined the influence of both traditional and human security factors in driving trade policy measures and the corresponding implications of different types of trade arrangements for international traditional and human security. In particular, we addressed several key gaps in the existing literature: (1) the concept of “human security” as a driver and potential result of trade arrangements, independent of and distinct from “traditional” security concerns; (2) the role of different types of trade arrangements (i.e. global, minilateral, or bilateral) in defining the nature of security-trade linkages; and (3) the concrete effects that trade arrangements have on the traditional and non-traditional security environment.
Sponsored by the Center for Global Partnership and the Korea Foundation