The international security order has found itself suffering beneath the strain of significant tensions these past years. With every publication of this series the problems analysed seem to have worsened: From the rise of ISIS to the situation in the Ukraine; from the refugee crisis in Europe to maritime tensions in East and South China Seas; from hybrid warfare to climate change; from a seemingly never-ending economic crisis to drug trafficking networks; from renewed nuclear threats to cyber warfare. The list appears endless and the international system, in turmoil.
Particularly troublesome is the backdrop upon which these tensions occur: the security status quo has fundamentally changed. Actors, frameworks and interconnections have all grown more complex and diffuse. Challenges such as the heightened importance of hybrid conflicts have come to the fore. Traditional means of warfare will, of course, not fade away, but in this protean 21st century they are no longer central to victory. The techniques used by both ISIS and Russia illustrate that cutting edge information technology, including modelling and simulation, constitute the tools of modern warfare. The speed of the interconnected world has spread to conflict, which has become adaptive to policies and countermeasures, as well as able to embed itself within traditional legal structures.
Year: 2015
Produced by: Brazilian Center of International Relations e Konrad Adenauer Stiftung
Editor: Felix Dane
