Human Security: The New National Security

In an opinion article in the Washington Post, Conor Williams discusses the need for a different approach towards national security than the traditional flex your muscles, military approach that the United States has been famous especially since the Cold War.  He points to US participation in Afghanistan in the 1980s when instead of helping the country rebuild and revive while it was not under a tyrant, the United States left the country in ruins after the Soviet Union left.  Now, as we are again in an international struggle in Afghanistan we are left “trying to win Afghan hearts and minds while simultaneously winning and securing territory” which instead of costing the United States a few million dollars in the 80’s, it is now costing us billions.  Williams’ claim is that instead of approaching national security with military strength, the United States should strive for global humanitarianism and human security.  His reasoning for this lies in the fact that when the United States is threatened by a foreign body it is rarely by a country of great economic prosperity.  The threats usually lie where there are few economic opportunities and even fewer political opportunities.  This is proven through Afghanistan, Yemen, and other desperate and desolate countries around the world.  He claims that as Egypt is striving to break away from their current political and economic situation, the United States should step forward and help because it is “it's both the right thing to do and to prevent them from lapsing into instability and insecurity.”

I agree with Williams completely.  The world we live in is not one of individualized countries and superpowers.  We are very much in a global environment where the fate and livelihood of each country is hooked arm in arm with other countries.  I understand the petition that it is not the United State’s job to clean up other countries’ messes and that we can’t even take care of our own problems right now let alone someone else’s, but as Williams points out, part of the United States’ economic mess lies in that we didn’t do the humanitarian thing 30 years ago.  Now hindsight is 20/20; there is always the possibility that even if we had helped Afghanistan rebuild and regroup 30 years ago we could still be in this mess now if Al Qaeda had still come to power.  However, obviously, what we tried 30 years ago didn’t work and didn’t save us any money or hardship later, so maybe its time to try something a little different.  We need to not only cheer on Egypt’s fight for a more democratic government and more political rights, we need to actively bolster them up and help them create the country they deserve and want to be.  Everyone deserves to be as economically, politically, and socially wealthy as the United States, and by helping them, we may in fact be helping ourselves.  If every country had the same rights and human security as the United States, that would go a long way to help solve our immigration issue, our increasing carbon footprint, and many more of the battles the United States is facing internally.  I think of it this way, in 1776, France stepped up and had the generosity and understood personal interest in helping the United States get out from under a tyrant, and now it is our turn to be the ‘bigger’ country and help someone else for the good of them and for the good of ourselves.