Small Wars Journal

Drug Trafficking and International Security

Sun, 07/24/2016 - 1:35am

Drug Trafficking and International Security

Robert Bunker

Dr. Paul Rexton Kan, a Small Wars Journal--El Centro fellow and professor of National Security Studies, US Army War College, has recently published the new book Drug Trafficking and International Security as part of the Peace and Security in the 21st Century series. A description of the 236 page book (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers) is as follows:

Global drug trafficking intersects with a vast array of international security issues ranging from war and terrorism to migration and state stability. More than just another item on the international security agenda, drug trafficking in fact exacerbates threats to national and international security. In this light, the book argues that global drug trafficking should not be treated as one international security issue among many. Rather, due to the unique nature of the trade, illegal drugs have made key threats to national and international security more complex, durable, and acute. Drug trafficking therefore makes traditional understandings of international security inadequate.

Each chapter examines how drug trafficking affects a particular security issue, such as rogue nations, weak and failing states, protracted intrastate conflicts, terrorism, transnational crime, public health, and cyber security. While some texts see drug trafficking as an international threat in itself, others place it under the topic of transnational organized crime, arguing that the threats emanate from criminal groups. This book, on the other hand, provides a thorough understanding of how vast array of threats to international security are exacerbated by drug trafficking.

More information and purchase the book at Amazon.

Categories: El Centro