From 11/9 to 9/11

Continuity or Change in International Politics?

Resumo

Since the shock from the September 11, 2001, terrorista strikes on the USA, the widespread belief is that the world is no longer the same and that the character of international politics and of security have radically evolved. The contention of this article is that, while security and the search for long-term stability remain for all societies the paramount objective, it is only the  definition and perception of the notion of security that have undergone a significant reappraisal, but this fundamental shift actually took place prior to 9/11 with the end of the Cold War, even though it was not truly discerned or fully acknowledged. Nevertheless, the terror strikes on the US East Coast  have undeniably compelled the international community to realise that overt threats have been replaced by considerations of “risks” and “challenges” and that the international environment is based no longer on the management of security but on the management of insecurity. Transnational dimensions have assumed a salient profile in societal evaluations as considerations of stability and security and in this perspective, 9/11 has led the USA to adopt a more radical and uncompromising approach in its foreign and defence policy, to take account of the new definition of security and of the more diffuse notion of contemporary challenges, including assymetrical threats.