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ABSTRACT
Security discourse in contemporary times has brought to the fore the relevance of regions as indispensable loci for analysing, understanding and managing security challenges across many spaces of the globe. In the process of deepening this discursive analysis of regional security, scholars have developed a few concepts. Two of these analytical concepts are ‘security complexes’ and ‘regional security governance’. However, extant literature rarely examines the conceptual and empirical interplay between these two constructs. It is on this note that this article asks: how are security complexes and security governance impacting one another? To what extent could their pragmatic interactions shape the choice of regional organisations that will coordinate joint security undertakings? It argues that while it is the formation of security complexes from a trans-state perspective that will generate the necessity for regional security governance, the dissolution of such a complex equally demands an effective orchestration of regional security governance. The article also contends that the spatial scope of a trans-state security complex is a central factor for determining the appropriateness of the regional organisation that will coordinate its security governance project. It specifically draws on empirical evidence from West Africa to bolster these arguments.
Notes on contributor
Babatunde F. Obamamoye is an Australian Government Research Training Program (AGRTP) Scholar and PhD Candidate in the Department of International Relations at the Australian National University. Although currently on study leave, he is also an Assistant Lecturer in the Department of International Relations at the Obafemi Awolowo University. Between August and September 2019, he was a PhD Visiting Researcher with the Peace and Security Department of the African Union Commission. He holds Bachelor of Science (BSc) and Master of Science (MSc) degrees in International Relations from the Obafemi Awolowo University. His research interest focuses on neo-Gramscian theory of hegemony, non-Western liberal peacebuilding and regional security with a geographic concentration on Africa.
Notes
1 Lake and Morgan, Regional Orders; Fawn, ‘“Regions” and their Study’.
2 Buzan and Wæver, Regions and Powers; Lake and Morgan, ‘The New Regionalism in Security Affairs’.
3 Buzan, People, States, and Fear.
4 Webber et al., ‘The Governance of European Security’.
5 Muhibat, Evolving Approaches.
6 Galbreath and Sauerteig, ‘Regime complexity’.
7 Ibid, 82.
8 Tavares, Regional Security.
9 Lake and Morgan, note 2 above.
10 Buzan, note 3 above, 106.
11 Buzan, Wæver and Wilde, Security, 201.
12 Buzan, ‘Regional Security Complex’; Buzan and Wæver, note 2 above.
13 Hills, ‘Managing the Interface’; Kelly, ‘Security Theory’.
14 Dokken, African Security Politics Redefined, 75.
15 Watanabe and Sahashi, ‘New States, New Approaches’, 3.
16 Buzan and Wæver, note 2 above, 75.
17 See, Kelly, note two above; Hoogensen, ‘Bottoms Up’.
18 Lake and Morgan, note 2 above, 12.
19 Lake, ‘Regional Security Complexes’, 46.
20 See, Buzan, note 3 above; Buzan and Wæver, note 2 above.
21 Wallensteen and Sollenberg, ‘Armed Conflict’.
22 Hettne and Söderbaum, ‘Theorising the Rise of Regionness’.
23 Ibid.
24 Fawcett, ‘Regionalism from an Historical Perspective’.
25 Buzan, note 3 above, 106.
26 Buzan and Wæver, note 2 above, 45.
27 Lake, note 19 above.
28 Breslin and Croft, ‘Researching Regional Security Governance’.
29 See, Webber, ‘Security Governance’; Krahmann, ‘Conceptualizing Security Governance’; Adler and Greve, ‘When Security Community Meets Balance of Power’.
30 See, Sperling, ‘Regional Security Governance’.
31 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan, ‘Regional Security Governance’, 299.
32 Webber et al., note 4 above.
33 Kirchner and Dominguez, ‘Regional Organizations and Security Governance’.
34 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan, note 31 above, 300.
35 Breslin and Croft, note 28 above; Webber et al., note 4 above.
36 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan, note 31 above, 297.
37 See, Kirchner and Dominguez, The Security Governance of Regional Organizations; Sperling, Handbook of Governance and Security.
38 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan, note 31 above.
39 Krahmann, ‘From State to Non-State Actors’.
40 Webber et al., note 4 above, 4.
41 Ibid.
42 Krahmann, ‘Security Governance and Networks’.
43 Kirchner and Dominguez, note 37 above.
44 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan, note 31 above, 300.
45 Breslin and Croft, note 28 above.
46 Bah, ‘West Africa’.
47 Kirchner and Dominguez, not 33 above.
48 Brosig, ‘Introduction’.
49 Hurrell, ‘Explaining the Resurgence of Regionalism’; Farrell, ‘The Global Politics of Regionalism’; Hameiri, ‘Theorising Regions’.
50 Charbonneau, ‘Whose “West Africa”?’.
51 Ebo, ‘Non-State Actors’; Hills, ‘Managing the Interface’; Olukoshi, ‘West Africa’s Political Economy in the Next Millennium’.
52 Bailes and Cottey, ‘Regional Security Cooperation’, 198.
53 Fawn, ‘“Regions” and their Study’, 16.
54 Hurrell, note 49 above, 334.
55 Hemmer and Katzenstein, ‘Why is there No NATO in Asia?’, 575.
56 Hurrell, note 49 above, 334.
57 Buzan and Wæver, not 2 above, 233.
58 Dokken, African Security Politics Redefined, 75.
59 Bøås, ‘Nigeria and West Africa’, 144.
60 Bah, ‘West Africa’.
61 Essuman-Johnson, ‘Regional Conflict Resolution Mechanisms’.
62 Sawyer, ‘Violent Conflicts and Governance’.
63 Silberfein and Conteh, ‘Boundaries and Conflict in the Mano River Region’.
64 Alao, The Burden of Collective Goodwill.
65 Sawyer, note 62 above.
66 Solomon, ‘Regionalisation of Domestic Conflicts’, 141.
67 Silberfein and Conteh, note 63 above.
68 Whitehouse and Strazzari, ‘Introduction’.
69 Comolli, ‘The Regional Problem of Boko Haram’.
70 Obamamoye, ‘Counter-Terrorism’.
71 Agbiboa, ‘Borders that Continue to Bother Us’, 412.
72 Buhari, ‘An Address Delivered at the 70th Session of the United Nations’, 3.
73 Charbonneau, note 50 above.
74 Raleigh and Dowd, ‘Governance and Conflict’.
75 Charbonneau and Chafer, ‘Introduction’.
76 Harmon, ‘Securitization Initiatives’.
77 Renard, ‘Terrorism and Other Transnational Threats’, 2.
78 Charbonneau, note 50 above, 408.
79 Benedikter and Ouedraogo, ‘Saving West Africa’; Whitehouse and Strazzari, note 68 above.
80 United Nations, ‘Report of the Secretary-General’.
81 Renard, ‘Terrorism and Other Transnational Threats’.
82 Adebajo, Liberia’s Civil War.
83 Obi, ‘Economic Community of West African States on the Ground’.
84 Ibid; Alao, note 64 above; Adebajo, note 81 above.
85 Brosig, ‘Introduction’.
86 Kacowicz and Press-Barnathan ‘Regional Security Governance’.
87 Ismail and Kifle, ‘New Collective Security Arrangements’.
88 United Nations, ‘Security Council Resolution 2359’.
89 Karlsrud ‘From Liberal Peacebuilding to Stabilization’.
90 Obamamoye, note 70 above.
91 Agbiboa, note 71 above.
92 United Nations, note 87 above.
93 Ibid.
94 African Union, ‘AU’s peace and security council 484th meeting’.
95 Obamamoye, note 70 above, 432.
96 Charbonneau, ‘Intervention in Mali’.
97 Dieng, ‘The Multi-National Joint Task Force’.
98 Obamamoye, note 70 above.
99 Obi, note 82 above, 119.
100 Lopez-Lucia, ‘Performing EU Agency’, 462.
101 Maiangwa, ‘West Africa’s Terrorist Challenge’, 4.
102 Maiangwa, ‘Assessing the Responses of the Economic Community of West African States to the Recurring and Emerging Security Threats in West Africa’, 112.
103 Ibid, 112.
104 Akanji, ‘Sub-Regional Security Challenge’.
105 Akanji, ‘Sub-Regional Security Challenge’.
106 Ismail, ‘The Boko Haram Insurgency’.
107 Ibid, 202.
108 Dieng, ‘The Multi-National Joint Task Force’, 490, 491.
109 Engel and Nugent, Respacing Africa; Warf and Arias, The Spatial Turn.
110 Döring, ‘The Changing ASF Geography’.
111 Döring and Herpolsheimer ‘The Spaces of Intervention’.
112 Lake and Morgan, note 1 above; Fawn, note 53 above.
113 Aris and Wenger, ‘Introduction’, 289.
114 Lake, note 19 above, 36.
115 Döring and Herpolsheimer, note 104 above.