Nov 11th Lecture
Two reasons why we pay attention to infectious disease as a potential security program: Infectious disease could be used as an agent of harm and destruction & it can become a challenge to interdependece because interconnections have grown in density and speed.
Infectious Diseases & International Security
Infectious diseases threaten human security especiailly because of growing resistance to modern drugs and high speed travel (interdependence: states use and rely on each other for many thing—economy, trade, etc.)
The Link Between Health & Security
It was not until the 90s following the Cold War, and things like the human immunodeficency virus that infectious diseases and international security around it gained attention.
During the Cold War, there was some attention on it because of interstate conflict. After that interstate conflict died down, the attention on the link between international health and secuirty began to grow.
Now after development, developed states like the U.S. started framing infectious diseases as largely kind of external breaths: something that was coming from abroad, that could potentially affect the security of developed states.
Infectious diseases cause governments to use a lot of resources they have. Especailly after the events of September 11th, 2001 there was a lot more attentio of the different pathalogical plans coming from abroad as a international and national security concern.
In addtion, because of 9/11 there was more attention coming to the potential pathological diseases coming from terrorist organizations. Especailly in countries/places that depend on tourism because a lot of people fleeing to those places coming to your own country could potentially spread diease. Many politicans market/see these hysteras of the threat of biological weapons as potential brands.
Diseases became weapons in a way that terrorist organizations could also use.
The Link Between Health and Security
Increasing interdependence between states is another reason we study infectious disease as a potential secuirty program. Infectious diseases can become internatioanl challenges because interconnectious have become important to build/shape economies, trade, and reliance on foregin goods.
Air travel allowed individuals to travel the globe more easily and convientently than ever before.
Trade, finance, and food production → Greenland found it’s first mosquito on a trading cargo shipment from another country. Mosquitos can’t survive in cold weather so the fact it’s able to is a nod to global warming. Additonally it shows how possible pathogens can travel long distances through the shipment of goods needed for domestic resources. These resources come from other countries because no one country can produce everything on it’s own → resources and innovation and spread throughout the world and states rely on each other to provide support. Trade, finance, and food production requires large numbers of people and goods to move every day which facilitates the movement of indvidual pathogens.
With the flow of economic and political refugees also comes the flow of mentality.
Advanced telecommunications allow the world to find out about issues almost as recently as they happen.
We also have the tools to identify when potential outbreaks are happening so we can pay more attention to those issues and ideally have a faster response time to prevent those dieases from coming to our country.
How Can Infectious Diseases Threaten International Security?
Infectious diseases can amplify existing social, economic, and political instabilties by affecting domestic and global economy.
If you’ve already had a crises (economic, political, etc.) and you have to use resources to have prevent the spreadable virus those are resources that you would have used to promote economic growth, food secuirty, etc.
Can exacerbate supply chain issues and restain resource access. They can also stress political systems and create opportunties for authoritarian incrimination with states justifying cracking down on its liberties to prevent the spread of different viruses.
They can also create an increased sense of nationalism with the idea that threats are coming from abroad and that should be used to justify controling the flow of people. Infectious dieases can increase repression against demands for basic rights. They can encourage the spread of misinformation, they can make exisiting humanitarian conflicts and conflict zones even worse.
Dieaseas on their own already create political issues but when combined with the government cracking down on liberties or potential supply chain issues they’re exacerbated. They multiply the effects of problems.
How Does IR Think About Infectious Diseases?
Infectious diseases can threaten military and peacekeeping operations → If your armed forces have diseases, suddenly you don’t have powerful armed forces.
National interest is usually in keeping your population alive → population dying due to disease → creates challenges in infrastructure, instiutions, and economy