Security has traditionally been seen as the means of defending a territory, primarily through the use of military power. However, as the world evolves through the process of globalization, so too does the concept of security. It now incorporates military, political, economic, societal and environmental issues, as well as the many links that bind them. Yet for most people in the world, they face much greater threats from diseases, hunger, unsafe water, environmental pollution, crimes, natural disasters and terrorism.
　　
　　
　　New security concept
　　
　　In 2005, three major non-traditional security problems emerged, namely natural disasters, social conflicts and terrorism.
　　Today natural disasters and pandemic diseases can bring any country to its knees, impact its neighbors and even spread across the world, said Yu Xiaoqiu, Deputy Director of the Division of World Development and Change Studies of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.
　　After the end of the Cold War, non-traditional security problems began to play an increasingly more prominent role globally. “Let’s take natural disasters for example,” Yu said. “In the past, if a country suffered a certain natural disaster, it was considered an internal issue that needed no outside assistance. This was because the disaster seldom impacted on neighboring countries. The natural disaster was therefore not seen as a problem in the context of the world.”
　　
　　With frequent interaction among the world’s population, the deterioration of the environment and the recurrent changes of nature, catastrophic disasters are becoming more common. In October 2005, Hurricane Katrina swept across Louisiana in the United States, causing more than 1,000 deaths. In the same month, a massive earthquake crippled Pakistan, killing more than 73,000 people and leaving 3 million homeless. These disasters have influenced the political, economic and social aspects of the global village.
　　Yu said that natural disasters bring up four major issues: First, they cause a huge amount of economic losses and government expenditures. For example, Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita cost the United States hundreds of billions of dollars. Second, they cause serious psychological problems for victims and panic for society. Third, if the rescue work is not effective, protests can lead to anti-government actions and internal political and social instability. Fourth, as a disaster-hit country focuses all its attention on domestic issues, its ability to deal with external problems and crises might be weakened.
　　With economic and information globalization binding different countries together, nations today are far more interdependent than they were in the past. Large natural disasters inevitably involve more than an individual country or region. They bring a negative influence to world development, stability and security. Therefore, building a joint early warning system and taking natural disaster prevention now are workable ways to erase this threat, stressed Yu.
　　
　　Be prepared
　　
　　As early as February 2003, the U.S. think tank RAND Corp. publicized a report on evaluating the U.S. Government’s work in dealing with emergencies and disasters. The report pointed out that to reduce the risks brought about by disasters, emphasis should be placed on enlarging long-term investment in prevention and protection, but not the capability of meeting emergencies. “Both the government and the people should make preparation before things happen,” noted the report.
　　In a populous country like China, the government should help its people protect themselves in preparation for natural disasters, as well as designing sturdy housing and perfecting infrastructure facilities, added Yu.
　　Pandemic diseases now pose a major threat to the globalized world. According to the U.S.-based Foreign Affairs published in August 2005, international health officials are warning that a deadly avian influenza virus may soon spread rapidly, overwhelming unprepared health systems in rich and poor countries alike. The lethal virus, known as H5N1, first emerged in Hong Kong in 1997 and since then has been responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of chickens, ducks and other poultry in Asia and Europe. “The death toll could be in the millions around the globe. Experts are alarmed at the inadequacy of national and international plans to deal with such a pandemic,” the magazine said.
　　Dr. William Karesh and Dr. Robert Cook, both with the U.S.-based Wildlife Conservation Society, explained how to contain the threat at its source by reforming crucial interactions between animals and humans. They believe that better world wide surveillance can detect infectious diseases among wildlife to reduce the costs of new outbreaks; new public-private partnerships should be established; enlarging financial incentives--the world Trade Organization and other appropriate international bodies--must also start requiring governments to better regulate the health aspects of wild animal trading. On the health care side, they think decisions still tend to be made without sufficient input from all appropriate stakeholders, and greater bilateral and multilateral aid is needed for efforts to gather, evaluate and share information on infectious diseases that affect the wide range of living organisms present around the world. The two researchers also called for a reduction in wildlife trade and its subsequent regulation.
　　Fortunately, global government leaders and experts are working together to build early warning systems for natural disasters and the World Health Organization members are in global discussions on how to deal with avian flu. These increased cooperative moves are essential to global problem solving.
　　
　　All about cooperation
　　
　　COOPERATING FOR SECURITY: UN leaders pass a resolution to block terrorist activities during a global meeting on cooperation on counterterrorism
　　Xiong Guangkai, Chairman of China Institute for International Strategic Studies (CIISS), recently outlined security threats emerging around the world in a Xinhua News Agency report.
　　Xiong summed up the security threats at the annual CIISS conference by outlining three types of security threats. These are terrorism, a non-traditional threat; nuclear proliferation, a traditional threat to security; and natural security threats such as the Indian Ocean tsunami and possible bird flu pandemic.
　　To deal with common challenges around the world, the international community has stood united in engaging in strategic dialogue and multilateral consultations, said Xiong.
　　His research indicates that between January and November 2005, terrorists had launched 360 attacks worldwide, an increase of 20 percent over the same period in 2004.
　　“Terrorism has caused damage around the world, including China,” he said, referring to the terror attack in Jordan’s capital Amman, in which three Chinese citizens were killed and one injured.
　　Under such circumstances, observers on security believe that cooperation among countries, as well as building a new security concept, is necessary.
　　At the summit on the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the UN on September 15, 2005, Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered a speech, raising specific suggestions on promoting international cooperation.
　　When suggesting ways to build world harmony, Hu said, “First, we should set up the new security concept of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and collaboration and establish a fair and effective collective security mechanism.”
　　Hu went on to say international disputes should be settled through peaceful means and cooperation was needed in the fight against terrorism.
　　“As the core of the collective security mechanism, the role of the UN can only be strengthened and must not be weakened,” Hu told his audience.
　　Setting aside their differences, many countries have increased their cooperation in the security field in the past year, said Xiong with CIISS.
　　The Chinese and U.S. presidents met five times in 2005, agreeing to combat terrorism, prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons and cooperate on reducing the threat from diseases. The two countries also held two strategic talks in 2005.
　　As for Sino-Russian cooperation, the two countries launched a consultation mechanism on national security and carried out close security coordination within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional body that also includes Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
　　Moreover, China and Europe have also shared anti-terrorism intelligence and jointly trained their security personnel.
　　When world security threats mutate, the effort of individual nations is not enough. International cooperation is the most efficient way forward, said Xiong.

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