An Evaluation of Climate Change as a Security Problem Through the Structure of the International System

Abstract

Climate change is an international problem that adversely affects human life in many ways. Especially in the last 40 years, the increase in the frequency and severity of natural disasters in the world has brought climate change to the international agenda. With the redefinition of security threats as a result of the break in the international system with the end of the Cold War, climate change was considered as a security concern and became the subject of an international negotiation that aims to reduce its negative effects. As a security problem, climate change brings many problems with significant environmental impacts. Within this framework, when considering the climate change-security connection, a multidimensional perspective is required beyond the security perceptions of states, in other words, beyond national security. The climate change-security link requires assessing this issue through migration, energy and the Covid-19 pandemic. Within this context, the main purpose of this article is to discuss how the structure of the international system affects the emergence of climate change, which is a multidimensional issue. The main argument of this study is that climate change, which has started to be considered as a security problem especially in the post-Cold War period, is not only an environmental problem, but also has a multidimensional, multi-layered character.