Malaise or Farce - The International Failure of Maritime Security

Abstract

The world faces a complex, rapidly changing strategic environment, occasioned by the end of the Cold War, the potential demise of globalism and the rise of non-state terrorism. This has led many Western states towards revisionist national security strategies focused increasingly upon reactive land-centred operations and an over-reliance on seemingly unenforceable international law. Credible evidence suggests that in many states, including Canada, maritime security lacks financial or political resources, sustainability, relevance or multiagency coherence. The world’s oceans continue to offer both non-state terrorists and transnational criminals a relatively benign environment in which to operate. With NATO predominantly focused upon wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan, elements of these socially malignant groups ply the world’s oceans with near impunity. When august organizations such as the RAND Corporation highlight the impact of crime and terrorism on maritime security, it would be prudent to review international responses and re-evaluate strategy.1