Theorizing the Emergence of Security Regions: An Adaptation for the Regional Security Complex Theory

Abstract

Abstract This paper presents an analytical framework as an adaptation for the regional security complex theory (RSCT). Following the end of the Cold War, regional systems have become imperative for understanding security dynamics. Barry Buzan and Ole Wæver's expanded version of the regional security complex (RSC) concept described the regional level as the level where most of the action of security occurs. In fact, the RSCT is one of the most comprehensive frameworks that outline distinct variables necessary for regional security analysis. However, the RSCT overlooked how these RSCs (security regions) emerge and evolve into fully fledged security complexes as described by Buzan and Wæver (2003). Thus, the concept remains under-theorized on how the nascent structures of an RSC build—as it prioritizes already established RSCs. In this respect, this study develops an analytical framework with a set of criteria for identifying the nascent stages of an RSC, as an adaptation for the RSCT. The framework examines the nascent structures of an RSC and highlights the roles played by external great powers in the emergence and evolution of RSCs.