| The end of the Cold War has occasioned a critical rethinking of the concept of security. Security, conventionally preoccupied with military matters between states, is now being rethought in the context of a wider array of important issues. More than just an academic exercise, this rethinking has found its way into policymaking circles. Among these, the European Union (EU) has stated its intention to approach security with a broadened perspective--one which addresses conventional, economic, and environmental concerns. However, this is no simple task. The 'Dia-eclectics of European Security' implies not only how new security issues emerge from prior contradictions within security policy, but also how they cannot be treated in a linear fashion. Environmental, economic and conventional security problems are dependent on a multitude of different factors and are interrelated in complex and difficult ways. Not surprisingly, with respect to the East Central European region, the EU's aim has been only partially realized. The EU's recent engagement of a conventionally-oriented Common Foreign and Security Policy, with its commitment to a narrow articulation of European identity, influences the way in which the Union approaches other security concerns. As a result, the Union's attachment to a 'neo-traditional' approach constricts its consideration of economic security to status-quo terms, while a consideration of environmental security remains non-existent. |
