Constitutional Law Codexery

National security

Security and defense of a sovereign state and its institutions.

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National security is a concept that has evolved from simple military-focused definitions to encompass a wide range of non-military concerns.[1]

Quick Facts

Field
  • Security studies
  • political science
  • military strategy

Facts from the source article.

Key facts and history

That Act created the precursor to the Department of Defense, subordinated military branches to the Secretary of Defense, and established the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency.[2] Notably, the Act did not define national security, which was conceivably advantageous as its ambiguity made it a powerful phrase to invoke against diverse threats.[3][4] Drezner explains that the term "national security" became embedded in American political discourse only with the onset of the Cold War.[5] After 9/11, the trend accelerated, with politicians giving ever-greater emphasis to national security and the number of things that affect it.[5]

The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff defines national security of the United States in a specific manner.[6] In 2010, the White House identified "security" as one of the country's "four enduring national interests" in its national security strategy.[7] U.S. foreign policy officially adopted national security as a guiding principle when President Harry S. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 on July 26, 1947.[2][4] The military coup in Brazil in 1964 and the one in Argentina in 1976 were significantly influenced by national security ideology taught at the US Army School of the Americas.[8]

What the cited sources add

Drezner observes that policy entrepreneurs across the political spectrum want their issue labeled a national security priority to gain more attention and resources.[5] He notes that once a national security threat has been established, an administration seldom deprioritizes it, though the collapse of the Soviet Union was an instructive exception.[5] Drezner argues that without a more considered discussion about what is and is not a matter of national security, Washington risks spreading its resources too thin.[5] Total Defence is Singapore's whole-of-society national defence concept, adopted from Sweden and Switzerland and introduced in 1984.[9]

In 2025, Iceland became the initial country to formally incorporate the possible collapse of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation into its national security framework.[10]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Romm, "Defining national security: the nonmilitary aspects", Council on Foreign Relations, 1993, p. 122; Paleri, "National Security: Imperatives And Challenges", Tata McGraw-Hill, 2008, p. 521; Romm, "Defining national security: the nonmilitary aspects", Council on Foreign Relations, 1993, p. 122; Romm, "Defining national security: the nonmilitary aspects", Council on Foreign Relations, 1993, p. 122; Quoted in Paleri (2008) ibid. Pg 52.; Watson, "U.S. national security: a reference handbook", ABC-CLIO, 2008, p. 281; Peace and security en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Romm, "Defining national security: the nonmilitary aspects", Council on Foreign Relations, 1993, p. 122; Davis, "U.S. Foreign Policy and National Security: Chronology and Index for the 20th Century", ABC-CLIO, 2010, p. xiii–xiv (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Romm, "Defining national security: the nonmilitary aspects", Council on Foreign Relations, 1993, p. 122 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Open Library record, ISBN 9780876091357 ("Defining national security"). CC0 (metadata); book content not read. openlibrary.org
  5. Drezner, "How Everything Became National Security", Foreign Affairs, 12 August 2024. facts only, no text reused. foreignaffairs.com
  6. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: US NATO Military Terminology Group, "JP 1 (02) "Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms", 2001 (As amended through 31 July 2010)", Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Department of Defense, 2010, p. 361 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: . National Security Strategy, May 2010. Office of the President of the United States, White House, p. 17. . Accessed 23 September 2010. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Emir Sader, "The coup in Brazil and the doctrine of National Security" (Portuguese) http://cartamaior.com.br/?/Blog/Blog-do-Emir/O-golpe-no-Brasil-e-a-doutrina- (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Speech by Senior Minister of State for Defence, Mr Heng Chee How, at the Total Defence Awards 2019", www.mindef.gov.sg; "Minister Chan Chun Sing: Total Defence is Singapore's Best Response to Evolving Challenges", www.mindef.gov.sg; "The 2nd Decade: Nation Building in Progress 1975 – 1985", National Archives of Singapore, 2010, p. 63; "Fact Sheet: Evolution and History of Total Defence over the past 35 years", MINDEF Singapore, 15 February 2019 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "National security" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Iceland deems possible Atlantic current collapse a security risk", Reuters, 12 November 2025 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article National security (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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