ABSTRACT
During the course of the past 25–30 years, we have witnessed an increasing complexity of the issues associated with defense and international security in global terms. Some of the circumstances that have contextualized these processes are centered on the de-activation of the conflict between East and West that acted as a driving force behind conflict in global terms. The increasing complexity can also be attributed to the acceleration of globalization and the deepening of global interdependence, as well as a relative erosion of the role of the national state as the predominant motivator of social life, although in recent years, in light of the financial and debt crisis, a notable revival of a more active attitude is seen in nation states. The emergence and the growing role of non-state—including nationless—actors should also be noted in the international panorama, as well as the increase in conflicts that do not fit into conventional terms and a renewed perspective about the issue of natural resources, their access, exploration, exploitation, extraction, preservation, and protection as they are beginning to be seen from a more strategic perspective and related to security.
