Importance of National Security - Essay Example

National Security Introduction September 11, 2001 world trade centre, New York attack by Al-Qaida terrorist group has created lot of discussions all over the world regarding the national security. National security is one of the much debated topics in the current century. India is facing security threats from Muslim fundamentalist groups from Pakistan while America is facing threats from Islamic radical groups. Palestine if facing security threat from Israel whereas Japan and South Korea is facing challenges from North Korea. Pakistan is currently under severe threats from Taliban. Sri Lanka has faced severe security issues from Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) recently which ended with the total destruction of LTTE after severe fight between Sri Lankan military and LTTE. Thus national security became a global issue. Security and sovereignty are the basic requirements for an independent nation and any threats to these parameters may retard the progress of a nation. Thesis: - Security should be given primary importance for the economic development of a nation. The governments should have ensured maximum protection to the life and wealth of its citizens. Importance of national security National security is important since without that no country can progress. Nobody will try to invest in a country where security is a big issue. For example, in a country like Pakistan or Iraq nobody will dare to invest at present because of the security threats. The economy will never improve if the investments get reduced. Second reason for the need of national security is that it is the government’s duty to ensure protection to its citizen. The public will hate a government who fails to give enough protection to their life and wealth. The basic requirement of good governance is the protection of their people’s interests. National security is important in conserving the culture and diversity of a particular community or region. The intruders will destroy all the cultural aspects of a country which they may hate. For example, the September 11 th attack on World trade centre has resulted in the total destruction of a land mark (World Trade centre) in the New York city for which the American people were proud of. Various common national security issues The main security issue many countries facing are the external attacks from other countries and terrorist groups. For example, India has recently faced a severe national security issue when the Pak trained Muslim fundamental groups attacked Mumbai city. Though several times India has faced security threats from other countries like China and Pakistan earlier, Mumbai attack was totally different from other attacks. The recent security threats many countries facing are from terrorist groups. It can be from external sources and also from internal sources as well. Political and religious reasons are the main inspiration for the activities of terrorist groups. Muslim radical groups believe that America, Israel and India like countries are working against their religion and hence they adopt terrorist activities to counter it. Another security issue most of the nations facing is in the cyber activities. It is easy for hackers to intrude into critical websites and they can steal information from there. The protection of computer systems from hackers is a major security issue many countries are facing now. It is impossible for a country to develop without computer and internet technologies especially under the globalised environment and hence the protection of cyber information is a critical segment in the national security issue. “President Barack Obama pledged to make securing the nations most vital computer networks a top economic and national security priority, broadly detailing the results of 60-day cyber security review that calls for a range of responses to help improve the security of information networks that power the government and the U.S. economy.” (Kebs) Present security threat faced by United States “If the White House sets its national security priorities by lurching from one crisis to the next, there will be no priorities beyond the morning headlines on CNN.” (Carafano) United States is currently facing lot of security threats from different sources. Fights with Muslim fundamentalists in Iraq, Afghanistan (Taliban) and Palestine and the cold war between China and Russia were the major issues till now the US were considered as serious security threats. The September 11 attack on world trade centre New York has revealed the weakness of US security systems. Terrorists invent new strategies day by day and hence preventing such terrorist activities are extremely difficult. The suicide bomber attack tested to kill former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi is adopted several times successfully in some of the recent terrorist activities. It is difficult to prevent such attacks on national security because of its unpredictability. The recent intercontinental missile testing and nuclear experiments conducted by North Korea became the latest in the national security issues of US. At the time of writing this paper, reports from news papers has shown that United States has send some warplanes to Japan in order to ensure the security of its close ally Japan. Security issues can arise anytime from anywhere because of any reason like political, economical, social, religious or cultural. Verify Name In today’s world, U.S. industry and U.S. security are inextricably linked. As amply demonstrated by the events of the last year, the health of U.S. industry is dependent on security – the security of our borders, our transportation systems, our mail systems, and our computer networks. (The Importance of Public-Private Partnerships to our Nation’s Security) Security is an important issue in almost all the social service issues. Extremists are well aware that any problems in the social service sector will agitate the people and hence they will start agitations against the governments which will destabilize the administration and also the economic development. For example, the Mumbai attack has created lot of criticisms against the Indian government because of their failure in preventing it. Opinions /Suggestions National security issues are faced by many countries and hence only combined efforts can counter the global security threats. For example, India, America and even Pakistan is now facing threats from Muslim radical groups and hence in order to eliminate these threats, these countries must work together along with other countries as well. Security problems always retard the economic growth because of the immense expenditure on defence sector in order to protect the boundaries. These huge spending on defence sector can be utilized in the constructive sector if the security threats are being eliminated. Conclusions National security is an important segment for the economic development of a nation. Security of the life and wealth of each citizen is the preliminary responsibility of every government. Most of the security threats coming from external countries or terrorist groups. Political, economical social and religious reasons often result in terrorist activities and conflicts between nations. United States is at present facing lot of challenges from Muslim fundamental groups, China, Russia and the activities of internet hackers. Work Cited 1. Carafano James, 2009, What Are The Main National Security Threats Faced By Our Nation?, Retrieved on May 31, 2009 from http://knol.google.com/k/james-carafano/what-are-the-main-national-security/1o2rtt4b1e8lz/1# 2. Kebs Brian, 2009, Obama: Cyber Security is a National Security Priority, Retrieved on May 31, 2009 from http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/05/obama_cybersecurity_is_a_natio.html?wprss=securityfix 3. The Importance of Public-Private Partnerships to our Nation’s Security, 2002, Retrieved on May 31, 2009 from http://www.bis.doc.gov/news/2002/kij@paloalto9_18_02.htm Read More