Security at a Price

This volume in the Weapons of Mass Destruction series makes the case that the United States’ expansive missile defence policy has eroded both its own security and that of its allies. These findings are based on an examination of the response of a number of key states to U.S. policy, including Russia, China, North Korea and Iran. Situating their argument in the theoretical debate on balancing in unipolarity, the authors contrast their view to influential perspectives that see little evidence of hard balancing against the U.S. in the post-Cold War era. Adopting a neorealist perspective, the authors demonstrate the clear presence of this inter-state practice, providing insight into the international politics of unipolarity, showing how hard balancing and security dilemma-related dynamics operate in the contemporary strategic environment.

“A thoughtful and thought-provoking book by two leading thinkers on the topic. Ballistic missile defence is here to stay and it is imperative that we fully think through its strategic implications and how some of the programme's most destabilising effects can be mitigated and managed.”

A thoughtful and thought-provoking book by two leading thinkers on the topic. Ballistic missile defence is here to stay and it is imperative that we fully think through its strategic implications and how some of the programme’s most destabilising effects can be mitigated and managed. -- Andrew Futter, Associate Professor of International Politics, University of Leicester
The issue of ballistic missile defence is permeating deeper into the security culture and force posture of an expanding group of states. These authors have constructed a remarkably readable account of this intriguing story. Don’t have a lot of time but need to catch up with what has happened to BMD since Ronald Reagan and Star Wars? Look no further. -- Ron Huisken, Senior Fellow, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University
The appeal of missile defense is built on its promise to do away with the vulnerability of mutual deterrence and tilt the existing balance of power. However, as the authors of this study show, this quest for invulnerability comes with a price. Other states adjust to restore the balance and deny the gains that missile defense seems to offer.  -- Pavel Podvig, Senior Research Fellow at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research
This is an insightful and well-researched study of the self-defeating nature of the US obsession with missile defense. As the late Kenneth Waltz warned, states’ unilateral quest for superiority triggers counterbalancing by others. Rising threats posed by China’s nuclear modernization and North Korea’s nuclear ambition are good examples of how missile defense results in less security for the US. -- Zhang Baohui, Professor of Political Science, Lingnan University, Hong Kong

Nicholas Khoo is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics at the University of Otago, New Zealand.Reuben Steff is a Lecturer in the Political Science and Public Policy Programme at the University of Waikato, Hamilton.

This volume in the Weapons of Mass Destruction series makes the case that the United States' expansive missile defence policy has eroded both its own security and that of its allies. These findings are based on an examination of the response of a number of key states to U.S. policy, including Russia, China, North Korea and Iran. Situating their argument in the theoretical debate on balancing in unipolarity, the authors contrast their view to influential perspectives that see little evidence of hard balancing against the U.S. in the post-Cold War era. Adopting a neorealist perspective, the authors demonstrate the clear presence of this inter-state practice, providing insight into the international politics of unipolarity, showing how hard balancing and security dilemma-related dynamics operate in the contemporary strategic environment.

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