¿The connections between trade and security are hardly new. Analysts and practitioners have
clearly recognized this interrelationship since the mercantilist arguments of the 16th and 17th
centuries. Despite wishful economic liberal thinking that might prefer to separate the
political from the economic it is widely recognized that trade and security are fundamentally
interconnected in the foreign policy of states. Over time as new forms of trade policy have
come into being and the international security environment has evolved the nexus of these two
spheres has grown more complex and scholars have struggled to understand their interconnection
This edited volume addresses linkages between trade and security by examining the influence of
security factors in driving trade policy measures and the corresponding implications of
different types of trade arrangements for international security. Ultimately the project shows
that several elements¿traditional economic factors traditional security factors and human
security factors¿can affect the development of trade agreements and unilateral policies and
that trade policies may have both a direct and an indirect effect on traditional and human
security. The project focuses on Asia a region where economics is increasingly important but
many security issues still linger unresolved as a primary setting to test trade linkage
theories. It also provides a comparative perspective through examination of how the EU and US
have used their trade policies to achieve non-economic goals and how these policies have
influenced their security environment. Case studies in this project cover key trade
institutions and agreements including the World Trade Organization the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations ASEAN Plus Three the East Asia Summit the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation forum the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and bilateral preferential trade
agreements.
