Toward a Constructivist Approach to the Gulf Region's Security

Abstract

For long decades, the Gulf States have relied on the United States to provide security for their countries, but since the Obama's administration, the U.S. is signaling its intention to withdraw from the MENA region making the current security architecture in the Gulf region in need for revisiting. While the Gulf States can diversify their security, this process takes time, costly and it is doubtful that it can bring about security to the region. Instead of using a realist paradigm to establish a new security arrangement in the Gulf region, this paper is using a constructivist approach to argue that the Gulf States, Iraq, and Iran can establish a security community where they all can enjoy security. The security community refers to the creation of a peaceful comity of states through gradual confidence building and integration. It is a multilateral organization that provides collective security to its members and where states also align together to eliminate the use of force as a recourse of action within their designated political space. The paper explains first why the Gulf region needs a new security arrangement. It then argues that an alternative realist approach is not in the Gulf States' interests. Finally, using the ASEAN countries as an example, it outlines a constructivist approach to the region's security.