Drug Trafficking and Narco-Terrorism as Security Threats: A Study of India’s North-East

Abstract

Security issues in international relations, particularly during the era of the Cold War, were and had been dominated by the realist paradigm which saw the preservation of the state from external threat. Such a conception of security provided a very myopic and narrow understanding of the security problem of states, particularly smaller states. During the past decade, attempts are being made to broaden the security agenda to include not only military but also other sectors: political, economic, societal and ecological. Furthermore, with globalisation and the opening up of the economy has provided scope for cross-border migration and also illicit trade, especially narcotics, terrorism and a dangerous mix of both: narco-terrorism. This article will throw a light on the non-traditional security threats problem and issues of illicit drug trafficking and narco-terrorism in North-east India particularly in the case of Manipur. © 2013 Indian Council of World Affairs.