Nationalsecurity

National security is the set of policies, institutions, and practices by which a state identifies, assesses, and responds to threats that could undermine its sovereignty, territorial integrity, political stability, or economic well-being. It aims to protect citizens, critical infrastructure, and institutions from risks such as military aggression, terrorism, organized crime, cyber attacks, espionage, pandemics, and natural disasters. National security is pursued through a combination of defense, diplomacy, law enforcement, intelligence, and emergency preparedness, with coordination across civilian and military actors.

Key components include defense policy and armed forces, allied security arrangements, intelligence services, border and immigration control, homeland security, cyber security, protection of critical infrastructure, energy resilience, economic security, and public health surveillance. Institutions typically operate under a legal framework that includes constitutional provisions, security and counterterrorism laws, oversight by legislatures or courts, and civil liberties protections.

Historically, national security priorities have shifted from conventional military threats to encompass asymmetric threats such as terrorism and cyber operations. Today many states address a broader risk landscape, including cyber warfare, misinformation, climate-related disruption, and global health risks, often through international cooperation and information sharing.

Debates within national security policy center on balancing security with civil rights and privacy, the proportionality of measures, transparency and accountability, and how best to allocate limited resources while protecting democratic norms.