Analysis of the security concept in international documents on combating global climate change

Climate change is increasingly perceived worldwide, forcing states to address it at the international level. Although in the last 50 years, many international conferences on this subject were held and documents containing important instructions were prepared, efforts haven't always been successful. States prioritising their own interests often hindered a successful climate policy. Security is the most determining factor in states' decision-making. Therefore, this dissertation seeks an answer for the question, "How is the relationship between the security policy of states and their fight against climate change?" and analyses how the fight against climate change is affected by the security policy of states. In order to test the hypothesis, "the security policy of states negatively affects the measures to be taken to combat climate change", documents (theory), states' attitudes and policies during the preparation of the documents and their application of the documents (practice) were analysed. Quantitative and qualitative content analyses as well as secondary literature research are used as methods. It was determined that security plays an important role on both levels of efforts. The impact of security on the fight against climate change varies according to the dynamics of international relations and great powers' policies. The relationship studied has changed over time. Especially in the first stages, states' security policies have negatively affected the fight against climate change. In the 21st century, the increasingly perceived climate change, threatens the security of states. Thus, great powers began to include dealing with climate change in their security policies.