Reimagining Security in a Post-Western World: the Cases of South Africa and Colombia

The project addresses a critical issue: the growing divide between the West and the Global South in matters of international peace and security. Recently, military support by Western countries to the war in Ukraine and conflict in Gaza has drawn significant criticism from states and actors across the Global South, arguing that these approaches to global conflict perpetuate colonial power structures. South Africa's genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and Colombia's critiques at the UN General Assembly — where President Petro condemned Western efforts directed "towards war rather than development" —demonstrate how prominent Global South nations are increasingly challenging dominant Western security rationales.

By examining the foreign policy practices of South Africa and Colombia, the project explore how nations of the Global South reimagine peace and security in a post-Western world.