Klimatförändringar som ett säkerhetshot; En argumentationsanalys av Klimatpolitiska rådets bedömning av regeringens klimatpolitik, med utgångspunkt i säkerhetiseringsteorin

Abstract

Climate change, driven by rising temperatures due to greenhouse gas emissions, is increasingly seen as a security threat. This perspective is captured by securitization theory, developed by Buzan, Wæver, and der Wilde at the Copenhagen Peace Research Institute in the 1990s. This study aims to critically examine the report published by the Swedish Climate Policy Council in 2024, which evaluates the Swedish government's climate policy action plan. Through an argumentation analysis using securitization theory, the study aims to illuminate how the Climate Policy Council’s critique of the government’s climate policy can be understood as a rhetorical attempt to frame climate change as a security issue. The findings of this study reveal that the Council’s assessment considers the government's climate policy a risk to climate security, as it may lead to increased emissions and worsening climate change. Elements of securitization are evident in its argumentation, with its critique functioning as a speech act urging action beyond existing political frameworks. The Climate Policy Council’s report can hence be seen as part of the broader securitization process, yet the extent to which climate change will ultimately be recognized as a security threat within the Swedish context remains an open question for future research.