The Truth is Mostly Right Here: The Security Dilemma and the Earthly Logic of an Extraterrestrial Threat

Abstract

Military encounters with unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs), and government officials discussing the possibility of threats or contacts with extraterrestrial life elevated the idea of alien encounters from conspiracy theory to more mainstream public discourse. While contact with an alien civilization provides an interesting intellectual exercise, a challenge for international relations theory, and a possibility, few have analyzed the security implications of simply conceptualizing such a threat. This article places the idea of an extraterrestrial threat in the context of the security dilemma, and argues that the idea of an alien threat justifies states’ pursuit of unlimited weapons capabilities.