In recent times the security dilemma has emerged as one of the most important and controversial issues in international relations theory. This book asks what the security dilemma is and whether it really exists, and then tests the theory against the historical evidence of the most important geopolitical event since 1945 - the end of the Cold War. Collins suggests that Gorbachev's recognition of the existence of a security dilemma lay at the heart of the measures that he took at the end of the Cold War. He examines the Cold War era in Europe, highlighting the way in which the military postures adopted by both blocs exacerbated rather than lessened their feelings of insecurity. Collins concludes that, following the euphoria of the early 1990s, the dilemma has re-emerged.