International regimes are mostly seen in issue areas related to the environment, trade, human rights, arms control, and international security. International security regimes differ from other types of international regimes for four reasons:

1. First, security issues have a higher degree of competitiveness between states than other issues. Conflicts and wars are inherently a zero-sum game.
2. Second, the costs of benefits and errors are much higher in the security realm. States are almost impossible to get a second chance to fix their false policy choices. If states delay their responses, results may also be devastating.
3. Third, since it is difficult to separate defensive and offensive motives in security policy choices, both status-quo and nonstatus quo states may engage in a similar behavior to change or maintain the balance of power.
4. Finally, international actors are forced to behave under a high degree of uncertainty to detect and interpret the behavior of other actors in the security arena (Jervis, 1983).