"Failed states" may be the biggest global problem most Americans have never heard of. We know about the dangerous spread of weapons of mass destruction, global climate change, violent religious extremism, human rights violations, trade deficits, and more. But failed (and failing) states pose a very urgent problem which combines elements of many other problems.
Put simply, these failed and failing states are countries where the government (if there even is one) can longer provide for its citizens and has little or no control over its borders and territories. Sometimes the ruling powers are simply unable to carry out these basic functions. Other times, the so-called government is unwilling to accept this responsibility.
The Chaos Spreads
In either case, the result is often chaos, death, and a real threat to neighbors and the rest of the world. On one level, failed states lead very easily to violent internal conflict. And that conflict inevitably seeps across borders in the form of fighting, refugees, and instability.Other impacts, however, can reach farther. With government authority gone, failed states become perfect hosts for terrorist training camps. Infectious disease runs unchecked before leaping to other countries. Trafficking in humans, drugs, arms, and more - the financial life blood of international crime and terrorism - takes root.
Afghanistan under Taliban rule may have been a failed state. Somalia right now is undoubtedly a failed state. Sudan and North Korea may be close. Foreign Policy magazine and the Fund for Peace maintain an annual Failed States Index ranking the instability of all nations.
U.S. Concern
The U.S. State Department has an Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization responsible for enhancing American responses to failed and failing states. The position reports directly to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.In remarks earlier this year, Secretary Rice said, "The United States is a country that recognizes, I think now, that we are not isolated from the world; that when there are countries that are poorly governed or that they are failed states that cannot control their own borders, that cannot meet their own people's needs, when states become like Afghanistan, we suffer. Afghanistan became a failed state and it became the home training ground for al-Qaida and we suffered. And not just on September 11th. We suffered with the Cole. We suffered with the embassy bombings. The failed state is a real threat to our international -- to our peace and security."
More Resources on Failed States
- The Failed States Index
- Addressing State Failure, an article by two U.S. State Department officials, from Foreign Affairs magazine
- Failing States and US Strategy, Anatol Lieven offers policy recommendations for the United States
- Why Are We Failing Failing States?, Panel discussion (summary, audio, and transcript) chaired by former U.N. official Julia Taft
