Washington's Newest Bogeyman: Debunking the Fear of Failed States
Abstract
The American foreign policy establishment has identified a new national security problem. Over the past two decades, foreign-policy scholars and popular writers have developed the ideas that "failed states" present a global security threat, and that accordingly, powerful countries like the United States should "fix" the failed states. However, the conventional wisdom is based on a sea of confusion, poor reasoning, and category errors. Much of the problem stems from the poor scholarly standards that characterize the research on state failure. The definitions of a ?failed state? are now nearly as numerous as the number of studies about the subject. That ambiguity confounds analyses that seek to correlate threats with the ?failedness? of states. Nevertheless, the idea received a boost after the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001. Analysts concluded en masse that since Afghanistan was both a failed state and a threat, failed states were threatening. Interest in remedying state failure grew after the United States toppled the rickety structure of the Iraqi state, when it became clear that attempting to administer a failed state was difficult. Believing these difficulties can be overcome, many analysts suggest that if the United States can prevent state failure or repair failed states, it can reap gains not just in terms of international development but also in national security.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2010
- Accession Number
- ADA520741
Entities
People
- Christopher Preble
- Justin Logan