« Home

Home » Politics » Jackson & Sørensen: Introduction to International Relations 3e » Student resources » Case studies » Chapter 10

Jackson & Sørensen: Introduction to International Relations 3e

Chapter 10

Failed states, a new issue in IR

State failure means that a state breaks down in decisive respects.

Instead of protection of the citizens there is domestic chaos and often civil war. Laws are not made, order is not preserved; central political authority is absent or highly deficient. In many cases the economic system has failed as well, being unable to provide even the most basic elements of welfare for the population. Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Congo (formerly Zaire), Angola, Rwanda, and Sudan are recent examples of state failure in various degrees and forms. State failure most often takes place in states that are already fragile and weak. Compared to weak states, failure is a matter of degree: the problems related to weak statehood magnify.

Assignments

  1. Who are the weak states today? (consult the failed states index at www.foreignpolicy.com)

  2. Identify briefly from website materials the major ways of confronting the problem of weak/failed states.

  3. Is the idea of international trusteeship a feasible one? Provide a reflection on that.

  4. Do failed states demand new approaches and concepts, or can they be covered by traditional approaches? Discuss which of the theories presented in this book are best suited for analyzing failed states.