The Failed State-Organized Crime-Terrorism Nexus
SWP Comment 2011/C 40, 13.12.2011, 4 Pages Research AreasOver the past 10 years, the failed state has had a rising career. According to one of the paradigms that emerged post-9/11, the threat posed by strong, aggressive states has been replaced by weak, failing - or failed - states, which, unable to control their territory or borders, are host to a whole range of transnational threats, not least so as »breeding grounds« or »incubators« of terrorism and organized crime. Erstwhile seen as mainly a humanitarian problem, failed states have subsequently moved to the top of Western security policy agendas. Policy documents such as the 2002 US National Security Strategy, the 2003 European Security Strategy, or the UN's 2004 report of the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges, and Change reflect this shift of focus, and ensuing policy recommendations have included a strong emphasis on externally driven state-building. But how much do we actually know about the failed state-organized crime-terrorism nexus, and is this paradigm robust enough to serve as a basis for policy decisions?