state-building,externalisationandnationalinterestsbeacons.docVIP

State-building, Externalisation and National Interests: beacons of good governance or exporters of violence? The post Cold War period has seen the unambiguous pursuit of the national interest increasingly moderated in foreign policy discourse, running in parallel – and frequently in tension – with collective goals not immediately linked to hard-power objectives. The prevention of conflict, for instance, its resolution, and the subsequent reconstitution of states and societies affected by it, are widely accepted as stand-alone policy priorities. This has been matched by the mushrooming of theory devoted to describing and shaping conflict and post-conflict policy. There are a variety of terms in circulation, from humanitarian intervention to liberal peace-building and post-conflict reconstruction, and as many different policy prescriptions. The post-Cold War years have also witnessed a marked reduction in wars between states, and the perceived rise of intra-state violence – conflict inside state borders, involving at least one non-state armed actor, and sometimes no formal armed forces at all, most commonly caused by the failure, weakness or collapse of state authority. In these terms, it therefore follows that the (re)construction and strengthening of the state is the essential step to ending ongoing violence and preventing its recurrence. A well-governed state enables the provision of public goods and opens space for economic growth and job creation, lowering the incentives for poor individuals to involve themselves in violence. It manages finances and natural resources, lessening incentives to fight, and can regulate and control militaries and security services, providing protection to the population and effective action against spoilers. And it allows an area for non-violent allocation of scarce capital, allowing a shift from armed conflict to political competition. In these terms; ‘The only possibility to stop violence, to establish a society and create po