BENJAMIN A.T. GRAHAM Benjamin A.T. Graham is a Ph.D. candidate in political science at the University of California, San Diego. His research focuses on the role of foreign investment in the stabilization and development of fragile states. He has traveled in South Ossetia and near border of Abkhazia, and has conducted research in affiliation with the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies.
BEN HORNE Ben Horne is a Ph.D. candidate in Economics at the University of California, San Diego. His research uses game theory to study international conflict, with a particular focus on the role of mediation. He has traveled in Transdniestr and Moldova, and conducted additional research on the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
agree to reunification -- requires a similar commitment. The success in South Sudan will make future commitments by the international community more credible. This is important because in past cases, such as in the long promised referendum in Western Sahara, the commitment by the international community has meant little.” UA: With all the communication tools and information at our disposal in 2011, is the way unrecognized states emerge and are treated also changing? It seems like even though we can easily communicate across borders and outside the control of government, just as many people are prepared to argue and fight (and in a few cases die!) over the idea that certain countries will exist or be recognized. “While information, goods, and services all move much more freely across borders now than they did several generations ago, people still care very much by whom they are governed. Variation between modes of national governance is dramatic, and ethnic identity remains very salient. Predictions of the end of the nation-state have been very much overblown, and I don’t see globalization as herald12
ing the end of unrecognized statehood or wars of secession more broadly.” It seems that even in our hyper-connected era filled with examples of international cooperation, there continue to be regions that toil as unrecognized states. Despite all the negative side effects that come with being a country only some nations recognize, groups of people around the world continue to choose this path. The nations they used to be a part of still wield power, either as supporters or, more frequently, as obstacles to recognition. In between these competing forces, there is the international community, which has the power to tip the scales and bring about a respected and lasting solution. Newly independent South Sudan supported by the UN may prove to be an example of this power. While it is not yet clear if the Republic of Kosovo with the involvement of the EU will ever reach the goal of full recognition. One thing that looking at partial states in the world today tells us for sure, being unrecognized by much of the world is a risky and troubled existence.
BY MARK FONSECA RENDEIRO