External-Internal Nexus for the Sources of Insecurity in the Third World

The focal point of this essay aims to challenge the dominant accounts for the origins of insecurity in the Third World, which have mostly rested upon the contingent effects of the external factor, particularly the end of the Cold War. By emphasizing the importance of both external and internal sources of insecurity alike, the essay suggests two fronts of linking the internal and the external in order to depict the whole shape of insecurity that failed states face. The two linkage solutions include (1) the promotion of democratic, economic, and institutional capacities; and (2) the proactive consideration of local conditions and cultural differences, all of which external interventions need to pay more attention to when they proceed in the targeted countries.