User:Elysia (AR)/Weak state

A weak state is a government with gaps in its core functions of providing security, services, and legitimate rule to its citizens. It is distinct from a failed state.

Definition and history of use
Weak states fail to fully meet key needs of their citizens. The shortcomings are termed gaps, with three core gaps: security gap, capacity gap, and legitimacy gap. The security gap means the state does not provide adequate protection to its citizens; the capacity gap means the state does not fully provide adequate services; and the legitimacy gap means that the authority of the state is not fully accepted. This differs from a failed state, whose governments totally lack legitimacy. Weak states may be difficult to define, as the states fail to collect thorough statistics on crime and education.

Weak states represent a broad continuum of conditions. They often have internal conflict due to linguistic, religious, or ethnic differences. Infrastructure is neglected, with schools and hospitals falling into disrepair. Economic indicators such as GDP per capita are declining. Weak states may be seemingly strong, strictly controlling dissent while failing to provide goods and services to citizens. Examples of this include North Korea, Pol Pot's Democratic Kampuchea, and Iraq. "Weak state" is a fluid designation. In 2003, states like Lebanon, Tajikistan, and Nigeria were listed as states that had previously been called "collapsed", but had improved to "weak".

The term "weak state" was used after the Cold War, but became a more popular concept after the September 11 attacks.

Health and safety
Weak states have been hypothesized to contribute to terrorist activity. English philosopher Thomas Hobbes was the first to make the connection between the strength of a state and violence. He opined that a strong state with a monopoly on force was the only way to avoid a war of "all against all". After the September 11 attacks, US President George W. Bush said that it "taught us that weak states, like Afghanistan, can pose as great a danger to our national interests as strong states. Poverty does not make poor people into terrorists and murderers. Yet poverty, weak institutions, and corruption can make weak states vulnerable to terrorist networks and drug cartels within their borders". The link between weak states and terrorism has been disputed. In 2003, historian Walter Laqueur noted that a majority of poor, weak states had almost no terrorist activty.

Weak states may also be more vulnerable to public health crises such as infectious disease, which can have spillover effects on other countries.