Commentary
Are Germany’s economic, industrial, and political struggles becoming a liability for the EU’s ability to rise to the geopolitical moment?
Rym Momtaz, ed.
Book
Perilous Desert: Insecurity in the Sahara
The Sahara suffers from a perfect storm of weaknesses. Foreign assistance that relies exclusively on counterterrorism will only exacerbate the problems.
Published on Apr 17, 2013
Source: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The geopolitical significance of the Sahara is becoming painfully clear. Islamist militant groups and transnational criminal networks are operating in the region's most fragile states, exploiting widespread corruption, weak government capacity, crushing poverty, and entrenched social and ethnic tensions. The unrest spills over borders and aggravates protracted regional crises.
This insecurity raises urgent concerns for the broader Sahara and the West. Perilous Desert details the sources of instability and what can be done to minimize the threat of simmering conflicts.
Leading experts, through comprehensive accounts of the changing landscape, demonstrate how foreign assistance that relies exclusively on counterterrorism will only exacerbate the problems. Solutions require understanding and combatting the roots of the Sahara's many challenges.
About the Authors
Frederic Wehrey
Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Frederic Wehrey is a senior fellow in the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where his research focuses on governance, conflict, and security in Libya, North Africa, and the Persian Gulf.
Anouar Boukhars
Former Nonresident Fellow, Middle East Program
Boukhars was a nonresident fellow in Carnegie’s Middle East Program. He is a professor of countering violent extremism and counter-terrorism at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, National Defense University.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Taking the Pulse: Does the EU Have a Germany Problem?
- China’s Construction of Police Training Facilities in Global South Likely to Expand Global Security LeadershipResearch
China’s police training infrastructure construction projects provide benefits to recipient countries, promote China’s image as a major global security provider, and are likely to reinforce alignment between Beijing’s security priorities and those of countries in the Global South.
- +2
Cameron Waltz, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Kim Nguyen, …
- The UN Security Council Is Deadlocked on Climate. New Members Have a Path Forward.Commentary
They face an uphill climb, but they could draw on a strategy that other diplomats have used in the past.
Shana Tabak, Alejandro Martin Rodriguez
- The Iran War’s Climate, Environmental, and Human Security FalloutArticle
Understanding the climatic pain points is necessary for policymakers hoping to minimize the war’s negative environmental consequences.
Alejandro Martin Rodriguez, Joy Arkeh, Sarah Yerkes
- 9/11 at 25: A Reading List for Understanding the War on TerrorCommentary
The books, podcasts, and films that explain the world it made.
Andrew Leber
