Source: BBC's Today
Instability and insecurity in Yemen is fueled by a “multitude of causes, including unemployment, an economic collapse, corruption, resource depletion, education and governance deficiencies, along with three different insurgencies,” according to Christopher Boucek. While there is an immediate counter-terrorism imperative to go after al-Qaeda cells planning attacks from within Yemen's borders, there is no long-term military solution to Yemen’s problems.
The United States gives several hundred million dollars in aid to Yemen, a number that is strikingly small compared to the aid given to Pakistan. Yet Yemen provides an arguably larger threat to U.S. national security, argued Boucek. Ultimately, there is no simple solution to Yemen’s problems. The United States and the rest of the international community can only help to mitigate and manage these problems.