Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Yemen’s multiple economic and security problems transcend the threat posed by al-Qaeda. Without immediate involvement on the part of the international community to address Yemen’s many crises, the country risks becoming a failed state.
The Yemeni government, already saddled with two protracted conflicts, is expending more time and resources battling al-Qaeda, as the organization’s presence in the country has become more high profile and dangerous.
Given the multi-faceted challenges facing Yemen, resources for fighting al-Qaeda are scarce. The international community must assist Yemen not only in short term counterterrorism initiatives, but also in crucial long term development assistance.
The failed attack on a U.S. airliner thirteen days ago thrust President Obama and his administration into the center of an intensified focus on domestic security. The president’s response to this new crisis has been generally strong as he balances several significant domestic challenges at the same time.
The resurgence of al-Qaeda in Yemen and around the world demands a comprehensive counterterrorism approach. In order to combat al-Qaeda and similar groups, the international community must focus on capacity building in weak states and de-radicalization programs.
Yemen faces a host of economic and security challenges. In order to stabilize the country, a proper balance of short term counterterrorism measures and long term development assistance is needed.
Efforts to combat terrorism largely defined the global security agenda during the past decade, when small terrorist groups, with as few as three hundred active members, were able to inflict enormous amounts of damage on regional, national, and international scales.
The presence of Al-Qaeda in Yemen is only one of many security and economic challenges facing the country. International aid must be comprehensive in nature and empower the Yemenis to build their own capacity, in order to combat these challenges.
As the international community searches for ways to prevent further destabilization in Yemen, the Obama administration is being forced to rethink its plans for the numerous Yemeni detainees at Guantanamo Bay.
While the rise of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has focused international attention on Yemen, the country’s economic and demographic challenges pose a greater threat to its stability than al-Qaeda does.