• Buffer States and Zones
– A buffer state is an independent country located between two larger countries that are in conflict
• Russia and China have warred over boundaries for centuries, but
Mongolia, a buffer, has helped reduce direct confrontation between the two states
• Shatterbelts
– State or group of states that exists within a sphere of competition between larger states and is often culturally, economically, and politically fragmented and splintered
• Eastern Europe
– Existed as a sphere of competition between U.S.S.R. and western powers
• Satellite States
– Countries controlled by another, more powerful state
• During the Cold War, the Soviet Union worked to dominate the Eastern
European buffer zone and install
Communist satellite states there
– Called the “Iron Curtain”

– Centrifugal
• Divide and tear apart a state’s people and regions
– Can lead to Balkanization
» Broke apart Soviet
Union
– Examples
» Separatism in a region
» Internal boundary conflicts
» Deep religious divisions
• Devolution
– Definition
• Process of transferring some power from the central government to regional governments
– Often refers to the transfer of power that occurs when a state breaks up
– Centripetal
• Unify a state’s people and regions
– Examples
» Unifying symbols
» Pledge of allegiance
» Strong identity based on language, religion, or other cultural traits.
– States facing centrifugal forces are often forced to transfer to regional governments to reduce tensions
– Scotland
» Pushed for more autonomy in 1990s
» England devolved more power to
Scotland
• Given own representative parliament

 Why Do States Cooperate with Each Other?
• Future of world’s sovereign states challenged by globalization
• States are willingly transferring authority to regional organizations
– Established primarily through economic cooperation

•
• Definition
– Growing trend to organize political and economic affairs at the international level rather than national level
• Refer to entities in which three or more countries form an alliance for cultural, economic, or military reasons.
Created so that states can collectively reach a common goal they may not be able to reach independently
• Issues
– If a country threatens other states, supranational organizations may impose sanctions
• Punishments in the form of economic and/or diplomatic limits
– Example: Iraq
– Growth of Supranational alliances challenges conceptions of state sovereignty
• Often must give up some powers
– Example: European Union
» Countries were reluctant to give up their currencies and covert to the Euro

• International and regional organizations were established primarily to prevent a third world war in the twentieth century and protect countries from a foreign attack
• Some examples:
– United Nations
– Warsaw Pact
– NATO
– ASEAN
– European Union
– African Union

• Each group will be assigned a
Supranational group and will create a small poster
• Groups:
– OPEC -EU
– NATO -WHO
– UN -IMF
– AU -OAS
• The poster will include:
– Mission of the organization – what do you provide?
– When established and why
– How do countries join?
How many countries belong?
– What are the benefits of belonging to the group?
– What countries lead this organization?

• Terrorism is the systematic use of violence by a group in order to intimidate a population or coerce a government into granting its demands
 Terrorists consider violence necessary as a means of bringing widespread publicity to goals
• Terrorists attempt to achieve their objectives through organized acts that spread fear and anxiety throughout the population

• Term terror first used during
French Revolution 1793
• Today Terrorism used to describe actions of groups operating outside government
• Distinguishing terrorism from other acts of violence sometimes difficult – why?

• 1988: Pan Am Flight 103
– Lockerbie, Scotland
– Killed 259 aboard, plus 11 on the
ground
• 1993: World Trade Center
– Car bomb
– Damaged building
– Killed 6, injured
1,000
• 1995: Oklahoma City
– Car bomb
–
Killed 168 people in Federal Building
• 1996: Saudi Arabia
– Truck bomb killed 19 US Soldiers, injured more than 100
– Targeted American apartment complex
• 1998: US Embassies
– Both Kenya and Tanzania
– Bombed
–
Killed 190, wounded 5,000
• 2000: USS Cole
– Bombed while in Yemen
– Killed 17 US Servicemen
• Others
– Ted Kaczynski – the Unabomber
• Killed 3 people, injuring 23 others

• WTC and Pentagon attacked
– Over 3,000 died
• 93 on American Airlines Flight 11
• 65 on United Airlines Flight 175
• 2,605 at the WTC
• 64 on American Airlines Flight 77
• 125 at the Pentagon
• 44 on United Airlines Flight 93

• Responsible for most attacks in
1990s, as well as Sept.11
• Moved to Sudan but was expelled for attacks against
American in 1994
• Founded by Osama bin Laden
– Saudi billionaire
• Moved to Afghanistan in 1980’s to support fight against Soviet
Union
– Called the fight a jihad
– Recruited Muslim militants
• Returned to Saudi Arabia after war ended, but was expelled
• Issued a declaration of war against US in 1996 because of
US support of Israel and supporting Saudi Arabian monarchy
• Issued a fatwa (religious decree) arguing the Muslims had a duty to wage a Holy War against the U.S.

• Means “foundation”
• Created in 1990 to unite
jihad fighters
– Membership around 20,000
• Implicated in several bombings
– Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Britain,
Egypt, Jordan
• Located in 34 countries
– Several “cells”
– Most live in ordinary society, called sleepers
• Not a single unified organization
– Number unknown
• Use religion to justify attacks

• Cells
– Spain
– Kenya
• Jemmah Isamiyah
– Southeast Asia
– Concentrated in Indonesia
– Several bombings
• Oct 12, 2002- killed 202
• Aug 5, 2003- killed 12
• Sept 9, 2004- killed 11
• Oct 1, 2005- killed 23

• Several Middle East states have supported terrorism in recent years by:
– Provide sanctuary for terrorists wanted by other countries
– Supply weapons, money, and intelligence to other terrorists
– Plan attacks using terrorists
• Libya
– Accused of sponsoring terrorists in
1986 bombing of Germany nightclub
• US relations poor with Libya since
1981
– U.S. responded with air strikes in
Tripoli and Benghazi
– Libyan agents planted bombs on
Pan Am Flight 170 in 1988 as well as on UTA Flight 772
– UN Sanctions followed
– Libya “renounced” terrorism in
2003

• Civil war began in 1973 when king was overthrown
• Removal of Taliban unleashed new struggle for control of Afghanistan
– Taliban were able to regroup
• 5 years later a bloody coup was led by
Soviet Union
– Sent in 115,000 troops into
Afghanistan in 1979 to quell the
Muslim fundamentalists rebellion
– Soviet Union withdrew in 1989 and the Soviet-backed government fell by
1992
• Taliban gained control over most of the country
• 6 years of Taliban rule came to an end in 2001 following US invasion
– Went after terrorists
– Taliban harbored bin Laden

• Saddam became president in 1979
• Iran-Iraq war 1980, ended in stalemate in 1988
– 1988 Hussein gassed Iraqi Kurds
• 1990 Hussein invaded Kuwait
– Led to Operation Desert Storm (U.S. led)
• Allowed to stay in power as long as he disabled weapons program
• Iraq is divided into 150 tribes
– Most Iraqis have loyalty to tribes not government
• Ethnic groups split into regions
– Sunni vs Shiite war
• U.S. linked Saddam to Al-Qaeda
– U.S. invaded in 2003
• Changed to a focus on a new regime change after no WMDs found

• Hostile with U.S. since 1979 revolution
– The pro-US shah was overthrown
– Ayatollah Khomeini proclaimed
Iran an Islamic Republic
– Rewrote constitution of Iran
• Today US worried about:
– Iran harboring and aiding terrorists
– Building nuclear weapons

 Created after Partition in 1947
 War of Terror has spilled into
Pakistan
 Pakistan is multi-ethnic state
 Overwhelmingly Muslim
 Taliban controls border with
Afghanistan
 Rugged, mountainous area
 Hid bin Laden in Pakistan