The U.S. Approach to Fragile States: A Conversation with Dr. Kiron Skinner

The Trump administration released its first National Security Strategy (NSS) in 2017 which recognizes the importance of confronting challenges related to conflict and fragility to protect U.S. national security interests. This strategy was complemented by the release of the Stabilization Assistance Review (SAR) in 2018 which serves as a framework to improve interagency coordination and effectiveness in fragile states. The SAR delineates the roles and responsibilities of the Department of State, USAID, and the Department of Defense in stabilization operations. The Department of State has a critical leadership role in the implementation of the SAR, and as such will need to plan and coordinate how to translate it into an operational strategy across the departments and agencies. Furthermore, the recently passed “Global Fragility and Violence Reduction Act” is an essential policy response that places reducing global violence at the forefront of U.S. stability operations. These strategic documents represent a growing consensus among interagency actors for the need to improve the U.S. approach to fragile states.