Decoding state fragility : Recent trends and developments (2015–2019)

The article highlights the main developments in the study of state fragility in the period between 2015 and 2019. The goal is to cover the main trends in the study of the subject as well as the most prominent projects of recent years. The article presents the main findings and recommendations of different international agencies, including the reports by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, LSE-Oxford Commission on State Fragility, Growth and Development, United States Institute for Peace Fragility Study Group and the Task Force on Extremism in Fragile States. The article covers the main approaches to state fragility, recent academic novelties and trends in the field. Among these is popularizing the notion of resilience in a set of OECD States of Fragility reports. The fragility trap and regarding state fragility as a syndrome with a set of symptoms is analyzed on the basis of the Commission on State Fragility report. The US agencies’ attitude is also taken into account. The preventive approach towards extremism and fragile states as well as the steps to be taken by different agencies together with international partners are covered in this article. Fragility Study Group, the Task Force on Extremism in Fragile States, and Global Fragility Act are analyzed as interconnected and a part of the same doctrine and political strategy towards the four-S framework implementation. The article acknowledges the continuity in the work of different research groups that culminated in the Global Fragility Act. The need to reconsider previous approaches to the root causes of state fragility is emphasized. The importance of coordinated prevention in fragile states and conflict-affected areas is seen as critical for international security. The article also traces recent adjustments in the attitude toward the main gaps in state functions and the views on the root causes of state fragility and ways to combat the issue and the emerging security, political and economic threats.