States: A Focus on the Democratic Republic of the Congo and peacekeeping missions This week only, you have two options- please choose one. Please post a title that reflects the content- don't be afrai

States: A Focus on the Democratic Republic of the Congo and peacekeeping missions This week only, you have two options- please choose one. Please post a title that reflects the content- don't be afraid to be original! Note that you will not be able to see your classmates' posts until you post your initial post. View Full Description and Attachment(s)Hide Full Description and Attachment(s)

This week we're focusing on states and the concepts of sovereignty, power and governance. There are vast differences between strong states like the US and weak states like the Congo.  This week only, you have two options. Answer just one of the questions below.

Choice 1:  After reviewing  INTERACTIVE CFR's Crisis Guide on Eastern Congo explain why it is considered a weak state. Define the terms you use, such as weak and failed state. Please be sure to support your thoughts with references to the course materials and please be sure to use Turabian style citations (author date).

Choice 2:  As explained in the Week 4 lesson notes, IGOs are supranational organizations that are heavily connected to regional or international security and international law. A prime example is the UN. Today, the UN is involved in a number of peacekeeping missions around the world. Each time the UN intervenes it sets precedent, which could evolve into customary law.For this option, please visit the UN peacekeeping homepage and choose one current or past mission to focus on (you can choose the mission in Congo). For that mission, explain the circumstances that created the need to intervene (background), if the state is weak or failed, the purpose of the mission (mandate) and any interesting facts and figures about it. Be sure to use more than one source and incorporate references to course material.  Please be sure to paraphrase and cite the information rather than quoting it. I recommend thinking of it as telling the story behind the mission much like the producers did in the movie Black Hawk Down. What happened and what did the UN do about it? Is there something unique about the mission that is setting precedent or impacting international law?

Instructions: Your initial post should be at least 350 words. Please respond to more than 2 other students. Responses should be a minimum of 150 words and include direct questions, evidence from the literature, alternative points of view or additional insight. For more information, please review the forum discussion rubric attached below. This is the rubric that will be used for all of the forums in this class.