Geo Auto Generated
Week 8 - States sovereignty and the politics of recognition
Final non cumulative so starts in week 8
States
Legal definition (un) and socio-political definition (webber)
State - UN definition
State is a political and legal entity that possesses the following qualifications
Permanent population
Defined territory
Government
Capacity to enter into relations with other states
Montevideo convention on the rights and duties of states 1933
Montevideo convention on the rights and duties of states (1933)
After WW1 new states began to enter the international stage
New countries are emerging so there need to be a definition to define them and see how they are in relation and what characteristics join them - becomes the list above of the qualifications for states
Criteria #1: Permanent population
core/settled population
Signals that the state is not transient or temporary - ongoing, structured political and human community
Base of people able to support the structure of the state (economy via taxes, military via constriction; culture and society via norms and ideologies
Migration is allowed - immobility is not required
No minimum population is required (eg. tuvalu, vatican city)
Criteria #2: defined territory
A state must exercise authority over some geographically defined area - place where people can reside and be resigned over
Territory includes:
Land territory: primary physical space where population lives
Territorial waters: 12 nautical miles from the coastline
Air space: air above the land and territorial miles
lithuanian and russia andbelarus
Subsurface resources beneath the surface also form part of the territory
Precise or undisputed boundaries are not required
Exist even if borders are contested or not fully settled
What matters is a core territory over which the state has effective control
Criteria #3: Government
A government has authority to exercise effective control over its territory and population
Government which holds the sole authority to govern
Convention does nto define how gov should be structured there jut needs to be a government capable of exercising effective control
Governing = maintaining 3 types of control
Territorial control = boarders, roads, resources, checkpoints, police, infrastructure
Administrative capacity= basic govern functions, running ministeries, issues, laws rules, tax collection, providing services,
Diplomatic control - engages diplomatically with other states
Coervice power = can maintain internal order and enforce compliance via police, military, courts, law enforcement
On a stable and continuous basis
Capacity is key
Real world authority, not formal recognition or legal titles
Focus on effectiveness not on legitimacy
Effectiveness doctrine
A government is recognized based on its capacity to govern not on its origin
Focus on effectiveness
Capacity is key: De jure vs de facto governments
De jour (latin for by law)
International recognized governments - that other states and international institutions regard as legitimate
The legal government, legit on paper
Rule by law but not necessarily in practice
De facto (in fact in latin)
Has effective control over a territory and its population - enforces laws, commands armed forces, collects taxes but lacks full legal or international recognition
Government on the ground/in reality
Not reliant on being legal
Hamas: de fgacto government: Palestinian authority de jour government
Hamas won the 2006 palestinian legislative elections defetig the PA faction
Tensions between hamas and Fetah escalated into armed conflict
2007 hamas forcibly took control of gaza
PA retained control in the west bank, Hamas (prior to 2023)controlled
Ministeries
Internal security forces and police
Judiciary and religious courts
Taxation and basic service delivery
Negoriations and external actors
Hamas is treated as de facto authority - engaged with pragmatically
Ceasefire talks ,hostage exchanges, humanitarian access
Talaban (de facto government)
Taliban rule (1996 - 2001; 2021 - )
Not widely recognized (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan) but it is exercised as defacto control over most of aftanistan
Exercised effective control: Taxation, coercive power (security) and territorial control
There is no de jour government
Criteria #4: capacity to enter into relations with other states
Having authority, autonomy and capacity to
Conduct foreign policy
Enter into diplomatic relations by signing/negotiating treaties and agreements
Join international organizations
Attendance is not enough
Establish embassies or consulates, recieve or send ambassadors or diplomatic missions
Issue passports and visas
Exercise diplomatic protection over nationals abroad
Recognition
The formal acknowledgement by one state or a group of states that anoyther state meets the criteria of statehood and is considered a legitimate actor in the international system (Leuterpacht 1944)
Declarative theory of statehood : I declare i am a state
Constitutive theory of statehood: Have to have others say or agree that you are a state
Declarative theory:
An entity becomes a state as soon as it meets the minimal criteria for statehood
Promise expressed in Article 3 of the montevideo convention:
“The political existance of the state is independent recognition by other states”
Constitutive theory
A state only exists when it is recognized by other states
A state is and becomes an international person through recognition only and exclusively (oppenheim 1905)
No matter how well an entity meets the montevideo criteria but is not legally a state until recognized by the international community
Recognition gives the entity
International legal standing
Treaty-making power
Diplomatic rights and obligations
Taiwan
Premeent population
Defined territory
Government
Capacity to enter into relations with other states
Not recognized, one china thing
Kosovo
Meets all same criteria as taiwan
Serbia will not recognize
Also the derecognition of kosovo by serbia
Derecognition of Kosovo and Kaiwan
Withdrawal of recognition
The act of formally ceasing to acknowledge something as legitimate, valid or existing in an official capacity
Went to countries and said you have to undo that and not recognize kosovo
The states (Weber, 1948)
A human community that (successfully) claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force/violence within a given territory
Authority, legitimacy and control rather than just legal recognition or effectiveness
Does not worry about the legal representation
Monopoly over the use of force (MOTUF)
Exclusive control or possession
In the context of the state, Weber is emphasizing that the state claims exclusive right to use force within its boundaries
Implies that other entities or individuals should not exercise force in a manner that challenges the authority of the state
ONLY the state
Legitimacy = that the states use of force is considered valid and justified by the population and other states on the world stage
Legitimacy distinguishes state power from arbitrate or illegitimate uses of foce
Legitimate force is typically based on established laws, rules and accepted norms within a society
Social contract
Named by Locke
Idea that we have consented to surrender some of our freedoms to the government
Eg. freedom to murder soemone, break into their home, engage in vigilante justice or revenge
We give up these rights in exchange for protection
MOTUF means that only the state can legitimately use force (police, military) against other citizens. Only it can authorize the use of violence or force through laws, rules and institutions
Only the state can commit the violence
Only the state can legitimately detain and incarcerate, humiliate, deport, or kill you
COMPARE TO MAFIA ON TEST
Can a state actually have the monopoly over force?
Monopoly over violence does not mean that there is no violence in the state at all
Luigi mangione
He killed a the ceo of health care company and people were not as upset
The power is always being challenged
State has the legitimate right to prosecute
The state can exercise force over the person who transgresses the law, sometimes through death
The state can grant/authorize an actor with the right to sue violence without losing its monopoly, as long as it remains the only source of the right to use violence and that it maintains its capacity to enforce the monopoly
Eg. law allows force in defence of ones self or property but this right derives from the states authority
Deputizes people (george zimmerman, jamal hossegi, west bank)
Jamal: reporter in Saudi who was killed there for writing about human rights etc. Journalist who worked for washington post. Critiqued the saudi regime and was the subject of judicial killing. In turkey in a saudi embassy where the embassy is the territory that you are entering
States force is not always legitimate
Sterilization
Police brutality
Illegal detainment
Residential schools
Internment camps
Sovereignty
Refers to a states power to hold the supreme, absolute authority over people and within a territory
Have the authority and the legitimate right to govern ones own affairs without interference from any other states
Concept of non-intervention is key to sovereignty
Origins of sovereignty
Originated in 15th century europe through the peace treaty of Westphalia in 1648
End the thirty years war between protestants and catholics
Each of whom wanted to position themselves as the legitimate denomination of christianity and the legitimate relition across countries in euripe
European origins= why the most initial definitions were proviced in 16th century
European philosophers (Hobbes, bodin, laski)
Eg. Jean bodin, french philosopher defined sovereignty as the absolute and perpetual power of commanding in a state as the supreme power over citizens and subjects unrestrained by law
Cuius regio, eius religio (whos realm, his religion)
Westphalia Sovereignty
Sovereignty
The word reign is in the word
Sovereignty redux
Principle refers to the states power to hold supreme, absolute authority over a people and within a territory
Have the authority and legitimate right to govern ones own affairs without interference from others
INternal and External sovereignty
Internal sovereignty
Authority within the boarder
Refers to a state's supreme authority to make decisions about its own territory and for its own population
This means
Can make laws without external interference
Pass own laws about health care and education
No other states permission
France decedes who can enter and live in country
Us supreme court on constitutional matters
State has monopoly over legitimate use of force
Authority is recognized by people and institutions within boarders
Internal sovereignty is hard earned
External sovereignty
Recognition by the international community/system
External sovereignty refers to the states legal independence and recognition by other states in the international community
Other states recognize right to independence
Territory protected from external intervention
Other states and international organizations recognize it as authority figure that can hold weight on world stage
Often come through diplomatic recognition, membership etc
FOR A STATE TO BE FULLY FUNCTIONAL IT NEEDS BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL SOVEREIGNTY!!!!!
Power of sovereign state at a glance
Power to
Fully control what occurs in boarders
Free to form own government and establish laws without subject to other state rule
Easily get trade agreements, foreign policy deals etc to see the atate as an equal participant in the world stage
Equal abroad (international recognition as legit; participation in global community)
Master at home ( monopoly over violence; political independence)... answer to no one
Idi Amin - expulsion of south asian populaiton
Ugandan soldier climed through ranks, became general
Ran coup and over through the government and then was called butcher of uganda
He gave himself the name “his excellency, president for life, lord of all”
Became dictator, murdered wives, expelled south asian populations
International community does not say anything but does open their boarders to the south asian population
Was allowed to happen because of sovereignty because it was blanketed so that was the justification for allowing it to happen
Similar to rwandan genocide
Sudan Genocide
2000 people in 2 days killed
2 rebel gruops fighting after coming together to overthrow the government
Have been unable to consolidate power
Escalating violence
Geostrategic location
Gold mining is big aspect of the economy
UAE recieves the gold and is funding the war so that the gold mining process continues to be very cheap
Canada supplying the armoured vehicles to the war in sudan
Equal abroad, master at home, answerable to no one
Pager attack on Hezbollah
Spread out pagers all in Lebanon
Waited years and there was 2 days of these pagers exploding
They thought only Hezboullah would have the pagers so it would be a concentrated attack
The isreali intellegance was the one who put this attack in place
How did isreal get away with this technique?
The strength of power
The influence of the country who launches the attack
Apac?
All countries are equal but some are more equal than others
Week 9: Whats in the cards? Deck of power
Trump V. Zelenski showdown
Press conference that was kinda an ambush
Trump bringing up cards all the time
Cards being different forms of power and to have the cards is to have power so trump says ukraine has no cards and no power unless they make a deal with him to gain power
Says that they have no cards but are playing tough
What does trump mean about cards and what does it mean to not have them?
More classical geopolitics with the view of 0 sum game and the idea of the world asa chess board
If you look
US is… Unique (global hegemon)
Global Hegemon = a dominant power, often defined by overwhelming military, economic, political, geographic and cultural power. This allows
Influence/control global events, trade and security
create/maintain the world order (system of alliances, institutions, norms of other states)
US territorial land (Land + nautical space) is strategic geography
Geographic location = separated by oceans from major theaters of conflict in europe and asia providing an area of security
Resource abundance
Rich in natural resources, fertile land, minerals, energy, oil, copper, lead etc
Monetary advantage = global currency
Played a role in the establishment of international financial institutions like the international monetary fund and the world bank
Worlds largest military → 750+ us bases in 80+ countries
Costa rica and panama
Take in asians deported by trump
Out of fear and defence
Puts you in a position where you look alighned with the united states
This is successful because it puts you in a position where the us will be kinder to you
They have not had high tariffs from trump
US imperialism
Why can the states get away with this?
Tampering with elections, exploiting their economies, sending death/rape squads to quell communist rebellions
7 Dimensions of geopolitical power (the deck)
Countries do not hold equal weight in the world
There is an unequal deck of cards given out in the world
Military power
Economic power
Geographic power
Geo political power
Technological power
Soft power
Informational power
Geography, political relations, history - these fuse to inform a countries social, political and economic standing on the world stage
Military power
States military capacity
Includes
Defense budget
Military technology (equipment, weapons, aircraft, navy, precision guided munitions, nuclear weapons, second strike capacity)
Personnel - how many people can you call at any second for support
Strategies and strategic capabilities (training; structure)
Us leans into the strategy of shock and awe
Logistical support (transportation, infrastructure, supply chains)
Alliances
Power projection: states ability to deploy and sustain its military forces outside of its own territory in order to influence events, exert influence or assert control in regions beyond its own boarders
Israel iron dome which can detect missiles and can destroy threats before they reach the inhabited areas of the country
Us has tried to make a golden dome which mirrors this
Uses a radar
Military fails in the usa
Fighter jet fell off aircraft carrier and everyone fell overboard
This was a million dollar fighter jet
Canada has a weak military
Economic power
States economic strenfrh
GDP, trade volume
Industrial capacity
Technological innovation
Involvement in foreign direct investment
Overall economic health (economic diversity, trade and export strength, financial sector strength, currency strength, economic resilience, funding infrastructure)
USD is the global currency
The highest strength is the Kuwaiti Dinar - wrap around central bank
Large oil reserves and exports
Zimbabwe zimdollar in the 70s ; german franc in the 1920s
Sanctions are = penalties or restrictions that one country (or group) imposes on another country, organization or individual to influence behaviour, punish violations or enforce international law
Sanctions are deadly
Geographic/locational power
Location and strategic positioning
Proximity to key regions, waterways and neighbours can provide advantages or vulnerabilities
Chokepoints
Egypt and the Suez Canal - approx 12% to 15% of the global trade passes through the canal which handles around 30% of global container traffic
Strait of Malacca (malaysia/indonesia/singapore)
One fo the worlds busiest trade routes; Singapore's economy thrives due ot its strategic location
Panama canal
Panama has economic leverage over global maratime trade
This is why the US has historically intervened to control it
Natural resources and economic potential
Geography affects the distribution of natural resources, minerals, energy, and fertile land
Countries which are abundant and strategically located resources often wield economic power, influencing global trade and energy dynamics
Climate and agricultural productivity
Nations with fertile land and favourable climates can be agriculturally self-sufficient, contributing to economic stability and food security
Climate related factors such as rising sea levels, extreme weather and resource scarcity can influence geopolitical dynamics
Coastal states
Maritime trade dominating global commerce → 80% of global trade via sea
Explains why costal countries thrive
Access to global markets without reliance on neighbours
Us, china germany
Development of major port cities attract investment and tourism
Honk kong, rotterdam, venice, dubai
Landlocked states
Use geography to avoid war and control strategic passes
Regional trade and economic adaptation
Encourage regional cooperation (switzerland, austria thriving through ties with the EU)
Mountainous defense (Alps/mountains as natural fortress)
Swiss alps create a natural barrier making invasions extremely difficult
Less vulnerable to naval invasions - swiss and mongolia
Bordering multiple countries increases trade flexibility - austria and kazakhstan) - what happens to neighbours will also often happen to you
Use geography to avoid war and control strategic passes
Topography and military strategy
Topography of a region affects how people can attack
(Geo)political power
Geopolitical influence/power = the capacity to set international agendas, participate in international diplomacy and diplomatic relationships; allows a country to advance their interests
Includes
Forging strateic alliances and partnerships
Exercising regional influence
Demonstrating great conflict resolution and crisis management
The veto power in the NATO security council which cancels out the power of all the other countries
Technological power
States capacity to develop, control and strategically deploy advanced technology
Posession + the ability to apply the technology that they have
Soft power
Ability to influence others through non-coercive means
Includes cultural influence, language, music etc
The power of persuasion
Political decisions appear positively on the world stage and there are good perceptions
A large part of soft power is performative
Engaging in the world stage occurs because they know it will look good for them
Informational power
The ability to control, manipulate and strategically use information to influence international relations and achieve its foreign policy objectives including:
Media influence: what the media narratives are both at home and abroad
States with stronger influence cna make trends and have a larger reach
War on free speech
Informational warfare (propaganda, disinformation): The deliberate dissemination of propaganda and disinformation can be used to manipulate perceptions, create confusion and influence decision-making processes in other nations
Uses information as a tool in conflicts
The war on truth
The biggest challenge is getting reliable information for the country. During times of war the first causality is the truth
Deceit as a system
Phrase implies a systematic environment of dishonesty where truth is suppressed or distorted by those in power or by widespread societal practices
Cyber capabilities
Ability to conduct cyber operations, including cyber espionage, hacking and other forms fo cyber warfare. Contributes to informational power. Cyber capabilities can be used to gether intelligence, disrupt adversaries communication networks and influence public discourse
PR/ crisis communications
How a state communicates during crises such as natural disasters, pandemics, impacts on informational power
Transpoaent and effective crisis communication can enhance power and how countries view the country
Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth…sooner or later that debt will be paid
Whos truth will be silenced
Week 10: Boarders and bodies
Borders defined
A border is a natural or artificial line that demarcates (separates) two or more geographical areas - Eg. two or more countries, provinces, cities, towns, regions - from one another
Borders are geopolitico-legal concepts
Codified in legal documents (Eg. treaty of Zuhab, treaty of erzurum, constantinople protocol)
Incalculable number of borders and bordering strategies, each with their own unique histories and rationales
People can have a say in the consolidation of borders but they also may not have any say
Swiss glaciers
Natural watershed which traditionally defines the boundary in high altitude areas has shifted the ice retreats requiring that maps of the border be redrawn
Natural boarders
Physical geographical creatures such as rivers, mountains and coastlines that serve as natural boundaries between states
Border between france and spain following the crest of the pyrenees mountains
Partially border between us and mexico following rio grande
Historically nature was the leading way for separating (bordering) people and place (following gods hand)
Political consequences when natural borders are themselves natural resources that intersect wth multiple countries
Flaws fo natural borders
Relying on physical geography was thought to reduce the likelihood of disputes over the exact location of the border
Natural borders = flawed due to natural changes
Mountains are deserts are usually solid through ages
Lakes and rivers and now forests tend to change and disappear causign disputes over the land and where the borders li
Rising global temperatures = increased evaporation
Higher temperatures and glaciers
Rivers loosing water sources
Makes them an unreliable tool for demarcation in the long term
The nile more than a river in egypt
Runs through 11 countries with competing claims
Borders of south sudan, sudan-egypt ,sudan ethiopia
The shifting river changes where the broder is
The movement of the river, it changes wehree villages, farms and infrastructure are
Control over the river banks = control over resources and who has a claim to those resources
Artificial borders
Man made structures like walls and fences, established through agreements, treaties, or historical events (colonial expansion and empire building)
Serve to define the territorial extent of a political entity - ie to outline the area that a particular governing body controls
Government region can only create and enforce laws within its borders
Always ever political
Created by people in power for the purpose of defining the extent of their power to maximize spatial control
Political borders produce and or reflect encompass cultural, linguistic and economic distinctions that shape the identities of communities on either side
Borders are geographical expressions of political power
Richard Hartshorn (political geographer)
When borders are redrawn
Following
War (through treaties or armisice/ceasefire)
Declarations of independence
conquest/colonization and annexation
Examples
Yugoslav wars from 1991 -1995 prompted the dissolution of yugoslavia and emergence of 7 countries
Slovenia, croatia, bosnia, herzegovina, serbia, montenegro, north macedonia, kosovo)
1967 6 day war
When isreal captured the west bank, gaza, golan heights, sinai peninsula
Withdrew following the yom kippur war - dramatically redrawing regional borders
Russian 60 year conquest of serbia
Nepoleonic wars - creating new borders and rearranging territories to balance power among the victorious european powers
Temporary borders
Short lived
Outlinesd as such from the outset as transitional borders, ceasefire lines/armistice lines
Borders established as temporary measures to halt conflicts rather than permanent boundaries
Ex. the green line (isreal-palestine), the line of control (india-pakistan) - this was US provision
Dissolved
Temporary administrative line between north and south vietnam
Dissolved following unification
Koreas Demilitarized zone (DMZ) - intended to me temporary
EXAM QUESTION
Are the demilitarized zones actually without military - ANSWER NO
Borders redrawn following unification
WILL BE EXAMPLE ON EXAM
VIETNAM AND SOUTH VIETNAM - dissolved the border following the unification
NORTH AND SOUTH YEMEN
Borders are erased following the reunification of the places
% of borders created by european powers
50-60% of borders
Colonial drawn borders
Drawn arbitrarily without consideration for or little regard for pre-existing political, cultural or ethnic boundaries
Epitomized through the strategy of: Divide and conquer
Colonial powers carved up territories into smaller administrative units for easier control, resulting in the creation of new borders that partitioned indigenous land and communities
Process contributed to the creation of artificial states with diverse ethnic, linquistic and cultural populations
These divisions exacerbated existing intra and inter-ethnic thensions
Saw the people of other lands as resources to be extracted
Borders are beign drawn to service the colonial powers who didnt care about the lives of those who lived there
Such as the border by dutch
EXAM QUSTION
How was broder of uganda and kongo? drawn
The answer is PISS ON THE GROUND or urinate on the ground
Look for piss related one
Video on border
Hard to cross
Crossed thrgouh families because of they way that they drew the border
Indian border with pakistan
Emphasis on the emotional and psychological effects of the borders
Psychological effects of borders and their aftermath: Berlin wall
The berlin wall = concrete barrier that encircled west berlin of the federal republic of german from 1961 - 1989 separating it from east berlin and the german democratic republic
Primary intention was to prevent east germans from fleeing to the west
After erected in 1961, east german citizens began displaying some combination of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and paranoia
East germans named the condition mauerkrankheit or wall disease
Prompted a feelign of narrowness because it was seen from everywhere
Today the wall disease is called die mauer in den kopfen or the wall in the head
Palestine
Checkpoints are randomly applied and impossible to anticipate and plan around (traveling while palestinian)
Traveling while black, trans, muslim
People never know how long it will take to get somewhere and plan their day which limits their choice
People may not want to cross borders
Developmental stage of children learning that they have no control over their own body
US mexico border wall
Impacts on wildlife
Borders moving inwards video
Investment in ice bringing the borders inwards
Noise politician in the DMZ
Takes a toll on the villagers living near the border in south and north korean borders
Map of america before and after the mexican american war
Closed borders
One that prevents the movement of people between jurisdictions with limited or no exceptions associated with the movement
Fortified with fences or walls
Can be opened for certain reasons
Humanitarian
Rafah crossing of egypt and gaza opens for evacuations and medical aid
Religious
India pakistan allowing for the corridor for Sikh pilgrims to visit holy sites around them
Open borders
Between two regions where there are minimal or no restrictions over the movement of people, goods and services
Enables free movement of people and Goods between jurisdictions
No need to stop for inspection or passport verification
Prime example = Schengen area
26 European countries that have officially abolished the border controls at their mutual borders
5 countries do require them
Mutual trust and shared values
Why have open borders
Cultural and social exchange
Allow free travel between countries
Tourism and travel
Allow easier tourism
Many of the countries are tourism dependent and make debts racked up in independence era
Regional integration and cooperation
Deepen political and economic ties
Humanitarian considerations
Provide refuge and help those fleeing conflict
Do countries have a responsibility to open their borders to countries they have historically colonized or drawn borders for?
Week 11: Borders and bodies continued
Two central reasons why borders are open
Open due to legislation/legal design (laws, treaties)
Typically for the purpose of economic and social integration (Schengen zone, common travel area, india nepal border)
Open due to lack of legislation (in many cases exacerbated by geography)
Absence of legal controls, inadequate enforcement supervision of border
Ex. Sahel region (massive desert with no border fences, few patrols and old caravan routes)
Afghanistan - pakistan (durand line) → borders highly porous due to mountain passes and poor supervision
Bolivia-brazil → long and underpoliced amazonian border open because of geography and weak oversight
Issues cause conflict can move quickly
Porous borders
State boundaries that allow people, goods and or information to move across them with relative ease due to weak regulation, limited surveillance, geographic openness, or intentional political arrangements
Virtual and smart borders
Intensification of borders and the violence at borders
Refer to border management systems that use advanced technologt, data analytics and automated processes to screen, sort, and regulate people before they travel
Stated goal = to enhance public safety via border security, efficiency via streamlined border crossings for trade and travel
Operate beyond physical territory - not at a physical line on a map but enforced/preserved through digital space ( data bases, watchlists, algorithmic profiling and document systems) are invisible to travelers but exist before some one arrives at a physical checkpoint
The border is attached to individuals not following the territory
Borders follows you (travels with you)! They attach to the person and not the territory in 3 ways
Shifting
Expanding
Externalize
Shifting of virtual borders
From territorial edge to wherever the state can access your data
Screening before travel happens, at the visa office, in airline databases, or even during online ticket purchasing
Already bordered before you arrive at an airport through
No-fly list, passenger protection program
Visa algorithms - background checks
Advanced passenger information/passenger name record data; airlines must send your data to countries before you even get there
Carrier sanctions - if they allow soneone in to the us they get a fine
Border shifts fro the checkpoint to the digital systems that preevaluate you before you reach a country
Expanding of virtual borders
Borders multiply into many layers of checking, logging and verifying
Instead of one border processing you now face
Visa checks, biometric scans, watchlist screening, airline risk assessments, metadata surveillance, internal policing in immigration databases
Borders expand across time and space creating a chain of borders instead of a single line
Biometric identification is collected in every entry (fingerprints etc)
Turns the body into a passport and the border becomes digital and biometric
Esta pre-travel approval becomes its own border + completing immigration declaration
The border expands into multiple micro-borders integrated throughout your mobility
Externalization of virtual borders
Borders are being pushed outwards - onto foreign airlines, airport and countries
States push their border controls far outside their territory to stop unwanted travelers before they can get close
Pre-clearing facilities - crossing the us border in pearson airport
Carrier sanctions
When did the world decide borders needed to be high tech, monitored and pre-emptive?
911
9/11 transformed borders
US argued that “terrorists were already inside” (traditional borders had failed
Introduced enormous pressure to build a new set of borders that functioned remotely, digitally and pre-emptively
The logic: never again allow dangerous individuals to enter or move within national space
Borders shifted from edge of country to
Airports, airline reservation systems, visa-processing, biometric databases, terrorist watchlist, passenger risk scoring systems
9/11 as the catalyst for the securitization of mobility
Critical border theory argues that 9/11:
Repositioned mobility as a global security threat
Justified the expansion of border practices away from territorial edges
Enabled states to build databases, biometrics and algorithmic categories of risky travelers
Border becomes
De-territorialized
Re-territorialized
In airports in databased
Re-personalized
Attached to the body and the body becomes the passport
Temporal
What is the purpose of borders?
Territorial function - help countries delineate what is and is not theirs
What they have the right to lay claim over
Tool to perform for the exterior (communicate strength and dominance); appease the interior (tough on migration is a popular issue)
Tool to ensure entire cultures/populations, cartographic erasure (Ahwazi people)
Tool to display security - meant to provide a barrier against to/from/against unwanted activity
Mechanism to govern from a far
2021 the EU dedicated border agency was accused of training and equipping the Libyan coast guard as a proxy border force, dedicated to ensuring that migrants crossing the Mediterranean were returned to africa
US border patrol operates and southern border with mexico and beyond in guatemala
Site experiments - military tech → border tested/perfected → domestic policing → everyday life/consumer products
Surveillance and identification technologies tested at borders
Tested at border checkpoints: Biometrics (finger print, facial recognition, iris scan)
First introduced as tools to identify migrants and asylum seekers (EURODAC in Europe, US-VISIT at American airports)
Took off in the EU in 2000s
In 2010 they used it at airports, city policing, retail security
2017 on was used as face ide in everyday consumer products
Now domestic → used in police stations, airports for citizens, welfare offices and even smart phones
Tested at borders: Drones (UAVs) to track and monitor civilians
First at US-mexico border surveillance (predator drones), mediterranean sea monitoring
2004 was deployed along us mexico border
2010s the EU used them in mediterranean
US departments started to use them for crowd monitoring
2020 expanded to wildfire, traffic, municipal policing
Now: police crowd control, disaster response, routine surveillance of protests
Tested at borders: risk profiling tools
Passenger name records systems - meant to conduct predictive analyses of profiling “risky travelers” using algorithms to store analytics on shared databases
2001 post 911
2010s started to use for predictive and hotspot policing for domestic populations
Determining high crime areas
Now domestic: applied in policing programs to find crime hotspots and can map and predict these things
Tested at borders: infrastructure and policing practices and checkpoints + ID checks
Checkpoints and ID checks
First at borders: routine part of passport control
Now domestic: internal checkpoints stop and search and police papers please encounters
Licence plate readers
First at borders: used at crossing points to track vehicles
1990s was used to counter smuggling
2010s police cars and city cameras, parking enforcement and repossession companies
Now domestic: mounted on police cars, parking enforcement vehicles and private repossession companies
Tested at borders: crossover tech
Body scanners and backscatter x-rays
First at borders: post 9/11 airport security for weapon detection
Now domestic: used in prisons, courthouses, sporting venues
RFID chips and biometric passports
First at borders: e-passports to speed crossings
Passports with chips
Now domestic: in workplace ids, libraries, tolls
2020s in payment cards, key fobs → everyday consumer uses
Now: smaller variants in security architecture (VIP event scanning)
Migratory path of tech
Military tech → border patrol → domestic policing → everyday life for consumer products
Gamification strategies in Israel started at border checkpoints
Apps which track military units using the tool of capturing faces of palestinians
Have leaderboards and the more captures the higher your score is
Why study borders
Essential feature of geopolitical landscape
Borders have been a source of contention and site of conflict
No sign of disappearing - world is being calcified (hardening)
Costly to construct
2.23km (1 mile) is 500 million dollars
Linked with national identity - walls appeal to voter bases who want to see strength of frontiers
Borders are symbolic - two attempts to have fragments of it designated as national monuments of special cultural significance
2017 there was swiss artist who proposed that the wall prototypes be preserved as art
2021 there was republican representative who drafted a bill for the wall to be made a national monument
Ethical considerations of virtual borders
Should the governments have the access to share the information domestically and internationally